Book Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.Download Description
Connie was now a thin, pale, delicate-looking--not handsome, but lovely girl. Her eyes, some people said, were too big for her face; but that seemed to me no more to the discredit of her beauty than it would have been a reproach to say that her soul was too big for her body. She had been early ripened by the hot sun of suffering, and the self-restraint which pain had taught her. Patience had mossed her over and made her warm and soft and sweet. ... Read more

Book Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Book Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.Download Description
Ah, Mr. Wingfold! what if, after all the discoveries made, and all the theories set up and pulled down, amid all the commonplaces men call common sense, notwithstanding all the over-powering and excluding self-assertion of things that are seen, ever crying, 'Here we are, and save us there is nothing: the Unseen is the Unreal!'--what if, I say, notwithstanding all this, it should yet be that the strongest weapon a man can wield is prayer to one who made him! ... Read more

Book Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Book Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.Download Description
Ah, God! The World Needs Many Hours To Make; Nor Hast Thou Ceased The Making Of It Yet, But Wilt Be Working On When Death Hath Set A New Mound In Some Churchyard For My Sake. On Flow The Centuries Without A Break. Uprise The Mountains, Ages Without Let. ... Read more

Book Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.Download Description
We now come to Dr. John Donne, a man of justly great respect and authority, who, born in the year 1573, the fifteenth of Queen Elizabeth, died Dean of St. Paul's in the year 1636. But, although even Ben Jonson addresses him as "the delight of Phoebus and each Muse," we are too far beyond the power of his social presence and the influence of his public utterances to feel that admiration of his poems which was so largely expressed during his lifetime. ... Read more

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This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Book Description
In this collection selected by C. S. Lewis are 365 selections from MacDonalds inspiring and challenging writings. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (18)

Extreme, complex, multi-faceted ... wisdom in sound bites
No wonder CS was drawn to this man's writing! Lewis sorts through MacDonald's body of work to get to real nuggets.

MacDonald packs more theological mind-fodder in one or two sentences than most can pack in a book. There are sound bites that will occupy your thoughts all day.

Excellent, Short Devotionals
George MacDonald has a lot of spiritual wisdom; I love short little tidbits of his thinking that I myself can think on.If you like MacDonald (or Lewis) and his books, especially the spiritual aspect, you will love these quotes.

Star Pupil Lewis re-introduces his master in "George MacDonald"
In CS Lewis' 1945 novel, "The Great Divorce," 19th century fantasy poet/pastor George MacDonald guides Lewis' narrarator on passages between hell (the joyless, fearful "grey city") and heaven. The narrator (by extension, Lewis himself) acknowledges MacDonald's life influence from when, at 16, the then-agnostic Lewis read MacDonald's "Phantasies" and concluded: "Here begins the new life."

MacDonald's influence reaches past Lewis to forebears Lewis Carroll (whom MacDonald mentored through Carroll's writing/publishing "Alice in Wonderland"), James Barrie, and GK Chesterton. Barrie and Chesterton helped co-chair MacDonald's centenary celebration in 1924, and Chesterton later called MacDonald "one of the three or four greatest men of 19th century Britain."

No wonder Lewis prefaces his anthology of MacDonald quotes by calling its compilation "discharging a debt of justice." MacDonald, overlooked in a fantasy literature timeline stretching from Lewis and fellow Inkling J.R.R. Tolkein to J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter, shows his wisdom through365 excerpts from his poems, sermons, and short stories. Each is less than a page-long for easy daily reading.

Referring continually to Lewis' introduction helps while reading hisMacDonald selections. Lewis writes, "Nowhere else outside the New Testament have I found terror and comfort so intertwined." It guidesMacDonald images of the Good Shepherd's sharp-toothed sheepdogs tracking and returning sinners (quote 149), or being told in bereavement "you must be made miserable that you may wake from your sleep to know that you need God." (quote 223, from a man who lost a wife and daughter during his life). Even misplaced daily items are God's blessing against materialism (81). Lewis built his "Screwtape Letters" concept near completely around quotes 245-247.

"George MacDonald" rewards those consistently referencing it. It captures not only MacDonald's freedom from his Calvinist upbringing, but does so though powerful images of Father and Son, Christ and His faithful. It straddles God's demanding "the last farthing" against sin to man's ability to deny self (159, 300) and see that self as God does (208, 243) before we see Him for what He is. Fear and shame, to MacDonald, are undesirable but acceptable introductions (349, 214, 242), until we know, accept, and obey that deeper love (208, 243).

These are excerpts, nothing more. Even praising MacDonald's vision Lewis admits, "If I were to deal with him as a writer...certainly MacDonald has no place in its first rank - perhaps not even in its second." Indeed, many MacDonald inspired (again, Lewis' beloved "Narnia" series) wouldtake his approach to fantasy as a window into human behavior to wildly popular heights a century after his death. "George MacDonald" is neither biography nor full appreciation. But it reintroduces a key 19th literary/spiritual figure through his star pupil, and is recommended for fans of Lewis and of Christian fiction.

Roots
Always interesting to discover the roots of an author's world.

(By the way, Amazon's packaging/quality is 5*.)

I guess I just don't like anthologies
This is probably the only book written by C.S. Lewis that I will give less that 4 stars. I think it's great that he wanted to have an anthology of George Macdonald, but it just didn't work. Don't get me wrong, the quotes are great, but it just doesn't really give you an idea of who Goerge MacDonald is, and what his writing is like. Nearly all of the quotations are from his book of sermons, which is not one of his most popular works. If you have heard of George MacDonald and want to check him out, I would reccomend just jumping straight into The Princess and the Goblin or one of his other works. This just isn't the "usual" George MacDonald, and you don't get much of a hint as to what his "fantasies," which are what he is famous for, are like. ... Read more

Book Description
In this extensive biography, Michael Phillips paints a revealing portrait of George MacDonald. Phillips uses the facts of MacDonald's life to shape a picture of the man, set against the Scottish land he loved. Looking at both his strengths and shortcomings, Phillips does not shy away from the issues that made MacDonald a controversial figure during his life and beyond. Previously out of print, this work will be welcomed by all who have come to love the Scottish storyteller's novels and his view of God as Father. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Despite challenges and controversy, a noble life emerges
Meet the man that C. S. Lewis and now Michael Phillips call their mentor.If you're wondering why you should take the time to become acquainted with a Scottish preacher, poet and novelist, perhaps the greatest endorsement of MacDonald comes from Lewis.Lewis expressed the thought that though MacDonald was not error-free, he knew of no writer who was so continually close to the Spirit of Christ.In his presentation of MacDonald's faith, Phillips makes the words of Lewis ring true.

Some of MacDonald's ideas are controversial but much of his thought gets at the core of what it means to follow Christ.His mystical side, which could see the hand of God in all of nature, and his emphasis on doing all that Christ said, remind one of St. Francis of Assisi.

MacDonald was a multi-faceted character and Phillips does a masterful job of fleshing out the person.Particularly fascinating is the glimpse we get of MacDonald's inward struggle to discover what God was really like.He had a difficult time reconciling God's nature with the stern Calvinism of his day that could leave a child in tears for failing to adequately learn his or her lessons about God.You see in his journey what led him toward the thought of universal redemption, an idea that circulated during his time.

MacDonald saw that for some Christians, hell was the greatest reality.But how does one reconcile the idea of eternal punishment for sin with a God that MacDonald came to believe was good and loving.His mystical side believed that even as the sun melts the snow; sin, death and even hell itself would eventually give way before the love of God.

One cannot help but be sympathetic, as Phillips is, to this remarkable account of one man's attempt to reconcile apparent opposing realities.On the other hand, some of his views are a little confusing and appear to contradict Scripture.

Those like MacDonald, who believe in a universal redemption, view the idea that some are lost forever as a defeat of God's ultimate plan and intention.They might say that to see it otherwise makes our sense of justice higher than God's.I don't think it necessarily follows that God has suffered a defeat because some are lost.God clearly states through the prophet Isaiah that we cannot fully fathom His thoughts and ways.We don't want to make the mistake of pronouncing as one thing what God sees as something else. We often see the death of a Christian as tragic, but for God it is something that is precious in His sight.

Our finite minds cannot always reconcile what seems to us contradictory.For example, many have tried to do that with the ideas of predestination and choice.That attempt has been a cause of error and a source of disagreement among Christians.On this particular issue, as in others, wisdom is found in acknowledging all that the Bible teaches while recognizing that from God's perspective, there is harmony.

Phillips portrays MacDonald as a seeker after the truth, and he does an excellent job of showing us where MacDonald's search led him.But it's still hard to understand how he could embrace the idea of universal redemption, when it's not clearly taught in Scripture. There's much more to MacDonald than this particular issue, but this book serves as a fascinating study of it.

I now understand why a Calvinist, one who among other things believes in a limited atonement--Christ died only for the elect, would want nothing to do with MacDonald.It's interesting to note that Calvinism is reportedly making a comeback today among the young.It's not the strict Calvinism of MacDonald's time, but the essential doctrines are the same.That Calvinism would begin to experience a renewal of sorts shows that a divide remains between Christians when it comes to the finer points of doctrine.

Whether it is in relation to disagreements, or one's views in general, some people make themselves almost despicable through their pettiness.MacDonald was the exact opposite.He was exceedingly broad-minded, a noble soul that inspired and elevated those he touched through his life and writings.He was, as he came to be known by friends, Mr. Greatheart of The Pilgrim's Progress.His thoughts were often grand, original and challenging.

We are the richer for this insightful glimpse into the heart of the man.I can't imagine a better book on MacDonald's inward journey, and I can't escape the conclusion that he was a strong believer in Christ.The majority of his thought is profound and valuable to any Christian.It's amazing to see how widely he is read and quoted even today.

Originally published in 1987, this revised and updated edition commemorates the 100th anniversary of MacDonald's death.It starts off slow because of the abundance of background information, but it's a great read for those who want to get to know a life that despite challenges and controversy was exceptionally noble.

A Masterful Work
Truly great writers oft are known to have troubled, tragic, or challenging lives. George MacDonald certainly walked a mile or two in everykind of worldly storm -- his theological beliefs, particularly, rocked the religious boat in his day. Independent thought, however, is the first of those characteristics which mark the great writers. Of course, it takes one to know one, and in this case Michael Phillips has certainly gotten to know his subject and proven himself the scholar capable of penning such a tremendous biography. George MacDonald: A Biography of Scotland's Beloved Storyteller, is a masterful piece of work. Phillips paints the whole portrait, not merely the man, but the man in his relationships personal, public, and professional with those around him. We get to know his family, and it sometimes seems as if Phillips stepped back in time and walked along with MacDonald, across the Scottish highlands, along the English and Mediterranian shores, and down the streets of MacDonald's very boyhood.

I am somewhat saddened that the works of George MacDonald were introduced to me as a young reader. Certainly his voice and his spiritual convictions that ingrained themselves so deeply, and positively, in the lives of the men and women of his generation could be the healing balm, or perhaps the catalyst for change, for this modern generation. Phillips shows us of MacDonald as man, as preacher, as scholar, as awestruck child of a living and powerful God who, despite the trials of life and the naysayers, persevered. I am happy, however, that introduction has finally been made, and I can think of no one better chosen for the task.

Michael Phillips' writing talent shines through in this rich and inspiring work. Readers will come away with the desire to know more of Mr. MacDonald's work -- not to mention wanting to read more of Mr. Phillips' other works as well. ... Read more