It is 1940, and American Tom McCord, a 23-year-old graduate student, is in England researching the historical evidence for the legendary King Arthur. There he meets perky and intuitive Laura Hartman, a fellow American staying with her aunt in Oxford, and the two of them team up for an even more ambitious and dangerous quest. Aided by the Inklings - that illustrious circle of scholars and writers made famous by its two most prolific members, C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien - Tom and Laura begin to suspect that the fabled Spear of Destiny, the lance that pierced the side of Christ on the Cross, is hidden somewhere in England.

Praise for Into the Wardrobe

"[Into the Wardrobe] will be best enjoyed by fans who have read the entire series, but those who haven't may be so impressed by Downing's exploration of Lewis's deep and sophisticated imagination that they will sneak 'into the wardrobe' and devour the Chronicles for themselves."
--Publishers Weekly

"Everyone who has enjoyed the Chronicles of Narnia and anyone who is interested in the writings of C.S. Lewis must read this excellent work?Downing helps the reader understand how the Chronicles reflect not only Lewis's towering intellect, but also his strong faith and his sensitive heart."
--Armand Nicholi, M.D., author, The Question of God: C. S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud Debate God, Love, Sex, and the Meaning of Life

"Like his previous studies of Lewis's life and writings, Into the Wardrobe proves again that Downing is a master at weaving essential facts and fresh insights into a smooth narrative?a balanced and satisfying guide for either experienced or first-time readers of Narnia."
--Robert Trexler, editor, CSL: The Bulletin of the New York C. S. Lewis Society

"With lucidity and uncommon good sense, David Downing offers a guide to the Narnia Chronicles that will deepen the reader's appreciation of these perennial favorites while illuminating the origins of Narnia in Lewis's life and work."
--John Wilson, editor, Books & Culture

"What David C. Downing does so well is give us lenses through which Lewis's myriad works come into sharp focus, revealing the convictions, insights, scholarship, experience, and questions that shaped the man who brought us Narnia."
--Jeffrey Overstreet, film critic, Christianity Today andLookingCloser.org

"David Downing's sprightly study of the Narnia Chronicles provides readers with a fresh interpretation of Lewis's children's books?Read and rejoice."
--Ralph C. Wood, University Professor of Theology and Literature, Baylor University, Waco, Texas, and author, The Gospel According to Tolkien: Visions of the Kingdom in Middle-Earth

A South Divided is an account of Southern dissidents in the Civil War, at times labeled as traitors, Tories, deserters, or mossbacks during the war and loyalists, Lincoln loyalists, and Unionists by historians of the war. In recent years there has been an upsurge of interest in Southern dissenters among specific groups or communities. But A South Divided presents a panoramic overview of Southern dissent. What emerges is a complex pattern of dissent involving every state of the Confederacy and every year of the war. All of these people and groups had their part to play in the epic drama that sapped the strength of the Confederacy from within. They were rebels against the rebellion.

C. S. Lewis is generally thought of as a commonsense Christian, one who offers theology that is understandable and morality that is practical. And yet, when writing about Narnia to a class of fifth graders who asked if it were possible to visit Aslan's country, Lewis replied that the only way he knew of was through death but then added this curious qualifier: "Perhaps some very good people get just a tiny glimpse before then." This simple sentence suggests a side of Lewis that most commentators have overlooked. If one takes another look at Lewis, one can find a sense of the mystical all through his writings, from his memoir Surprised by Joy to Perelandra, from his nonfiction essays to his Narnia stories. In this book David C. Downing explores the breadth of Lewis's writing, introducing us to Christian mysticism as Lewis knew it and to the contemplative writers who most influenced him. Though he showed a lifelong interest in mysticism, Lewis was not an uncritical admirer. As Downing highlights, Lewis had areas of concern and points of departure with some mystical thought. Lewis's comments about misguided forms mysticism are especially pertinent in our own era of faddish or eclectic religious thought. Exploring Lewis's sense of the mystical can help us safeguard ourselves from false mysticisms even as it opens the way to a deep and full experience of God's very presence with us. In the end we too may find ourselves drawn--as Lewis put it--"into the region of awe."

Several years before he converted to Christianity, C. S. Lewis published a narrative poem, Dymer, under the pseudonym Clive Hamilton. Later, of course, Lewis became well known for his beloved imaginative stories, such as The Chronicles of Narnia and Till We Have Faces, as well as his ability to defend and articulate the faith in works such as Mere Christianity. But what about his literary work before his conversion? In this Hansen Lectureship volume, Jerry Root contends that Lewis's early poem Dymer can not only shed light on the development of Lewis's literary skills but also offer a glimpse of what was to come in his intellectual and spiritual growth-a "splendour in the dark," to borrow one of Lewis's own lines from the poem. Under Root's careful analysis, Dymer becomes a way to understand both Lewis's change of mind as well as the way in which each of us is led on a journey of faith. This volume also includes the complete text of Dymer with annotations from David C. Downing, co-director of the Marion E. Wade Center. Based on the annual lecture series hosted at Wheaton College's Marion E. Wade Center, volumes in the Hansen Lectureship Series reflect on the imaginative work and lasting influence of seven British authors: Owen Barfield, G. K. Chesterton, C. S. Lewis, George MacDonald, Dorothy L. Sayers, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Charles Williams.