Brilliant as always. Reminds me of how my early childhood knowledge of my mom's Stephen King fandom was probably the single biggest determining factor in my becoming a King fan.
In “Surprised by Joy,” C.S. Lewis talks about being a child and reading books that make you feel like someone else has looked into you and seen something that you didn’t have words for and given that part of you exactly what it wanted. And about the rare feeling of finding someone else who has that same thing inside them and understands what you love without needing it explained.
What a beautiful essay, and what a powerful moment, to have your mom share the books she had loved with you, and to discover that you didn’t need to be ashamed of loving them too.
My uncle gave me my copies of the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings in a boxed set. He was recovering from knee surgery at our house one summer when I was about ten. We got to talking about books and I mentioned that I was interested in the Hobbit and Tolkien. And six months later, for Christmas, there was the boxed set, from him to me. Thank you for reminding me of this memory!
Man Edward...Other than being very moved by the pain in your article I have to admit I have a deep connection to your formative year experience.
Reading your story and then reflecting on my own upbringing kind of makes me with I could write to Tolkien and thank him.
I would thank him for disguising pure truth and goodness so cleverly under the umbrella of Christian/Catholic themes that he tricked both our parents into handing LOTR to us.
For me too, LOTR was one of the first glimpses of light when all other lights had gone out.
It’s quite unprofessional, but I would love to ask you for a longer conversation about the similarities of our formative year experiences...
...now here is an idea. I wouldn’t mind letting the discussion play out on Substack in the view of other readers, perhaps it would produce more content for your subsequent essays. Let me know!
Brilliant as always. Reminds me of how my early childhood knowledge of my mom's Stephen King fandom was probably the single biggest determining factor in my becoming a King fan.
Can’t wait for the next essay in the series.
In “Surprised by Joy,” C.S. Lewis talks about being a child and reading books that make you feel like someone else has looked into you and seen something that you didn’t have words for and given that part of you exactly what it wanted. And about the rare feeling of finding someone else who has that same thing inside them and understands what you love without needing it explained.
The Secret Garden does that for me.
What a beautiful essay, and what a powerful moment, to have your mom share the books she had loved with you, and to discover that you didn’t need to be ashamed of loving them too.
My uncle gave me my copies of the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings in a boxed set. He was recovering from knee surgery at our house one summer when I was about ten. We got to talking about books and I mentioned that I was interested in the Hobbit and Tolkien. And six months later, for Christmas, there was the boxed set, from him to me. Thank you for reminding me of this memory!
Man Edward...Other than being very moved by the pain in your article I have to admit I have a deep connection to your formative year experience.
Reading your story and then reflecting on my own upbringing kind of makes me with I could write to Tolkien and thank him.
I would thank him for disguising pure truth and goodness so cleverly under the umbrella of Christian/Catholic themes that he tricked both our parents into handing LOTR to us.
For me too, LOTR was one of the first glimpses of light when all other lights had gone out.
It’s quite unprofessional, but I would love to ask you for a longer conversation about the similarities of our formative year experiences...
...now here is an idea. I wouldn’t mind letting the discussion play out on Substack in the view of other readers, perhaps it would produce more content for your subsequent essays. Let me know!
Thanks for the read and the kind words.
And, yeah, I'd be down for that. I think a discussion over substack could be pretty cool. Feel free to send me an email at ejrathke at gmail.
This was a lovely read. The LotR holds a special place in many young readers’ hearts—what a legacy!
(Also, I just bought Glossolalia, but it’s a month long wait before it reaches me!)
Wow, a month! Thanks for checking it out and hopefully you enjoy it!
Ha, yes. I did not want the kindle edition, I prefer the physical book, so gotta wait! :D
Wow. This is a great post. This is one of the best essays I’ve read about a book or books on substack. Thanks for sharing
Thanks for the kind words! I really should write the next piece in the series and this is pretty good motivation
That old cover art though :)
Your mom--I've always found it very hard to talk about books that mean a lot to me.
amazing essay
This is a lovely essay. Thank you for sharing!