calonlan Wrote:
Clark's habit of voracious reading
> begun in his youth never abated. Even as you
> will not find mention of John MacDonald's "Lilith"
> et al, so you will not find mention of Tolkien in
> his correspondence - mainly because those with
> whom he corresponded did not read as widely as he,
> and he was very well aware of their tastes and
> passions so would not bring up matters that might
> embarass his friend or colleague by revealing a
> lack of wareness.
Did CAS read George MacDonald's
Lilith? What a very great work of fantasy that is. I imagine, if CAS did read it, that he relished -- as I do -- the grotesque and sardonic comedy of the scene with the skeletons in Chapter 17 (but I'm not sure how well that would read, in isolation from what preceded it).
Here's a link to a bunch of study-guide notes on the book, which I wrote, many years ago, for a course in which
Lilith was one of the required texts. I'm not acquainted with the site, which apparently preserved my notes before they disappeared from their previous location.
[
lucinda-chatnoir.blogspot.com]
I believe that HPL read
Lilith. He expressed approval of the first version (there were about five), which I don't think was actually available in his lifetime; I think it was just a paraphrase-summary of it that was, produced by one of MacDonald's sons. However, the remarkable small publisher Johannesen issued the first and final drafts in a one-volume edition that might be available in used copies. Johannesen really was/is a family business, making their books by hand, with sturdy bindings and sewn signatures. I don't know if anyone else has published the complete first version of
Lilith.
[
www.johannesen.com]