Vote for your favorite CW book!

Posted on 19 February 2016 by Sørina Higgins

Here is a poll to determine which of CW’s many works in a variety of genres is currently his most popular. It follows the order I discussed in my “Reader’s Guide for Beginners.” If you have only read one of his works and liked it, feel free to vote for that one. Please vote and then share this poll with everyone you know who may have read something by CW! It’s only open for a week, so please vote soon. Thank you.
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About Sørina Higgins

Dr. Sørina Higgins is an editor, writer, English teacher, public speaker, blogger, podcaster, and scholar of British modernist literature. She once founded and ran a University Press and has served as a writing tutor and consultant for everything from doctoral dissertations to a Jungian dream-journal. Her academic work focuses on Charles Williams (The Oddest Inkling) and magic in modern drama. She is currently revising a volume of short stories, Shall these Bones Breathe?, and previously published two books of poetry: Caduceus & The Significance of Swans. You can hire Sørina to edit your work, guide you through elements of creative or academic writing, teach courses on literature and writing, or speak to your group about any of these topics. Visit https://wyrdhoard.com/about/sorina-higgins/.
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19 Responses to Vote for your favorite CW book!

  1. Brenton Dickieson says:
    19 February 2016 at 14:43

    I was tempted to say, “Chapel of the Thorn.” But, truly, it was Descent Into Hell.

    Liked by 1 person

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  2. Charles Huttar says:
    19 February 2016 at 20:07

    Sorry, Sorina. I’m just not one who thinks in terms of favorites. As to CW’s works, I don’t think I ever met one I didn’t like.

    CAH

    On Fri, Feb 19, 2016 at 12:03 PM, The Oddest Inkling wrote:

    > Sørina Higgins posted: “Here is a poll to determine which of CW’s many > works in a variety of genres is currently his most popular. It follows the > order I discussed in my “Reader’s Guide for Beginners.” If you have only > read one of his works and liked it, feel free to vote for th” >

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  3. Dr. Nancy Topolewski says:
    20 February 2016 at 11:53

    A difficult choice to make! If I really had to choose, based on the number of times I’ve read the book, “The Descent of the Dove” comes in first. It was the first CW book I ever read, and it started me on the road to reading everything he wrote, ultimately doing my Ph.D. work on his theology of the doctrine of the atonement. “War in Heaven” comes in a close second, as the first of the novels I read. BTW, the spelling of the title of the third book from the bottom is “To Michal from Serge.” The letters were to Florence “Michal” Williams, not to their son Michael. Confusing, like so much of CW’s family life.

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    • Sørina Higgins says:
      20 February 2016 at 16:18

      Where did you do your PhD? I’d love to hear more about it!

      Thanks for catching the typo. Sadly, I don’t think this poll will allow editing now that it’s live. Shame.

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    • David Llewellyn Dodds says:
      20 February 2016 at 18:12

      Maybe something those responding could comment on: any correlation between ‘first’ and ‘favo(u)rite’?

      Perhaps not unlike Charles Huttar, I do not know if I can/could easily choose a ‘fave’, but War in Heaven was my first full C.W. book, and I’m glad it was, and I do love it – and simply enjoy it – probably more ‘immediately’ than various other works (and recommend it as one to try first). My first C.W. experience was of all the quotations and references in Dorothy L.Sayers’ Inferno translation – and I do love and admire The Figure of Beatrice – though when I next encountered C.W., as Arthurian poet, I did not immediately remember that I knew him from DLS-Dante. And, again, I do come back to the late poetry – though not simply enjoying all of it equally. Was Thomas Cranmer of Canterbury my first C.W. play? I’m not sure, off the top of my head, but it is something I come back to frequently, one way and another, and probably enjoy more ‘immediately’ than any of the others.

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      • segphault says:
        23 February 2016 at 19:52

        The Greater Trumps was my first CW novel, so it does carry a special place in my heart. But I have to say that The Place of the Lion is unquestionably my favorite. No correlation here. 🙂

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    • David Llewellyn Dodds says:
      22 February 2016 at 00:05

      Shifting evaluations or savors is another interesting topic. For instance, John Wain told me (I think perhaps in the early 1990s) that when he had recently tried rereading the late poetry, he found it dead on the page ( a sad change!). For a different example, in the last couple years, I have come both to admire and enjoy The Place of the Lion than I ever had before.

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  4. unknowing says:
    21 February 2016 at 17:04

    I am surprised All Hallow’s Eve is so far down.

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  5. Suzannah says:
    21 February 2016 at 22:05

    All Hallows’ Eve! Though I really should put in a word for Witchcraft, The Book That Actually Made Me Feel Good About Salem.

    Who’d have thought it?

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  8. Steve says:
    5 March 2016 at 22:27

    My favourite was The place of the lion, followed closely by War in heaven and The Greater Trumps. I find it very difficult to choose between those three.

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    • David Llewellyn Dodds says:
      6 March 2016 at 19:20

      I find myself coming closer to a ‘trilemma’ about these in the last couple years (with, maybe, the addition of treating War in Heaven and Many Dimensions as a ‘dilogy’).

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