Tales Before Narnia: The Roots of Modern Fantasy and Science Fiction (Book Review‪)‬

TALES BEFORE NARNIA: THE ROOTS OF MODERN FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION. Ed. Douglas A. Anderson. New York: Del Rey, 2008. xi + 339 pp. Trade Paperback. $15. 00. ISBN 978-0-345-49890-8. FOLLOWING IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF TALES BEFORE TOLKIEN [2003] (1)--an admirable collection which brought together stories by writers who had influenced Tolkien, or whom he admired, or who anticipated his work in some way--Tales Before Narnia casts similar light on the antecedents of C. S. Lewis's creative work. The focus here is more narrowly drawn, with Lewis's specific connection with each of these twenty items carefully laid out in the headnote to each individual poem or tale. Despite the title, it must be stressed that this book is not limited to Narnia, or even Narnia-centric, but (as the Introduction clearly sets out) includes works relevant to the whole of Lewis's fiction, which Anderson interprets broadly to include fourteen of Lewis's books, from The Pilgrim's Regress and the space trilogy to Till We Have Faces, The Great Divorce, and even The Screwtape Letters.