Charles Williams: The Greater Trumps
Bibliography for Rosicrucian Book Salon
December 4, 2004: The Greater Trumps by Charles Williams
Part 1: Selected Works of Charles Williams:
The Seven Novels (annotations adapted from The Charles Williams Society http://www.geocities.com/charles_wms_soc/):
War in Heaven, the first of his novels to be published (in 1930), begins as a detective story (and indeed the investigation of the original murder is going on all through the book). But there turns out to be far more involved than murder - the discovery of the Holy Grail in a country church, the complete disappearance of a London chemist's shop; and the solution of the murder is helped on by Prester John.
Many Dimensions (1931) also involves the reappearance of a long-lost talisman, this time the Stone of Solomon, which turns out to have extraordinary powers over space and time (but using the latter has unexpected results!), as well as powers of healing. The book's climax is a kind of judicial hearing by the Lord Chief Justice on what should be done with this thing; justice and law are prominent themes in the book - which is also both a thriller and at times a satire, as various parties try to get their hands on the Stone.
The Place of the Lion (1931) was instrumental in bringing about the friendship between Williams and C. S. Lewis. It starts with the escape of a lioness from captivity and her mysterious disappearance, and involves the Platonic Archetypes come down from the Divine Mind... It also embodies Williams's teachings about the affirming and denying of images.
The Greater Trumps (1932) has the original set of Tarot cards coming into the possession of an English legal official, with devastating results, of which the threat of a universal snowstorm is only one. Williams's use of symbolism is close to its highest here.
Shadows of Ecstasy, the first novel to be written (though not published till 1933) deals with an invasion of Europe from Africa and a kind of superman who denies that he is Antichrist, but who looks uncommonly like him.
Descent into Hell (1937) is perhaps the most difficult of Williams's novels; through it run themes dear to Williams's heart, like poetry and the "Doctrine of Exchange" - as well as the self-destruction of a human soul.
All Hallows' Eve (1945), the last novel Williams ever wrote, opens with what must be one of the creepiest openings of any book, with a young woman wandering alone through the streets of London, and making a discovery which takes even the reader aback. Preface by T.S. Eliot.
- War in Heaven, Many Dimensions, and Descent into Hell are now available in one volume, A Charles Williams Reader, published in the United States by Eerdmans Publishers (http://www.eerdmans.com/) .
- The Place of the Lion, The Greater Trumps, Shadows of Ecstasy and All Hallows’ Eve have recently been republished by Regent Publishing of Vancouver, Canada (www.regentbookstore.com).
- Arthurian Poetry:
Williams, Charles, 1886-1945. Arthurian Poets: Charles Williams. Woodbridge, Suffolk; Rochester, NY: Boydell Press, 1991. Edited and introduced by David Llewellyn Dodds. Includes: Taliessin through Logres and The Region of the Summer Stars together with the earlier cycle, The Advent of Galahad, and some later, unfinished poems.
___________. Taliessin through Logres [and] The Region of the Summer Stars, by Charles Williams. And Arthurian Torso, by Charles Williams and C. S. Lewis. Grand Rapids, W. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co. 1974. Introd. by Mary McDermott Shideler.
- Selected Theology, History, Literary Works:
Essays Presented to Charles Williams. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1966. Contents: "And telling you a story": a note on The divine comedy, by D. Sayers.--On Fairy-stories, by J. R. R. Tolkien.--On Stories, by C. S. Lewis.--Poetic diction and legal fiction, by A. O. Barfield.--Marriage and Amour courtois in late-fourteenth-century England, by G. Mathew.--The galleys of France, by W. H. Lewis.
Williams, Charles, 1886-1945. Bacon. Norwood, PA: Norwood Editions, 1978.
___________. Collected plays. London, New York: Oxford University Press, 1963.
___________. The Descent of the Dove: a history of the Holy Spirit in the Church. Vancouver: Regent Publishing, 1995. Introd. by W. H. Auden.
___________. The Detective Fiction Reviews of Charles Williams, 1930-1935. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co., 2003. Edited by Jared C. Lobdell.
___________. The English Poetic Mind. New York: Russell & Russell, 1963.
___________. The Figure of Beatrice: a Study in Dante. Woodbridge, Suffolk, UK; Rochester, NY: D.S. Brewer, 1994.
___________. The Forgiveness of Sins. Grand Rapids, Mich. : W.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1984.
___________. He Came Down from Heaven. Grand Rapids, Mich. : W.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1984.
___________. Henry VII. London : A. Barker, 1937.
___________. The Image of the City, and other essays. London: Oxford University Press, 1958. Selected by Anne Ridler, with a critical introduction.
___________. James I. Freeport, NY: Books for Libraries Press, 1969.
___________. Letters to Lalage: the Letters of Charles Williams to Lois Lang-Sims. Kent, OH: Kent State University Press, 1989. With commentary by Lois Lang-Sims; Introduction and notes by Glen Cavaliero.
___________. Outlines of Romantic Theology; with which is reprinted, Religion and Love in Dante: the theology of romantic love. Grand Rapids, Mich. : W.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1990. Edited and introduced by Alice Mary Hadfield.
___________. To Michal from Serge: Letters from Charles Williams to his wife, Florence, 1939-1945. Kent, OH: Kent State University Press, 2002. Edited by Roma A. King, Jr.
A full Charles Williams bibliography may be found among other places, on the Web at http://www.yorku.ca/scottm/cw.html.
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