Also included in the ‘75’ are C S Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia, books I devoured as a child without realising their Christian foundations and symbolism until much later. It’s this spread of medium and level which is one of the great charms of this book, in which The Lord of the Rings sits alongside The Book of Kells, It’s a Wonderful Life, and the painting The Resurrection at Cookham among many (69!) others. The book begins with the oldest of all Christian art, the paintings in the Roman Catacombs, of which Glaspey writes ‘The earliest Christian art, however, with its greater simplicity and obvious devotion, remains a powerful testimony to the way that art could reflect deep faith and trust in God.’
About The Chronicles of Narnia, created one and a half millennia after the paintings in the Catacombs, Glaspey writes, ‘Lewis had the ability in his writing to capture those transcendent moments that can occur when we come face-to-face with something bigger than ourselves, the hint of a realm beyond our ordinary lives’. Glaspey himself, in his own writing about his chosen 75 Masterpieces, opens them up to the reader of all levels, whether the simply curious or the art scholar, and his passion for each subject shines through. This is a treasure trove of a book with a multitude of fascinating short essays on art of all kinds. Beautifully illustrated, it’s easy to dip in and out of, and a colourful exploration of art in place and time through history. With its mix of the familiar and the less – to me at least – well known, it is an excellent tool to encourage the reader to broaden their interest in the arts, whether that be through books, films, paintings or cathedrals.
8670802420879, Moody Publishers, February 2021
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