Book to Share: The Mythmakers, by John Hendrix

I love hard-to-categorize books…books that cross over between age ranges and genres, books that sound as if they wouldn't make sense but somehow they gloriously do. The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien, by John Hendrix, is wonderfully hard to categorize. Readers from advanced middle schoolers (ones who have already read The Lord of the Rings and Narnia) to young adults to adults will all love it. It's not a comic or a graphic novel or a traditional biography, but a blend of the three (I guess you could call it a highly-illustrated biography with sections told in comic panels, and also a heavy dose of beautiful hand-lettered sections). It's not a book specifically for Christian audiences, but it does not shy away from describing how faith was an intrinsic part of Lewis' and Tolkien's lives. The narrators of the story are a cartoon wizard and anthropomorphic lion, yet the subject matter is often dark and serious.

But it works. All the unlikely combinations of genres and styles and audience actually make this book shine.

Here's the brief publisher's description:
From New York Times bestselling, award-winning creator John Hendrix comes The Mythmakers, a graphic novel biography of two literary lions—C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien—following the remarkable story of their friendship and creative fellowship, and how each came to write their masterworks

I have been a fan of Lewis and Tolkien for years, so much of the info in their biography wasn't new to me, yet several small tidbits that I didn't know were crucial in bringing their friendship to life. And I loved that the focus of the story really was about that friendship itself, allowing the other biographical details to serve that story instead of taking over. Lewis and Tolkien both wrote so beautifully about the love and fellowship between friends in their stories (and also non-fiction works) that it made this approach even more fitting. 

The comical narrators helped lighten the tone of a story that is riddled with sadness—ultimately I think they were a brilliant choice for many reasons. They paved the way and made a style allowance for a truly wonderful ending (no spoilers), they enabled the author to dive into a few fascinating literary sidetracks (which, incidentally, would make this book a perfect addition to a high school literature class—I wish we'd had it last year when I taught my high schoolers a course on Modern Fantasy and its Inspirations!), and they helped the readers keep Lewis' and Tolkien's styles and philosophies clear from once another.

And the style/illustrations. You guys. It's just amazing. John Hendrix is a genius and I loved every page. This is definitely one to own if you can. 

For more Marvelous Middle Grade Monday recommendations, as always, visit Always in the Middle: http://gpattridge.com