47 Books Unabridged in Microsoft Word format
George MacDonald (1824-1905) is best known for his wonder-stories and fantasy-romances, but he also wrote novels, sermons, poetry and literary criticism. Born in Scotland, he graduated from Kings College, Aberdeen with a degree in chemistry and later moved to England to earn a degree in theology. After a few years as a Congregationalist minister, MacDonald became a full-time writer and lecturer in 1853. Admirers and literary beneficiaries in the 20th century include G.K. Chesterton, J.R.R. Tolkien and CS. Lewis.
MacDonald generally worked on three or four books at a time, producing about fifty books in a forty year period. All but two novels are included on this CD. The works are arranged chronologically, partly to invite comparisons between books written close to one another and also to give a perspective of his unfading genius. From Phantastes, a Faerie Romance in 1858, to his crowning achievement, Lilith, a Romance in 1895, MacDonald's faith and imagination remained strong. A handful of his writings are considered masterpieces and classics, but all of his books convey a unique and consistent vision of the harmony of creation and the love of the Creator.
The searchable unabridged texts included are:
1858 Phantaste, a Faerie Romance
1863 David Elginbrod
1863 The Light Princess
1864 Adela Cathcart
1864 The Portent & Other Stories
1864 A Hidden Life and Other Poems
1866 The Golden Key
1866 The Carasoyn
1867 Unspoken Sermons Series I
1867 Annals of a Quiet Neighbourhood
1868 England's Antiphon
1868 Robert Falconer
1868 The Seaboard Parish
1870 The Miracles of Our Lord
1871 At The Back of the North Wind
1871 Ranald Bannerman's Boyhood
1872 The Princess and the Goblin
1872 The Vicar s Daughter
1872 Wilfred Cumbermede
1873 The History of Gutta-Percha Willie
1874 The Wise Woman
1875 Malcolm
1876 St, George and St, Michael
1876 Thomas Wingf'old, Curate
1877 The Marquis of Lossie
1879 Sir Gibbie
1879 Paul Faber, Surgeon
1880 The Diary of an Old Soul
1881 Mary Marston
1882 Castle Warlock
1882 The Day Boy and the Night Girl
1882 Stephen Archer and Other Tales
1882 Weighed and Wanting
1883 Donal Grant
1883 The Princess and Curdie
1885 Unspoken Sermons Series II
1885 The Tragedie of Hamlet
1886 What's Mine s Mine
1887 Home Again
1888 The Elect Lady
1889 Unspoken Sermons Series III
1891 A Rough Shaking
1891 The Flight of the Shadow
1891 There and Back
1892 The Hope of the Gospel
1893 The Poetical Works in Two Volumes
1893 A Dish of Orts (revision of 1882 Orts)
1893 Heather and Snow
1895 Lilith, a Romance
1897 Rampoli
1897 Salted With Fire
1899 Far Above Rubies
Please note that Alec Forbes, Guild Court and the story Cross Purposes are not included at the present time.
George MacDonald (1824-1905) is best known for his wonder-stories and fantasy-romances, but he also wrote novels, sermons, poetry and literary criticism. Born in Scotland, he graduated from Kings College, Aberdeen with a degree in chemistry and later moved to England to earn a degree in theology. After a few years as a Congregationalist minister, MacDonald became a full-time writer and lecturer in 1853. Admirers and literary beneficiaries in the 20th century include G.K. Chesterton, J.R.R. Tolkien and CS. Lewis.
MacDonald generally worked on three or four books at a time, producing about fifty books in a forty year period. All but two novels are included on this CD. The works are arranged chronologically, partly to invite comparisons between books written close to one another and also to give a perspective of his unfading genius. From Phantastes, a Faerie Romance in 1858, to his crowning achievement, Lilith, a Romance in 1895, MacDonald's faith and imagination remained strong. A handful of his writings are considered masterpieces and classics, but all of his books convey a unique and consistent vision of the harmony of creation and the love of the Creator.
The searchable unabridged texts included are:
1858 Phantaste, a Faerie Romance
1863 David Elginbrod
1863 The Light Princess
1864 Adela Cathcart
1864 The Portent & Other Stories
1864 A Hidden Life and Other Poems
1866 The Golden Key
1866 The Carasoyn
1867 Unspoken Sermons Series I
1867 Annals of a Quiet Neighbourhood
1868 England's Antiphon
1868 Robert Falconer
1868 The Seaboard Parish
1870 The Miracles of Our Lord
1871 At The Back of the North Wind
1871 Ranald Bannerman's Boyhood
1872 The Princess and the Goblin
1872 The Vicar s Daughter
1872 Wilfred Cumbermede
1873 The History of Gutta-Percha Willie
1874 The Wise Woman
1875 Malcolm
1876 St, George and St, Michael
1876 Thomas Wingf'old, Curate
1877 The Marquis of Lossie
1879 Sir Gibbie
1879 Paul Faber, Surgeon
1880 The Diary of an Old Soul
1881 Mary Marston
1882 Castle Warlock
1882 The Day Boy and the Night Girl
1882 Stephen Archer and Other Tales
1882 Weighed and Wanting
1883 Donal Grant
1883 The Princess and Curdie
1885 Unspoken Sermons Series II
1885 The Tragedie of Hamlet
1886 What's Mine s Mine
1887 Home Again
1888 The Elect Lady
1889 Unspoken Sermons Series III
1891 A Rough Shaking
1891 The Flight of the Shadow
1891 There and Back
1892 The Hope of the Gospel
1893 The Poetical Works in Two Volumes
1893 A Dish of Orts (revision of 1882 Orts)
1893 Heather and Snow
1895 Lilith, a Romance
1897 Rampoli
1897 Salted With Fire
1899 Far Above Rubies
Please note that Alec Forbes, Guild Court and the story Cross Purposes are not included at the present time.
The Near Loss of Everything (North America Only)
Dale Wayne Slusser's book In The Near Loss of Everything – tells the late nineteenth-century story of Ravenscroft High School's most famous headmaster, Ronald MacDonald. Ronald was the son of the famous British writer, George MacDonald, author of such books as The Princess and the Goblin and At the Back of the North Wind. Ravenscroft High School was an Episcopalian boarding school for boys located in Asheville, NC. Slusser combines the biographer's skill in detailing the joys and trials of his main subject, with the historian's skill of bringing an aspect of Asheville's past to life.
The Biography of Famous Asheville, NC Headmaster Has Personal Meaning for the Author
Asheville, NC - September 2009.
Dale Wayne Slusser's book In The Near Loss of Everything – tells the late nineteenth-century story of Ravenscroft High School's most famous headmaster, Ronald MacDonald. Ronald was the son of the famous British writer, George MacDonald, author of such books as The Princess and the Goblin and At the Back of the North Wind. Ravenscroft High School was an Episcopalian boarding school for boys located in Asheville, NC. Slusser combines the biographer's skill in detailing the joys and trials of his main subject, with the historian's skill of bringing an aspect of Asheville's past to life.
In writing this book, the author has, in a sense, come full circle with his own past. After the death of his father, Dale Slusser spent over ten years of his childhood being raised in a boy's boarding school in Hershey, Pennsylvania. In this book, the story focuses on the marriage of headmaster MacDonald, whose wife died within a year of his appointment at Ravenscroft, leaving him to care for their 4 month-old daughter. How Ronald coped with the loss of his beloved spouse while completing his five-year contract as headmaster, and how his famous family in England reached out to him in his grief, is a testimony to faith and love.
After completing his term at Ravenscroft, Ronald went on to be a successful author and playwright. Exactly 100 years ago, in 1909, he wrote a book novel where the main character's spouse died. In the deathbed scene of the novel, the thoughts of that character seem to reflect his Ronald's own memories in these words from which the title of Slusser's book is taken: "In the near loss of everything but our spiritual relation we may know, perhaps, and touch each other with an intimacy never yet attained - reaching, for a moment before the last curtain falls between, almost to the secret of that eternal relation which underlies the mystery of man and woman."
Accolades for the book include George MacDonald scholar Jeff McInnis, author of Shadows and Chivalry: C.S. Lewis and George MacDonald on Suffering, Evil, and Goodness, who wrote: "In telling the story of a man who did not give up, Slusser allows Ronald to do what his father has so often done: inspire and encourage. Well researched and well worth the having."
The story is complemented by over 30 black and white photos and drawings, including never before published drawings by MacDonald's wife, Louise, who was a student of the famous British art critic John Ruskin. Her gravesite at Riverside Cemetery in Ashville is also pictured along with photographs of Ravenscroft High School, Trinity Episcopal Church, among others.
Those unfamiliar with Ronald's more famous father will benefit from a reprint of his essay "George MacDonald: A Personal Note" first published in 1911. This essay gives a personal and critical overview of his father's life and writings, one of the finest summaries and evaluations ever written. Also included is an excerpt from Ronald's fable about life The Laughing Elf, published in 1922, which is evidence of Ronald's belief of the necessity of both joy and sorrow for a fulfilled life.
The author, a professional architect, resides with his wife in Asheville, NC and may be contacted by email at: dws@helps1228.org. He is especially interested in hearing from anyone with further information about Ronald or Louise Verenda Blandy MacDonald.
Asheville, NC - September 2009.
Dale Wayne Slusser's book In The Near Loss of Everything – tells the late nineteenth-century story of Ravenscroft High School's most famous headmaster, Ronald MacDonald. Ronald was the son of the famous British writer, George MacDonald, author of such books as The Princess and the Goblin and At the Back of the North Wind. Ravenscroft High School was an Episcopalian boarding school for boys located in Asheville, NC. Slusser combines the biographer's skill in detailing the joys and trials of his main subject, with the historian's skill of bringing an aspect of Asheville's past to life.
In writing this book, the author has, in a sense, come full circle with his own past. After the death of his father, Dale Slusser spent over ten years of his childhood being raised in a boy's boarding school in Hershey, Pennsylvania. In this book, the story focuses on the marriage of headmaster MacDonald, whose wife died within a year of his appointment at Ravenscroft, leaving him to care for their 4 month-old daughter. How Ronald coped with the loss of his beloved spouse while completing his five-year contract as headmaster, and how his famous family in England reached out to him in his grief, is a testimony to faith and love.
After completing his term at Ravenscroft, Ronald went on to be a successful author and playwright. Exactly 100 years ago, in 1909, he wrote a book novel where the main character's spouse died. In the deathbed scene of the novel, the thoughts of that character seem to reflect his Ronald's own memories in these words from which the title of Slusser's book is taken: "In the near loss of everything but our spiritual relation we may know, perhaps, and touch each other with an intimacy never yet attained - reaching, for a moment before the last curtain falls between, almost to the secret of that eternal relation which underlies the mystery of man and woman."
Accolades for the book include George MacDonald scholar Jeff McInnis, author of Shadows and Chivalry: C.S. Lewis and George MacDonald on Suffering, Evil, and Goodness, who wrote: "In telling the story of a man who did not give up, Slusser allows Ronald to do what his father has so often done: inspire and encourage. Well researched and well worth the having."
The story is complemented by over 30 black and white photos and drawings, including never before published drawings by MacDonald's wife, Louise, who was a student of the famous British art critic John Ruskin. Her gravesite at Riverside Cemetery in Ashville is also pictured along with photographs of Ravenscroft High School, Trinity Episcopal Church, among others.
Those unfamiliar with Ronald's more famous father will benefit from a reprint of his essay "George MacDonald: A Personal Note" first published in 1911. This essay gives a personal and critical overview of his father's life and writings, one of the finest summaries and evaluations ever written. Also included is an excerpt from Ronald's fable about life The Laughing Elf, published in 1922, which is evidence of Ronald's belief of the necessity of both joy and sorrow for a fulfilled life.
The author, a professional architect, resides with his wife in Asheville, NC and may be contacted by email at: dws@helps1228.org. He is especially interested in hearing from anyone with further information about Ronald or Louise Verenda Blandy MacDonald.