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So here is what I have so far in terms of book dedications:
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe – Lucy Barfield (November 2, 1935 – May 3, 2003) was the adopted daughter of Owen Barfield (a close friend and fellow Inkling), as well as Jack’s god-daughter. She was a lively, dancing, musical child who eventually became a music teacher until multiple sclerosis curtailed her career. (758) She was happily married in 1978 to Bevan Rake, but after his death in 1990, her multiple sclerosis kept her hospitalized for most of her remaining years. In spite of her physical limitations, the gift of the dedication of Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe was a continuing source of blessing to her as she received letters from children and Chronicle fans throughout her life, some even addressing her as if she were Lucy Pevensie herself, asking her about Narnia. Her humility and strength in spite of her disability was a source of inspiration to those who knew her.
Prince Caspian – Mary Clare Havard (12-28-1936), whose father, Dr R.E. ‘Humphrey’ Havard met regularly with Jack and the other Inklings at the Bird And Baby (Eagle and Child), and children were sometimes invited to join as well. On November21, 1944 she wrote:
Although rather in awe of Jack because of what seemed to me his immeasurable breadth of learning, I enjoyed these outings, and found his conversation fascinating. He had the gift of talking to children as though their opinions were as valuable and interesting as those of anybody else, which was all the more refreshing, as it was very unusual in those days. He asked me to read the typescript of The Lion, th Witch and the Wardrobe and tell him what I thought of it, so I wrote a solemn criticism for him, saying what I liked about it – and what I didn’t. One thing I did not like was the presence of a lamppost when the children first arrived in Narnia; I don’t suppose I knew the word anachronistic, but that’s what I thought it was. I was rather pleased when he explained how the lamppost arrived in Narnia in one of the later books. He dedicated Prince Caspian to me as a thank you for doing that…” (758-759)
VDT – Geoffrey (Jeffrey) Corbett (6-6-1940) is the foster son of Owen and Maud Barfield, Lucy Barfield’s brother. Lewis generously helped Jeffrey with school fees and he studied horticulture, becoming a landscaper for many years. He also was something of a lay preacher and has also worked in the field of fabrication welding. When he became an adult, he changed his name to Barfield, so VDT dedications now have changed his inscription to Jeffrey Barfield.
The Silver Chair- Nicholas Hardie (November 12, 1945) was the son of another Inkling, Colin Hardie, who was a colleague of CSL and a fellow and Classical Tutor at Magdalen College. He studied business administration and married Jane Howe.
The Horse and His Boy – dedicated to David and Douglas Gresham, who had traveled from New York to London with their mother Joy Gresham in November 1953. In December 1953, Douglas and David met Jack (C.S.) and Warnie Lewis, spending four days at the Kilns (Lewis’ home) during which time the Lewis brothers taught David to play chess. It was also during this visit that Jack told the boys he was going to dedicate A Horse and His Boy to them.
After Joy’s divorce from William Lindsay Gresham in 1954 (there had been marital difficulties since 1946), Joy and her sons moved to Headington, near the Kilns and Jack began to teach David Latin. Because of Joy’s visa problems, in 1956 Joy and Jack went through a civil marriage on paper so she and her family could stay in England. Later that year with Joy’s cancer taking a serious turn, David and Douglas went to live in the Kilns with Jack; meanwhile their mother was in hospital in Oxford, where she and Jack were married before God on March 21, 1957.
After Joy’s death, David, who had been interested in Judaism since 1955, began studying Hebrew at Magdalen College School and was mentored in Hebrew and Yiddish . David ultimately attended West London Talmudical College for a year before returning to the United States to study in the Mesivta Rabbi Chaim Berlin, and then prepared for university by studying German, Logic and Biblical Hebrew in England. In 1967 David studied in Jerusalem at the Hebron Yeshiva and for a short time at the Hebrew University where he began learning Arabic.
He read Oriental Studies (Arabic, Turkish and Hebrew) in Oxford at Magdalen College from 1969-1972. After graduation he continued his studies in Hebrew, Latin and modern languages in Spain, France, Switzerland, India and Ireland. He was married to Padmavati Hariharan on November 1, 1992 and they currently live in Ireland. His son, Joseph Isaac was born May 17, 1994.
David Gresham is quite reserved in regard to C.S. Lewis, and his life has taken a distinctly different path than his brother Douglas who is actively involved in the Lewis trust. He stated: “My main occupation is the study of the Hebrew Bible and the Talmud and their commentaries, and languages and literature, and I take an interest in furthering Jewish education.” [I was informed by the staff at the Wade Center that he is now suffering from Alzheimer’s.] (666-668)
Douglas, on the other hand was a source of light to Jack and has remained close to CSL and his interests through the years.
The Magician’s Nephew - the Kilmer family of Washington D.C., whose eight children’s letters to him are among those featured in Letters to Children by C.S. Lewis. (The children’s names are Hugh, Anne, Noelie, Nicholas, Martin, Rosamund, Matthew and Miriam) Mr. and Mrs. Kilmer were the ones that connected CSL with their friend Mary Willis Shelburne, whose subsequent correspondence with Lewis became Letters to an American Lady.
LB – no dedication given
Statistics: Posted by Benisse — Thu Feb 05, 2015 9:03 am
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Statistics: Posted by ShiofNarnia — Mon Dec 08, 2014 6:32 am
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O! I do hope you find out more about the dedications- I did an article on that many months ago!
Statistics: Posted by always narnian — Sun Dec 07, 2014 6:11 am
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