Shadowlands is the story of beloved fantasy author C. S. Lewis and his marriage to American writer Joy Gresham. The play charts Lewis's reassessment of his own moral compass as the simple rules of Christian forgiveness and steadfastness by which he has lived break down in the wake of Joy's cancer diagnosis. Eventually he is able to begin coping, but not before radically reforming the way he thinks and acts in the presence of grief.
The Song of Roland is a narrative in the form of a heroic poem. It deals with the events of the Battle of Roncevaux Pass when Roland, Captain of Emperor Charlemagne's rear guard but imagined in the poem as Charlemagne's foremost knight, died defending his sovereign from Basque Muslims. The poem lionizes Roland and his sacrifice while condemning the traitor Ganelon. It also deals with the rest of Charlemagne's campaign against the Muslims in Spain.
The Waste Land is a long poem by T. S. Eliot. The poem is divided into five parts: "The Burial of the Dead," "A Game of Chess," "The Fire Sermon," "Death by Water" and "What the Thunder Said." The poem switches voices and subject matters, tracing the legend of the Holy Grail, various prophesies, alluding to the Western canon, Augustine of Hippo and Buddhist texts. The poem is satirical, apocalyptic and philosophical.
Treasure Island, a classic adventure novel, follows the story of Jim Hawkins, a young boy who becomes embroiled in pirate affairs after coming into possession of a treasure map. After hiring a crew to sail to where the treasure is buried, Jim ends up on a ship full of pirates. With few allies, including the trustworthy Captain Smollett and former pirate Ben Gunn, Jim must not only prevent a mutiny, but stay alive long enough to find his treasure. This coming-of-age novel explores many themes, including the ambiguity of morality and the idea of heroism.
Dreamland is a young adult novel which tells the story of sixteen-year-old Caitlin O'Koren, whose world begins to spin out of control when she becomes involved with a boy named Rogerson Briscoe. Rogerson introduces her to drugs and becomes abusive, and slowly their relationship begins to take over Caitlin's life as she starts failing out of school and hanging out with the wrong crowd. The narrative explores Caitlin's quest to free herself from a situation that she knows is harmful, despite the fact that she loves Rogerson.