George MacDonald

George MacDonald was a Scottish author, poet, and Christian minister, who was born on December 10, 1824, in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, and passed away on September 18, 1905, in Surrey, England. MacDonald was born into a family of readers, with his mother, in particular, receiving a classical education and being taught many different languages. His father, who was a farmer, was part of the MacDonalds of Glen Coe and came from a family that suffered in the massacre of 1692.

After a brief and tumultuous career as a minister in Arundel, where his unorthodox views led to his dismissal, MacDonald turned to fiction as a means of earning a living. He wrote over 50 books and is known particularly for his poignant fairy tales and fantasy novels. MacDonald's work had a profound impact on many authors, including G.K. Chesterton, W.H. Auden, J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Madeleine L'Engle. C.S. Lewis, in particular, regarded MacDonald as his "master" and credited him with having a significant influence on his own work. Other notable authors, such as Elizabeth Yates and Mark Twain, also spoke highly of MacDonald's work and its impact on their lives. Yates described reading Sir Gibbie as an experience that "moved me the way books did when, as a child, the great gates of literature began to open and first encounters with noble thoughts and utterances were unspeakably thrilling." Even Mark Twain, who initially disliked MacDonald, became friends with him and was influenced by his work.