The Cruel Painter

George MacDonald (1824-1905) was a Scottish author, poet, and Christian minister. Though no longer well known, his works (particularly his fairy tales and fantasy novels) have inspired admiration in such notables as W. H. Auden, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Madeleine L Engle. C. S. Lewis wrote that he regarded MacDonald as his master . Even Mark Twain, who initially detested MacDonald, became friends with him, and there is some evidence that Twain was influenced by MacDonald. His bestknown works are Phantastes (1858), At the Back of the North Wind (1871), The Princess and the Goblin (1872), The Lost Princess (1875), Thomas Wingfold, Curate (1876), The Marquis of Lossie (1877) and Sir Gibbie (1879). He also published some volumes of sermons, the pulpit not having proved an unreservedly successful venue.