It just dawned on me that this thread doesn't exist.

(If it does, oh moderators, you have permission to smack me like the impetuous Council Member I am.)

What have you read of C.S. Lewis? (Besides Narnia!)
Do you prefer his fiction or his non-fiction?

I've read Out of the Silent planet, and it deserves a thread all it's own. I haven't got to read the other two, since I don't own them and the library doesn't have them.

I read, and enjoyed, 'Till We Have Faces. It was really incredible. It's a retelling of the Greek myth Cupid and Psyche.

I have not read the Screwtape letters. We owned it, but the mice apparently found it first. (It was in storage...)

We also have a book of his called The Dark Tower (and other stories.)
It's enough to make an author despair, for it unfinished, and I cannot even begin to figure out what on earth would happen next. It's just a few short chapters; and the story had barely started. It's a parallel universe story... and it's weird. I read it before I read Out of the Silent Planet, but if I remember correctly it has the same main character, Ransom. I'm not sure, though.

One of the short stories in the above collection was a scifi retelling of the Greek myth Medusa. It was brilliantly done. I should really reread it sometime.

Any other suggestions?

I've read the Space Trilogy, which was good (though not nearly as good as the Chronicles of Narnia). My favorite novel of his, next to Narnia, is The Screwtape Letters. It is alternately amusing and sobering in its depiction of how demons try to tempt humans.

I absolutely LOVE the Screwtape letters.

I've only read The Screwtape Letters outside of my Narnia collection (Though, I have all his other books on my "Any occasion that comes around as an excuse to give Bethany a present" list ) and I thoroughly enjoyed it. As always, he never fails to entertain and amaze me. I truly love C.S.Lewis and all his works - or excerpts from his works - that I have read!

I'm trying to read everything Lewis wrote but I haven't yet.

So far I've read:

The Chronicles of Narnia
The Screwtape Letters
The Space Trilogy
The Abolition of Man
Mere Christianity
The Great Divorce
Many bits and pieces out of his other books and essays... and it seems I have one of his other nonfictions but I can't remember it.

I like them all. Really quite fascinating!

And Katie, I'm jealous of you - I so want to read the Dark Tower!!!

The Dark Tower sounds as tantalizing as Christopher Tolkien's hints that more stories for J.R.R. may be in order.

I'm not certain how it could have Ransom in it, though. Unless it's related to Arthurian Legend. (Those of you who have read the final installment in the Space Trilogy will understand.)

The Space Trilogy, especially the first book, seem really foreign to most of Lewis's fans. The latter two books really are his style, but the plot types and characterizations are so unique (and at times unsettling) that the books are difficult to read.

I have only ever read The Chronicles of Narnia, I haven't read any of his other work.

I really don't remember, Neil. One of these days when I'm out in the place where that book lives I'll check.

My dad mentioned something about King Arthur and that alarmed me. (I get alarmed at the idea of people messing with Arthurian Mythology.) I'm interested in seeing though, so one day hopefully I'll get to read the other two. I should go start a thread specifically for the Space trilogy or I'll end up taking over this one with my thoughts on the first one.

C.S. Lewis!
I've read the Chronicles of Narnia (of course), the Screwtape Letters, and The Great Divorce.

Don't worry, Lewis doesn't really do any changing with Arthurian Mythology. Interestingly, Tolkien allowed Lewis to relate Merlin with Numenor, which is really rather odd, considering that Tolkien didn't consider Arthurian Mythos to be England's true mythology, since it was imposed on them by the Normans. Tolkien presented his own world as a better mythology for England, and I'm surprised that he would want what he considered the good and the bad to be mixed up.

Note: The other two are much better, but Perelandra (the second) deals with some rather...delicate, and serious, themes, which are a bit outside of Lewis's usual sphere. (That's about all I can say without spoiling it. Basically, Perelandra could not be made into a PG, or even PG13, movie, without some serious editing, and that would kind of defeat the purpose.)

I heard that about Perelandra.

Of course... one could say that about parts of the Bible too. (I remember both of them being brought up in the same conversation. )

The second Space Trilogy book (I forget what it's called) is basically the Fall on Venus that drags on, and on, and on. I haven't gotten to the third one yet.

Except that the Fall never actually occurs and it, itself, doesn't drag on very long. It's all the meaningless stuff before and after that drags on.

BTW, I just recalled that there's a slight reference to Arthurian Mythology in that book, too, if you're paying attention and you've survived that far in.

I love C.S. Lewis .

Aside from Narnia, I've read Mere Christianity, Screwtape Letters, The Great Divorce, Abolition of Man and The Four Loves.

C.S. Lewis has had an incredible influence on my life ... in particular when I was young (between the ages of 12 and 15). In short, he brought me to faith in a very-very-very round-about way.

As such, I wrote a personal thanks to Jack on my blog.

http://www.epictales.org/blog/robertblo ... _c_s_lewis

-Robert

That was awesome, Robert! Thank you so much for sharing. I really enjoyed hearing this small part of your story. I love hearing how God uses different aspects of our lives to bring about our salvation for His glory.

@ Robert. Very cool.

C. S. Lewis is probably my favorite author.

Books I've read:

The Chronicles of Narnia
The Space Trilogy
The Great Divorce
Mere Christianity
The Abolition of Man

I've heard of the Dark Tower, and really want to read it. Especially after hearing about the Sci-fi Medusa thing.

- Terra

I've read quite a bit C.S. Lewis

Other than Narnia:

All my Road Before Me - Personal diary of C.S. Lewis for two years, while he was a Fellow at Magdalen College and not a believer. This book is big - it tops off at ~850 pages. Plus, did anyone ever tell you that guy wrote a lot, every day? Not just in his journal, either.

The Great Divorce - Great book with some very thought-provoking parts in it. Not really outstanding IMO, though.

Screwtape Letters - This book makes you think, let me tell you! Great book, highly recommended (Perhaps highest recommended outside of Narnia).

The Weight of Glory - This book is a collection of nine...or ten, of Lewis' addresses given to college crowds and other. Quite good, but don't read it all through as one book as I did; the sermons are all standalone.

Mere Christianity - I might have to take back what I said about Screwtape and recommend this one instead. Like I wrote in my review of the book, this book captures Lewis' beliefs and faith in such a simple manner. It truly is mere Christianity.

Out of the Silent Planet - This book is amazing. My favorite of the three, I love the style Lewis has in this one. Having been dumped somewhere not speaking the language before, I can appreciate this one Still, highly recommended.

Perelandra - IMO, the Space Trilogy degenerates as it goes on. This one is still good, but gets a little 'stuffy' and theological at times; definitely slow-moving. It just doesn't seem to fit with Lewis as a whole.

That Hideous Strength - Lewis believed in a modernist takeover of the world, which is captured in this book. I found the beginning half mediocre, but struggled to finish the second half. This is most unlike Lewis, IMHO. I struggled to stay connected to the plot and the fact that Ransom plays only a bit part is disappointing. (Actually, my parents read these aloud when they were first married, and when my Dad was reading the climax of this book, my mom fell asleep )

There's my not so short opinion of his works

eru

Hmmm, let's see...
I didn't pick up a C. S. Lewis book besides Narnia until I was twelve or thirteen, when I bought Perelandra at a library bookstore. I started reading it, but couldn't get through it. Then, someone gave us the other two books in the Space Trilogy, so I started with Out of the Silent Planet and then read the other two in order.
I really, really like all three of the books (I've read through the series three times, I think). There are... things... in them that I definitely don't agree with, but I still like them a whole lot. Lewis' imagination is nothing short of breathtaking. I am so glad that I went beyond Narnia to the Space Trilogy.
I have also read Mere Christianity (two or three times). What a great book! The only part that disappointed me was the ending. I can't remember what it was, but something about it wasn't right.
The Screwtape Letters is just phenomenal. I can't say enough good about it. I've also read this book several times. I would recommend the Focus on the Family dramatization of it, but only to those who have already read the book.
I read The Abolition of Man a while back. I can't remember much about it, but I really enjoyed it. Lewis would have been very much for homeschooling if he'd lived in this day and age
I'm pretty sure that's all of the books of his that I've read. I'd like to read 'Til We Have Faces someday, as well as The Dark Tower.

I have not read the Abolition of Man, but I would like to. Another I'd really like to read is Surprised by Joy.

eru

I just remembered that I've read his sermon The Weight of Glory, which was really good. I also have two books that have lots of selections of quotes from what he wrote. One is called The Joyful Christian, but I can't remember what the other is.

I bought the whole book of Chronicles of Narnia for about $1 at my booksale and it has 777 pages.

Oh! Some of you are certainly aware of this book about C.S. Lewis, but I thought I'd share my review of it in case it's new to anyone:

http://www.epictales.org/blog/robertblo ... for_narnia

The book reveals what the author thinks is the "Secret Plan" that under-girds all of the Narnia stories. There is no way to prove his theories correct barring some discovery of unknown Lewis writings, but it is a very fascinating take on Lewis and his structure for the books.

Enjoy!

-Robert

Double OH! Is Michael Ward (the author of PLANET NARNIA) related to our very own Timotheus?

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm...........?????????


-Robert

Now that is very fascinating. Thanks for sharing, Treskillard.

The thought never entered my mind. *does not think so*

I haven't read very much Lewis (yet). I'm working on it, at the same time as I work on Tolkien and the Wheel of Time. I did read Narnia and Screwtape. I loved Narnia (that's where I'm going to live when I grow up ). The Screwtape Letters was a good book as well. I did get nightmares after I read it, but I don't think the book was the problem. After all, I read Lord Foulgrin's Letters three years ago. That was the book that made me want to read Screwtape. I'm searching for Surprised By Joy. I forgot to check the church library last Sunday, though.

I love C. S. Lewis' books! I grew up reading the Chronicles of Narnia. Right now I'm reading the Screwtape Letters. He's a genius!

I agree that C.S. Lewis was a genius. Every time I read his stuff, I wonder how he did it and how I can emulate him.

I've read most of his fictional works. I really enjoyed his Space Trilogy, especially That Hideous Strength. I wasn't overly enthralled with 'Till We Have Faces. Narnia and Screwtape are also great reads.

One of his non-fictional works to check out is his autobiography Surprised by Joy. It was absolutely fascinating, and I learned so many things about him that I never knew before. His style of writing is captivating and quite humorous at points. Highly recommended!

I haven't read the Screwtape letters, but I would really like to; my Dad is always talking about them.

Surprised by Joy also sounds like something I'd like to read.

Ditto! I highly enjoyed Surprised by Joy.

I have one book - a compilation of many of his writings, I think- called God in the Dock. I'm excited to read it.

That's a collection of essays (papers presented at his Socratic Club, philosophical articles, etc.). It is quite good, but you should be aware that some of the papers belabor the same points to the point that, reading them all in one volume, they're somewhat tiresome.

I've also heard of a short work titled An Experiment in Criticism or something like that. It sounds interesting, since as an author I'm always looking for helpful critique. Has anyone read it, and if so, what did you think?

How is this thread so short, and how did I not see it before?

Okay... List of works I've read...

The Chronicles of Narnia (obviously)
Mere Christianity
The Screwtape Letters
A Grief Observed
The Weight of Glory
Of Other Worlds
Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer (in progress)
The Great Divorce
Out of the Silent Planet
Perelandra
That Hideous Strength
Till We Have Faces
The Pilgrim's Regress


I really had a hard time getting into Till We Have Faces and That Hideous Strength. For the former, I found it hard to latch onto a central theme, so I didn't really know why I was seeing what I was seeing happen in the book. For the latter, I had been expecting more space travel and wasn't sure what to make of what I got. It was peculiar, but not in a way that drew me in. I want to give both another read though. It has been some time.

The Pilgrim's Regress is very good. Like all allegories, there are archetypes that are very relatable, and I really like the way he plays with Wisdom and philosophy.

The essays in The Weight of Glory have some very beautiful metaphors to understand the points he is making.

It's really interesting to read through the non-fiction and see how he applies he's way of thinking to his stories with such well-woven subtlety.

That Hideous Strength is perhaps more than a bit overlong, but it's definitely worth reading at least once.


I need to read that one.

It's really good. There are some philosophy jokes in there that you might catch if you've talked to Brendan for any length of time... And, as usual, there are going to be at least one or two ways in which he assesses something that will nail you.

I can't remember what the character was called, but one of those for me was a place where the conscience stops to examine a way of living that he finds alluring. It is a creature of skin and bone living on a bare patch of rock that it has swept clean of any form of nature or growth. It is proud of this feat, because it has made itself wholly self-sufficient, though it now has nothing left of itself to call human or alive.