C.S Lewis

[Ealasaid]

I too loved the Naria series as a kid. I have passed my love of them onto both of my daughters now.

[Rachaelamb1]

Read all the Narnia books as a child but still read them over and over again as an adult. I find the books have even more meaning now than I noticed as a child. I also loved the Screwtape Letters.

[moderntimes]

Screwtape Letters are terrific. And his "About Pain" is essential reading for any Christian. Then there's his "A Grief Observed" which is a moving and amazingly personal account of his relationship to Joy Davidman's life and death (his wife). This is superbly depicted in the film "Shadowlands" w. Anthony Hopkins as Lewis and Deborah Winger as Joy, which is maybe the most adult and finest love story ever filmed.

Anyone who thinks about being romantic and loving needs to see this film, Shadowlands. It is beautiful and moving and also intelligent. I cannot think of a film that depicts romantic love in a more realistic and superb way, very much lifelike. Brings me to tears each time I see the film, great acting too.

[DATo]

Incidentally, who's seen the superb film about Lewis and his love for his wife, "Shadowlands", w. Anthony Hopkins just perfect as Lewis. I highly recommend this film for Lewis fans.

I have heard of the movie, Shadowlands, but never knew it was about C.S. Lewis. Thanks so much for the tip! I've just made a note to look for it.

[Fran]

Incidentally, who's seen the superb film about Lewis and his love for his wife, "Shadowlands", w. Anthony Hopkins just perfect as Lewis. I highly recommend this film for Lewis fans.

I have heard of the movie, Shadowlands, but never knew it was about C.S. Lewis. Thanks so much for the tip! I've just made a note to look for it.

I agree & highly recommend it

[moderntimes]

There's a Brit TV movie of "Shadowlands" in the 80s, then it was made into a stage play, then the terrific film w. Anthony Hopkins and Deborah Winger, in 1993. That's the one we're talking about.

As I say, it's taken from his own memoirs about her illness and death from cancer, "A Grief Observed". The book itself -- short and intense, is a superb book but mostly for Christians. The film is more general and although it of course deals with CS Lewis' Christian faith and his wavering due to Joy's illness, it is also a superb movie about genuine romantic love between two adults, deeply moving. And brilliantly acted -- one of Hopkins' best roles.

[SLKing]

I love 'The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe'. C.S.Lewis was a story teller just like Roald Dahl was.

[moderntimes]

I never read the CS Lewis kid's books as I was pretty much out of reading juvenile fiction by the time I was in my early teens, when Lion and all were first published, early 50s. Being a pretty voracious reader I ate up all the existing juvenile stuff -- Tarzan, Jungle Book by Kipling, all the old classics like Treasure Island, the Tom Swift books, then moved to the old 40s pulp action novels, John Carter of Mars and such. By the time the CS Lewis kid's books were out and fairly well known I was reading Faulkner and Hemingway and such.

So I've never read them, as I simply don't enjoy juvenile fiction as an adult -- sorry but it bores me. I did read the Lewis SF trilogy which was essentially a thinly disguised religious series but I mostly enjoy Lewis for his nonfiction and of course Screwtape Letters.

[Laurencbosch]

C.S Lewis' works are incredible. The Chronicles of Narnia were written more for children, but I think they can span the ages. They are beautifully crafted books with so much depth and meaning behind them. Everyone should read these books. I have also read some of his work Mere Christianity. He was such a wise man and it shows in this profound work were he tells about what he has discovered to be the meaning of life.

[SLKing]

I love to read C.S. Lewis books now as an adult of 44. I think he's been a big influence im my own writing over the years.

[debbiebee]

What does anyone else think of Philip Pullmann's denunciation of Lewis? I love the 'Dark Materials' books, but sometimes the total intolerance TOWARDS religion in them, mirrored in his harsh words about Lewis, is a form of intolerance too, rather like Richard Dawkins. BTW I am NOT overly religious myself in any conventional sense, so that's not the essence of my coments.

[moderntimes]

We see this harsh anti-religious fervor that is indeed nasty and viperlike at times. And Christianity is usually the target these days.

I've not read what Pullmann said about Lewis but it's likely typical. Thing is this: CS Lewis is known as a Christian apologist. The term "apologist" is unfortunately misunderstood as "making an apology" as if wrong had been committed. But the accurate meaning of this is someone who is a staunch advocate of a certain policy or belief. Strong supporters of environmentalism can also be correctly termed "apologists" which is not a negative connotation.

Some scientists are agnostics or atheists and that's fine. A few of these are however snarky toward believers, which is simply rude. I don't want this thread to be sidetracked into a debate on religion but let's face it -- Lewis was a devout Christian and Anglican, and his beliefs are essential to a thread about him.

And "for the record" I'm both a trained scientist and a believer, and don't find the two exclusionary. My original formal education was in chemistry and biology and all my life I've studied science -- I've read extensively on cosmology, quantum physics, astronomy, etc. and find that if I really study concepts about the origin of the universe (big bang and so on) I'm even more persuaded that God exists. But this is just my personal belief and I don't intend to proselytize here. It's just that CS Lewis was a believer and he was true to that belief in his writings, both fiction and nonfiction. Critics may justly disagree with his tenets but insults and rude taunts are simply cat-calling.

[Levi]

I loved the Narnia series as a young child, I read at least the first three books. I also read the Screwtape Letters and Mere Christianity. Screwtape is a fun book and Mere Christianity is a passionate take on the basics of Christianity by a former atheist and highly intelligent man, which I thought made it that much more interesting regardless of what you believe. A great man

[cgoss74]

I loved the Chronicles of Narnia, I don't know why they didn't do movies on all of the books. They skipped some of them. It took me a while to read through all of them, but I enjoyed them. I have been reading them to my six year old now.

[rssllue]

I love reading all of his stuff, both fiction and nonfiction. I am actually quite excited as I have recently bought the audio dramatizations of both The Screwtape Letters (with Andy Serkis playing one of the roles) and The Chronicles of Narnia. Soon I will be able to immerse myself in the radio play of each and let myself get taken into the drama that he so well created in his writings. God surely blessed C. S. with many great ideas to put on paper for entertaining, informing, and touching the soul of all of his readers. What a blessing!