Favorite CS Lewis Work?

The Weight of glory is definetly a must read. That is definetly one of my favorites.
 
For its impact and brevity, The Great Divorce. For a slightly less (at least initially) theological bent, Out of the Silent Planet. One simply has to read Surprised by Joy in front of a fire, on a cold night, with a good scotch/good tea after a very brisk late afternoon walk through the woods. (you'll know why as you read it). Cheers.
 
Welcome to the site, Lawrence. I certainly agree with you on that. Lewis would be proud of you if you read Surprised By Joy like that :). I just read that one a couple weeks ago and I loved it, and would highly recommend it as well.
 
I am a freshmen in high school and I am trying to decide whether to read the space trilogy or not. I've heard some of C.S. Lewis's works can be hard to understand. Do you think I would be able to understand them or would they go over my head?
 
Out of the Silent Planet is a relatively easy read. The theology is subtle, creaping in towards the middle of the book. Perelandra is a bit more theological, interweaving ideas from the Book of Genesis on sin with the idea of Christ as a "RANSOM" (big hint) for our sins. That Hideous Strength is probably the most overtly theogical, but, still a relatively easy read. Go for it.
 
I found the Space Trilogy an easy and enjoyable read in high school. As with all of Lewis' fiction, you can read them on several levels. They're always a great story, but as Lawrence correctly points out, he slips important points in that are worth learning. But they don't ruin the story!
 
I just started Surprised by Joy. Kind of a slow start. The terminology of young English schoolboys in the early 1900's is difficult for this gen x yank here. I anticipate it to pick up soon.
 
Indeed. I recommended it to my Mom and she said the same thing. Fear not, once you get out of the whole Oliver Twist stuff (i.e. Oldie's, etc.) it picks up. When he gets on track to speak of his conversion (it all began with the yearning for the Northerness...) it gets good.

Xaipe,
L
 
Gibby said:
I just started Surprised by Joy. Kind of a slow start. The terminology of young English schoolboys in the early 1900's is difficult for this gen x yank here. I anticipate it to pick up soon.
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Yeah, but make sure you don't miss his definition of "joy" which is different from the colloquial use. He does tell a lot of biographical info, and the bulk of his converstion story is mainly in the last quarter of the book, but I do think all of it is really interesting.
 
I just got to that part. I am going to have to go back to it and read it again when my kids aren't running around screaming.
 
I suppose having gone to an English boarding school makes a difference, but I loved 'Surprised by joy'. I liked all the biographical stuff, because I felt like it really brought the theological part into a realistic context. After all, Christianity must be about normal, everyday life and people if it is to be convincing. and the fact that he comes to a Christian way of thinking via stubborn opposition made it very real for me.
 
I am confident that it will be convincing once I start getting into it. All I have is just one question...

Will somebody please explain to me what an "Oldie" is and his role in the school? Or just paint a picture of what an English boarding school was really like (i.e. function, staff, schedule, etc).
 
Sorry, no clue. I was educated in American public schools. And although I adore the Narnia books, I think that for the sheer value of the lessons contained within, they fall shy of these two:

One is "The Screwtape Letters". I know that the devil hates the Bible most of all, but this one has to be, if not second, then high on the list. Jack completely lays out much of his bag of dirty tricks, allowing both new and experienced Christians to see what he's up to and stand against him.

But I also liked "The Great Divorce"... not only is the world it creates incredibly imaginative, but the theological insights are brilliant. Talk about a wonderful rundown of many of the all too many barriers between mankind and salvation.
 
Oldie, from my reading of the book, was not only the headmaster but the one who technically "owned" the school. Evidently at the turn of the last century, all one had to do was earn an academic degree, hang a shingle and open a school. It seemed to be a business with reputation being of utmost importance. From the book it seemed that Oldie's had seen better days.

Pax,
L
 
Yeah, I have pretty much assessed that the school Lewis went to was a waste of money and time for his father just from how Lewis has described it so far.
 
But I also liked "The Great Divorce"... not only is the world it creates incredibly imaginative, but the theological insights are brilliant. Talk about a wonderful rundown of many of the all too many barriers between mankind and salvation.[/QUOTE]


I agree. I think the whole idea that our salvation (or not) is up to us, is quite difficult to grasp, sometimes. I mean, I think it is quite easy for us to think it is something God 'does' to us, like handing out punishment or reward. The way Lewis shows how much we create our own heavens and hells, by hanging on to our fears and other things, is brilliant, I think. And challenging.
 
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