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SIMPLY C.S. LEWIS:
A BEGINNERS GUIDE
Thomas C. Peters
(Crossword, 270pp, $15p)
Thomas C. Peters (Battling for the Modern Mind, The Christian Imagination) has provided a valuable resource in his book Simply C.S. Lewis: A Beginners Guide to His Life and Works. It is a guide for rookie C.S. Lewis-philes like myself, a handbook to the life and work of one of Christiaintys foremost apologists. Lewis (1898-1963), though intimidating to those aware of his reputation as an intellectual but who have yet to sample his works to discover for themselves that he is anything but cerebral (it took me years to discover this). He was a highly respected scholar in many categories of learning, but delighted children while at the same time challenging scholars with his insight and simplicity. A person reads Lewis, pausing from time to time to think, Oh yeah, of course. Why didnt I think of that?
Peters writes, Lewis remains fully relevant and now even more urgent than when he lived. The spiritual and moral problems he addressed have not gone away; they have grown and multiplied. His wisdom has not been outgrown; it has simply been ignored.
Thomas Peters has selectively chosen from Lewis writings what he feels is the most representative of his thoughts though omitting his personal correspondence, essays, and poetry, which fill other volumes. Peters intent is to provide an brief introduction to Lewis with the hope of whetting the appetite. So, in an effort to help readers discover (or perhaps re-discover) Lewis and to appreciate his uncanny ability to amuse even the smallest child while at the same time challenge the most learned mind (which is, frankly, an ability I wish more intellectuals had), Peters demonstrates in ten succinct chapters how Lewis is as relevant today as when he wrote during the first half of the twentieth century. Simply C.S. Lewis will help the reader discover the attraction of Lewis without diluting the power of his work. The book discloses how Lewis' many worksfrom The Chronicles of Narnia and The Screwtape Letters to Mere Christianity and The Problem of Painare as multipurposed as the man himself. So much so, in fact, that a person will likely shelve their anxiety in approaching him and be persuaded to experience for themselves the imaginative and spiritual perception his classics afford.
Lewis can be daunting to those familiar with his reputation as an intellectual but haven't yet sampled his writing. This sampling of Lewis should leave the reader hungry for more, especially when you discover for yourself why he is today the icon he is. What Peters has given me, personally, is a greater appreciation for C.S. Lewis fiction and fantasy. I have long been a fan of his apologetics but had unwisely slighted his fiction. But no longer.
Ref: Amazon.com: Simply C. S. Lewis: A Beginner's Guide to the Life and Works of C. S. Lewis (9780891079484): Thomas C. Peters: Books
A BEGINNERS GUIDE
Thomas C. Peters
(Crossword, 270pp, $15p)
Thomas C. Peters (Battling for the Modern Mind, The Christian Imagination) has provided a valuable resource in his book Simply C.S. Lewis: A Beginners Guide to His Life and Works. It is a guide for rookie C.S. Lewis-philes like myself, a handbook to the life and work of one of Christiaintys foremost apologists. Lewis (1898-1963), though intimidating to those aware of his reputation as an intellectual but who have yet to sample his works to discover for themselves that he is anything but cerebral (it took me years to discover this). He was a highly respected scholar in many categories of learning, but delighted children while at the same time challenging scholars with his insight and simplicity. A person reads Lewis, pausing from time to time to think, Oh yeah, of course. Why didnt I think of that?
Peters writes, Lewis remains fully relevant and now even more urgent than when he lived. The spiritual and moral problems he addressed have not gone away; they have grown and multiplied. His wisdom has not been outgrown; it has simply been ignored.
Thomas Peters has selectively chosen from Lewis writings what he feels is the most representative of his thoughts though omitting his personal correspondence, essays, and poetry, which fill other volumes. Peters intent is to provide an brief introduction to Lewis with the hope of whetting the appetite. So, in an effort to help readers discover (or perhaps re-discover) Lewis and to appreciate his uncanny ability to amuse even the smallest child while at the same time challenge the most learned mind (which is, frankly, an ability I wish more intellectuals had), Peters demonstrates in ten succinct chapters how Lewis is as relevant today as when he wrote during the first half of the twentieth century. Simply C.S. Lewis will help the reader discover the attraction of Lewis without diluting the power of his work. The book discloses how Lewis' many worksfrom The Chronicles of Narnia and The Screwtape Letters to Mere Christianity and The Problem of Painare as multipurposed as the man himself. So much so, in fact, that a person will likely shelve their anxiety in approaching him and be persuaded to experience for themselves the imaginative and spiritual perception his classics afford.
Lewis can be daunting to those familiar with his reputation as an intellectual but haven't yet sampled his writing. This sampling of Lewis should leave the reader hungry for more, especially when you discover for yourself why he is today the icon he is. What Peters has given me, personally, is a greater appreciation for C.S. Lewis fiction and fantasy. I have long been a fan of his apologetics but had unwisely slighted his fiction. But no longer.
Ref: Amazon.com: Simply C. S. Lewis: A Beginner's Guide to the Life and Works of C. S. Lewis (9780891079484): Thomas C. Peters: Books
