Where to Start with C S Lewis | Book List

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  • Опубліковано 21 лис 2024

КОМЕНТАРІ • 73

  • @nhell0_0
    @nhell0_0 4 роки тому +11

    I'm currently reading the Magician's Nephew. And I was done reading the Lion the witch and the wardrobe. Honestly, I didn't know that there's two different schools about how the chronicles of narnia should be read systematically. And yeah, I did start with the Iion the witch and the wardrobe simply because thats the one that I am familiar with.
    Anyway, I love this video about C.S Lewis and how you gracefully delivered some of your insights.

  • @ThesepretzelsRmakingmethirsty
    @ThesepretzelsRmakingmethirsty 4 роки тому +6

    Three of my favorite books of all time are by him! Love his writing! The Great Divorce was mind blowing to me I love that book, the Screwtape Letters are superb at flipping the narrative and seeing things from another side! For my favorite Narnia book, I love The Horse and His Boy; it’s so wonderful and the picture it paints in my mind is glorious.

  • @Imaginetheday1967
    @Imaginetheday1967 6 років тому +12

    I read The Screwtape Letters and The Great Divorce last year. So much love for both of those! I'm in the camp of publication order for Narnia, but I've been rereading them this year in chronological order. It hasn't changed my mind, but I've enjoyed it. :)

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому +1

      Haha, it is definitely a very divisive issue!! :)

  • @jacquelinemcmenamin8204
    @jacquelinemcmenamin8204 6 років тому +16

    There is now a CS Lewis festival in Belfast.

  • @aweaver2302
    @aweaver2302 3 роки тому +1

    I also prefer the chronological reading but it helped that I read the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe years prior to reading the whole series. I personally loved seeing the theological Easter eggs as I got deeper and deeper !

  • @BeautifullyBookishBethany
    @BeautifullyBookishBethany 6 років тому +7

    I love CS Lewis! I also love his sci-fi trilogy, and Til We Have Faces.

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому +1

      I'm more lukewarm on those, but I know they have a lot of fans! I don't think I've ever read something from him I straight up didn't like

  • @iansmith4023
    @iansmith4023 6 років тому +2

    My only experience with Lewis is Narnia - but it's an experience that began when I was eight,and has never left me.
    As to where to start with the Chronicles - I began with TLTWTW;but it's Magician's Nephew which made the greatest impression.Such an epic sweep;so effortlessly related in such a concise form.
    A few years back,I was very ill for several months. I'm an atheist myself,but I took Chronicles into the hospital with me;and kept the volumes by my bedside,much to the amusement of the nurses. The books not only kept me entertained (people forget that they are often extremely funny - parts of Dawn Treader often seem to prefigure Python);but I realised later that the philosophical element of the books were the equivalent of the Bible to me.

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому

      That's such a lovely book stories- I love hearing people's personal associations with various books, especially for ones that I also have special memories with. And yes, I totally agree about the humor! Lewis often makes me laugh... the scene in Magician's Nephew when the animals try to plant Uncle Andrew comes to mind :)

    • @saskoilersfan
      @saskoilersfan 5 років тому

      @@bookslikewhoa my experience is with the Kennedy assassination and the wizard of Oz...
      On the day I die, fantasy comes to reality....

  • @rootedwillowhomeschool
    @rootedwillowhomeschool 4 роки тому +3

    Till We Have Faces is my favorite Lewis book.

  • @jasminecedeno1681
    @jasminecedeno1681 3 роки тому +4

    I’ve just started reading the non-fiction works of Lewis so I’m very appreciative of this video! I’m a little shocked that anyone can read Lewis and like his works apart from his philosophy, though I believe theology is the appropriate word, since all of his writings centered around Christianity. Also, if by saying you are no longer sympathetic you mean to say that you no longer believe in the faith, then I will be praying for you. The Father welcomes all prodigals with open arms that are no too short to save. (Luke 15:20, Isaiah 59:1).

  • @ReadandFindOut
    @ReadandFindOut 6 років тому +3

    We have very similar feelings about Lewis! He's one of my favorite authors. A Grief Observed is my favorite work by him. It was one of my standout reads of last year. I actually agree about starting with The Magician's Nephew!

  • @josephososkie3029
    @josephososkie3029 5 років тому +4

    You have an interesting narrative style. And as you say Lewis’s writing style was somewhat simple and direct which makes it easier to engage the reader. Which ones are your top three favorite?

  • @mov1ngforward
    @mov1ngforward 3 роки тому +1

    Thank you, Mara! I started Hillsdale College's course this morning. I have put it off many times in my life and you gave me a great reference.

  • @gaildoughty6799
    @gaildoughty6799 6 років тому +3

    Outstanding video; nice exploration of the different sides to Lewis.
    I missed Narnia in my childhood but when my eldest started the series I picked up Screwtape and was vastly amused.
    Now I want to go back and read him again, and more of him.

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому

      He definitely holds up to some good comfort rereading!

  • @elvincarranza6166
    @elvincarranza6166 4 роки тому +2

    I love this! I just started getting into CS Lewis. My introduction was with the Great Divorce. I’m now on Mere Christianity and understand what you mean by having blind sides in some of his arguments - specifically in marriage. I am curious though, why did you become less sympathetic?

  • @dannigreen7126
    @dannigreen7126 6 років тому +3

    Just bought A Grief Observed at a used-books bookstore. Thank you so much for the rec. I wanted to start with Mere Christianity so I appreciate this video. I really wanna get more into Christian thought and I know he's an important figure. Would you consider making a "where to start with Christian thought" video? If not, I'll just inbox you on Goodreads to get that list.

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому

      Hmmm... well, my first thought would be, what kind of Christian? Are we talking Orthodox, Catholic, or Protestant? And then are we talking orthodox vs. heterodox, theology vs. praxis, etc.? My personal favorite intellectual history of Christianity is "Jesus Through the Centuries" by Jaroslav Pelikan, because I really like his more metaphorical writing style, and I like his approach to the material (he uses different ideas/theologies about who Jesus is to describe different periods of Christian history), but I know some people find his style really hard to get into

    • @dannigreen7126
      @dannigreen7126 6 років тому +1

      I'm a newbie so I'm open to all traditions. I want to read The Story of Christianity by Justo L. Gonzalez to get an understanding of how Christianity has developed different sects. In general, I want to understand the different sects, important Christian thinkers, and also where certain traditions come from. This is a lifelong mission of mine, so anything you can recommend would be helpful.

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому +2

      That’s a really good overall history - if you want to go deeper into history, Jaroslav Pelican has a good 5 volume one or the Penguin History of the Church 5 volume one is also good. I like Sources of the Self by Charles Taylor as an intellectual history of the idea of self, and it talks a lot about the Christian tradition of that in the west & its influence. Or I always recommend getting a good source book for snippets of primary sources... Amy Oden has a couple of good ones. In Her Own Words are excerpts of female Christian thinkers and And You Welcomed Me is a source book Christian hospitality. Anyways, I could go on and on... I think follow what topics interest you after you get an overview ☺️

    • @dannigreen7126
      @dannigreen7126 6 років тому

      @@bookslikewhoa thank you so much 😊❤️ I'll let you know how it shakes out.

  • @danecobain
    @danecobain 6 років тому +4

    That settles it, I need to read some more C. S. Lewis

  • @racheltevaseu6508
    @racheltevaseu6508 4 роки тому +3

    my fave of the Narnia series: The Last Battle...

  • @sorenpx
    @sorenpx 6 років тому +3

    Funny you post this today as just earlier tonight I started reading Mere Christianity.
    Never was much interested in his fiction. The Narnia books in particular I've always felt were aimed at too young an audience. If I'm going to read Christian-tinged fantasy, then I'd much rather go with his friend Tolkien's Middle-earth.

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому

      Yeah, his fiction isn't for everyone- it's a project I like, but YMMV

  • @JayEllis
    @JayEllis 6 років тому +4

    Brilliant video 🖖🤔😄 I haven’t seen your other video, so I will find it later.

  • @francesj.jenson6698
    @francesj.jenson6698 3 роки тому

    Thank you so much for your great overview and insight. I am familiar with this well-known author but have yet to read any of his work. I just putchased the Magician's Nephew and excited to crack that cover. I truly appreciate your time in creating this useful and helpful video. Many blessings, Frances

  • @foxedfolios
    @foxedfolios 6 років тому

    Another excellent video, Mara. I’m a dyed-in-the-wool atheist, but I’ve definitely become more interested / open to reading well written non-fiction by people with different religious/philosophical takes on life and the human condition, so these recommendations are great. I really appreciate you offering some access points to CS Lewis’ work. 👍👏

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому

      Oh good, I'm glad you enjoyed! It's hard to thread the needle for recs on Lewis, given how specifically Christian a lot of his stuff is, but if you go in knowing that, he really does have a lot to offer readers who are into "philosophy lite" type books

  • @racheltevaseu6508
    @racheltevaseu6508 4 роки тому +2

    thanks..I love his books.

  • @seriela
    @seriela 6 років тому +4

    What's going on here? Been connecting with your videos all day! 🤣 My favorite C.S. Lewis is Mere Christanity. I also read A Grief Observed when my mom passed decades ago. I enjoyed The Screwtape Letters but, though I bought beautiful editions of Narnia for my grandbabies and had the paperback set for my own children, I could never "click" with Narnia. Don't know why....

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому +1

      Haha glad you’ve been enjoying a binge!! CS Lewis is def an old fav for me- A grief Observed has been my fav as of late

  • @angelaluz405
    @angelaluz405 6 років тому +3

    I was wondering about his space books. Any thoughts on those? I know nothing about them other than the fact of their existence...which I only found out recently.

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому +1

      I thought about putting them in here, but the truth is, they are books I like OK but don't think are particularly accomplished. If you like his other stuff, you'll probably like them fine, but I don't think they stand out

  • @maries2768
    @maries2768 6 років тому +1

    Weirdly enough I didn't read C. S. Lewis until I was 26. My ex-fiance who was really Christian made me read the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. I guess that had we gotten married I probably would have read more. It didn't made such an impression on me. It was a cute story, but nothing mind blowing. I should try something else though! I like authors who can explain complex ideas clearly! I can't tell for other countries, but he isn't very well known in the French speaking world.

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому +2

      Oh that's interesting- Lewis is basically considered to be a saint in American evangelicalism, but the rest of the English speaking world mostly just knows his Narnia stuff. I'm sure some of the love for Narnia I & others have would be nostalgia based, so it doesn't shock me that it might not fully connect with an adult reader... if you're open to try a different Narnia, I think The Magician's Nephew has a lot more interesting themes about life, death, & grief that might appeal to an adult reader

    • @saskoilersfan
      @saskoilersfan 5 років тому

      Try the Kennedy Oz enigma....maybe dead men do tell tales.

  • @MaryAmongStories
    @MaryAmongStories 6 років тому +4

    love these videos! I've never actually read any of those and probably should :p

  • @danielmkubacki
    @danielmkubacki 5 років тому

    Thanks. Going to read The magician's nephew than the lion the witch and the wardrobe.

  • @bookishbrendan8875
    @bookishbrendan8875 3 роки тому +1

    Totally love your videos! With that said, and without seeming like I’m baiting or something, can I ask you which part of his philosophy you disagree with? You frame it rhetorically as such multiple times, so I can only assume, for someone who had (

  • @Kate-go9tp
    @Kate-go9tp 2 роки тому +1

    Why didn't you mention the space trilogy?

  • @saskoilersfan
    @saskoilersfan 5 років тому

    My experience with myself was when I died....
    When I die....the adventure begins.
    When Aldous Huxley died....the adventure begins.
    When Kennedy dies...the adventure begins.
    When we die ..the wizard of Oz comes to life...with magical trajectories and kills ....for revenge.

  • @eamongilligan3262
    @eamongilligan3262 6 років тому

    Really interesting video, thanks! I've actually barely read anything of his and know very little about him outside of Narnia. Hehe, like you I have bought an illustrated compilation of the books for a friend's child when he was born. It reminded me how as a kid I always wanted the collection too but never had it and have still only read a few of them to this day. The Magician's Nephew is FANTASTIC! I mean, I always have a bias towards a creation mythology story so that would be part of the reason, but also there is so much going on. The hints of all the other worlds out there, the wood between the worlds is awesome, whatever was going on in Charn is creepy and interesting, the setting in late Victorian England... it's all so good. I haven't read it since I was very young but the image of Jadis eating the apple always sticks in my head for some reason.
    As for the others that I have read it's a bit of a mixed bag for me... I haven't actually read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe funnily enough though am very familiar with the story (the BBC adaptation was on constant rotation as a child), and as controversial as it may be I only really like the first half. The battle stuff just doesn't interest me so much. Prince Caspian I didn't like. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader was a really pleasant surprise to me in how much I enjoyed it. I think it was also my favourite of the three movies done a few years ago.
    Neil Gaiman once wrote a short story dealing with Susan Pevensie and the problematic way she was treated at the end of the series, and I've read that, but not actually read The Last Battle.
    These where to start videos are so fun, cheers! :)

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому +2

      YES, there are so many iconic images from The Magician's Nephew! I think the ones that stick in my mind are Digory flying to and from the garden, and then Jadis running around London trying to bend it to her will. Oh, and the frozen scene in Charn with the bell. Lewis really does know how to paint an evocative picture with very few words
      I tend to agree with you on Lewis battle scenes. It's where I usually lose a bit of interest and consequently, I also am much less fond of Prince Caspian than a lot of people seem to be.
      And I'd be very interested in the Susan Pevensie fan fic from NG! Even when I was much more religious, I was always very bothered by her treatment in the end. In general, I don' love The Last Battle too much- it's what keeps me from considering the series as a whole to be a slam dunk.

    • @eamongilligan3262
      @eamongilligan3262 6 років тому +1

      Jadis in London - a FANTASTIC scene! I really wish they would turn this one into a movie! 😊

  • @timothythomas1626
    @timothythomas1626 5 років тому +1

    I am positive that I am not the first. However I will say it anyway. Love the Name!! Quite Catchy .

  • @jeffwilson544
    @jeffwilson544 3 роки тому +1

    What happened at age 23 ? EGO ( Edging God Out ).

  • @changayakausa4286
    @changayakausa4286 3 роки тому

    whose your favorite author now?

  • @joeycron2831
    @joeycron2831 6 років тому +1

    I had no idea that CS Lewis wrote anything besides the children’s series

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  6 років тому +3

      Yep, that's definitely what most people know him for... but he was super prolific. Like, to the point that his university colleagues shaded him for producing too much

    • @joeycron2831
      @joeycron2831 6 років тому

      Oh how interesting. I think I'll look into some of the other books / essays that you mentioned.

  • @theoriginalblob4750
    @theoriginalblob4750 4 роки тому +1

    Not a single mention of Till We Have Faces?

    • @bookslikewhoa
      @bookslikewhoa  4 роки тому +1

      Alas, not one of my favorites :)

    • @theoriginalblob4750
      @theoriginalblob4750 4 роки тому

      @@bookslikewhoa that seems tk be the general trend with this book😂😂 even though i love it.

  • @saskoilersfan
    @saskoilersfan 5 років тому

    Check it ....on the day C's Lewis dies, Kennedy is killed by the wizard of Oz.
    Check it....on the day Aldous Huxley dies, a president is killed with magical trajectories...
    Check it....on the day Kennedy dies, so does his twin....

  • @honeyrunguitars
    @honeyrunguitars 4 роки тому

    ...'Till We Have Faces...

  • @SunriseFireberry
    @SunriseFireberry 6 років тому

    U r a 95% Lewis completist? I'll be helpful. Here's a checklist. Which of these haven't you read? Some of these books, eg. most of the non-fic literary books, are very difficult stuff written for specialists. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._S._Lewis_bibliography
    I loath allegory. CSL says that books as LWW, MN & LB aren't allegory but supposals. OK. A musician can write something heavily fugal without being a fugue. Lewis is writing stuff that is just off being an allegory. OK. It's just shy of dragging the reader by the nose instead of actually doing it. Got'ya Jack. )-:
    Lewis has said he was weaving a spell when he wrote the Narnia books. What kind of spell was it?
    Kids have little idea eg. how many allusions & symbols & not-for-kids (too heavy) themes are in the Narnia books. Maybe kids should read the annotated editions of these books (without commentary). Would've helped me. aside: re last battle. Enough Bible allusions to apocalyptic passages to choke a cow a horse & a pig, but only a smart kid would realize what was going on, that Lewis was piecing together a pastiche of these passages & weaving them into his books for (ostensibly) age 9-13 year old readers. DON'T PULL WOOL OVER CHILDREN'S EYES IT'S NOT NICE!!!!! (My Grade 6 fury is sublimated but not dissipated now, decades later. I discovered then that whatever else Lewis was he was some tricky (tricksie?) author & whatever I read of his in future my guard should be up very high indeed.)
    The lion singing in creation was an idea Lewis took (the singing part at least) from Tolkien's then unpublished Silmarillion. Nassty.
    If u care to, compare Mere X'ianity with Orthodoxy/Chesterton. IMHO Lewis should've been using footnotes re GKC's work.
    Think I've written enough for now.
    Why are you getting away from Lewis thinking that you used to have?

  • @pappy9473
    @pappy9473 3 роки тому

    Prayer works? Are you kidding? Please!!!!

  • @jeffwilson544
    @jeffwilson544 3 роки тому +1

    She has a issue re: Christianity. Sounds like inflated ego.