C S Lewis Popular Books

C S Lewis Biography & Facts

Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer, literary scholar, and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Magdalen College, Oxford (1925–1954), and Magdalene College, Cambridge (1954–1963). He is best known as the author of The Chronicles of Narnia, but he is also noted for his other works of fiction, such as The Screwtape Letters and The Space Trilogy, and for his non-fiction Christian apologetics, including Mere Christianity, Miracles, and The Problem of Pain. Lewis was a close friend of J. R. R. Tolkien, author of The Lord of the Rings. Both men served on the English faculty at Oxford University and were active in the informal Oxford literary group known as the Inklings. According to Lewis's 1955 memoir Surprised by Joy, he was baptized in the Church of Ireland but fell away from his faith during adolescence. Lewis returned to Anglicanism at the age of 32, owing to the influence of Tolkien and other friends, and he became an "ordinary layman of the Church of England". Lewis's faith profoundly affected his work, and his wartime radio broadcasts on the subject of Christianity brought him wide acclaim. Lewis wrote more than 30 books which have been translated into more than 30 languages and have sold millions of copies. The books that make up The Chronicles of Narnia have sold the most and have been popularized on stage, TV, radio, and cinema. His philosophical writings are widely cited by Christian scholars from many denominations. In 1956, Lewis married American writer Joy Davidman; she died of cancer four years later at the age of 45. Lewis died on 22 November 1963 from kidney failure, at age 64. In 2013, on the 50th anniversary of his death, Lewis was honoured with a memorial in Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey. Life Childhood Clive Staples Lewis was born in Belfast in Ulster, Ireland (before partition), on 29 November 1898. His father was Albert James Lewis (1863–1929), a solicitor whose father Richard Lewis had come to Ireland from Wales during the mid-19th century. Lewis's mother was Florence Augusta Lewis née Hamilton (1862–1908), known as Flora, the daughter of Thomas Hamilton, a Church of Ireland priest, and the great-granddaughter of both Bishop Hugh Hamilton and John Staples. Lewis had an elder brother, Warren Hamilton Lewis (known as "Warnie"). He was baptized on 29 January 1899 by his maternal grandfather in St Mark's Church, Dundela.When his dog Jacksie was fatally struck by a horse-drawn carriage, the four-year-old Lewis adopted the name Jacksie. At first, he would answer to no other name, but later accepted Jack, the name by which he was known to friends and family for the rest of his life. When he was seven, his family moved into "Little Lea", the family home of his childhood, in the Strandtown area of East Belfast.As a boy, Lewis was fascinated with anthropomorphic animals; he fell in love with Beatrix Potter's stories and often wrote and illustrated his own animal tales. Along with his brother Warnie, he created the world of Boxen, a fantasy land inhabited and run by animals. Lewis loved to read from an early age. His father's house was filled with books; he later wrote that finding something to read was as easy as walking into a field and "finding a new blade of grass". Lewis was schooled by private tutors until age nine, when his mother died in 1908 from cancer. His father then sent him to England to live and study at Wynyard School in Watford, Hertfordshire. Lewis's brother had enrolled there three years previously. Not long after, the school was closed due to a lack of pupils. Lewis then attended Campbell College in the east of Belfast about a mile from his home, but left after a few months due to respiratory problems. He was then sent back to England to the health-resort town of Malvern, Worcestershire, where he attended the preparatory school Cherbourg House, which Lewis referred to as "Chartres" in his autobiography. It was during this time that he abandoned the Christianity he was taught as a child and became an atheist. During this time he also developed a fascination with European mythology and the occult.In September 1913, Lewis enrolled at Malvern College, where he remained until the following June. He found the school socially competitive. After leaving Malvern, he studied privately with William T. Kirkpatrick, his father's old tutor and former headmaster of Lurgan College.As a teenager, Lewis was wonderstruck by the songs and legends of what he called Northernness, the ancient literature of Scandinavia preserved in the Icelandic sagas. These legends intensified an inner longing that he would later call "joy". He also grew to love nature; its beauty reminded him of the stories of the North, and the stories of the North reminded him of the beauties of nature. His teenage writings moved away from the tales of Boxen, and he began experimenting with different art forms such as epic poetry and opera to try to capture his new-found interest in Norse mythology and the natural world. Studying with Kirkpatrick ("The Great Knock", as Lewis afterward called him) instilled in him a love of Greek literature and mythology and sharpened his debate and reasoning skills. In 1916, Lewis was awarded a scholarship at University College, Oxford. "My Irish life" Lewis experienced a certain cultural shock on first arriving in England: "No Englishman will be able to understand my first impressions of England," Lewis wrote in Surprised by Joy. "The strange English accents with which I was surrounded seemed like the voices of demons. But what was worst was the English landscape ... I have made up the quarrel since; but at that moment I conceived a hatred for England which took many years to heal."From boyhood, Lewis had immersed himself in Norse and Greek mythology, and later in Irish mythology and literature. He also expressed an interest in the Irish language, though there is not much evidence that he laboured to learn it. He developed a particular fondness for W. B. Yeats, in part because of Yeats's use of Ireland's Celtic heritage in poetry. In a letter to a friend, Lewis wrote, "I have here discovered an author exactly after my own heart, whom I am sure you would delight in, W. B. Yeats. He writes plays and poems of rare spirit and beauty about our old Irish mythology."In 1921, Lewis met Yeats twice, since Yeats had moved to Oxford. Lewis was surprised to find his English peers indifferent to Yeats and the Celtic Revival movement, and wrote: "I am often surprised to find how utterly ignored Yeats is among the men I have met: perhaps his appeal is purely Irish – if so, then thank the gods that I am Irish." Early in his career, Lewis considered sending his work to the major Dublin publishers, writing: "If I do ever send my stuff to a publisher, I think I shall try Maunsel, those Dublin people, and so tack myself definitely onto the Irish school."After his conversion to C.... Discover the C S Lewis popular books. Find the top 100 most popular C S Lewis books.

Best Seller C S Lewis Books of 2024

  • Preparing for Easter synopsis, comments

    Preparing for Easter

    C. S. Lewis

    Together in one special volume, selections from the best of beloved bestselling author C. S. Lewis’s classic works for readers contemplating the "grand miracle" of Jesus’s resurrec...

  • Not a Fan synopsis, comments

    Not a Fan

    Kyle Idleman

    Pastor Kyle Idleman doesn’t just want to be a fan of Jesus, he wants to full heartedly commit to him and be a follower of Jesus. But how can you make the leap from fan to follower?...

  • C. S. Lewis - Apostle to the Sceptics synopsis, comments

    C. S. Lewis - Apostle to the Sceptics

    Walter Hooper

    This ebook charts Lewis’s journey from practical atheism to his conversion to Christianity, and thereafter, to becoming Professor of English at Cambridge and one of the best known ...

  • The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume 2 synopsis, comments

    The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume 2

    C. S. Lewis

    C. S. Lewis was a prolific letter writer, and his personal correspondence reveals much of his private life, reflections, friendships, and the progress of his thought. This second o...

  • A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War synopsis, comments

    A Hobbit, a Wardrobe, and a Great War

    Joseph Loconte

    Had there been no Great War, there would have been no Hobbit, no Lord of the Rings, no Narnia, and perhaps no conversion to Christianity by C. S. Lewis.The First World War laid was...

  • A Grief Observed synopsis, comments

    A Grief Observed

    C. S. Lewis

    In April 1956, C.S. Lewis, a confirmed bachelor, married Joy Davidman, an American poet with two small children. After four brief, intensely happy years, Davidman died of cancer an...

  • Words to Live By synopsis, comments

    Words to Live By

    C. S. Lewis

    C. S. Lewis is a beloved writer and thinker and arguably the most important Christian intellectual of the twentieth century. His groundbreaking children's series The Chronicles of ...

  • God in the Dock synopsis, comments

    God in the Dock

    C. S. Lewis

    God in the Dock is one of the best known of C.S. Lewis's collections of essays and includes Myth Become Fact, The Grand Miracle, Priestesses in the Church and, of course, God in th...

  • The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume 1 synopsis, comments

    The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume 1

    C. S. Lewis

    The life and mind of C. S. Lewis have fascinated those who have read his works. This collection of his personal letters reveals a unique intellectual journey. The first of a threev...

  • Miracles synopsis, comments

    Miracles

    C. S. Lewis

    Do miracles really happen? Can we know if the supernatural world exists? "The central miracle asserted by Christians is the Incarnation. They say that God became Man. Every oth...

  • A Mind Awake synopsis, comments

    A Mind Awake

    C. S. Lewis

    A repackaged edition of the revered author’s anthology featuring hundreds of selections from his writings, organized by the main themes of Christian faith.C. S. Lewisthe great Brit...

  • C. S. Lewis synopsis, comments

    C. S. Lewis

    A. N. Wilson

    This acclaimed biography charts the progress of the brilliant, prolific writer, C. S. Lewis.C. S. Lewis was a deeply complex man, capable of inspiring both great devotion and great...

  • Letters of C. S. Lewis synopsis, comments

    Letters of C. S. Lewis

    C. S. Lewis

    A repackaged edition of the revered author’s collection of personal lettersa curated selection of the best of his correspondence with family, friends, and fansand a short biography...

  • The Problem of Pain synopsis, comments

    The Problem of Pain

    C. S. Lewis

    “If God is good and allpowerful, why does he allow his creatures to suffer pain?” Every true believer who has ever lived has asked this question. Even Jesus, the Son of God, asked ...

  • Angels synopsis, comments

    Angels

    Dr. David Jeremiah

    The remarkable truth about angels, the agents of Heaven, unveiled through Scripturefrom the New York Times bestselling author of Everything You Need “Outstandin...

  • The Fellowship synopsis, comments

    The Fellowship

    Philip Zaleski & Carol Zaleski

    C. S. Lewis is the 20th century's most widely read Christian writer and J.R.R. Tolkien its most beloved mythmaker. For three decades, they and their closest associates formed a lit...

  • Mere Christianity synopsis, comments

    Mere Christianity

    C. S. Lewis

    Mere Christianity has sold millions of copies worldwide in over half a century. It is one of the most popular introductions to the Christian faith ever written. This classic brings...

  • C. S. Lewis synopsis, comments

    C. S. Lewis

    Sam Wellman

    Barbour’s Heroes of the Faith series continues, with newlytypeset biographies of great Christians through history. These intriguing stories are told in novelized form, sharing info...

  • Once Upon a Wardrobe synopsis, comments

    Once Upon a Wardrobe

    Patti Callahan

    College student Megs Devonshire sets out to fulfill her younger brother George’s last wish by uncovering the truth behind his favorite story. What transpires is a fascinating look ...

  • The Language of God synopsis, comments

    The Language of God

    Francis S. Collins

    An instant bestseller from Templeton Prize–winning author Francis S. Collins, The Language of God provides the best argument for the integration of faith and logic since C.S. Lewis...

  • Paved with Good Intentions synopsis, comments

    Paved with Good Intentions

    C. S. Lewis

    Temptation and Deception Made EasyThe demon Wormwood first became famous through his correspondence with his uncle Screwtape, published in The Screwtape Letters. We are now privile...

  • Becoming Mrs. Lewis synopsis, comments

    Becoming Mrs. Lewis

    Patti Callahan

    Meet the brilliant writer, fiercely independent mother, and passionate woman who captured the heart of C.S. Lewis and inspired the books that still enchant and change us today, fro...

  • The Problem of Pain synopsis, comments

    The Problem of Pain

    C. S. Lewis

    Why Must We Suffer?“If God is good and allpowerful, why does he allow his creatures to suffer pain?” And what about the suffering of animals, who neither deserve pain nor can be im...

  • The Abolition of Man synopsis, comments

    The Abolition of Man

    C. S. Lewis

    Astonishing and prophetic, The Abolition of Man is one of the most debated of C. S. Lewis’s extraordinary works. National Review chose it as number seven on their "100 Best Nonfict...

  • What Christians Believe synopsis, comments

    What Christians Believe

    C. S. Lewis

    The Essentials ExplainedMaster storyteller and essayist C. S. Lewis here tackles the central questions of the Christian faith: Who was Jesus? What did he accomplish? What does it m...

  • The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume 3 synopsis, comments

    The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume 3

    C. S. Lewis

    This collection, carefully chosen and arranged by Walter Hooper, is the most extensive ever published. Included here are the letters Lewis wrote to such luminaries as J.R.R. Tolkie...

  • If I Had Lunch with C. S. Lewis synopsis, comments

    If I Had Lunch with C. S. Lewis

    Alister Mcgrath

    What if you could ask C. S. Lewis his thoughts on some of the most difficult questions of life? If you could, the result would be Dr. Alister McGrath’s provocative and perceptive b...

  • The Four Loves synopsis, comments

    The Four Loves

    C. S. Lewis

    The Four Loves summarizes four kinds of human loveaffection, friendship, erotic love, and the love of God. Masterful without being magisterial, this book's wise, gentle, candid ref...

  • Faye, Faraway synopsis, comments

    Faye, Faraway

    Helen Fisher

    Heartfelt and irresistible“a lovely, deeply moving story of loss and love and memory made real” (Diana Gabaldon, #1 New York Times bestselling author)this enchanting debut follows ...

  • The Great Divorce synopsis, comments

    The Great Divorce

    C. S. Lewis

    This powerful and exquisitely written fantasy is one of C. S. Lewis's most enduring works of fiction. It is a profound meditation on good and evil and on what God truly offers us. ...

  • A Severe Mercy synopsis, comments

    A Severe Mercy

    Sheldon Vanauken

    Beloved, profoundly moving account of the author's marriage, the couple's search for faith and friendship with C. S. Lewis, and a spiritual strength that sustained Vanauken...

  • Yours, Jack synopsis, comments

    Yours, Jack

    C. S. Lewis

    C. S. Lewis spent a good portion of each day corresponding with people via handwritten letters. Over his lifetime he wrote thousands of letters in which he offered his friends and ...

  • From the Library of C. S. Lewis synopsis, comments

    From the Library of C. S. Lewis

    James Stuart Bell & Anthony P. Dawson

    Discover great truths from C. S. Lewis’s mentorsC. S. Lewis was perhaps the greatest Christian thinker of the twentieth century. He delighted us in The Chronicles of Narnia, intrig...

  • Reading with Patrick synopsis, comments

    Reading with Patrick

    Michelle Kuo

    “In all of the literature addressing education, race, poverty, and criminal justice, there has been nothing quite like Reading with Patrick.”The AtlanticA memoir of the lifech...

  • The Question of God synopsis, comments

    The Question of God

    Armand Nicholi

    "This elegantly written and compelling comparison of the worldviews of Sigmund Freud and C. S. Lewis provides a riveting opportunity to consider the most important questions mankin...

  • The Screwtape Letters synopsis, comments

    The Screwtape Letters

    C. S. Lewis

    This is the classic written by C. S. Lewis as a dedication to his dear friend J. R. R. Tolkien. A masterpiece of satire, The Screwtape Letters has entertained and enlightened reade...

  • A Year with Aslan synopsis, comments

    A Year with Aslan

    C. S. Lewis

    "Lewis combines a novelist's insights into motives with a profound religious understanding." New York Times Book ReviewIn the tradition of A Year with C.S. Lewis, get your daily do...

  • NRSV, The C. S. Lewis Bible synopsis, comments

    NRSV, The C. S. Lewis Bible

    C. S. Lewis

    Read and Reflect on Scripture alongside C. S. LewisC. S. Lewis was one of the intellectual giants of the twentieth century and arguably one of the most thoughtprovoking and influen...

  • C S Lewis synopsis, comments

    C S Lewis

    Colin Duriez

    An Oxford student of C.S. Lewis's said he found his new tutor interesting, and was told by J.R.R. Tolkien, 'Interesting? Yes, he's certainly that. You'll never get to the bottom of...

  • All My Road Before Me synopsis, comments

    All My Road Before Me

    C. S. Lewis

    A repackaged edition of the revered author’s diary from his early twentiesa thoughtprovoking work that reveals his earliest thinking about war, atheism, religion, and humanity.Whil...

  • A Year with C. S. Lewis synopsis, comments

    A Year with C. S. Lewis

    C. S. Lewis

    The classic A Year with C.S. Lewis is an intimate daytoday companion by C.S. Lewis, the most important Christian writer of the 20th century. The daily meditations have been culled ...