The Pilgrim's Regress

"You get what you pay for" applies here. Extremely reasonably priced, it was nice to read the book and see the plates. I assume they are reproductions of the original.

Production values are truly wanting here. There are notes/references inserted right into the prose, with no indication of what they are, breaking up sentences and ruining the flow of the narrative.

The reproduction of the illustrations are a disaster! They are cut off near the top and duplicated with an extra border, to boot.

However, the price makes it a steal. You may still wish to purchase a decent hard copy of the work.

The bookcame quickly and it was very affordable. I gave away my original copy (this is my 3rd copy) the 1st one had extensive footnotes on every page i miss that but it is so good to have my own copy again.

C.S. Lewis is my absolutely favorite author of all time.

But this is his absolutely WORST book of all. It absolutely boggles the mind that the GENIUS who wrote "Till We Have Faces" and "Perelandra" could have produced THIS drivel !!

I mean, look at my user name. "ArchKnight" is short for "Archenland_Knight", a name I use all over the internet. It references Archenland, the kingdom south of Narnia and north of Calormen. That is what a psycho Lewis fanboy I am!!

I LOVE C.S. Lewis. If I named my 5 favorite books of all time, they would all be C.S. Lewis books. But this is NOT one of those books.

This was C.S. Lewis' first book. I suppose it says a great deal that someone who's first effort was so abysmal later became arguably the greatest writer of the 20th century. So if YOUR first effort at something absolutely STUNK, do yourself this favor.

First, read "Till We Have Faces". After you have recovered from the overwhelming awesomeness of THAT book (really, it is almost unbearable in it's intensity) then read THIS book.

Then you will say to yourself, "If C.S. Lewis can go from Pilgrim's Regress to Till We Have Faces, then I can get better at [insert whatever you're trying to do here] too!!"

In his autobiography, "Surprised By Joy", Lewis remembers the story of his first trip to Oxford. During the train ride up he was bubbling over with excitement. Lewis had long yearned to see the great stone buildings and the beautiful gardens at Oxford which were renowned for their splendor.

But when he got off the train, he was puzzled. He looked around and saw nothing but drab, ugly structures and no gardens to speak of.

He thought maybe the campus lay far from the station so he took off walking. But no matter how far he went, the scenery never improved. He walked a few miles, finally coming to the end of the road, and heaved a defeated sigh of frustration. Not knowing what to do, he figured his best bet was to turn around and head back toward the station.

When he did, though, he was shocked by what he saw. The beautiful spires and towers shot high in the sky right behind the station revealing his primary mistake--this whole time he had been walking the wrong way. If he had only turned at the beginning of his journey, he would have entered the glorious land from the start.

Lewis considered this episode an allegory for his entire early life, and The Pilgrim's Regress uses the same model for its structure. The book, a retelling of John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, follows the main character, John, as he confronts Marxism, Communism, hedonism, nihilism, and many other popular twentieth-century ideologies. Each are personified through memorable characters and lands throughout the book.

John goes all the way through each of these realms but then is converted, turns around, and walks back the other way, seeing them all again through his newly converted eyes.

Lewis is quick to point out that the book was primarily written to be a story, not a blow-by-blow account of his own personal conversion. Even still, many of the philosophical pit-stops Lewis dabbled in on his way to Christianity show up.

This isn't one of my favorite books by Lewis, as it lacks the spark and life or some of his others. But it's not his worst either. If you're going to dive in, read Bunyan's original and Lewis' autobiography first.

C.S. Lewis was someone for whom the most important events of his life were the ideas in his head. Not surprisingly, then, his most revealing autobiography is 'The Pilgrim's Regress', this unusual allegorical tale of his journey from childhood religion through the intellectual fashions of the early twentieth century to his mature Christian faith. The more I've learned about his life story the more 'Surprised by Joy' appears to me to be less an autobiography and more of a very selective 'testimony', so if you want to get an inside look at Lewis's life 'The Pilgrim's Regress' is as good a place as any to go.

Lewis seems to have been determined to proceed as methodically as possible through every permutation of intellectual and philosophical belief on his way through to Christianity, so this book provides an interesting and often satirical view of Romanticism, Freudianism, Nihilism, Fascism, Idealism, and more of the 'isms' that dominated twentieth century life. The allegory, as allegory does, masks the clarity of a lot of the ideas, and without a background knowledge of the period (or the helpful chapter headings) it is a very obscure piece of writing indeed. Still, there is a clear underlying narrative of Lewis' spiritual and intellectual development, unified by vision of 'joy' symbolised by the beautiful island that the protagonist seeks throughout the story.

The appeal of this book is probably only for a few specific niches, either those interested in intellectual history or die-hard Lewis fans. I think it is worth reading at least for the immortal line "Do you think you can rout a million armed dwarfs by being 'not romantic'?".

It is not five minutes since I finished reading this book and all I can say is wow. Admittedly, I did not fully understand the story, nay, rather, I scarce grasped the simplest concepts of the journey and characters. Epic. It is full of such amazing truths about the depths of the world, which is in the heart of man, placing these lofty, deep, fundamental concepts in a place where our minds can grasp ahold of them and understand, though not fully. I believe I could read this book a hundred times and still learn new things each read. I do not understand it, but I see its truth and I am a step closer now to understanding. Lewis' afterward to the Third Edition is incredible and very much worth reading, almost more than the book itself--though I cannot say how I would understand it had I not read the book first. Wow. I look forward to reading this book again in a year or two and seeing how much more I understand, what new truths I glean from it. Though I did not recognize many (most) of the terms Lewis used, the references and the Latin quotes, I easily followed the story, so try not to let that hinder you from reading this book.

I recently listened to this work of Lewis' as read by Whitfield from the 3rd edition. I have no doubt that I would have enjoyed reading it, but this narration truly brought it to life in a manner that reading might have failed to do.

Having some background certainly will help the reader to understand what Lewis is doing here. Certainly, someone unfamiliar with John Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress" would stand a pretty good chance of getting lost. I'm not sure I agree that familiarity with Lewis's other, later, writings is necessary although it certainly wouldn't hurt. Aside from Bunyan, I believe this work stands well on its own.

You might want to consider as well, reading the afterword to the 3rd edition in which Lewis gives some insight to his use of the word romanticism which he believes on second thought adds to some confusion due to it's broad use. Reading that in advance may add some needed enlightenment. Reading it a second time is probably a needed investment as new applications and understandings will appear. That is the nature of well written allegory.

Allegory is often a misunderstood literary vehicle. Lewis struggled with his relationship with JRR Tolkien at some levels because Tolkien absolutely despised allegory in all its forms and was wary of any work where he detected it. No doubt Lewis was well aware of that and got an earful through his association with Tolkien as well as his other acquaintances who over the years came to be known as the "Inklings" where current writings were read, critiqued and evaluated.

Lewis dabbled in allegory in other areas although no other work truly can be called a pure allegory so much as this, his first novel as a believer. The Narnia Chronicles contain allegorical literary devices but are not purely allegory. The Space Trilogy can be said to do the same but is even less allegorical than the Narnia Chronicles.

Really good allegory, doesn't require a key to give it understanding. This work of Lewis can be said to be really good allegory but there are some elements of higher literature (to be expected in a professor of Literature) and some language elements where Latin maxims are included without the benefit of translation. If you're reading this for anything other than entertainment you'll find you probably need to do some work to understand the subtle nuances that Lewis conveys in his use of these maxims as well as some of the names which will not be so readily apparent to the casual reader. That understood, the casual reader should still be able to come away with the gist of what Lewis is illustrating and be entertained in the process.

A brief word about the narration, as I listened to this on CD rather than reading it directly. It is outstanding! The use of many distinctive voices which are memorable and consistent make this a dramatic reading that is rivaled by few others I've ever heard. In fact, I'm almost tempted to push for your first experience to be hearing it that reading it for just that reason. There is a cadence to the reading that shows Lewis had a grasp on drama and poetry that I wish he'd have continued to evidence in his later works to the degree he did here. It is breathtaking and brilliant on its own merits whether you are in sympathy with his primary message or not.

Definite 5 stars all the way around! An excellent book.

In his autobiography, "Surprised By Joy", Lewis remembers the story of his first trip to Oxford. During the train ride up he was bubbling over with excitement. Lewis had long yearned to see the great stone buildings and the beautiful gardens at Oxford which were renowned for their splendor.

But when he got off the train, he was puzzled. He looked around and saw nothing but drab, ugly structures and no gardens to speak of.

He thought maybe the campus lay far from the station so he took off walking. But no matter how far he went, the scenery never improved. He walked a few miles, finally coming to the end of the road, and heaved a defeated sigh of frustration. Not knowing what to do, he figured his best bet was to turn around and head back toward the station.

When he did, though, he was shocked by what he saw. The beautiful spires and towers shot high in the sky right behind the station revealing his primary mistake--this whole time he had been walking the wrong way. If he had only turned at the beginning of his journey, he would have entered the glorious land from the start.

Lewis considered this episode an allegory for his entire early life, and The Pilgrim's Regress uses the same model for its structure. The book, a retelling of John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, follows the main character, John, as he confronts Marxism, Communism, hedonism, nihilism, and many other popular twentieth-century ideologies. Each are personified through memorable characters and lands throughout the book.

John goes all the way through each of these realms but then is converted, turns around, and walks back the other way, seeing them all again through his newly converted eyes.

Lewis is quick to point out that the book was primarily written to be a story, not a blow-by-blow account of his own personal conversion. Even still, many of the philosophical pit-stops Lewis dabbled in on his way to Christianity show up.

This isn't one of my favorite books by Lewis, as it lacks the spark and life or some of his others. But it's not his worst either. If you're going to dive in, read Bunyan's original and Lewis' autobiography first.

C.S. Lewis was someone for whom the most important events of his life were the ideas in his head. Not surprisingly, then, his most revealing autobiography is 'The Pilgrim's Regress', this unusual allegorical tale of his journey from childhood religion through the intellectual fashions of the early twentieth century to his mature Christian faith. The more I've learned about his life story the more 'Surprised by Joy' appears to me to be less an autobiography and more of a very selective 'testimony', so if you want to get an inside look at Lewis's life 'The Pilgrim's Regress' is as good a place as any to go.

Lewis seems to have been determined to proceed as methodically as possible through every permutation of intellectual and philosophical belief on his way through to Christianity, so this book provides an interesting and often satirical view of Romanticism, Freudianism, Nihilism, Fascism, Idealism, and more of the 'isms' that dominated twentieth century life. The allegory, as allegory does, masks the clarity of a lot of the ideas, and without a background knowledge of the period (or the helpful chapter headings) it is a very obscure piece of writing indeed. Still, there is a clear underlying narrative of Lewis' spiritual and intellectual development, unified by vision of 'joy' symbolised by the beautiful island that the protagonist seeks throughout the story.

The appeal of this book is probably only for a few specific niches, either those interested in intellectual history or die-hard Lewis fans. I think it is worth reading at least for the immortal line "Do you think you can rout a million armed dwarfs by being 'not romantic'?".

It is not five minutes since I finished reading this book and all I can say is wow. Admittedly, I did not fully understand the story, nay, rather, I scarce grasped the simplest concepts of the journey and characters. Epic. It is full of such amazing truths about the depths of the world, which is in the heart of man, placing these lofty, deep, fundamental concepts in a place where our minds can grasp ahold of them and understand, though not fully. I believe I could read this book a hundred times and still learn new things each read. I do not understand it, but I see its truth and I am a step closer now to understanding. Lewis' afterward to the Third Edition is incredible and very much worth reading, almost more than the book itself--though I cannot say how I would understand it had I not read the book first. Wow. I look forward to reading this book again in a year or two and seeing how much more I understand, what new truths I glean from it. Though I did not recognize many (most) of the terms Lewis used, the references and the Latin quotes, I easily followed the story, so try not to let that hinder you from reading this book.

I recently listened to this work of Lewis' as read by Whitfield from the 3rd edition. I have no doubt that I would have enjoyed reading it, but this narration truly brought it to life in a manner that reading might have failed to do.

Having some background certainly will help the reader to understand what Lewis is doing here. Certainly, someone unfamiliar with John Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress" would stand a pretty good chance of getting lost. I'm not sure I agree that familiarity with Lewis's other, later, writings is necessary although it certainly wouldn't hurt. Aside from Bunyan, I believe this work stands well on its own.

You might want to consider as well, reading the afterword to the 3rd edition in which Lewis gives some insight to his use of the word romanticism which he believes on second thought adds to some confusion due to it's broad use. Reading that in advance may add some needed enlightenment. Reading it a second time is probably a needed investment as new applications and understandings will appear. That is the nature of well written allegory.

Allegory is often a misunderstood literary vehicle. Lewis struggled with his relationship with JRR Tolkien at some levels because Tolkien absolutely despised allegory in all its forms and was wary of any work where he detected it. No doubt Lewis was well aware of that and got an earful through his association with Tolkien as well as his other acquaintances who over the years came to be known as the "Inklings" where current writings were read, critiqued and evaluated.

Lewis dabbled in allegory in other areas although no other work truly can be called a pure allegory so much as this, his first novel as a believer. The Narnia Chronicles contain allegorical literary devices but are not purely allegory. The Space Trilogy can be said to do the same but is even less allegorical than the Narnia Chronicles.

Really good allegory, doesn't require a key to give it understanding. This work of Lewis can be said to be really good allegory but there are some elements of higher literature (to be expected in a professor of Literature) and some language elements where Latin maxims are included without the benefit of translation. If you're reading this for anything other than entertainment you'll find you probably need to do some work to understand the subtle nuances that Lewis conveys in his use of these maxims as well as some of the names which will not be so readily apparent to the casual reader. That understood, the casual reader should still be able to come away with the gist of what Lewis is illustrating and be entertained in the process.

A brief word about the narration, as I listened to this on CD rather than reading it directly. It is outstanding! The use of many distinctive voices which are memorable and consistent make this a dramatic reading that is rivaled by few others I've ever heard. In fact, I'm almost tempted to push for your first experience to be hearing it that reading it for just that reason. There is a cadence to the reading that shows Lewis had a grasp on drama and poetry that I wish he'd have continued to evidence in his later works to the degree he did here. It is breathtaking and brilliant on its own merits whether you are in sympathy with his primary message or not.

Definite 5 stars all the way around! An excellent book.

"The Pilgrim's Regress" is the first fictional book written by the late English author C.S. Lewis after his conversion to Christianity.

I read this book immediately after reading John Bunyan's classic "The Pilgrim's Progress". There are many parallels between the two books and Lewis' offering, written much later, is perhaps more accessible to the modern reader than Bunyan's book.

I was thoroughly enthralled by the first half of "The Pilgrim's Regress" but the latter half slumped. Part of this is the result of it getting more complex and more focused on the "spiritual pilgrimage" of the central character, John. Readers must be very astute to draw out the Christian themes encapsulated by the book as it is far more subtle than Lewis' other fictions, such as "The Screwtape Letters". However, Lewis does an excellent job of exposing the rhetoric used by opponents of theism through the characters of Mr. Broad, Mr. Enlightenment, etc...

C.S. Lewis is a marvel and readers will be well-rewarded by this challenging, thoughtful book.

In this insightful volume, C.S. Lewis provides a semi-autobiographical chronicle of his conversion to Christianity, and the various philosophical or emotional obstacles that he faced (or thought others might face) in coming to believe in Christ. Lewis notes in the afterword of the book that he realizes in retrospect, that the path he followed was not necessarily as common as he originally thought. Also he makes it clear that every situation "John" (the main character, likened to Lewis) encounters is not a direct reflection of Lewis' own life, but may have been included to address various issues facing people in the searching stage.
For those who have not read any of Lewis' writings, this may not be the best place to start. For those who have, but aren't particularly adept at throughly analyzing and understanding allegory, like myself, it may be advantageous to read Lewis's afterword FIRST, and pay special attention to the editorial headlines across the tops of the pages. That would contribute to understanding the gist of the allegories, which in some places are clear enough of their own nature, but elsewhere are quite obscure (as Lewis notes in the afterword).
I found the sections in "Claptrap", at Wisdom's house, and the discussions with the cave-hermit particularly difficult, but elsewhere the writing is fascinating, and has brilliant insights into the problems with certain philosophies. The story itself is a little more colorful and humorous then the Pilgrims' Progress by Bunyan, which is a very clear allegory that instead follows the walk of a Christian after conversion. This is a book that could easily be read multiple times to discover more and more depth to the story.

Pilgrim's Regress evidently enjoys mixed opinion among Lewisophiles, but personally I found the book fantastic. It's not an easy read, for the historical, literary, and philosophical elements are sometimes very hard to catch. But the way in which Lewis explores the complex ideas of life and existence is nothing short of incredible. People will undoubtedly benefit from this book in varying degrees, but as one who has struggled with the intellectual aspects of Christianity, while simultaneously being acutely aware of potentially supernatural facets of existence, this book is very enlightening, and worth a patient, careful read. The background elements are filled in nicely by Kathryn Lindskoog's "Finding the Landlord" (also recommended). Having read a number of Lewis' other works, and finding each worthy of some praise, this book actually moves near the top of my "formative works" list, alongside Pascal's Pensees (which is in another stratosphere of excellence, however). I would heartily recommend this to anyone with a philosophical bent, but would probably recommend reading "Surprised by Joy" as well. In short, by dealing with logic, longing, thought, and good/evil in an allegorical manner, Lewis provides a helpful goad for cultivating reflection and critical thinking, considering the nature of a Christian worldview in a painstaking manner, and brilliantly exploring the almost indescribable longing that we all experience, but might not acknowledge. The depth & circumspection of this exploration might be the most valuable element of the book.

This is an interesting allegory along the lines of Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress" which seems to depict Lewis' own spiritual and philosophical journey. Average readers (like me) may not pick up on some of the symbolism here, but there is enough of interest for Lewis fans (like me) to make it well worth reading (in spite of the bad poetry). Don't skip the preface (to the 3rd edition) as it provides some good insight to the story and an important explanation of Lewis' concept of "romanticism" and what he means by "joy" in the sense of "longing" or "desire" which cannot be entirely satisfied in this life. I think my favorite part was John's conversation with Reason in the chapter "Esse is Percipi" where we are reminded that the real world of our being hasn't all that much to do with our material existence, the physical makeup of our bodies.

I have read almost everything C.S. Lewis wrote, including letters to the editor, all three space novels, Till We Have Faces, and many others. One thing I really enjoy is seeing how bits from one work will spill over into others, and how each writing reflects on his life. I have read the Pilgrim's Regress now 4 times, and every time I see more in it. And not just about Lewis: about the development of thought up throught the years between the wars.
Overall, this is a book that is well worth reading. It gives the best explanation I've seen (better than Surprised by Joy, IMO) of his idea of Joy, and of the "Island" (image from Regress) that drove him to finally find Christ. Passages from the "Heaven" chapter of The Problem of Pain are close, but I thought in Regress he uses the allegory of the Island most effectively to explain his concept of longing and Joy.
At first, I must admit, Regress is difficult to understand for somebody without much background in fiction or allegory such as myself, and without much background in the philosophical movements of pre-war Europe. There are, however, two things in the book that are very helpful: (1) the afterword where Lewis explains his background; and (2) the explanatory headings on the tops of the pages that track the allegory.
Lewis said he wasn't sure this was a good idea of his, but I don't agree. Now, even not being a student of allegory, I would not read the headings first, or even primarily (as a kind of Cliff's Notes of the book). Read that way, they detract from the book. Rather, I read the whole book through the first time without the headings; only then, after I finished a section, going back and reading the headings on that section. Kind of like reading the Cliff's Notes along with the book itself; very useful, but hardly anybody does it.

Pilgrim's Regress is written in allegory form, like it's inspiration Pilgrim's Progress, as a modern day apology (defined as: in defense of) for Christianity and succeeds tolerably well.
The story is told as a dream being recounted by an unnamed narartor who sees in his dream a young boy named John; who lives in Puritania and becomes aware of a person refered to as 'The Landlord'. John is instructed as to the Landlord's rules by a Steward and begins to see the Landlord and the Rules as oppressive.
One day John is out strolling along a road and follows it far away from home. He hears music that he has never heard before coming from the other side of the wall that buttresses the road and notices a window in it. Looking through he catches a glimpse of an exotic Island that quickly fades away.
This vision becomes an obsession that leads him to set out on his own in the hope of finding the Island and fullfilling the desire it has awoke within him.
The characters that John meets on his solitary qwest are named for challenges or alternatives given to the Christian faith or are the names of attributes seen as leading to morality and salvation independent of Christ : Virtue, Mr.Enlightenment, Reason, Mr. Sensible, Mr Humanist, etc. Lewis succeeds most of the time while doing this but fails in a few places.
The challenges are presented by these characters, or even in some cases by John himself, as questions concerning The Island, The Landlord, or the world these characters all share. These arguements ,however, are thinly veiled arguements similar to those hurled at the believers of the Christian faith. In most parts of the book the explanations given to these challenges are easily understood. In some parts, however, it is very difficult to grasp the meaning the author was trying to convey. In the Preface to the 3rd edition, C.S.Lewis himself wrote: "On re-reading this book 10 years after I first wrote it, I find its' chelf faults to be those 2 which I myself least easily forgive in the books of other men, needless obscurity, and an uncharitable temper."
This book has much to offer anyone who appreciates Philosophy in general and enjoys a lively give and take. There are moments of brilliance in this book not to be missed. I was particularly impressed with the author's ability to reveal, dramatically, the faulty logic used by some of the characters to lead John astray. There is one scene where John is imprisoned and the jailer is telling all the prisoners that cow's milk is like any other secretion from an animal "like it's urine or its' dung." John replies: "Are you a liar or only a fool that you see no difference between that which nature casts out as refuse and that which she stores up as food?". This takes place while he is in the land owned by the 'Spirit of the Age".
All in all this book was well worth the little it took to read it ( I read it in about half a day ) and provided alot of valuable insight. Don't be put off by the religious (Christian) undertones; there is more than enough here for everyone to enjoy.

With the title being a parody of Pilgrim's Progress by Paul Bunyan, Lewis's allegory is a rich telling of his own route to faith in God. In what was Lewis's only published allegory (the space trilogy, Chronicles of Narnia, and Till We Have Faces are all fiction, but not allegory) he takes the reader on a journey, complete with a map and one line summations at the top of each page to explain the action taking place. Some of the philosophies Lewis denounced are no longer in vogue and will be unfamiliar to most, but the rest are recognizable and discussed fluently. J.I. Packer likes this the best of all the Lewis books and it is easy to see why. Lewis's work is a virtuoso performance.

This, the first book Lewis wrote after finding Christ, is an amazing story - a sort of homage to The Pilgram's Progress. In Regress the main character leaves his home of Puritania - ruled by a powerful but unseen Landlord - in search of his heart's desire, a beautiful island.

He wanders through all the philosophies of the world including Hedonism, Athiesm, Nihlism and many more "isms". All throughout, Lewis brilliantly manages to make complex theological and philosophical truths plain with simple allegory. There are moments of pure joy in this story. Highly reccomended.

Read Lewis's popular works first: Screwtape, The Great Dirvorce, Mere Christianity, etc...
This is not his best work, but true fans may want to read Lewis's first apologetic work. It is easy to read, but difficult to comprehend. Lewis tries to say too much in each symbol, or perhaps the symbols are too abstract.

While on the surface this book is an allegorical journey of Lewis' progressive conversion experience, it gets little "press" as a commentary on society. Just about everything modern (and even post-modern) civilization hold dear is put in its proper perspective in this novel (autobiography). Continuing on in his diatribe against the Establishment (e.g., the "world" and its values) in "That Hideous Strength" and "Abolition of Man," Lewis picks apart specific philosophies and values in everything from what we now call post-modernism back to Spencer, politics to art, hedonism to ascetism.

I'm not going to summarize the book here. . . but I want to tell you that the conversation between the protagonist John and the character of Reason (presented as a warrior woman) is worth the reading of the entire book.

This was the first book written by CS Lewis after his conversion to Christianity, and was also his first book of fiction. This allegorical look at "the narrow road" of Christianity set the stage in many ways for much of Lewis's later fiction: the Space Trilogy, Till We Have Faces, and the Chronicles of Narnia, for example. In much of Lewis's later fiction the allegory was less prominent and more attention was paid to the story. This book also varies from Lewi''s other fiction in that it is more autobiographical. The main character, John, encounters many different schools of thought and endures much of the intellectual uncertainty that Lewis himself experienced in the time leading up to his conversion.

Lewis's allegory is absolutely spectacular, though it is necessary to have a pretty thorough knowledge of Lewis's way of thinking in order to follow the allegory. The headers at the top of the page do a great deal to clarify, and help the reader avoid getting lost in all the symbolism. This is especially useful when John is encountering some movement which, though prevalent in Lewis's time, is not very well-known today. Despite the excellent headers, however, the best preparation for this book would be to read Lewis's autobiographical Surprised by Joy. Exposure to this book, along with some of Lewis's other apology, will definitely enrich the experience of reading from this excellent book.

Lewis had a talent for explaining things in such a way that nearly anyone could understand them. Nowhere is this more apparent than in his fiction. The lessons he teaches, through his fiction and non-fiction alike, are important insights into the worlds of Christianity and morality.

I highly recommend this book but it was very different from anything that I have previously read. The best thing about this book is that it reads a little like a mystery and at the same time has parallels and analogies for life.

the book looked to be in great condition but when I started to read it I was confused. The first several chapters didn't seem to be the story I thought this book was - but I kept reading, thinking it was a preface. Then all of a sudden Chapter 13 was different font with pictures - of the book I thought I was getting! So I got half of one book and half of another! The book looked from the outside to be the book I wanted and in perfect condition but on the inside it was parts of two different books.