H. Wayne Martindale

"The Soul of C.S. Lewis: A Meditative Journey through Twenty-Six of His Best-Loved Writings" by Wayne Martindale, Jerry Root, and Linda Washington is a beautiful celebration of C.S. Lewis’ genius. The book highlights 26 of Lewis’ works and provides meditative reflections on them.

The book is divided into four spiritual themes of Lewis’ writings. Then 6 or 7 different works of Lewis are used to illustrate each theme. Each chapter covers one of Lewis’ books and gives a brief introduction to it. 10 meditative readings follow that expound upon a quote from that work.

As I have read many of Lewis’ fictional works, I was pleased to find that all the Narnian books are included, as are his three Space Trilogy books. While most of the book is not written by Lewis, the writing reflects his work. The authors also take time to assess Lewis’ legacy and significance and explain why these reflective readings are something Lewis himself would approve of.

The book oozes of Lewis and promises to be an enjoyable read. Students of Lewis will devour this book, and those who appreciate his genius are sure to likewise be enthralled. The beautiful cover of the book and the decorative art throughout add to the overall splendor of this work. It would make a perfect gift this holiday season. I highly recommend it.

Disclaimer: This book was provided by Tyndale House. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.… (mais)

C. S. Lewis’ writing prowess is legendary—especially in Christian circles. His economy of language and knack for choosing the perfect metaphor to make any point made him one of my favourite authors from a young age. Now, after having read most of Lewis’ works at least twice, I discovered this book of meditations.

The Soul of C. S. Lewis is a collection of 240 one page meditations on Lewis’ works. His popular books are all here, but so are some of his lesser known works and essays. Lewis’ style lends itself perfectly to this sort of treatment. You can choose a line from almost any page of his written output to reflect upon.

The book has three writers/editors on the front cover, and ten author biographies in the front of the book. While the overall quality of the meditations is high, the diversity of authors shows through at times. Some meditations reach to the depths of Christian experience while others seem to pick the low-hanging fruit. Some meditations are tersely constructed mini-essays, while others are two stream-of-consciousness paragraphs strung together.

This is a substantial devotional for any believer, but almost required reading for a C. S. Lewis fan.

Disclaimer: A review copy of this book was provided for free by Tyndale Publishing House.… (mais)