Surprised by Joy

Rating:
Summary: Victory Through Surrender
Review: Lewis points out in "Mere Christianity" that mankind's worst sin is pride (setting his will before God's will)because ir is the root of all other sins. In "Surprised By Joy", Lewis describes his own willfullness, arrogance and pride as he wanders through his search for Joy down all manner of intellectual and aesthetic blind alleys. At last, having exhausted all options, he reluctantly surrenders and then, at last, finds the Joy he had been so diligently seeking. While the facts differ, Lewis' story is a familiar one to many of us who simply were unable to accept what was readily available without wasting time, energy and emotion first. Lewis' story is a reminder of the nature of Grace, freely given to the willing recipient. As with everything Lewis wrote, the prose is wonderful, the references challenging and Lewis' mental workings amazing. This is not the easiest reading and not the best introduction to the author (Screwtape and Mere Christianity are better for that purpose), but the volume is extremely rewarding, especially for one who identified with the journey described.

Rating:
Summary: "It brings God nearer, or near in a new way."
Review: This is the firsthand account of how C.S. Lewis passed from Atheism through to Theism, and onward to Christianity. Lewis says in the Preface that he knew of no autobiography in which the parts devoted to the earlier years were not by far the most interesting. As such, the entire first half of his own consists of a detailed recollection of childhood and adolescence. The second half is devoted to tracing his adult intellectual interests and particularly to recounting the thought processes which led him in his thirtieth year to a profound conversion experience.

Lewis said "How far the story matters to anyone but myself depends on the degree to which others have experienced what I call 'joy'." By "joy" he was referring to his concept of "sehnsucht" a German word that came closest to the sense of yearning or longing that Lewis felt as early on as six years old. Sehnsucht is an experience difficult to define... it is a longing for an object which is never fully given, coupled with a sense of alienation or displacement from what is desired. Perhaps another way of describing it could be a ceaseless yearning which always points beyond itself. It is this elusive nature of sehnsucht that Lewis had in mind when he (in typical brevity) coined the phrase "our best havings are wantings." At any rate, sehnsucht or "joy" was such a crucial element in the development of Lewis that we find it here in the title of his life story, and the "surprise" for him was in the gradual realization that joy (as such) was not foreign, contrary to, unaddressed by or otherwise OPPOSED to theism. In fact, Lewis began to see that the most religious writers (Plato, Aeschylus, Virgil, Spenser, Milton, Sir Thomas Browne, Herbert, Donne, Chesterton, MacDonald) were those in whom he found the most kinship in this respect, while those who did not "suffer from religion" (Shaw, Gibbon, Voltaire, Wells, John Stuart Mill) seemed as nourishing as old dishwater. He concluded that "A young man who wishes to remain a sound atheist cannot be too careful of his reading."

Even though the book is never preachy, I believe that the above conclusion applies to any atheist that reads Surprised By Joy through to the end. As with other writings by Lewis, Christianity emerges as something that actually makes a lot of sense. It's not until the last page that Lewis takes this final step, and his theism becomes "not a god, but God." My title for this review is taken from that last page, where Lewis describes what happens when one accepts the Incarnation.

Rating:
Summary: Slow at times but well worth it in the end
Review: Lewis continues to amaze me in all of his works. This is his autobiography, but actually his account of his conversion from agnostism to Christianity. The first few chapters are a little slow, although it is interesting to find out how this genius grew up. It also neat to find out who Lewis' greatest influences were -- his teachers, Chesterton, Tolkien, Johnson, Herbert, MacDonald. The chapter "Checkmate" contains the meat of the work and if one were to read any of the book, this portion is exceptional. In fact, I read that chapter over and over and over. Yep.

Rating:
Summary: Only for fans
Review: If you're interested in learning more about C.S. Lewis and how he became what he was, then this is definitely the best source available, especially about his childhood years. I don't imagine this book would be too interesting to those who aren't already fans of Lewis, as his other works, especially fictional, are much better in my opinion.

It is very interesting, though, to see how such a fervent atheist could go from arrogance to one of the twentieth century's greatest Christian apologists.

Rating:
Summary: A MUST MUST MUST for and fan of Lewis!!!
Review: This book is essential for anyone curious about the life of Lewis. Or anyone who his a fan of his thought.

This book is a bout the life and conversion of Lewis, told as an autobiography, as opposed to an allegory as in "Pilgrim's Regress." It culminates with Lewis's conversion to Anglican Christianity:

"You must picture me alone in that room in Magdalen, night after night, feeling . . . the steady, unrelenting approach of Him who I so earnestly desired not to meet. . . I [finally] gave in and admitted that God was God, and I knelt a prayed: perhaps, that night, the most dejected and reluctant convert in all England. I did not see then what is now the most shining and obvious thing: the Divine humility will accept a convert even on such terms. The Prodigal Son at least walked on his own feet. But who can duly adore that Love which will open the high gates to a prodigal who is brought in kicking, struggling, resentful, and darting his eyes in every direction for a chance of escape?"

This book, however is not religious mumbo-jumbo, and is not just strictly a religious text, but it encompasses other aspects of Lewis's life: his experience as a son, a brother, a student, an intellectual freebooter, etc.

On a human level, this book has touched and resonated with me more than any other book I have read, outside of Scripture. I have experienced many of the same things Lewis had experienced. In a slightly different way, and in a different order, but there was enough of the essence of the events to harmonize with me. I almost felt that I was Lewis in a way.

Even if you are a non-Christian, non-believer, or a non-interested person, I recommend this book as part of one humans experience in life, as one slice of humanity!

Rating:
Summary: Surprised by Disappointment
Review: Like one other reviewer, I too had trouble believing that Lewis was atheist or agnostic prior to his "conversion," which was more like an awakening to the relevance of it all in daily life.

I was surprisingly disappointed not only in what I learned about Lewis, but in his writing style here. Over half of the book was bland, unengaging; the psychology of his journey seemed insincere, transparent. The last few chapters were most interesting, suddenly articulate, and thought provoking.

But I don't regret the read. Although somewhat disappointing, this is still good information for the C.S. Lewis fan. The more one knows about an author, the more clearly one can understand and appreciate his work.

Rating:
Summary: An Honest Conversion Story
Review: This short book takes us from Lewis' early atheism to his later belief in God and ultimately, we know, to his belief in Christianity. Like all of his works, this book is clear and engaging to read, and often thought-provoking.

Unfortunately, I cannot give it my highest recommendation. Though I enjoy most of Lewis' works, this one fell a bit short for me. I had trouble believing Lewis was ever really an atheist, or even an agnostic. Perhaps that is partly by design, but I rather think that Lewis was trying to make his conversion seem a greater alteration than it was. Compared to the "great" conversions of St. Paul or St. Augustine, this one pales in comparison.

Also, this book is rather unfairly included with religious works, and while religion is one of its topics--and its organizing principle--Lewis is interested in other ideas, including education and child rearing. So much has changed in these 2 areas over the last 50 years or so, that I found much of those sections in the book uninteresting. Still, for Lewis fans, this is a book you should read. However, if you are looking for an introduction to Lewis' Christian thought, you'd be better of with Mere Christianity.

Rating:
Summary: The most important book ever written on C S Lewis
Review: Many people have written much about C S Lewis, and due to his wide appeal we have books on him from virtually every segment of the Christian world. Which leaves the aspiring Lewis devotee with a problem: Who to believe? For, as A N Wilson has rightly pointed out: 'Two totally different Lewises are being revered by the faithful.' Lewis himself has solved the problem many years before his death by writing this autobiography. It is a work of art in every sense of the word, and even though essentially an autobiography, filled with so much truth and clear Lewisian thinking that authors quote it as though it were a scholarly work.

Lewis traces his path from his early years in Belfast all the way to his conversion in England 31 years later. The book tells little of the relationships in his life, and one who has read widely on Lewis cannot help but wonder about other obvious omissions and evasions. However, we are given the Lewis as Lewis wanted to give him, and that is what makes this book unique.

Whilst reading it, I was reminded of Lewis' own advice in his Preface to St Athanasius's 'The Incarnation of the Word of God', later published as a chapter ('On the Reading of Old Books') in 'First and Second Things' (ed. Walter Hooper), 1984. It remains to me the final and authoritative words on why Surprised by Joy is the most important book on Lewis' life, straight from the horse's mouth: "... I have found as a tutor in English Literature that if the average student wants to find out something about Platonism, the very last thing he thinks of doing is to take a translation of Plato off the library shelf and read the Symposium. He would rather read some dreary modern book ten times as long, all about "isms" and influences and only once in twelve pages telling him what Plato actually said. The error is rather an amiable one, for it springs from humility. The student is half afraid to meet one of the great philosophers face to face. He feels himself inadequate and thinks he will not understand him. But if he only knew, the great man, just because of his greatness, is much more intelligible than his modern commentator."

Makes you think, doesn't it?

Rating:
Summary: Surprised Indeed
Review: Wanting to know more about C.S. Lewis I thought this would be a good book to read. It did tell me much about the man, but several times while reading it, I thought about in what ways would these things he is telling relate to his conversion from atheism to Christianity. However, in classic Lewis style, the ending makes all that came before it worth every minute of my time. To the casual C.S. Lewis reader this book may seem long. I wouldn't recommend it as the first book to read by Lewis, but to someone who is truly fascinated by him and wants to know more about this man, I would highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: An autobiography of C.S. Lewis' life
Review: This is an autobiography of C.S. Lewis' life. You see what shaped him and the struggles he faced in his acceptance of Christianity. From this book you will better understand what shaped him and thus better understand his other works.