Movie Review: The Most Reluctant Convert: The Untold Story of C. S. Lewis (2021)

Information

Director: Norman Stone
Writers: Max McLean, Norman Stone
Release: 2021

Summary

Max McLean stars as an older C. S. Lewis narrating the formative events in his life that led him to convert to theism and then Christianity.

Review

I am an avid fan of C. S. Lewis and his work, so when I learned that a recent biographical movie had been released, focusing on his conversion story, I was intrigued. My expectations for the film, however, differed vastly from the reality of the film. I assumed that the movie would take the standard approach, filming the events of Lewis’s life from childhood to conversion, with actors depicting various events in story form. This was not so.

The Most Reluctant Convert goes for an artsy approach, beginning with a framing narrative showing actor Max McLean getting ready for his role as an older C. S. Lewis. It then takes the form of McLean narrating C. S. Lewis’s life story as he strolls around local places Lewis presumably frequented, while other actors occasionally pantomime the story in the background. (Sometimes they get to speak.) In the end, I concluded that this story, as told, did not work well as movie. For C. S. Lewis’s conversion story, I would recommend reading Surprised by Joy (on which the film was based). And for those who want it narrated, I would suggest listening to the audiobook.

Truly, I am confused by the existence of this movie since most of it is narration and readers can get that narration by simply listening to an audiobook. I suppose the primary benefit is that there is a visual component, as well, so readers can see McLean walk around England. Personally, however, I’d rather just listen to an audiobook if that is the main experience I am going to get. McLean does a superb job as C. S. Lewis, and I enjoyed seeing Nicholas Ralph, who stars as James Herriot in PBS’ All Creatures Great and Small, as a younger Lewis–though, sadly, he does not have much to do. Altogether, however, I was grateful that the run time was only about an hour and fifteen minutes

Even McLean’s narration of Lewis’s conversion story did not fully move me, mainly because it seems like the type of dialogue that would only resonate with people who already agree with Lewis. Lewis simply drops statements to the effect of, “Only Christianity and Hinduism could be taken seriously,” when one is choosing a religion, and then moves on! Such statements are not, in fact, self-evident to probably the majority of people. If this movie were really meant to make people think about religion and philosophy, I would expect more reasoning and evidence to be given. As it is, however, it seems clear that the film is aimed towards people who are not going to dispute Lewis’s claims and who want a feel-good story about a beloved author’s conversion.

Final verdict? Watch this if you really love C. S. Lewis and his work, but be forewarned that it is not a film in the traditional sense. It’s really just McLean narrating some of Lewis’s thoughts and works onscreen. It didn’t work for me, but others have given it rave reviews, so it must work for someone!

You Might Also Enjoy

• Phantastes by George MacDonald (one of the books that Lewis mentions as part of his conversion)
• 10 Must-Read Books about C. S. Lewis
• Movie Review: Tolkien (2019)

Voyage of the Dawn Treader: My Favorite Narnia Book

WHAT IS CLASSIC REMARKS?

Classic Remarks is a meme hosted here at Pages Unbound that poses questions each Friday about classic literature and asks participants to engage in ongoing discussions surrounding not only themes in the novels but also questions about canon formation, the “timelessness” of literature, and modes of interpretation.

HOW CAN I PARTICIPATE?

Leave your link to your post on your own blog in the comments below. And feel free to comment with your thoughts even if you are not officially participating with a full post!

You can find more information and the list of weekly prompts here.

(Readers who like past prompts but missed them have also answered them on their blog later and linked back to us at Pages Unbound, so feel free to do that, too!)

THIS WEEK’S PROMPT:

Which Narnia book is your favorite and why?

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader has always been my favorite Narnia book. Part of that is undoubtedly because it focuses on Lucy, my favorite protagonist throughout the series. However, more importantly, I have always loved the sense of adventure the book imparts. Going beyond the known boundaries of Narnia is incredibly exciting! Readers never know what the voyagers will encounter next–scholars, dragons, maybe even a star! The joy of discovery is on every page.

However, Dawn Treader also possesses its more somber moments, which give the book the weight I think it needs to be something I truly want to return to again and again. Though Caspian and his crew are thrilled to be sailing where few have sailed before, not all their discoveries are wonderful. Lucy falls to temptation and experiences heartbreak. Eustace succumbs to greed and faces the possibility of never being able to return again. Reepicheep must decide if the quest is worth his life. The questions they each face, about what is most important to them and why, are the questions readers must confront in their own lives. And that makes the book resonate with me each time I pick it up.

The entire Narnia series is one that I love returning to year after year. But Dawn Treader has always held a special place in my heart. It seems to encompass so much! And in such a small volume. The best books are the ones that reveal something new to me each time I return. And Dawn Treader continues to do that.

A Classic I Loved As a Child but Love Less Now (Classic Remarks)

What Is Classic Remarks?

Classic Remarks is a meme hosted here at Pages Unbound that poses questions each Friday about classic literature and asks participants to engage in ongoing discussions surrounding not only themes in the novels but also questions about canon formation, the “timelessness” of literature, and modes of interpretation.

How Can I Participate?

Leave your link to your post on your own blog in the comments below. And feel free to comment with your thoughts even if you are not officially participating with a full post!

You can find more information and the list of weekly prompts here.

(Readers who like past prompts but missed them have also answered them on their blog later and linked back to us at Pages Unbound, so feel free to do that, too!)

This Week’s Prompt:

What is a classic you loved when you were younger, but feel differently about now?

Considering that we celebrate the works of C.S. Lewis frequently here at Pages Unbound, this may be a bit shocking, but I enjoyed The Chronicles of Narnia much more as a child than I did rereading them as an adult.

I first encountered Narnia with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in third grade, and I went on to read and reread the entirety of the series (besides The Last Battle, which I’ve only read twice) over the course of the next two years or so.  I was obsessed.  I loved the stories.  I was disappointed in the existing movies; I was excited when new movies were announced.  I basically wanted to be Lucy Pevensie or to somehow find myself suddenly in Narnia one day.

So I was very surprised when I reread The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe as an adult and felt the story was a bit…sparse.  As a child, I felt as though I could open the pages, walk into Narnia, live the story and just live there.  As adult, I felt like nothing was happening and nothing was explained and there was just so much missing that I had apparently just imagined into the story when I was younger.  Sometimes I wonder if this says something sad about me (I’ve moved away from being able to take words and make them come alive with my own imagination to being rigidly fixated on exactly what is or is not written on the page?), but the end result is that I definitely found the story shorter and less detailed than I remembered it.  And it was disappointing.

I still have a lot of respect for C.S. Lewis and for The Chronicles of Narnia.  There is a lot of good scholarship on the series, so clearly adults are finding things that are interesting and complex about the books, enough so to fill their own books with discussion of them. However, the difference between my experience reading the books as an adult and as a child was so stark that I’m not sure I’ll ever fully get over it, and sometimes I wish I still had the ability to read a short chapter book and make it come alive for myself, rather than thinking something is lacking.

Finding Narnia: The Story of C. S. Lewis and His Brother by Caroline McAlister, Illustrated by Jessica Lanan

Information

Goodreads: Finding Narnia
Series: None
Source: Library
Published: November 2019

Summary

Caroline McAlister follows Jack and Warnie Lewis from boyhood to the writing of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in this picture book biography.

Review

Finding Narnia proves a lackluster picture book biography, so focused on simplifying matters for children that it loses its heart in the process. Caroline McAlister seeks to move from Jack and Warnie’s boyhoods up to the writing of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, but, rather than focusing on concrete details, attempts to write a thematic work tied together by the concept of Jack and Warnie’s differences, and Jack’s longing to find out “What if?” The result is that the book provides neither enough biographical meat to feel like real biography, nor enough emotional resonance to feel like inspirational. The biographical end note is more effective at bringing Jack to life than the picture book text.

Writing a picture book biography is no small feat, as a lifetime must be condensed into only a couple hundred words. Caroline McAlister attempts to do this by trying to give readers a “feeling” for who Jack and Warnie were instead of fitting in as many facts of possible. Jack likes stories. Warnie likes technology. Jack likes knights. Warnie like trains. Jack likes a world of talking animals. Warnie likes India in the real world. Unfortunately, it feels like this contrast (perhaps oversimplified for drama), comes sometimes at the expense of biographical fact. Moments like Mrs. Lewis’s death and WWI are glossed over, creating a lack of emotion in the book. A writer usually cannot dismiss WWI in three sentences and still have readers understand how such an event impacted the characters. Without this understanding, it is hard for readers to feel why Jack’s question of “What if?” was so important to him.

The ending of the book regrettably does nothing to leave the readers with a a lasting impact. Instead, it just tapers off into a vague summary of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, in a bid to appeal to avid fans and the sense of wonder that Lewis’s world creates. Needless to say, this ending will probably be less meaningful to those discovering Lewis for the first time through the book. And it will probably confuse children expecting some sort of conclusive ending.

The illustrations in Finding Narnia are nice. They are serviceable. But they are not memorable and they do not save the book from feeling underwhelming. They are, however, apparently well-researched, based on the number of end notes provided to explain the details readers may have missed.

One begins to regret that all the research done for the book does not seem immediately obvious, due to McAlister’s struggle to write a successful picture book. She is far more engaging writing the lengthy biography at the end of the book and it seems clear that her love for C. S. Lewis would probably have been better used if she had written a book for older readers. Still, fans of the Inklings often tend to like things just because the Inklings are mentioned in them, and I suspect some fans will just be cheered to see any picture book featuring Jack and Warnie.

10 Must-Read Books about C. S. Lewis

Remembering C.S. Lewis: Recollections of Those Who Knew Him ed. by James T. Como

This collection brings together the recollections of twenty-four men and women who knew C. S. Lewis both in his professional and in his everyday life.  An intimate, varied look at the celebrated author.

The Company They Keep: C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien as Writers in Community by Diana Pavlac Glyer

Glyer proposes to change our understanding of the Inklings by going against the common understanding that the Inklings did not influence each other’s writings. She defines the difference between “influences” and “similarities” and goes on to outline how writers can be influenced by resonators (supporters), opponents, editors, collaborators, and referents. It’s also a fascinating read for those interested in the writing process.

C. S. Lewis: A Biography by Roger Lancelyn Greene and Walter Hooper

The first biography of C. S. Lewis to published, this book was written by his former student and later friend Roger Lancelyn Green, along with his secretary Walter Hooper.  It paints a sympathetic picture of Lewis, focusing on his academic and literary life.

Lenten Lands: My Childhood with Joy Davidman and C.S. Lewis by Douglas H. Gresham

Joy Davidman’s son recounts his life growing up in New York, Joy and C. S. Lewis’s romance and eventual marriage, life at the Kilns, and his life as a farmer and radio announcer up until Warnie Lewis’s death. An intimate glimpse at C. S. Lewis’s home life by his stepson.

All My Road Before Me: The Diary of C. S. Lewis, 1922-1927 by C. S. Lewis

This volume collects five years’ of diary entries by C. S. Lewis when he was in his early 20s, returned from WWI and attending university.  It contains a foreword by Lewis’s friend Owen Barfield and an introduction by Walter Hooper.

Boxen: Childhood Chronicles before Narnia by C. S. Lewis and W. H. Lewis, ed. by Walter Hooper

While growing up, C. S. Lewis and his brother Warnie imagined a world of talking animals that they called Animal-Land or Boxen.  This book collects their stories, sketches, and maps.

The Collected Letters of C. S. Lewis by C. S. Lewis, ed. by Walter Hooper

This three-volume collection includes letters from Lewis’s boyhood and time serving in WWI through his professional life and marriage to Joy Davidman, right to the day before he died.  His thoughts on theology, poetry, and children’s stories can be found within, as can his correspondence with such figures as J. R. R. Tolkien and Dorothy Sayers.

Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life by C. S. Lewis

Lewis’s spiritual autobiography famously recounts how he converted to Christianity by attempting to explain his search for joy, a piercing longing for something else.

C. S. Lewis in a Time of War by Justin Phillips

Phillips’ book traces the history BBC and its religious programming before moving into an examination of the request for C. S. Lewis to provide a series of talks on Christianity during WWII. This look at a specific historical moment may be of most interest to readers who enjoy works about radio broadcasting or who are really fascinated by the details of Lewis’s life.

Planet Narnia: the Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis by Michael Ward

Ward argues against the common perception that there is no unifying theme that ties the seven Chronicles of Narnia together.  He suggests that Lewis was inspired by medieval cosmology and that each of the seven books reflects characteristics of a planet, including Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Luna, Mercury, Venus, and Saturn.  A provocative criticism of Lewis’s work.

Related Posts:

• “10 Must-Read Books about J. R. R. Tolkien”
• “If You Like C. S. Lewis, Then Read…”

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5 Things to Love about C. S. Lewis

C. S. Lewis was born in Belfast on November 29, 1898.  Today we honor him by remembering some of his finest moments.

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Lewis was no literary snob.  In An Experiment in Criticism, he lays out an argument that books are not “great” by virtue of what they contain, but instead by virtue of how they are read.  He asserts that even a novel that most people see as without literary merit cannot be dismissed offhand if we can find even one person who has truly loved and reread that book many times.

Following this first point, C. S. Lewis advocated tirelessly for science fiction to be accepted as a respected literary genre.  His status as an academic, as well as his own science fiction works, certainly would have caused many of the literati to sit up and pay attention.  You can read some of his arguments in the collection On Stories: And Other Essays on Literature.

C. S. Lewis did not stoop to personal attacks when others criticized him or his work.  Rather, he often generously outlines the merits of his critics’ own literary works before proceeding to respond with reasoned arguments to their critiques.  You can read some of his responses to his critics in On Stories: And Other Essays on Literature.

When asked if he would write a review for the work of an author who had savaged his own work, Lewis indignantly declined.  He felt he was just being asked to create drama, rather than really review the work.  (You can read the story in On Stories: And Other Essays on Literature.)

In their autobiography of C. S. Lewis, Roger Lancelyn Green and Walter Hooper write that Lewis set up his finances so two-thirds of his writing income was given to charities.  Apparently Owen Barfield had to step in to help Lewis manage his money because he initially went a little crazy giving it all away!

The Oxford Inklings: Their Lives, Writings, Ideas, and Influence by Colin Duriez

Information

Goodreads: The Oxford Inklings
Series: None
Source: Library
Published: 2015

Summary

Colin Duriez focuses on four of the most prominent members of the Inklings–C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, Charles Williams, and Owen Barfield–telling their stories and examining how they influenced each other.

Review

Colin Duriez’s work on the Inklings seems highly influenced by Diana Pavlac Glyer’s groundbreaking research on the Inklings and how they influenced each other.  Glyer wrote in response to the misconception that the Inklings had not influenced each other–an belief that was shaped both by the Inklings’ own words about each other and by a misconception that influence equals only similarities in works written.  Her work proposes that the Inklings did influence each other because they acted as editors, collaborators, supporters, opponents, and referents.  Duriez’s book thus takes their mutual influence for granted and examines their lives in light of Glyer’s findings.

Regrettably, however, Duriez’s work offers little that is new for readers already familiar with the Inklings.  Biographies of the major figures are readily available and Glyer’s study of influence is far more extensive and explicit than is Duriez’s.  Perhaps his most intriguing argument centers around Lewis’s move from writing theological books to writing the Chronicles of Narnia.  Otherwise, however, I felt that that the book was nor particularly original or insightful.  Its main use may be in bringing more biographical details together with the study of influence in one volume.

Readers who are new to the Inklings and who have not read other books about them will find Duriez’s work a useful, concise introduction.  However, readers who have already explored some of the major works on the group may want to pass.

The Company They Keep: C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien as Writers in Community by Diana Pavlac Glyer

Information

Goodreads: The Company They Keep
Series: None
Source: Library
Published: 2008

Summary

In this groundbreaking study, Glyer proposes to change our understanding of the Inklings by going against the common understanding that the Inklings did not influence each other’s writings. She defines the difference between “influences” and “similarities” and goes on to outline how writers can be influenced by resonators (supporters), opponents, editors, collaborators, and referents.

Review

Diana Pavlac Glyer’s book represents an important contribution to Inklings studies.  While many have argued that the Inklings had no influence on one another, often quoting Inklings who said as much, Glyer argues that influence means far more than textual similarities.  She illustrates how the group members offered encouragement and support, edited each other’s projects, sometimes opposed projects, collaborated, and referenced each other in their works.  She illuminates the work not only of the Inklings but also of writing groups in general.

The beauty of Glyer’s work is that it seems so obvious once she says it. Some readers may be tempted to dismiss it for that reason.  However, it is important to remember that her arguments were not obvious to many for a very long time.  Assertions by the Inklings themselves that they had no influence on each other were taken at face value, rather than read in context.  The ways in which they supported each other by reviewing, editing, and just listening were ignored.  There are copies of Inkling drafts with the handwriting of other Inklings on them–and yet this was apparently not significant to many scholars.  All because influence studies focused on finding one-to-one correspondences in published work.

The writing may appear academic to some, but the text is supremely readable, even if written in more formal a style than many are familiar with.  Glyer’s points are clear and crisp, and any lay reader should be able to follow along.  There is no jargon here, nor attempts to make up new words or string big words together in the hopes of sounding learned.  The Inklings themselves would likely be pleased, as clarity was always their aim.

So if you’re interested in the Inklings or even in how writing groups come together and work, check out Glyer’s work.  It’s worth it.

C. S. Lewis: A Biography by Roger Lancelyn Green and Walter Hooper

Information

Goodreads: C. S. Lewis: A Biography
Series: None
Source: Library
Published: 1974

Summary

Born in 1898 in Belfast, Ireland, Clive Staples Lewis was a Fellow and Tutor in English Literature at Oxford University and later Chair of Medieval and Renaissance Literature at Cambridge University.  He is known primarily for his Narnia books, his Space Trilogy, and his works explaining Christianity to lay people.  This biography is written by his former student and later friend Roger Lancelyn Green, along with Lewis’s secretary Walter Hooper.

Review

Written by two of C. S. Lewis’s friends, this biography understandably paints a sympathetic and very professional portrait of the man perhaps best known for writing the Chronicles of Narnia.  As a result, readers hoping for salacious details about things like Lewis’s relationship with  Mrs. Moore will obviously be disappointed.  Roger Lancelyn Green and Walter Hooper, in fact, seem more preoccupied by Lewis’s academic career and his publication history than even harmless details about his personal life.  The biography thus is a serviceable introduction to Lewis, but readers may want to supplement it with more balanced accounts.

As the first biography written of C. S. Lewis, this one does read as a little dated.  The authors seem eager to trace Lewis’s academic career in more detail than most contemporary readers would probably care about (modern emphasis is on Lewis’s fiction, with some attention paid to a few of his theological works)–and they are prone to listing all the names of people Lewis met, lunched with, knew in his colleges, etc.  This name dropping was perhaps flattering to the individuals still alive at the time and perhaps even relevant to readers familiar with the faculties of Oxford and Cambridge.  However, today, most of these men are no longer well-known and thus of no interest to readers.  I imagine a contemporary biographer would focus more on the Inklings and less on Lewis’s interactions with fellow academics.

The benefit of this biography, however, is, of course, that both authors knew Lewis and they were able to ask for recollections from others who had also known him.  Thus, little anecdotes are scattered throughout the book.  They do not necessarily add to the overall narrative, but they do give readers the sense of being allowed to glimpse something personal–and that is probably the point.

It is also worth nothing, however, that personal recollections never get too personal.  Green and Hooper do not want to deal with the Mrs. Moore situation, nor do they like to dwell too much on negative impressions of Lewis, even when they bring up others’ opinions.  They may mention that Tolkien thought Lewis was always being “taken in” by someone like Mrs. Moore or wife Joy (whom he initially married as a legal formality so she could stay in England).  But they really aren’t going to comment.

Fans of Lewis will no doubt want to read this book since it does have the special distinction of being written by friends and contemporaries.  Readers who like to get the dirt on celebrated figures, however, will have to look elsewhere.

An Experiment in Criticism by C. S. Lewis

Information

Goodreads: An Experiment in Criticism
Series: None
Source: Library
Published: 1961

Summary

C. S. Lewis proposes that we can define books as good or bad based on how they are read.  To do this, he differentiates between the “literary” and the “unliterary,” or readers who enter fully into the work without preconceptions and readers who do not.

Review

C. S. Lewis’s An Experiment in Criticism challenges readers to be better.  His argument posits that “it might be plausible to define a good book as a book which is read in one way, and a bad book as a book which is read in another.”  To do this, he defines the “few” and the “many” or the “unliterary” and the “literary.”  Presumably readers want Lewis to count them among the “literary!”

Lewis’s thesis rests on the argument that what both groups mean by “liking” a book or “liking” to read is very different.  The unliterary do not reread books and “turn to [reading] as a last resort.”  The literary, however, reread “great” books multiple times, experience books as life-changing, and are so caught up in their reading that they both spend time reflecting on their favorite passages and talking about books to others.  So far, so good.  Many readers would probably see themselves among the “few.”

As Lewis’s argument goes on, however, it becomes more challenging.  The unliterary, he maintains, “use” books instead of receiving them.  The book is a jumping off point for their own ideas and fantasies.  They do not receive the ideas of the author by entering the book without preconceptions.  For this reason, Lewis believes that the unliterary prefer fast-paced narratives and even poor prose–the prose cannot get in the way of the use they wish to make of the book.  Erotica may come to mind here as a type of book people use, as Lewis agrees, but he is far more concerned with the pleasure the literary receive from “success “stories, whether that means they imagine themselves in a romance being wooed by a gentleman caller, or in a rags-to-riches tale achieving wealth and fame.  Reading should not, Lewis suggests be about one’s self but should take one out of one’s self.

Lewis’s ultimate argument goes far beyond questioning the intellect of readers; it suggests that reading is a moral act, as well.  The literary can enjoy, with the unliterary, “vicarious enjoyment of imagined happiness,” but that is not the only way they read.  He imagines reading as a process “described either as an enlargement or as a temporary annihilation of the self.”  What a wake-up call!  Though many see reading as for entertainment or enjoyment, Lewis’s stance reminds readers that the way they use free time has stakes.  They could waste their time, but they also might be missing an opportunity to better themselves, or even actively harming themselves.

Lewis’s book, fittingly, requires readers to approach it just as he argues–without preconceptions.  A defensive approach in which a reader prepares to justify their reading habits means that they will likely misread his argument and miss an opportunity to engage self-reflectively with his ideas.  But Lewis, as always, strives to be personable as well as concise and clear, making the book feel like a chat with a friend.  An Experiment in Criticism is a worthwhile read for any reader.