Jack: A Life of C. S. Lewis [Paperback]

Product Details

Paperback: 464 pages
Publisher: Crossway Books (June 20, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1581347391
ISBN-13: 978-1581347395
Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6.3 x 1 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

Customer Reviews

This is a worthwhile read for anyone interested in Lewis. It's from the viewpoint of one of his friends, who somewhat reluctantly agreed to write the book. It is a bit unfair to characterize Mr. Sayer as a sychophant that glosses over Lewis' more difficult attributes. He was a friend, and to that extent he deserves to be listened to, just as much, or more than, someone like A.N. Wilson who is clearly not a friend, and more than once misquotes Lewis to make a negative point in his biography. Check the letters. . .trust me.
Sayer includes/lets you into a part of Lewis' private world, as does Douglas Gresham in his wonderful book, and to me these are valuable things. Sure it is good to learn about the negative elements, and to bring your idols back down to earth, but it's equally as important to hear what is good about them, for this is why they are to be admired in the first place. To that extent, this is a great book, and perhaps the first you should read, if you intend to read books about Lewis. It's not perfect, but it doesn't have an agenda either, and when it comes to Lewis scholarship, that is a rare thing.
The most interesting part for me: the anecdote about Joy Davidman having a penchant for using the "F" word. I could do nothing but smile.. . . just like Lewis to marry such a salty woman.

As large as C. S. Lewis looms in today's intellectual landscape, and for all the different ways he manages to find a readership, whether as a literary critic, a Christian apologist, or fantasy novelist, it is somewhat surprising that we do not yet have a truly first rate biography. Until that volume comes along, this affectionate biography/memoir by Lewis's student/friend George Sayer is the best that we have.
The great problem in C. S. Lewis scholarship at the moment is that the bulk of the books dealing with his life tend to be overwhelmingly pious and respectful (the St. Jack bios) or intent on tearing holes in that portrait (A. N. Wilson). What we really need is a first rate biography that manages to capture the magic and appeal of Lewis's personality, explains his ongoing intellectual and imaginative appeal, and yet does not willfully overlook the man's flaws. Sayer captures the personality marvelously, gives some hints as to his intellectual appeal, but presents a fairly sanitized version of Lewis's life. No doubt this is out of respect and affection, but Lewis doesn't emerge as a warm flesh and blood human being. For instance, while alluding to his relationship with Mrs. Moore, Sayer assumes a position of agnosticism as to its nature. It is an important if disturbing chapter in Lewis's life, because it potentially reveals a great deal about his personality.
One thing that does emerge in Sayer's biography is the closed reserve that Lewis seems to have carried with him all his life. On the one hand, Lewis seems to have been a very accomodating, kind, and helpful soul, and yet, he is hard to get to know. One gets to know his thoughts, and yet never gets to know the man who thinks them. One can read both SURPRISED BY JOY and A GRIEF OBSERVED, and come away from them not having a strong sense of how Lewis felt about things, about the predomenant emotions in his life. Sayer doesn't completely dispell this emotional reserve that Lewis projects, but he probably gets as close as anyone has.
Still, I don't believe this is the biography we are waiting for. It will do until the definitive one comes along. My recommendation for those wanting to know about Lewis's life is to read this one in conjunction with A. N. Wilson's. In the latter Wilson far too gleefully deconstructs the carefully constructed portrait of Lewis that some of his more somber admirers have constructed. I value the Wilson as a corrective, but one will not get much of a sense of why Lewis was such an attractive individual for so many, both in his books and in real life. For that, you will need to look to this excellent book.