Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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161 of 162 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A 'must-read' for anyone serious about C.S. Lewis, 9 Mar 2008
I continue to be astonished by the sheer depth and breadth of research, investigation and knowledge exhibited by those who are passionate about the writings of C.S. Lewis; even those who are not professional academics or theologians go to tremendous lengths to understand and relate small details of Lewis's life and the background to his writings. Michael Ward's book goes far beyond this; he moves easily across the whole breadth of Lewis's own writings, the literature with which Lewis was familiar (which is to say, most of the literature of Western civilisation), and the subsequent critical and biographical writings about Lewis and his works. I'm not qualified to judge the correctness of his central thesis - that the Chronicles of Narnia are themed on the seven planets of the medieval cosmology. But whether Ward is right about this or not, he has certainly produced a work that achieves something else of great importance; he illustrates again, and powerfully, in detail, the fundamental unity of the whole of Lewis's works, arising from the consistency of Lewis's thought and understanding of the nature of things. He answers some of the more well-known criticisms of recent biographers and commentators (specifically, A.N. Wilson and Philip Pullman). Although (and rightly) a scholarly book, which will best be appreciated by those who have some exposure to the same literature as Lewis or are prepared to go and look up references which they don't recognise, nevertheless this book can be read simply as an enlightening and enjoyable sketch of Lewis's major imaginative works - Narnia, the Cosmic Trilogy, some of his poetry. Highly recommended.
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Harmony of the spheres, 6 May 2009
I have been a fan of C.S. Lewis since reading the Narnia books at the tender age of 10. When you like an author, you are keen to get your hands on more of his works. Not only did I discover a terrific sequence of science fiction books (the so-called cosmic trilogy), but I was surprised to discover that Lewis was both a Christian apologist and a very highly regarded medieval scholar (I would love to have been present at one of his Oxford lectures which have assumed legendary status).
There is something about the Narnia books, a mystical and poetical element which takes me back to them again and again. A similar atmosphere informs "The Lord of the rings" but is completely absent from the ubiquitous Harry Potter, whatever other qualities he may possess.
Michael Ward takes the credit for discovering a crucial and hitherto unguessed link between the seven Narnia novels and the seven "planets" of medieval cosmology (Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, the Sun and the Moon). Incidentally these seven heavenly bodies correspond to the seven days of the week. As soon as he gets started on his exegesis, you realise he is on to a winner. By Chapter 3 I was convinced beyond doubt that Lewis did indeed base these works on his beloved astrological scheme - and deliberately concealed this fact from his readers.
This is not an easy book to read. In discussing Lewis's theology, Ward takes us into some fascinating and obscure backwaters of philosophy. I must admit he left me behind on a number of occasions. Here are some of the words scattered through the text - alterity, anaphora, chthonic, Eutychian, hesychastic, ichneutic, monophysite, oppugnancy, parousia, polysemy. If you understand these words, you will have no problem!
Despite his somewhat dense prose style, full credit must go to Michael Ward for an important discovery about these much-loved stories.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must read for fans of C S Lewis, 17 May 2009
Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis
Anyone who is a fan of C S Lewis and the Narnia stories will find this a fascinating books as Michael Ward argues that for each book Lewis had a particular planet in mind and that through that imagery he presented different aspects of Christ. This is the reworking of a doctoral thesis and whilst some may be offput by the technical details, others will revel in the detailed endnotes.
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