One of my New Year’s resolutions was to read an “improving” book every month this year. By “improving”, I mean a book that will help me to grow in my walk with God in some way. Some of the books I plan to read are biographies of respect Christians, others are theological books. This month I read The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis.
Even though my blog title comes from a C. S. Lewis quote, I’ve only read The Magician’s Nephew, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and now The Screwtape Letters. I honestly wasn’t sure whether or not I would like Screwtape. Well, I did, and here’s why.
The premise: The book is a satirical set of “letters” from a demon (Screwtape) to his nephew, a recently graduated demon. Screwtape counsels his nephew in the strategies of how to prevent his subject from converting to Christianity — as well as how to deal with a converted Christian. Ultimately, the letters delineate the pitfalls of proclaiming Christians, the temptations of life, and thoughtful perspectives about how evil works in the world.
My perspective: The Screwtape Letters was a fairly easy read, which made it both enjoyable and a great vehicle of information and ideas. I felt convicted, enlightened, and challenged. I don’t know that there were any ground-breaking theological thoughts, but the style of the writing made them come alive in a new way.
My recommendation: I would recommend this book highly to almost any reader. My one caution would be that since this is a satire, it could be confusing for younger readers or new Christians. (However, this was my first time reading a satire of this length and I found it fairly clear.)
Enjoy and be challenged by this great literary work!
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What books, if any, written by C. S. Lewis have you read and enjoyed?
But He is Good 