Very interesting read into what C.S Lewis’ mind and literary works.

If I had Lunch with C.S. Lewis, Alister McGrath
C.S. Lewis has always fascinated me. His books have long been on my shelves as required reading for our home schooling adventures as well as personal reads. This one adds a whole new depth to understanding and incredibly complex man who's views and writing have shaped many generations and will continue to do so in the future. This book is written as if the author has gone to lunch with C.S. Lewis and what that would be like as they discussed certain issues and ideas. Though at times a little slow to read it is over all a great book. I think that reading more than one "lunch date" at a time might be more than a reader can handle as much of Lewis' thoughts on things needed to be chewed on slowly and considered in depth - allowing them to sink in and give the reader time to contemplate them and form their own opinions. I found the book to be an excellent resource to add to our home school library but would certainly recommend it to any lover of C.S. Lewis who wants to know why he wrote the way he did and how Christianity influenced his life. It is always fascinating to me to understand the thinking of a self-proclaimed Atheist turned Christian - I am always interested in the impact of Christ on a life of a person who is an advocate for Atheism since this is such a huge deal right now and really always has been. C.S. Lewis thoughts on Nazism and Public education were especially thought provoking to me as a home school mom who teaches a biblical world view to her children while the majority of our friends kids are washed in an educational system of a secular and unbiblical world view that threatens to undermine the teachings of the church. This is not a long book at all, but is best read in small sections and enjoyed. It is a great conversation starter for older children to discuss these sometimes deep topics and you may find that it drives them to the scriptures to support their views and to further understand the rock on which Lewis based his views after conversion to Christianity. Excellent read and a special thanks to the publisher Tyndale and the blog review team who sent me this free review copy in exchange for an unbiased review of this book. ( )

Currently free on Kindle, and I really liked McGrath's [b:Christian Theology: An Introduction|23003|Christian Theology An Introduction|Alister E. McGrath|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388197580s/23003.jpg|1241058], so I picked it up.

The whole idea of having lunch with Lewis is appealing to so many people. What might be talked about is partly covered in this book of imagined meals shared between the listener and the author. Each pretend meeting is centered around a topic that will be discussed, which is a part of Lewis's life. These sections are like mini lectures or studies on his past and the beliefs, friendships or moments that helped inspire some of his writing.

I found it interesting but I didn't think the concept of lunches was carried out to its potential. I would have preferred a more personal, one-on-one feel to each section, as if the reader really were sitting down to share food and conversation. That does create the possibility of partly fictionalizing what Lewis would be "saying," but not if great care were taken to quote him directly. If we are researching his beliefs and history, is there not a way to rewrite this history into something that would more resemble a conversation than a lecture? It was still enjoyable in its own way, but I felt the premise and title needed to fit each other a little more for the reading to feel whole based on my expectation from the title. ( )