C. S. Lewis: The Poetry & Fiction Collection

For the first part of his career, Lewis considered himself a poet and the first book he ever published (in 1919) was Spirits in Bondage, which gathers 40 of his early lyric poems that deal with his war experiences and then his agnostic beliefs. His favorite form of literary expression (something he stated multiple times) was the narrative poem, and the next thing he published was one of these—"Dymer"—in 1926. He wrote three more, but they were only published after his death, and these were later collected into the book Narrative Poems. Pilgrim's Regress, written partly before and partly after his conversion, came in 1933. Jack wrote poems his entire life, and most of the rest of these are gathered into the book simply called Poems.

Lewis also wrote fiction throughout his career, and Narnia actually came late to this arena. Jack and his brother first wrote stories about Animal Land as young boys, and these were published posthumously as Boxen in the 1980s; though it has been reprinted a few times, this text is not currently in print. His first fictional title was published in 1938—the beginning of what is commonly called the Space Trilogy, but should really be known as the Ransom Trilogy. This book is, of course, Out of the Silent Planet, which was followed up in 1943 with Perelandra and in 1945 with That Hideous Strength. These books bear repeated reading and are quite relevant for our times! Dark Tower, an incomplete manuscript that appears to be an unfinished sequel to Out of the Silent Planet, was published (along with other stories) by Lewis's literary executor Walter Hooper in 1977, but its authenticity has been challenged.

Lewis's most well-known fiction books are actually not included here, but should also be mentioned: The Screwtape Letters, which offer a fascinating take on demonic advice, were published as individual letters in The Guardian in 1942, and then collected and published as a book in 1943. The Great Divorce is a fictional dream about the afterlife, published in 1945. These two books are part of the Signature Classics collection. The seven Chronicles of Narnia books were published from 1950-56; we don't include those here since nearly everyone already has them!

Finally, Lewis's last fictional book, and the one he considered his best work, Till We Have Faces, was published in 1956, the same year as The Last Battle. Lewis long held that the Pagan myths were God expressing Himself through the minds of poets, whereas Christianity is God expressing himself through 'real things.' More complex than his other fiction, Till We Have Faces retells the myth of Cupid & Psyche, and connects the Pagan and the Sacred in a story which has depth and passion.

The books included here: