I read this book years ago and was impressed by the slyness of C.S. Lewis' demon characters. This time around I was affected as strongly. They are devious devils, and it is scary to follow their reasonings when they talk about how carefully to tempt humans into ways of reasoning and behaving that eventually lead to personal ruin. It is frightening to think we can be swayed by mere thoughts and impressions! Yet, how often it is the truth. I think C.S. Lewis does a brilliant job of demonstrating how humans can be manipulated if not self-governed by good and noble values. ( )

One of the funniest, most interesting books I have read in some time. ( )

In anticipation of reading it with a group (hypothetically/someday) I'm giving this four stars. I don't think I, alone, got as much out of it as all that, though, tbh. And I admit that I found it a slow read, despite the epistolary style and the brevity.

However, there were plenty of bits I did appreciate. And, yes, I did lol a couple of times. And if I'd been reading it with other ppl around, I would have read bits to them. I do recommend it, to Christians, atheists, and others... it's full of universal ideas. (And a few ideas particular to the author's personal culture.) I found it interesting that it was written during WWII and does reference "the European War."

On humor, and its potential as a means to destroy shame:
"If a man simply lets others pay for him, he is 'mean'; if he boasts of it in a jocular manner and twits his fellows with having been scored off, he is no longer 'mean' but a comical fellow.... Cruelty is shameful--unless the cruel man can represent it as a practical joke."

On [a prediction of social media]:
"All humans... have some reluctance to think about the Enemy [God]... [as it] involves facing and intensifying a whole vague cloud of half-conscious guilt.... [and it does] cut him off more and more from all real happiness.... You can make him waste his time not only in conversation with people he likes, but in conversations with those he cares nothing about on subjects that bore him. You can make him do nothing at all for long periods." ( )

I just didn't enjoy this one. The narration may have ruined it for me. I didn't find any redeeming qualities in the satire or humor attempts. I simply found it boring and it was difficult to finish. Thank goodness it was short. ( )

Book 52 - CS Lewis - The Screwtape Letters

For years I have heard people talk about other CS Lewis books, other meaning...not the Narnia Chronicles. Indeed I bought Helen a set of his books last Christmas. The one that intrigued me the most was The Screwtape Letters - subtitled ‘Letters from a senior devil to a junior devil’.

And very clever it is too...showing us that as ‘Screwtape’ writes to ‘Wormwood’ he is trying to show the junior devil how to tempt, distract and win souls away from the Enemy (God). Very witty, very clever and I have to say brilliantly told with the backdrop of WW2 - the book was written in 1941.

“Humans are amphibians...half spirit and half animal...as spirits they belong to the eternal world, but as animals they inhabit time. This means that while their spirit can be directed to an eternal object, their bodies, passions, and imaginations are in continual change, for to be in time, means to change. Their nearest approach to constancy, therefore, is undulation--the repeated return to a level from which they repeatedly fall back, a series of troughs and peaks.”

As animals we look to ourselves and the world...as spirits we look to God and eternal life.

As stark as the choice is, it is incredible that we aren’t constantly looking back to God in fear of losing ourselves to the world and in the everlasting hope that eternal life with God is our’s...all we have to do is ask...

Amen ( )