Into the Wardrobe

Anyone know of a good commentary book on C.S. Lewis' 'Poems'? This book looks interesting but I know I don't have the background of literature knowledge to understand where he goes in them. For me it is unreadable. An in depth examination of these poems would be interesting and educational. Thanks.

Hi, ejh,
Most of what little is available can be found in the various Lewis Society newsletters (Lamp-Post, CSL, New York Bulletin, Canadian). You'd have to do some looking to find back issues of those.

Available in most college libraries you should be able to find back issues of the journal Studies in the Literary Imagination. In the Fall 1989 issue (number 22) is an essay by Don King on 'The Distant Voice in C. S. Lewis's Poems'. King is fairly readable, despite his misuse of the apostrophe in his title :P .

Two books that may give you a bit of help.
The Literary Legacy of C. S. Lewis by Chad Walsh.
C. S. Lewis Companion & Guide by Walter Hooper. Keep in mind if using this one that there are many suspicions about how Hooper, who was also the editor of Poems, assembled the collection and altered some of the individual works in it. Hooper is usually worth reading, but must always be read with a bit of skepticism.

Hope this helps.

Selah,
Sven