'C S Lewis - A Biography' by A N Wilson

[Bill]

I have just finished reading the above biography. I have read it before but not for some time and I had forgotten how 'gritty' it was. There is some original stuff in it but Wilson certainly dispels the myth of 'St Jack'. Has anyone else read it recently?

Bill

[Guest]

Hi Bill,

I have read A.N. Wilson's biography, but not recently. In fact, I think I read it about 10 years ago in the aftermath of seeing Shadowlands and as I started to read C.S.L's own books. My chief memory of Wilson's biography is that although it was a very interesting and informative read, Wilson himself was far too interested in Lewis's sex life for my liking.

The biography does contain mistakes. The late Kathryn Lindskoog compiled a list of errata which may still be available on her web site.

Malcolm

[Guest]

Kathryn Lindskoog's List of "A. N. Wilson errata" is certainly still available, as mjmann suggests: which is just around the corner from the present web page.

You may also be interested in an essay of mine on that subject at .

Arend

[Bill]

Thanks for that. I certainly hadn't read it before.

Bill

[Bill]

[Guest]

Hello Bill,

I fear you are right in thinking Wilson's book may not be much below the average biography with regard to sloppiness. Indeed I might be able to supply a bit of factual basis for your suspicion since I made a Dutch translation of George Sayer's CSL biography, Jack. While working on that book I was shocked to find it perhaps just as full of inaccuracies as Wilson's.

But then I believe there is something more interesting than mere sloppiness to be noted in A. N. Wilson. I hope you'll find time for my essay and very much wonder what you'll think of it. At any rate you appear to be in an excellent position now to enjoy it.

Good luck,

Arend Smilde

[Guest]

[Guest]

[Guest]

[Guest]

I didn't read the ANWilson book because too many good people put me off it.

I like your quote from the Silver Chair Bill. But I'm led to understand that it's not true. Most people aren't dead: at present, there are more people living than have ever lived, even in the 1950's when the quote was first written. It's true there are a lot of dead people but there are more who are alive.

[jo]

[Karen]

[Stanley Anderson]

[from karen]:
>"our estimate here is that about 5.8 percent of all people ever born are alive today."

Which supports the idea that our priest mentions every now and again -- that the Church is indeed a democracy; but unfortunately the great majority of its members are not currently alive on Earth, so whatever a majority of Christians currently living on Earth believe that may be different from the traditional teachings of the Church, they cannot possibly hope to carry the day in any kind of "majority rules" situation:-)

--Stanley

[Bill]

[Karen]