The Joyful Christian: 127 Readings
© 1977
256 pages

Let’s say you’ve never read any of C.S. Lewis’  nonfiction, but you’ve heard his name constantly and are curious.  Published fourteen years after Lewis’ death, The Joyful Christian collects excerpts from his more popular works into one volume.  Although the drawn-from works vary (they include his biography Surprised by Joy,   his Christian nonfiction like Miracles and The Problem of Pain,  Letters to Malcolm, and even The Screwtape Letters),  the collection is tightly focused on the Christian life.  The title is somewhat misleading in that it’s not a book about mirth and merriment, but rather uses Lewis’ original use of ‘joy’ –  those fleeting moments of feeling something transcendental,  happening spontaneously and unpredictably,  hints of something beyond than what is dreamt of in Victorian man’s philosophy.  The volume proved an solid start to my Lenten reading,  given that it begins with Lewis’ writing on the truthfulness of Christianity before shifting to faith practices. These were intended to be read devotionally, I think, since the multitude of short pieces (each is 2-4 paragraphs), but I’ve read most of the source material so I just enjoyed the refresher. Personally, as a Lewis devotional reader, I prefer A Year with C.S. Lewis, but this would be a good primer for someone who’s never read Lewis and is interested in the range of his Christian writing.