Becoming Mrs. Lewis by Patti CallahanMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Many readers know C.S. Lewis as the beloved author of the children’s series the Chronicles of Narnia and his nonfiction Christian writings such as The Screwtape Letters. However, many are not familiar with his beloved wife, the American divorcee, Joy Davidman.
Patti Callahan does a remarkable job in giving the reader a glimpse into the private lives of Joy Davidman and C.S. Lewis in her novel, Becoming Mrs. Lewis.
Joy, who is struggling in an unhappy marriage, decides to write C.S. Lewis about matters of the faith and for spiritual advice. Doubting that he will ever respond, she is surprised to receive a letter back. Joy and Jack (Lewis) develop a warm and intellectual friendship. Her drunken and raging husband brings her to her wit’s end, and her doctor advises her to take a holiday. She travels to England hoping to restore her health and, most importantly, finally meet her trusted friend and confidant C.S. Lewis. In this historical fiction novel, readers meet a woman and mother whose broken heart has been made whole. A love story worth telling over and over again.
Jack:
It is only in the giving up of ourselves that we find our real self. Giving up the rage, your favorite desires and wishes.
Joy:
Oh, how is that possible? I want to know. My mother always wanted me to be someone else, comparing me to my cousin Renee and to the beautiful women of the streets. My father, well, I’d never be good enough for him, much less be understood. My parents believed criticism was a show of love. And Bill? He wants from me the kind of wife I cannot be no matter how hard I pray or try. These hurts don’t melt easily under the “giving up” of a false self to a real self.
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