YWAM Book Review- C.S. Lewis: Master Storyteller

Since I love adding Christian biographies to our home library, I was excited to write a YWAM book review of Christian Heroes- C.S. Lewis: Master Storyteller, one of the books in the Christian Heroes: Then & Now  series. We also received a Study Guide from YWAM Publishing to use with this book.

You’ve probably heard of C.S. Lewis, the notorious writer of Chronicles of Narnia, Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters and more.

Perhaps you’ve not heard of YWAM. Allow me to introduce you to them first, then I’ll tell you about the C.S. Lewis: Master Storyteller book. Plus, I have a special giveaway included.

Who is YWAM?

“Youth With A Mission (YWAM) is a global movement of Christians from many denominations dedicated to presenting Jesus personally to this generation, to mobilizing as many as possible to help in this task, and to the training and equipping of believers for their part in fulfilling the Great Commission.”

You can learn more about them on their website, especially about their purpose, beliefs, and values.

The publishing arm of YWAM produces books that encourage Christians to make a difference in the world.

One of the cool things about YWAM books is that when we buy one of their books, we’re helping children and adults all over the world. YWAM Publishing is a nonprofit organization and a portion of every dollar we spend goes toward helping those in need.

The Authors

The authors of C.S. Lewis: Master Storyteller are Janet and Geoff Benge. They are a wife and husband writing team originally from New Zealand but have since transplanted to Florida. With Janet’s experience as a teacher and Geoff’s studies in history, topped off with years of missionary work, they make the perfect writing team.

We love their style of writing.  Their stories always begin right in the middle of something exciting. They have a gift for adding cliff-hangers at the end of every chapter. By the end of each book, we’ve grown in our knowledge and in our spiritual walk. We own at least fifteen of their books. We use them for read-alouds and for silent reading.

It’s hard to narrow down our favorites but I’d have to say Louis Zamperini: Redeemtion; Jacob DeShazer: Forgive Your Enemies; and Richard Wurmbrand: Love Your Enemies are my personal favorites thus far. Maybe because they’re related to WWII.

My son loved George Muller: The Guardian of Bristol’s Orphans and Charles Mulli: We Are Family. I think because of my son’s own adoption story, he has a heart for other stories relating to rescued orphans.

We hope to read all the books in the Christian Heroes: Then and Now series!

The Basic Content of C.S. Lewis: Master Storyteller

The book begins when Clive Staples Lewis, at the age of two, stamps his foot and insists everyone calls him Jack. Who wouldn’t fall in love with that?

Throughout the book we see how Jack’s endearing relationship with his brother, Warren, and the imaginative as well as the real adventures they had together influenced Jack’s writing.

Readers follow Lewis from his childhood home, to boarding school, to college, and to new homes. We learn history of the region and of the world along the way. WWI and WWII come into play during Lewis’ lifetime.

Also, we hear of how key people in Lewis’ life, such as teachers and other writers, influenced him and his writing.

One important aspect of the book is how Lewis went from being an atheist to becoming a Christian.

I’ve read about C.S. Lewis before and yet this book contains some information I’d not heard before.

The book spans from the birth of C.S. Lewis in 1898 to his death in 1963.

The Challenging Content

C.S. Lewis: Master Storyteller is written a little bit differently than the other Christian Hero books we’ve read. It’s written in a narrative style rather than from C.S. Lewis’ point of view.

I can guess at some of the reasons why the Benges chose to write the book with this perspective. One reason may have to do with the private nature of C.S. Lewis. Some things he relished talking about such as theology and literature. Other things such as parts of his personal life he did not talk so much about.

Which brings me to point out a few things to be aware of in the book.  The authors handle all of these topics well, but I wanted to give you a heads up as they may generate discussions in your family.

In chapter eight, I think some readers will wonder what J.R.R. Tolkien means when he suggests to Lewis his failure to believe in Christianity is due to a lack of imagination.

In chapter fifteen, there are references made about the Angelican Church not allowing Lewis to marry a divorced woman and there’s a question as to whether her previous marriage counted as a marriage at all.

In chapter sixteen, there is a reference about praying for substitution. Lewis prays that God would transfer his wife’s physical pain to him.

Also, in chapter sixteen, there’s a discussion of child custody and the fear that Lewis’ stepsons may have to return to their biological father upon the death of their mother.

These topics make for good conversations. You may need to adapt for various levels of understanding.

However, there’s no need to fear, the Study Guide is here!

The Study Guide

YWAM Publishing offers a fantastic Study Guide download for this book! It is jam-packed with great ideas and resources.

We found the questions provided for each chapter to be insightful. It also comes with a helpful answer key.

The Study Guide contains so much valuable content that we will continue to dip into it over time.

For this book review, I have included in italics what we’ve done so far.

Included in the Study Guide:

Key Bible Verses   (We read these.)

Display Corner (We did a display corner about WWII.)

Chapter Questions (We enjoyed the discussion of these.)

Student Explorations (We chose to do several projects from the numerous list of ideas. We did art, creative writing in a journal, and a mini-walking tour.)

Community Links – Ideas for speakers and field trips.

Social Studies – Reproducible maps and fact sheets.

Related Themes to Explore – For future studies.

Culminating Event (Years ago, I took an English Tea class at our community college taught by an England native. I plan to teach about and serve a high tea later this week. I think my son will oblige when I inform him the teas used to be for men only. Actually, I think as long as there is cake, he won’t object. I’ll include a delicious Victorian Sandwich cake recipe under the Resources tab for you.)

Books and Resources  (Lists of books, articles, and movies. We had several on hand to use.)

The Recommendation

This book is advertised for ages ten and up. I think due to the intellectual depth of some of the conversations and the vocabulary used, as well as some of the subject matter, it may be best suited for ages twelve and up.

This is the first time I’ve tried one of YWAM Publishing’s Study Guides. I LOVE it and will definitely be purchasing those from now on!

The prices for the books and the Study Guides are incredibly low and well worth the investment. You can find out more information on their website and on Facebook.

The Giveaway

I’d love to add a YWAM book to your home library! I’ll draw a name from our email subscription list on Monday, April 22, 2019.

Additionally, if you leave a comment below (and you’re on the email list), you’ll get your name placed in the drawing two times!

If you win, you can select a YWAM Christian Hero book of your choice (a $7.50 value) via a gift certificate that I’ll mail to you.

CONGRATULATIONS to blog subscriber, Christy W. in Michigan! I had to do some digging to figure out who the mysterious email address belonged to but I eventually found you. 🙂 And in the process, I discovered you’ve been hanging with me since 2017! Bless you, Christy, for your patience and friendship. I’ll contact you about the delivery of your gift certificate.

Comment on What?

Anything you like is fine. Or, you can tell us a biography you’ve read and enjoyed.

To read more reviews like this, click on the link below to take you to the Homeschool Review Crew website:
http://schoolhousereviewcrew.com/study-guides-christian-heroes-then-now-heroes-of-history-ywam-publishing-reviews/

A freelance writer, Sally Matheny’s writing is published in worldwide, national, regional, online and print publications including Appleseeds, Clubhouse Jr., Homeschooling Today, and The Old Schoolhouse.

As a blogger and speaker, Sally encourages families to use the power of story, history, and His Story to tell the next generation wondrous things.

Connect with her on several social media sites, but her favorite hangouts are at SallyMatheny.com and Pinterest.