It seems presumptuous of me to even be reviewing a book of C.S. Lewis' writings. It's also presumptuous of me to use the word presumptuous as one of the things he repeatedly cautions writers against is using a big word when a smaller, more common one will do. So, let's rephrase this as "It seems wrong for me (or anyone) to review work by C.S. Lewis." But, well, here we go....
Lewis was a writer, yes, but also a teacher. Reading his responses to letters obviously written by young writers is eye-opening. It isn't just the advice he gives but the patient, positive vibes of his responses show the teacher side. Divided into sections by focus, it's a book easily read in spurts, flipping back-and-forth or, gasp, even skipping a section or two. I read them all, even the poetry section even though my poetic skills seems to largely begin and end with trite phrasing such as "I'm not a poet/And I know it". Hopefully you're more poetic but there is something within for every budding writer no matter what your genre. Heck, you don't even have to want to write books. It's applicable for everything from your efforts at the Great American Novel to, well, reviews and common written exchanges today.
I wonder what Lewis, who died in 1983, would think of modern social media, too. One of the points he makes is to write for the ear as well as the eye, yes, but he also strongly emphasizes, as I've already noted, the need to be direct and avoid using a big word when a little one, so to speak, will do just as well. For instance, don't say "the mortality rate escalated" when "many people died" says the same thing in a clearer, more direct way. No, I don't think we'd find C.S. Lewis writing news headlines for social media. Bottom line, choose your words and avoid verbicide, ie the murder of words. I love that word. I also loved this book and expect to return to it again and again. Thanks to #NetGalley and #HarperOne for reminding me that I need to read the Narnia Chronicles again...soon.
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