Shadowlands
by Brian Sibley
Audiobook on cassette, read by David Suchet and published by Chivers Audio Books in 1996. This edition is complete, unabridged and contains 6 cassettes with a runtime of approximately 5 hrs 41 min.
Shadowlands blends C.S. Lewis writings (The Chronicles of Narnia, A Grief Observed, etc.) with the story of his childhood with his brother Warnie, the years at Oxford University and his meeting and much too short marriage and life with Joy Davidman, the love of his life.
They meet in 1952 in England. She is a 37 year old talented poet and writer from USA, “running” away from an alcoholic and chronically unfaithful husband, he is a 54 year old writer, one of England’s leading Christians and lecturers - and a confirmed bachelor.
Lewis’ attraction to Joy is at first of intellectual character - she is the only women he has met, who matches his width of interests and humour. He regards her as a friend and companion, and it is as such he marries her at a civil ceremony in 1956, so she can stay in England. But their relationship develops into deep love, and when Joy is diagnosed with bone cancer, they feel and urge for a Christian marriage, having both converted to Christianity earlier in life (Lewis is a re-converted, Joy is born a Jew). The ceremony is performed at Joy’s hospital bed in 1957. She recovers briefly but dies 3 years later in 1960, leaving C.S. Lewis in deep grief. He starts to question his faith in God - not so much as to whether God really exists, but more as to if God is bad, has no power or doesn’t care, since it seems he is present in good times, but doesn’t answer in bad times...
He begins to write down his thoughts on those issues and chooses to publish them in 1961 as A Grief Observed under the pseudonym N.W. Clark. He doesn't want people to focus on his own grief in particular - his reflections are meant to be a comfort and help for those who happen to be in the same situation asking the same kind of questions he did. Eventually he finds his answers and comes to terms with a life without Joy. He dies in 1963.
The original biography by Brian Sibley - Shadowlands: The true story of C.S. Lewis and Joy Davidman - was first published in 1985 and later adapted for TV, a stage play and a cinema film version with Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger in the leading roles. Ian Richardson read an abridged and specially adapted version of the biography on BBC Radio 2 in February 2007, recorded shortly before his death.
Notes
Back cover of a library copy with labels...
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