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jvmilks's review against another edition
3.0
I didn't realize until reading this book that I just assumed CS Lewis was born an Oxford don. Having read excerpts and heard Surprised by Joy quoted frequently, the first 13 (of 15) chapters seemed different in nature from the most popular quotes, but much more like an autobiography. I rated the book lower largely because of the discrepancy between my expectation of what this book would be compared to what it was, which isn't fair. Were I to read it again, I might listen with different ears and have a better appreciation for the book in total.
weihnachtslilie's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content and Bullying
dylan_pluke's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
4.5
elisakissa's review against another edition
3.0
The content is good and in many moments it compelled me to also recount why I believe in Jesus and how God called me to him in the beginning. However I chose to read this in English and ended up having to concentrate very hard to be able to understand the language from 70 years ago.
votesforwomen's review against another edition
5.0
sometimes, a book reaches inside your heart, finds the deepest part of you--the part you were scared to tell anyone about--and rips it out, revealing it to the world. i find this most often in the memoirs of authors. The God of the Garden by Andrew Peterson is another.
but surprised by joy. i knew i loved Lewis for his children's books, but what i did not know was that he is so very like me. i see myself in every single page of this book. i never took my journey of wandering as far as Lewis, but the questions. the answers. the heartache. the temporal answers. the sadness and loneliness, the swells of excitement.
this is his story. this is my story.
i too want to seek the Blue Flower.
but surprised by joy. i knew i loved Lewis for his children's books, but what i did not know was that he is so very like me. i see myself in every single page of this book. i never took my journey of wandering as far as Lewis, but the questions. the answers. the heartache. the temporal answers. the sadness and loneliness, the swells of excitement.
this is his story. this is my story.
i too want to seek the Blue Flower.
letamcwilliams's review against another edition
4.0
Trying to understand Christian hype one C S Lewis book at a time
clonus's review against another edition
slow-paced
5.0
Lewis' depiction of his (unintentional) search for the divine in reading old fables matches up with a lot of what formed my own media taste and it's really breathtaking to see someone else looking at that tendency so clearly
kelleysorensen's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0