Book Review: Out Of The Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis

Every so often I buy a book that sits on myself for years before I get the urge to read it. Something possesses me to buy these books that wait patiently for me to read them. Many years ago a friend of mine recommended C.S. Lewis' book Out Of The Silent Planet which I gladly bought, but then never left my shelf. I love Lewis' work from the Narnia Chronicles to his more religious works. I found it hard to get excited about reading a sci-fi novel written by Lewis. He's a brilliant writer, but if this book is unknown to the average reader then how good could it possibly be? Science fiction is hard to pull off. I finally read it. I wasn't dispointed by what I read. Granted it isn't as much fun as the Lion, The Witch, & The Wardrobe, or as intellectually probing as The Screw Tape Letters. Yet I was still drawn by the fact that Lewis uses almost every literary genre at his disposal to share the Christian entic with the reading public. This novel is no exception having the story of life on Mars mirror that of a type of heaven where all creatures comes to worship a God like being while communally using their various gifts for the common good. Sounds almost communistic. This was a much denser novel theologically speaking than his others and it drabs at times, but his poetic descriptions of the landscape and alien life makes up for it in such a rich beauty that is rarely seen in science fiction. Another short coming of the book is it felt awfully short. The drama and action stopped short to the point where I wondered, "That's it?" It is a worthwhile read as a unique representation of his work. I would't necessarily recommend it and do not think you would be outright missing out if you didn't. There are 2 other books in the series which makes me wonder if the other books make up for the short comings of this book.