The first book in the Space Trilogy, Out of the Silent Planet is the story of a man named Ransom who is kidnapped by two men and taken to Malacandra, also known as Mars. When he is to be handed over to the inhabitants of Malacandra, he instead runs and finds himself alone on a strange planet.
I was first introduced to this book by a professor for a course on the literature of Lewis and Chesterton and I think reading this may have been the best assignment I have ever had. The story has a great plot and the story also raises many thoughts (I would say more but I would rather leave it to the individual so everyone can get something different from this book). This is not like the Narnia series in that it was written for adults and is not an allegory (I love the Narnia series but it can be rather in-your-face with the Christian story). Still, Lewis is trying to use his story to tell the reader more than just what appears on the surface. Even if that isn't your cup of tea, Lewis does tell a good story that can be enjoyed for itself.
Written in 1938, Lewis didn't have a lot of base knowledge on which to build his story and you can tell that this was written long before man actually achieved space flight but I think that this makes the book even better. The story is fantastical and making it more accurate in terms of technology would probably mess the story up.
While the books in the series can stand alone, the sequels are Perelandra and That Hideous Strength.
Rating: 4.5
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Out of the Silent Planet
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2 comments:
I really, really struggled with this book and could not manage to read its sequel. But after reading your description of all three I'm tempted to try again.
Jeane- The material was challenging at times so I understand what you mean but the writing was also very well done and the story was great. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!
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