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Spirits in Bondage: A Cycle of Lyrics Paperback – Deckle Edge, February 14, 2017

by C. S. Lewis (Author)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 417 ratings
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A repackaged edition of the revered author’s first book—a collection of poems, written in the wake of World War I, in which the young intellectual and soldier wrestles with the perplexing polarities of life, including love and war, evil and goodness, and other complex dichotomies.

In 1919, C. S. Lewis—the great British writer, scholar, lay theologian, broadcaster, Christian apologist, and bestselling author of Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, The Great Divorce, The Chronicles of Narnia, and many other beloved classics—published his first book, Spirits in Bondage, under the pseudonym Clive Hamilton. Written when Lewis was a student at Oxford and during the war when he served at the front in France, Spirits in Bondage reflects the intellectual and spiritual struggles of a young man wounded by war and conflicted over faith. As he contemplates the nature of morality, love, the presence of evil, the possibility of God, and other profound questions. Lewis reveals a side of himself unfamiliar to many readers.

Previous page
  1. Print length
    112 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    HarperOne
  4. Publication date
    February 14, 2017
  5. Dimensions
    5.31 x 0.25 x 8 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0062643614
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0062643612
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

In 1919, C. S. Lewis published his first book, Spirits in Bondage, under the pseudonym Clive Hamilton. Written while Lewis was a student at Oxford and during the First World War when he served at the front in France, Spirits in Bondage reflects the intellectual and spiritual struggles of a young man wounded by war and conflicted over faith. As he contemplates the nature of morality, love, the presence of evil, the possibility of God, and other profound questions, Lewis reveals a side of himself unfamiliar to many readers.

About the Author

Clive Staples Lewis (1898-1963) was one of the intellectual giants of the twentieth century and arguably one of the most influential writers of his day. He was a Fellow and Tutor in English Literature at Oxford University until 1954, when he was unanimously elected to the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance Literature at Cambridge University, a position he held until his retirement. He wrote more than thirty books, allowing him to reach a vast audience, and his works continue to attract thousands of new readers every year. His most distinguished and popular accomplishments include Out of the Silent Planet, The Great Divorce, The Screwtape Letters, and the universally acknowledged classics The Chronicles of Narnia. To date, the Narnia books have sold over 100 million copies and have been transformed into three major motion pictures.

Clive Staples Lewis (1898-1963) fue uno de los intelectuales más importantes del siglo veinte y podría decirse que fue el escritor cristiano más influyente de su tiempo. Fue profesor particular de literatura inglesa y miembro de la junta de gobierno en la Universidad Oxford hasta 1954, cuando fue nombrado profesor de literatura medieval y renacentista en la Universidad Cambridge, cargo que desempeñó hasta que se jubiló. Sus contribuciones a la crítica literaria, literatura infantil, literatura fantástica y teología popular le trajeron fama y aclamación a nivel internacional. C. S. Lewis escribió más de treinta libros, lo cual le permitió alcanzar una enorme audiencia, y sus obras aún atraen a miles de nuevos lectores cada año. Sus más distinguidas y populares obras incluyen Las Crónicas de Narnia, Los Cuatro Amores, Cartas del Diablo a Su Sobrino y Mero Cristianismo.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperOne; Reissue edition (February 14, 2017)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 112 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0062643614
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0062643612
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 5 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.31 x 0.25 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 417 ratings

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  1. C.S. Lewis

    C.S. Lewis

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    CLIVE STAPLES LEWIS (1898-1963) was one of the intellectual giants of the twentieth century and arguably one of the most influential writers of his day. He was a fellow and tutor in English Literature at Oxford University until 1954 when he was unanimously elected to the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance English at Cambridge University, a position he held until his retirement. He wrote more than thirty books, allowing him to reach a vast audience, and his works continue to attract thousands of new readers every year. His most distinguished and popular accomplishments include Mere Christianity, Out of the Silent Planet, The Great Divorce, The Screwtape Letters, and the universally acknowledged classics, the Chronicles of Narnia. To date, the Narnia books have sold over 100 million copies and been transformed into three major motion pictures.

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  2. Walter Hooper

    Walter Hooper

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Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
417 global ratings
Grace and God
5 Stars
Grace and God
C. S. Lewis’ Spirits in Bondage is a cycle of lyrics from his younger days. This is a book of poetry, and they are poems from a specific time in Lewis’ life. Before he wrote The Chronicles of Narnia and Mere Christianity, he was an atheist. And he was so, so cynical. You can hear his early voice in these poems, and they will undoubtedly give you a glimpse into his immature yet aspiring mind.Purpose and LongingThere are 40 poems housed in this 250-page book. The poems are separated into three parts: Part 1: The Prison House, Part 2: Hesitation, and Part 3: The Escape. They are meant to be read in order, and there are a variety of styles and themes to keep things interesting.As noted in the introduction by Karen Swallow Prior, longing is the most prominent theme running throughout this book. As a soldier who fought in the Great War, you get the sense that Lewis was looking to live a life with greater purpose.Beauty and MeaningMost of these poems are dark, but my favorites were the ones that shed some light. “Noon” describes the heavy weight of hanging time, but Lewis can’t stop speaking about the beauty of nature that basks in the noontime light.“Song” refers to faeries and tritons, looking again at the splendor of the natural world and feeling that there must be something supernatural behind it all. Even before he was a believer, his mind was prime for the miraculous and meaningful.Grace and GodAs a worship leader, I appreciate Lewis’ work and the way he improved his craft. As a writer, I am motivated to put my pen to paper, feel emotion, and simply write better. As a Christian, I am thankful for the saving grace of God, who writes his story on our hearts and changes the narrative of our lives.I received a media copy of Spirits in Bondage and this is my honest review.
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Top reviews from the United States

Michael Kelley
5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific poetry from the pre-Christian C.S. Lewis
Reviewed in the United States on July 8, 2023
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This is an excellent example of the poetic imagination's ability to apprehend something that the reason is not yet able to comprehend. At the time Lewis wrote this cycle of poems he was a young atheist, and while his atheism comes through in certain portions, highlighting a kind of hopelessness, there is also an underlying Christian hope as well. Reading this poetry cycle will surprise, challenge, edify, and bring joy to anyone who is struggling with doubt or despair or hopelessness.
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Glynn Young
5.0 out of 5 stars A somber beauty that still speaks after a century
Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2020
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In 1919, the English publisher William Heinemann released a volume of poetry entitled “Spirits in Bondage: A Cycle of Lyrics.” The collection was part of a flood of poetry works that flowed copiously during and after World War I, joining collections by Rupert Brooke, Wilfred Owen, Charles Sorley, Francis Ledwidge, Robert Graves, Edmund Blunden, and other “World War I poets,” many of them published posthumously.

The author of “Spirits in Bondage” published under a pseudonym, Clive Hamilton. His real name was Clive Staples Lewis. The collection wasn’t republished until 1984, and in 1994 it was included in his “Collected Poems.” Most of the poems were written between 1915 and 1918, when Lewis was in military training at Oxford and then in France on the Western Front.

The 40 poems in the volume represent Lewis before his Christian conversion. A few relate directly to the war; many are nature poems and poems populated with mythological and classical figures. They are very much in the classical vein of poetry that was popular in the late Victorian and Edwardian periods, including during the war.

The collection is divided into three sections: Part I, “The Prison House,” includes 21 poems. Part 11, “Hesitation,” is comprised of only three poems. Part III is entitled “The Escape” and includes 16 poems. Throughout the volume, there are repeated mentions to God, but it is a God who is at best a cultural deity, one distanced or indifferent to humanity. Yet the religious influence is obvious, from titles like “Satan Speaks.” “Hymn,” and “Our Daily Bread” to the subjects covered.

One poem that deals directly with the war is “Death in Battle.” In it, the poet imagines himself to fall in battle, not an uncommon thought among soldiers and especially those of this war, experiencing long periods of tedium punctuated by gruesome slaughter on a wholesale basis.

“Death in Battle”

Open the gates for me,
Open the gates of the peaceful castle, rosy in the West,
In the sweet dim Isle of Apples over the wide sea’s breast.

Open the gates for me!

Sorely pressed have I been
And driven and hurt beyond bearing this summer day,
But the heat and the pain together suddenly fall away,
All’s cool and green.

But a moment agone,
Along men cursing in fight and toiling, blinded I fought,
But the labour passed on a sudden even as a passing thought,

And now – alone!

Ah, to be ever alone,
In flowery valleys among the mountains and silent wastes untrod,
In the dewy upland places, in the garden of God,
This would atone!

I shall not see
The brutal, crowded faces around me, that in their toil have grown,
Into the faces of devils – yea, even as my own—
When I find thee,

O Country of Dreams!
Beyond the tide of the ocean, hidden and sunk away,
Out of the sound of battles, near to the end of day,
Full of dim woods and streams.

The poems of “Spirits in Bondage” are those of their time, reflecting the classical influence, with its metered and measured rhyme. Yet they also transcend their time, exhibiting a somber beauty that speaks to us a century later.
3 people found this helpful
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christianecmo
3.0 out of 5 stars Good read if you want to understand C.S. Lewis' journey
Reviewed in the United States on January 28, 2014
Verified Purchase
I thoroughly enjoy C.S. Lewis' works as an author and theological philosophies. Since this was advertised as his first published book, I felt compelled to explore the origins of his thought processes.

I'm not a huge fan of poetry, so this was a little difficult to read at times. The language was beautiful, presented easy-to-visualize imagery, and flowed rather well. Lewis' verbiage was quite reflective of the early 1900s literature, which was enlightening, but required many re-reads of stanzas to fully grasp his intent. Not a long book, so anyone can finish it in their spare time in less than a week. (When I read for depth, I can ingest about 100-120 wpm….so not fast.)

Not sure I would read this again, but I'm glad I did. C.S. Lewis' journey from serious skeptic to apologist started with questions. Those questions are explored in this book.
One person found this helpful
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Frank Donnelly
4.0 out of 5 stars A Very Different C. S. Lewis From Just After World War I
Reviewed in the United States on July 27, 2022
Verified Purchase
This is a series of somewhat complicated and abstruse short poems by a young C. S. Lewis. I had to very carefully study most of these short poems and had to read all of them repeatedly. I definitely liked this collection. But it is in no way simple and not a light reading experience.

As I understand it C. S. Lewis actually served in World War I. This was published just after World War I and I feel reflects that very sobering experience. I feel these poems have the same darkness of much other poetry from this period. There forty poems within. The first is titled “Satan Speaks”. The very last titled “Death in Battle”. See what I mean? He also seemingly blasphemes a god. Clearly C. S. Lewis is struggling with his faith.

Additionally, I felt there were wisps of the origins of “The Chronicles of Narnia”. I found all of that fascinating. If one has read Narnia and enjoyed it, one might consider downloading this work on Kindle at no cost and see if you detect what I sensed.

In summary, I really like this work. It is not simple. It is often dark. In short it is not the C. D. Lewis that I have become accustomed to. But I really like it. If you find it dense and abstruse, sip, don’t gulp…. It is not lengthy.

Thank You for taking the time to read this review.
5 people found this helpful
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Cassie Troja
5.0 out of 5 stars Unexpectedly poignant
Reviewed in the United States on January 6, 2021
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In 2021, I’m endeavoring to read all of CS Lewis’ works in chronological order. I honestly did not know what to expect from this little tome since it predates Lewis dramatic conversion. I was shocked at how moving these poems were! They are clearly a window into his tormented soul as he sought to reconcile the idea of a just and loving God with the horrors of World War I. In fact, so scarred was he by what he saw in the trenches and the losses he suffered, he swore he would never bow down to nor love God (“De Profundis”). Little did he know...I can see God at work in his torment, the questions he asks and the desperate search for truth. This book was a wonderful way to launch my exploration into the mind and heart of the preeminent Christian apologist of the 20th century. I recommend this book.
6 people found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars beautiful and wise
Reviewed in the United States on March 5, 2018
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This collection of poems is beautifully written and contains a great deal of depth. Intelligent and thoughtful, a real delight.
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Jacob Allee
5.0 out of 5 stars Must have for Lewis fans.
Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2014
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I loved this short book of Lewis' poems. It's interesting to see a pre-Christian lewis expressing himself through this medium. Most of these were written when he was still just an older teenager. His atheism of the time shines through as well as his ironic love for the mythical. I think this is a must have for true Lewis fans as it gives you a peak at him as a young man who very much needed Christ in his life.
One person found this helpful
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