Mere Christianity

(HarperOne)

Still one of the finest and most widely read explanations and defenses of the faith. Its shrewd approach and luminous imagery retain much of their power to excite and inform, even 60 years after it was written.

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

(HarperCollins)

The first and best of the Chronicles of Narnia introduces us to the mysterious realm of Narnia and the children who explore and ultimately change it. One of the best illustrations of the apologetic power of a good story.

The Abolition of Man

(HarperSanFrancisco)

Not an easy book, yet it represents a masterful critique of certain forms of naturalism and educational philosophies based on them. Well worth reading slowly and thoughtfully.

The Last Battle

(HarperCollins)

The seventh and final book in the Chronicles of Narnia sets out the hope of a New Narnia. Although controversial at points, Lewis's exploration of eschatological transformation has led many to explore Christianity in greater detail.

The Pilgrim's Regress

(Eerdmans)

Also a difficult book, but one that repays close study, and the first that Lewis published under his own name. He uses the image of a road to explain his conversion to Christianity and includes a masterful critique of Freudianism, set alongside a powerful depiction of the "heart's desire" and its implications for our quest for God.

Alister McGrath is the author of C. S. Lewis - A Life: Eccentric Genius, Reluctant Prophet (Tyndale).

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