Rating: 
Summary: One of my "all-time" favorite books
Review: I have been a life-long C.S. Lewis fan, and first tackled this book when I was probably about 12, returning to it often throughout the years (I am now 32). One of my favorite passages concerns the descent of the Eldila (especially Jupiter) into St. Anne's, although I thoroughly enjoyed the work as a whole. It can be a bit slow-going in parts, and definitely is "British" in numerous of its references, but all in all it's a great end to the series and a very instructive and entertaining story. Two quick comments here: an earlier reviewer wondered why Merlin was necessary and couldn't anyone have taken his role upon themselves. Lewis writes in the book how Merlin was needed because in life he had opened himself to the influence of spiritual powers in a way others hadn't, and that "opening" was what made him uniquely suited to the needs of the situation in the novel. As to the other reviewer's comments about Lewis not knowing a thing about women, and his views on contraception, it would seem that a fairer statement would be that Lewis' views did not correspond to the reviewer's, rather than a condemning statement about his views. I say this especially since I know many women who have absolutely no problem whatsoever with the views Lewis articulates in the book. Happy reading to all!
Rating: 
Summary: Uneven characterizations, but a fairly good read.
Review: I only recently discovered the Trilogy, never having been much of a Lewis fan, and read them in order. Each book has its charms, but I especially enjoyed the way That Hideous Strength built on the "circles" of the Bad Guys, both at Bracton college and later at Belbury. Mark Studdock, a person possessing neither distinction, character, nor a talent for evil, has lived his life - and ruined it thereby - in a search for admission to 'the inner circle,' and any circle will do. He learns that each concentric circle, in addition to being more exclusive as he supposed, is also more evil and more banal.The characterization of Stoddock is superb. Likewise the relationship between Mr. and Mrs. Dimble and a few other minor characters. The book is almost worth reading just to gain the acquaintance of Mr. Bultitude. Others are far less engaging. MacPhee - one of the most unidimensional characters I have ever read - is a continual annoyance. The whole build-up with Merlin, only to have him turn out completely powerless until "possessed" by the eldils, makes no sense to me at all. And then he - what? Explodes? Couldn't anyone have done that? And why do God and the angels need an Arthurian wizard, anyway? But the biggest disappointment was Ransom himself. He went from being a lifelike, engaging fellow, in the first two books, to an idealized shadow. We never really learn how he goes from being a Cambridge don to a wealthy landowner and "the Pendragon." Who are these people who bequeath St. Anne's to him on the condition that he take the name "Fisher-King?" How did he become the Pendragon? No explanation. This was hard to accept from such a brilliant writer. But that's not to say the book is unworthy of attention. I expect to read it again, probably soon, and will probably get more insights from it the second time through. I believe much of the problem the Trilogy has with readers of my generation is that it is always classed as Science Fiction, which it certainly is not. People read it expecting familiar formulas, and don't know how to react when it turns out to be religious allegory. They should read more carefully. As with most of what he wrote, Lewis intended to illuminate more than to entertain.
Rating:
Summary: Uneven characterizations, but a fairly good read.
Review: I only recently discovered the Trilogy, never having been much of a Lewis fan, and read them in order. Each book has its charms, but I especially enjoyed the way That Hideous Strength built on the "circles" of the Bad Guys, both at Bracton college and later at Belbury. Mark Studdock, a person possessing neither distinction, character, nor a talent for evil, has lived his life - and ruined it thereby - in a search for admission to 'the inner circle,' and any circle will do. He learns that each concentric circle, in addition to being more exclusive as he supposed, is also more evil and more banal. The characterization of Stoddock is superb. Likewise the relationship between Mr. and Mrs. Dimble and a few other minor characters. The book is almost worth reading just to gain the acquaintance of Mr. Bultitude. Others are far less engaging. MacPhee - one of the most unidimensional characters I have ever read - is a continual annoyance. The whole build-up with Merlin, only to have him turn out completely powerless until "possessed" by the eldils, makes no sense to me at all. And then he - what? Explodes? Couldn't anyone have done that? And why do God and the angels need an Arthurian wizard, anyway? But the biggest disappointment was Ransom himself. He went from being a lifelike, engaging fellow, in the first two books, to an idealized shadow. We never really learn how he goes from being a Cambridge don to a wealthy landowner and "the Pendragon." Who are these people who bequeath St. Anne's to him on the condition that he take the name "Fisher-King?" How did he become the Pendragon? No explanation. This was hard to accept from such a brilliant writer. But that's not to say the book is unworthy of attention. I expect to read it again, probably soon, and will probably get more insights from it the second time through. I believe much of the problem the Trilogy has with readers of my generation is that it is always classed as Science Fiction, which it certainly is not. People read it expecting familiar formulas, and don't know how to react when it turns out to be religious allegory. They should read more carefully. As with most of what he wrote, Lewis intended to illuminate more than to entertain.
Rating:
Summary: For one thing, it¿s not ¿a modern fairy tale for grown-ups¿
Review: I start with a quibble. Lewis's preface states, "If you ask why - intending to write about magicians, devils, pantomime animals, and planetary angels - I nonetheless begin with such hum-drum scenes and persons, I reply that I am following the traditional fairytale. We do not always notice its methods, because the cottages, castles, woodcutters and petty kings with which a fairytale opens have become for us as remote as the witches and ogres to which it proceeds. But they were not remote at all to the men who made and first enjoyed the stories." Lewis demonstrates a basic misunderstanding here, which can be cured by reading a hundred folktales in a row and noting the opening sentences: "Once, in another kingdom, not in this place ..."; "Once upon a time ..."; "Long ago in a galaxy far, far away ..." The air of what we now call social realism is banished with the very first sentence, and the "hum-drum" beginning is a more complex thing than Lewis imagines it to be. But my quibble is more than just a quibble, for it illustrates the basic failure of "That Hideous Strength". Lewis tries to blend the fantastic with the everyday, yes. But he also throws in a sort of creepy science fiction, Christianity, Arthurian legend, dystopia, and several other things besides, and the result is not a blend but a salad. The truth is, none of the books in the Cosmic trilogy quite comes off. The first is a kind of satire of H.G. Wells, which makes a hollow "ping" if you strike it. The second (and best) is a pure fantasy which happens to be set on Venus (just as a fantasy might be set in Ancient Greece or on a deserted island), which preaches just a little too much. And the third ... well, we return to the world of H.G. Wells (with a highly unfair and unflattering caricature of the man himself), but we also have pure Perelandran fantasy, and these two flavours clash all by themselves - never mind what else is in the book. And speaking of caricatures, there is MacPhee, an annoying cardboard portrait of an old tutor of Lewis's, who was himself, as far as I can tell, made of cardboard. (A much rounder portrait in the same vein is the Fox, in Lewis's "Till We Have Faces" - in every way a better book.) HOWEVER ... I liked it. Individual scenes don't work together, but they frequently work. The narrative thread of the endearingly unendearing Mark Studdock is a worthwhile book in itself. It's hard, all said and done, to find a reader who doesn't enjoy this book. The Cosmic trilogy as a whole, however, must be written off as a failed experiment, by a writer who could do much better. In the following decade, he did.
Rating:
Summary: An twisting plot that keeps the pages turning.
Review: I truly loved That Hideous Strength. I have read both of it's prequels and I was not diasapointed by the final book. The plot kept me reading, the characters kept me interested, and the ending left me with a smile.
Rating: 
Summary: The 'religious' beliefs regarding women's rolls are too much
Review: I very much enjoyed the first too books in this trilogy, but this third book has some problems. While the sci-fi purist concept of a 'corporation' taking over and essentially looking to sterilize the planet and 'create the superior being' is well founded, Dr. Ransom's character really does little in this book other than 'sit and wait' for the higher forces to come to put a stop to it. The addition of Merlin was interesting insomuch as his dialog with Dr. Ransom, but the way in which he is sent to resolve the conflict at hand is a bit much, and to be honest entirely to grusome. Also, there is really little to no reason to empathize with the character of Mark, and Lewis' treatment of Jane is typically patriarchal to the point of (personal) insult. Even the fact that her name is "jane" (very non-entity-like) compared to "Mark" (apostle), is a bit much. But of course, that was part of the 'message' I was supposed to receive I suppose (being a female reader).
Rating:
Summary: Intelligent and delightful fantasy
Review: I've read the 3 books from this series and they are all excellent. I really enjoyed That Hideous Strength, but it's almost impossible to explain how well it was written. It will sound a bit farfetched from my descriptions, but somehow it keeps all its varying aspects perfectly blended into the story. Overall it is an engaging fantasy mingling with sci-fi. It tells the story of a young couple who are caught between good and evil. On the side of good is the old-fashioned England, the spirits of the deep heavens, and characters like Mr. Bultitude and Ivy Maggs that charm and delight. McPhee is hilarious while Ramson himself is wise and yet human. On the side of evil there is the movement towards 'social progress' with characters like Frost and Withers that fascinate with their perverse logic. Lord Feverstone is a familiar smiling bastard while The Fairy is repulsive and pitiful. Caught between these are Jane and Mark, the pragmatic newly married couple whose failure in love provides interesting fodder in and of itself. It covers the moral aspects of forward progress really well, the old-fashioned English village with all its quirks is pitted against the facist social purity of labratory and government merged. Then add an appearance by Merlyn and old magic, giving it an interesting Arthurian slant I've never seen done before. I admit that a few of the essay-style conversations about morality were wordy, but I loved this book. The descriptions are beautiful and enticing, and even briefly appearing characters are meaningful. It is at once engaging and fascinating and fun at different levels. I highly recommend it, and the series!
Rating:
Summary: This is the greatest of the Space Trilogy!!!
Review: If you don't have time to read the other two, this one is well worth your time. This book is profound, exciting, fantastic, and intellectually stimulating! If you have read all of Lewis' other works this one will be wonderfully different, but still the great Lewis you know.
Rating:
Summary: Ultimate clash between cosmic forces of Good & Evil!
Review: In THAT HIDEOUS STRENGTH, C.S. Lewis concludes the epic battle for thesoul of mankind that he began in OUT of THE SILENT PLANET. Attentive readers of Lewis will recognize that this trilogy is a mythological exploration of the same themes he discussed in the cautionary essay, THE ABOLITION of MAN. By the end of THAT HIDEOUS STRENGTH, it should be apparent to all but the most naive reader that NICE has very little to do with SCIENCE and is, in fact, an occult circle of Black adepts quite willing to sell the soul of humanity into eternal, satanic enslavement. The Biblical image of the Tower of Babel... which Dostoyevsky also invoked in his "Legend of the Grand Inquisitor" In Lewis' fable, the arrogance of the sorcerer/scientists of NICE provokes the very wrath of God.
Rating:
Summary: That Hideous Strength is the best of the Space Trilogy
Review: It seems that people either like That Hideous Strength the best or least of the Space Trilogy. I think the reason is that That Hideous Strength is very different than the other two books. It took me a couple of chapters to realize that this book was not going where Perelandra and Out of the Silent Planet went, but when I realized that I could enjoy the book on its own merits. In fact, this is my favorite book in the trilogy. Although a Christian theme runs throughout the trilogy, when it is presented in That Hideous Strength it becomes more accessible. The evil in the book could and does happen. The basic good in the book is no less extraordinary (with certain exceptions). The adventures of Ransom on other planets in the first two books of the trilogy were to prepare him for the battle on Earth in That Hideous Strenth. An interesting phenomenon of this book for me was that when I was reading about Mark and the N.I.C. E. I longed for the story to switch to Jane and the group at St. Anne's. The people at N.I.C.E. were so disagreeable and petty and backstabbing that it made me realize what C. S. Lewis was saying about the nature of evil (or the devil). This book can be read for its story alone, but it is much more rewarding if you think about the ideas and beliefs present as well. Even if you are not religious or a christian the book can inspire you to think about what you believe in.
|
