The Great Divorce [Hardcover]

C.S. Lewis (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 118 pages
• Publisher: Geoffry Bles: The Centenary Press; First edition (1945)
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0006D7JZ0
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (298 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,083,913 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

251 of 258 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vivid fantasy of a bus ride through Heaven and Hell - WOW!, May 25, 2000

By 

Shelley Gammon "Geek" (Kaufman, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Great Divorce (Paperback)

Only C.S. Lewis can write a story like this. A man takes a bus ride through Hell, then Heaven and witnesses the choices made by others in their lives.

The vivid stories within the story show that indecision is still a decision... it underscores the petty things in our lives that we allow to dominate us, things that will still plague us in Hell for eternity if we don't abandon them.

Lewis' concepts (fantasized, of course) of the substance of spirit versus the substance of flesh and blood are incredibly thought provoking. There are mental images I got from reading this book that I will never forget.

It is basic truth - you choose life, you choose death, or you choose not to choose. You will either give up the things that are holding you down (whether they be bitter resentments, anger, material gain, control, etc.) or you will cling to them until they become your master and you their slave.

The book presents these concepts in such a non-threatening way that you've gotten a life lesson that you don't realize until you've finished this short, yet vibrant book.

130 of 136 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Images of Heaven and Hell, May 15, 2000

By 

Bethany McKinney (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Great Divorce (Paperback)

Although this book is written as a novella, it contains TONS of thinly disguised theological truths and brain-shaking ideas. This is one of those books where everything means something. Every bit of the scenic description of Heaven and Hell reveals something that Lewis believes to be true about the two places and how people respond to them. Other fascinating things about this book are the fictional characters and seeing how different types of people respond to being in Heaven. There is one man who realizes that now that he is in Heaven, and in the presence of God, he is no longer useful. But he doesn't want to start feeling useless, and so cannot enter the presence of God--because in Heaven God provides for everyone's needs. This book really makes you contemplate whether Christianity is more about the journey or the destination. It's entertaining and full of wisdom, and is a must-read.

79 of 81 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A miniature masterpiece, January 4, 2000

By 

NotATameLion (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Great Divorce (Paperback)

Some folks only know Beethoven for his 9th symphony. Some folks only know C.S. Lewis for one of his "greater" works. (Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, The Chronicles of Narnia etc..) What a loss. Anyone who has read any C.S. Lewis should make the time over the course of their lives to read THIS C.S. Lewis. I loved this book. No writer in the twentieth century ever hit the nail more directly on the head when dealing with human nature than did Clive Staples Lewis. This book is a perfect example of his talent in this area. Not even the Screwtape Letters did it better. I heartily recommend this book to all readers.