Although Till We Have faces is, without a doubt, a Christian novel, one does not need to be a Christian to enjoy it. I was never a fan of the Narnia books, finding Lewis’ barefaced sermonising irritating beyond belief. Lewis considered Till We Have Faces to be his best and most mature work, an evaluation with which I whole-heartedly agree. This is perhaps the most remarkable aspect of Lewis’ novel, and what catapults it into the upper echelons of literature: how well it evokes the elusive nature of truth, and our shortcomings in trying to find it.Ĭ.S. The prose is subtle and sparse, with many of the novel’s most salient points hinted at rather than stated outright. Till We Have Faces is written in a wonderful, Grecian style. Part of this lies in the beauty of Lewis’ writing.

Oruel has one of the most well-developed subconscious minds in all of literature, and the great genius of Lewis’ book is that the reader must work as hard as the narrator to uncover the truth.

It was a terrible and wonderful glimpse into how a mind can warp reality without even realising it. It is uncomfortable because of how honestly it portrays the ugly side of human nature. Till We Have Faces is, in some ways, an uncomfortable book.

So does Oruel charge heaven with crimes against humankind. How could they, who made her so wretched and hateful to all the world, take from her the one piece of beauty she possessed? If they are so powerful, why do they hide away and make men chase after mocking shadows? Why, if they are so good and great, can they treat men with decency and respect? Yes, the gods (or God, rather) are cruel, and they deserve nothing but scorn. When Psyche is inevitably taken, Oruel is distraught and blames the gods for their injustice. Oruel grows incredibly jealous and possessive over her sister, and is loathe to share her with the rest of the world. A lonely child, Oruel soons gains a companion in the form of a beautiful half-sister named Psyche. Our narrator is Oruel, the bitter and ugly princess of Glome. The story is set in the fictional city-state of Glome, a primitive polis on the margins of Hellenic civilisation. Lewis set out to correct the flaws in the tale, the end result being this exquisite, emotionally resonant novel. The original myth had haunted Lewis throughout his life, for he perceived many of the characters’ motivations as being irrational.

Published in 1956, it is a retelling of the Cupid and Psyche myth from Greek mythology. Lewis is, in my opinion, one of the greatest novels ever written.

Till we have faces by cs lewis