Book Review: Lenten Lands

I knew I owned this book, Lenten Lands, by Douglas H. Gresham. I simply couldn't find it on my shelves. Finally, I discovered it tucked away with another category of books on my downstairs shelves. I've mentioned before, I met Douglas while he was researching and I was working at Wheaton College's Wade Center. We hit it off immediately. When he learned of my goal to write a book someday, we made a pact to exchange autographed copies one day. I have his book, albeit unsigned (as he always lived on another continent), but I was unable to find an address to send him my book. Besides, I learned from Patti Callahan Henry that Douglas is struggling with dementia. He certainly would not remember the pact I held onto for years. Still, I'd love to fulfill my end of that agreement.

You cannot help but put yourself in the author's shoes when you read. What a tragic beginning! Douglas left his father (already a tenuous relationship, given his father's addiction) when he sailed with his mother and brother to live in England. He was eight. My heart aches for this upheaval. Then he endured life in English boarding schools. Along the way, his mother (whose story I recently explored both in fiction and non-fiction forms), established a relationship with C. S. "Jack" Lewis. From each book I've read (Patti Callahan Henry's Becoming Mrs. Lewis, Lyle Dorsett's And God Came In, and Doug Gresham's Lenten Lands), you get a strong sense of the intellectual sparring that went on between Jack and Joy. Although some called it a "marriage of convenience," they clearly exhibited a depth of affection for one another. 

Although the book discusses Lewis in the decade Doug knew him, this is not solely a book about C. S. Lewis. Gresham articulates, as the subtitle promises, "My Childhood with Joy Davidman and C. S. Lewis." Doug's life is interesting on its own. He carries with him the impact of an intelligent mother who died when he was young and a theological great who died when Doug was in his late teens. These factors forced him to make his own path. I'm thrilled that he found his way in the world. I'm equally thrilled that his way wended my direction for the space of a fortnight.