Becoming Mrs. Lewis: The Improbable Love Story of Joy Davidman and C.S. Lewis is the first book that I have read by Patty Callahan, and her title sparked my interest because I am a C.S. Lewis fan.
I purchased this audiobook because I love British accents. I also love that the author starts each chapter with quotes from The Chronicles of Narnia, as well as her own vulnerable selected sonnets
This novel has a romantic thread throughout the storyline that will keep readers emotionally engaged and sympathetic toward Joy’s longings. For years, Joy from America and Jack from England wrote letters to each other across the Atlantic Ocean. Through their correspondence, they developed a deep emotional connection. Joy’s command of Latin and ability to play chess surprised Jack, which only deepened their connection through words, language, and literature. The story soared when Joy sailed across the ocean for a month and met the Oxford don for the first time. You could feel her anxiety and anticipation after writing so many intimate letters. I appreciated the sexual tension between the characters.
Despite the romance, readers could harshly judge Joy because she left her children and husband in New York for a month in the care of her cousin, whom Joy’s mother pointed out was “dearer and sweeter and more beautiful and thinner and kinder.” Yet others may cheer for her, acting on her own behalf and in support of her writerly dreams. Despite the consequences, Joy reclaimed her life by visiting Lewis. Even though her husband drank heavily, she blamed herself for not doing well enough or working hard enough in the relationship.
I highly recommend this novel for anyone interested in what it must have been like to fall in love with a great mind like Lewis, who is not only compassionate but imaginative. Readers will leisurely walk around the grounds of Oxford behind Jack and Joy and eavesdrop.
As for the audiobook, one narrator performed for both Joy and Jack. I found it difficult to distinguish between the female and male voices, and the narrator’s repeated mention of the person speaking grew wearisome. The audiobook could have benefited from a male narrator as Jack with a deeper, more masculine voice.
If you enjoy learning more about C.S. Lewis and imaginatively peeping into his private life, this may be the book for you. If you are searching for more personal insight into the life of Lewis, you may enjoy Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life by C.S. Lewis.
