Till We Have Faces. By C.S. Lewis

A good rule of thumb is to read a variety of books and genres—if you want to continue to grow and learn.

I’ve mentioned before that I tend to read books that are referenced and referred within the books that I read. Sometimes what can happen when you do this is to create an echo chamber of styles and thoughts, rather than expanding beyond what we know.

Now, I like to read what I like to read, there’s no doubt about that. And you should, too. Why would we spend more time out of our day reading the words of someone else if we didn’t even like what they said? 

I know that I really like to read non-fiction, business leadership books. I don’t naturally pick up a fictional book—it’s just not natural.

But that’s why I needed to pick up this book. 

Many of you might know the works of C.S. Lewis, his writing repertoire extends across the divide of fiction and non-fiction. His non-fiction works challenge my thinking and encourage my soul.

Knowing his style from non-fiction, I was more warmed to reading his works of fiction. That helped me bridge the gap.

And I knew I needed to read fiction this year. After reading On Writing by Stephen King, I did know that I needed something outside of my norm to continue to grow.

Any fiction would have done. This was in my book case, I hadn’t read it for years, and was ready for a good story.

Read good stories.

And Till We Have Faces tells a great story.

The whole of the story is his take and adaptation about the story of Cupid and Psyche. It’s a fascinating story of love, loss, jealousy, and redemption. 

It’s broken up into 2 sections: the main character’s, Orual, “complaint against the gods” for all the things that happened in her life. It’s a very long and drawn out detailed story. Then the last 4 chapters (section 2) is her perspective from the point of the gods.

She realizes she had an incomplete view of her story. When it all came out, she realized who she was—she wasn’t the victim, but the cause of so many of her hurts and pains.

She wakes up to her own contribution to the challenges she experienced. She sees her own face.

“I saw well why the gods do not speak to us openly, nor let us answer. Till that word can be dug out of us, why should they hear the babble that we think we mean? How can they meet us far to face till we have faces?” – C.S. Lewis

It’s a revelation at the end for the reader to understand, she didn’t see the whole story. But now we can look back and see the full context.

She wakes up to her own contribution to the challenges she experienced. She sees her own face.

It makes the story so powerful to join Orual of discovering who she really is, accepting that, then the realizations for a much needed change.

I can easily assume that I know the full perspective of what’s going on around me, and bring rationalization to the decisions made in my life. It gives comfort, and it always boosts me up. This story is challenging me to take a different perspective on the events in my life and own up to my own part—to own my own story.

Are you looking for a good story? C.S. Lewis doesn’t disappoint.

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