Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer

by C.S. Lewis

This compilation of twenty-some letters composed to a fictional friend discuss a variety of topics, though most come back, at some point, to the topic of prayer. Whereas Mere Christianity was designed as a book that “stripped down” Christianity to the “bare essentials” in an effort to find the common ground that unified all Christians, Letters to Malcolm deals with a lot of those issues: prayer, communion, and other such things. As such, Letters is, at points, his most Anglican book (at least, of the six that I have read), and you will probably find yourself disagreeing with a variety of items throughout—moreso than usual. He touches on difficult subjects and things that we typically don’t think to ask about. But he writes about practical conundrums, such as why it’s necessary to pray to a God who knows what we need and why praying is sometimes so difficult, as well as his personal beliefs regarding praying for the dead and what ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ means to him.

I found the first 30 or 40 pages to be some of the best of Lewis’ writing. I was constantly challenged and enlightened. After that, it slowed considerably and I found some letters to be tedious, at best. Then, toward the end, it picked up again and ended solidly. Even with the slow points and the clear Anglican bent, I would suggest picking this volume up and reading it. If nothing else, it can get you thinking about things you haven’t thought about before in ways you haven’t thought about them.

It’s a short book—just over 120 pages—with each letter taking only 4–5 pages. This makes it a quick read if you’re interested in reading three or four letters per day, or a month-long ‘devotional’ if you’d rather read one letter each day.

The Editors do not advocate everything taught by the authors of the books we review. Like us, these authors are fallible humans and those who choose to read these books should measure them by the bible, the one true standard.