I love C.S. Lewis and I love literary criticism and analysis so this was definitely the read for me. I haven't read all of Lewis' work nor am I a very big theologian and I still got a lot out of this read and have a couple people I plan to recommend it to!

This was a little more book than I bargained for. I read an earlier one in the series a while ago (<i>George MacDonald in the Age of Miracles</i> by Timothy Larsen), and I remember it being pitched a bit lower. In comparison, <i>The Last Romantic</i> took me by surprise. Barbeau traces C. S. Lewis's literary, theological and philosophical influences by tracing the annotations in Lewis's books. Honestly, I struggled to keep up with its dives into 19th-century developments in German philosophy and English literature. Maybe that highlights the disparity between my intelligence and those of Lewis's generation. Maybe it's a sad commentary on the way media has eroded attention spans and cultural literacy between then and now. Even so, I wish this volume had been pitched a bit lower.

Even with those times when I was in over my head, though, this book has been really helpful for my thinking. In three essays, Barbeau tells the story of Lewis's influences from his work with Lewis's library. After each essay, a colleague responds.

Sarah Borden's response to the first essay is the high point of the book for me. Where Barbeau is concerned with documenting where Lewis falls within the history of philosophy, Borden comes at Lewis's philosophy and theology directly -- for me, that's the stuff. I appreciate Barbeau's work, and he walked me through some historical stuff that is really helpful, but I run out of patience for the historical angle. Borden's response cuts through some of the clutter to clarify Barbeau's points, and together that essay and response are a great combo.

The second essay is another high point for me. In this section, Barbeau considers the role of spiritual autobiography in discipleship literature. This genre is common in the Wesleyan/Methodist tradition, but Lewis's apologetic literature uses it too (Surprised by Joy and A Grief Observed). I was raised in the Holiness section of the Wesleyan tradition, and I've wrestled with the role of spiritual autobiography in spiritual formation for years now. In the Holiness Movement, personal narratives are often used as theology, as a way to explore how God works in/with our lives. This essay explores the ways C. S. Lewis used personal narratives to offer a map to fellow travelers, and I think it provides some helpful insights for the way Holiness people theologize experiences. I hope to make the ideas here part of my thinking and teaching.

Barbeau has taken me deeper than I wanted to go, and I've missed some stuff along the way, but I'm grateful for this book. I'll be chewing on it for a while. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

Very interesting to learn about Lewis and the concepts of romanticism within his writing. Worth reading for anyone familiar with his books!

(I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

A must-read for C.S. Lewis fans, revealing how 19th Century Romanticism influenced his writings and his faith. Highly recommended!