When we think of the influential Oxford professor, CS Lewis, writer of such classical literature as the Chronicles of Narnia and Mere Christianity, we think of the mature and articulate scholar. But what would he have been like as a boy and as a teenager trying to find himself? Who influenced him? What educational experiences shaped his thinking? Or even – what did he like to eat?  My guest Dr Hal Poe is one of the world’s leading experts on Lewis, who brings to light this season in Lewis’ life with discoveries that will impact our homes and schools today.

Hal Poe is the Charles Colson Professor of Faith and Culture at Union University, has completed the most extensive C.S. Lewis biography published. 

His three-part “Becoming C.S. Lewis” series begins with Lewis’ early childhood, middle years and then third… and ends with his death in 1963.  The first volume, which we are discussing in this episode, is an in-depth look at the author’s early life that, although critical to his works and conversion to Christianity later in life, is largely overlooked in biographies of Lewis. While the project took him about five years to complete, Poe has been teaching a Christian studies class at Union University on Lewis’ life and works for over 20 years.