UPDATED (7/14/18) – The Misquotable C.S. Lewis is my book that examines 75 quotations attributed to Lewis that I caution you not to share. Some are falsely attributed to him, others are paraphrases of his words, and a few have context issues. Don’t share a quote attributed to Lewis unless you can confirm he wrote it and the meaning is clear without the context!
The following was the twentieth quote I examined that led me to write The Misquotable C.S. Lewis. I started calling quotes like this as “questionable” because I wanted people to question whether or not Lewis wrote it. This led me to come up with three main categories, or types of misquotes. You can learn about that in the INTRODUCTION to this series. There is also an “at a glance” page to see what quotations I’ve covered in the online series. Please note that the book has revised entries and provides more details about the expressions examined.
“A children’s story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children’s story in the slightest.”
If you are like me, then you’re probably scratching your head and thinking you read this statement in one of the essays that Lewis wrote. If this was your thought, then you’re almost right! That is, while the writings of C.S. Lewis doesn’t have this expression it does have something like it. So, what we have above is someone’s paraphrase of a statement he wrote. What he actually said is this:
“I am almost inclined to set it up as a canon that a children’s story which is enjoyed only by children is a bad children’s story.”
This correct quotation is found in an essay entitled “On Three Ways of Writing for Children.” It is best found in the book On Stories, a collection of shorter works from Lewis that is a must read for all fans.
The next quote examined is:
“There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.”
Related Articles:
What Lewis NEVER Wrote (Podcast)
Not Quite Lewis – Podcast Version
Not Quite Lewis – Questionable Lewisian Quotations (Conf. Paper)