Search Reviews

Despite the fact that That Hideous Strength is the third book in the Space Trilogy none of it takes place in space. In fact it takes place in one of the most cozy, domestic settings you can think of. It is set in the small towns and College lounges of early 20th century England. The good guys live at St. Anne's - which is just a large home - and is named (here we go again with Lewis) after the Grandmother of our Lord. What could be more comforting?

This is NOT a comforting book. The intrigue and activity is startling. And 'Hideous' was a word well chosen.The National Institute of Co-ordinated Experiments is abbreviated N.I.C.E. - but it is not. It is at once exciting, unfathomable and scary.

But to the story. We are back at College now. Our main character is Mark Studdock. A professor of course! He is just being brought into the 'in' crowd. This crowd is so much more progressive. And it is a key, he is sure, to some real recognition and power that he feels he deserves. That his wife, Jane, and he get estranged is not a big concern to him - he will have time to fix that later, when he is a big man. He is getting more and more 'in' as the book goes on. But N.I.C.E. has an air about it that makes the reader nervous (Lewis is a really good writer!!). There is something big going on at N.I.C.E. Mark is being promoted to the highest ranks. But they still won't tell him what is going on. And it all seems like chaos from within. And yet it is something he perversely wants more of. You are caught by a sense of it and then realize how good Lewis has made this allegory for sin and the subsequent seductive flirtation with evil that can spiral into the folly of Babel.

Meanwhile his wife has taken up residence with people at St. Anne's whom she slowly learns to trust. Jane is a very modern sort of girl. But she learns about other mindsets and sees the follies of her own while at St. Anne's.

"I thought love meant equality," she said, "and free companionship."

"...Yes we must be guarded by equal rights from one another's greed, because we are fallen. Just as we must all wear clothes for the same reason," said the director."Equality is not the deepest thing."
...

"But surely in marriage..."

"Worse and worse," said the director, "Courtship knows nothing of it..."

That is SO TRUE!!! Five words is all it took! Lewis is introducing his characters to new ideas again. We get to listen in. By seeing both sides converse and contrast you can't help but stop and think for yourself from time to time.

And there is the Pendragon. And there is Merlin. And then there is Mr. Bultitude, the pig. Sorry, can't tell you more. You have to read it!

This book explores good and evil in a very modern setting. Despite the fact that the setting at first looks quaint and ridiculous (set in the 1940s or some such for goodness sake! - they didn't even have stem cells!) it becomes clear that the underlying ideas about science are very current and the quaint and ridiculous is how most of today's theories will look in a few short years.

This book is also rich and deep. And while the first reading will be occasion for more than enough discussion further readings are well warranted. Just look at the worn and used cover of mine!

This book probably should not be read before the second half of high school.

Click here for our study questions on this book.

We sometimes think of teenagers as immature, selfish and lacking in objectivity. Sean Covey believes they can learn to be otherwise. Using humorous story lines and a heavy sprinkling of anecdotes Covey has set forth a series of steps leading teens toward a more mature and compassionate view of life. While this is a secular book, it is written from a Christian perspective and "the Golden Rule" underlies most of the content.

The 267 pages are divided into twelve chapters covering the seven habits that "effective" teens display. The author doesn't go into detail regarding what "effective" means, but the reader understands it to be embracing life and living it in a positive, productive and compassionate manner. The seven habits include: being proactive (making a choice to respond positively rather then react negatively), beginning with the end in mind, putting first things first, thinking win-win, seek first to understand, then to be understood, synergize (teamwork), sharpen the saw (taking care of your mind, body, heart and soul. Each chapter begins with a brief introduction of the habit written in a style which grabs the reader. Many anecdotes and examples are then provided showing the effects of the habit in the real world. Finally the author provides a series of exercise to help the teen focus on developing that habit. The exercises are clever and would be effective if the teen carried them out.

This is an excellent book and one which I'll happily pass on to my children with a few pages removed. The author does an outstanding job of explaining how self actions effect mood, performance and one's environment. He encourages teens to be competitive with themselves and avoid comparison. He challenges them to develop internal control that will allow them to act rather then react to life. While Covey doesn't suggest that the internal control should be God centered, he presents the material in such a way that a religious teen would naturally understand that God would be at the center of self discipline.

Parents should be aware of a few comments in the book that deal with sensitive issues. One brief anecdote concerns a girl who was sexually abused as a child, and a few times slang is used for obscene gestures. Page 78 covers the topic "What about Sex" and the section "Caring For Your Heart" beginning on page 228 discusses "Sex and Relationships" and includes a 50 item listing titled "You're not ready to have sex if...." The list would be good for a secular teen but would not be suitable for Catholic children. These pages are easily removed from the book. The section "Caring For Your Soul" is general in nature and not in opposition to any Catholic teaching or practice.

In order for the book to be fully appreciated, teens reading it should have experience in social situations outside the home. Many of the anecdotes take place at school but would be understood by teens who have been in any type of group situation. This book is best suited for children 14 years and older. Older Catholic teens would benefit from reading How To Live Nobly and Well (reviewed above) by Edward Garesche, S.J. which touches on similar subjects from a Catholic perspective.

What is history? A story. In The American Revolution for Kids, Janis Herbert has given us a well written, high interest story. Her style of writing is lively and interesting as wells as fair and impartial - giving us a fair and balanced picture of an emotionally turbulent time. This book offers a good overview of the time period (suitable for putting together a unit study on the time period) or interesting reading for its own sake.

Although the majority of the book follows the development of the war from its onset until its conclusion, Herbert also takes some detours, offering information about other events and people of the time - like a typical colonist and the life of soldier - to give us a sense of day-to-day life and customs of the time. The story doesn't end with the closing of the war; the last chapter discusses the Constitutional Convention through the final ratification of the Constitution.

There are many other extra features in this book:

A timeline sets the stage beginning with the French and Indian War (1754-60), following the development of important battles, explaining important dates along the way and finally ending with Congress adopting the Bill of Rights in 1791.

Spotlight biographies cover such important figures as John Hancock, George Washington, and Nathanael Greene. Other interesting facts are also spotlighted throughout the book, such as how many musket balls were made from the torn down, lead statue of King George.

The 21 Activities noted in the title are sprinkled throughout the text and include making a fringed hunting shirt like one worn by frontiersman Gen. Daniel Morgan, reenacting the Battle of Cowpens, creating a powder horn, sewing a pouch, and baking Boston Brown bread.

The end pages include a glossary, a list of famous Patriots and Redcoats, a list of biographies, the Declaration of Independence, web sites to explore, Revolutionary War Sites to visit in person, a Bibliography, and an index.

I would suggest that families make a point of reading about how Catholics were treated at this time, since this is overlooked in most secular texts. Far from religious toleration, there was a great deal of bigotry at that time, creating mixed feelings for Catholics as to which side they should support.

As an avid Chestertonian, I am frequently asked which G.K. Chesterton title I recommend for young people to read. The best and by far the most understandable "first" book of Chesterton's would be The Annotated Innocence of Father Brown.In this book of the first twelve Father Brown mystery stories, editor Martin Gardner has looked up all the obscure references, which Chesterton frequently threw into his stories - mentions of people popular at the time whom we're no longer familiar with, use of obscure of obsolete English words from 100 years ago, slang expressions from 100 years ago - these are explained to the reader's satisfaction in the numerous footnotes by the helpful Mr. Gardner.By reading the annotated version of the story, the Father Brown mysteries come alive for young people. And I must note that since several mysteries in the series refer to murders, even a decapitation, I would recommend this book for ages 13 and up.The Father Brown mysteries are some of Chesterton's most enduring work. In general, people may not remember that Chesterton wrote such classics as Orthodoxy and The Everlasting Man. However, they may recall him as the author of the Father Brown Mysteries, and so it is appropriate to start reading these mysteries first. These mysteries first appeared serialized in various magazines of the times in England. This in part explains the obscure references to people of that day. The other part of the explanation is that Chesterton considered himself a journalist, mainly writing words for newspapers, which would be thrown away shortly after reading. Never did Chesterton imagine that his work would be known and loved 100 years later.If you are interested in introducing your teenager to the works of G.K. Chesterton; or if youare looking for some good fiction for your teen; or if you wanted to start reading Chesterton yourself and didn't know where to begin, I recommend this book.