The Screwtape Letters, by C.S. Lewis (dramaticized audio CD's)
I don’t know about you, but our family LOVES dramaticized audio stories and plays! We check them out from the library, and we buy some from our favorite wholesale company that usually sells high quality/high moral standard audio CD’s at rock-bottom prices. My girls can usually count on getting one or two audio story CD’s for Christmas or their birthdays each year. Listening to audio dramatizations has enabled one of my daughters to greatly improve her audio listening skills. This was her weakest learning style, but over the years, she now really enjoys listening as a method of learning.
Tyndale Publishers offered "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis as an audio CD review product in October 2009.
I had read little of C.S. Lewis’ works, other than The Chronicles of Narnia as a child. However, I do remember my twin sister telling me in college that her "Literature of C.S. Lewis" class was quite interesting, and sometimes, just downright odd.
When this audio package arrived in the mail, containing 4 audio CDs and a bonus DVD, my husband commented, "I read that book in college, and it was very strange!"
So, I’m thinking, "Okay. My husband AND my sister both thought it was a very odd book. Hmmm. Do we really want to listen to this?"
Well, of course, the girls were interested in hearing some of it during lunch that week. I did notice that the back of the packaging stated that this is intended for an audience of the age of 12 or older. I knew that my "almost 12-year-old" would be mature enough for whatever the content may be, and since this was produced by Focus on the Family, I wouldn’t have to worry about inappropriate content.
Thankfully, I decided to have us watch the DVD first. It basically contains an "up close and personal" look at how the audio dramatization was made. I was very thankful that we watched this DVD first, because at least one of the characters in the drama has a very scary voice at times. This, of course, would be Screwtape, the senior demon in the drama, while he speaks to his nephew, Wormwood, a fledgling demon who has been instructed to make certain that specific individuals live lives of eternal d***ation. The DVD shows "Screwtape" in action, speaking his lines into the microphone. It made it much less "scary" to see this on the DVD.
Screwtape is an expert demon, and his job is to guide and instruct immature and inexperienced Wormwood about how to make humans’ lives miserable and to distract them from doing good, and most importantly, knowing God personally. The story takes place during World War II.
As we started listening to the audio CD’s the next day, my 9-year-old wasn’t so keen on listening. It wasn’t that she was frightened, but the concepts which are presented, and the vernacular that is used, is for a more mature audience, agewise. We listened to about half of the audio CDs and then decided that while my older daughter was enjoying them, it would be better to set these aside and wait a couple of years before listening to them again.
Focus on the Family Radio Theatre describes this dramatization as "delightfully disturbing", and I would say that this is a fair description of this product. It is uncanny, and a bit unnerving, although it does provide the mature listener with a lot to mull over and consider.
I would highly recommend this audio set to high school ages and older. There is a reason why most people don’t read The Screwtape Letters until their high school or college years. This is a very meaty, heavy dramatization…definitely not "Anne of Green Gables" here!
Tyndale Publishers offered "The Screwtape Letters" by C.S. Lewis as an audio CD review product in October 2009.
I had read little of C.S. Lewis’ works, other than The Chronicles of Narnia as a child. However, I do remember my twin sister telling me in college that her "Literature of C.S. Lewis" class was quite interesting, and sometimes, just downright odd.
When this audio package arrived in the mail, containing 4 audio CDs and a bonus DVD, my husband commented, "I read that book in college, and it was very strange!"
So, I’m thinking, "Okay. My husband AND my sister both thought it was a very odd book. Hmmm. Do we really want to listen to this?"
Well, of course, the girls were interested in hearing some of it during lunch that week. I did notice that the back of the packaging stated that this is intended for an audience of the age of 12 or older. I knew that my "almost 12-year-old" would be mature enough for whatever the content may be, and since this was produced by Focus on the Family, I wouldn’t have to worry about inappropriate content.
Thankfully, I decided to have us watch the DVD first. It basically contains an "up close and personal" look at how the audio dramatization was made. I was very thankful that we watched this DVD first, because at least one of the characters in the drama has a very scary voice at times. This, of course, would be Screwtape, the senior demon in the drama, while he speaks to his nephew, Wormwood, a fledgling demon who has been instructed to make certain that specific individuals live lives of eternal d***ation. The DVD shows "Screwtape" in action, speaking his lines into the microphone. It made it much less "scary" to see this on the DVD.
Screwtape is an expert demon, and his job is to guide and instruct immature and inexperienced Wormwood about how to make humans’ lives miserable and to distract them from doing good, and most importantly, knowing God personally. The story takes place during World War II.
As we started listening to the audio CD’s the next day, my 9-year-old wasn’t so keen on listening. It wasn’t that she was frightened, but the concepts which are presented, and the vernacular that is used, is for a more mature audience, agewise. We listened to about half of the audio CDs and then decided that while my older daughter was enjoying them, it would be better to set these aside and wait a couple of years before listening to them again.
Focus on the Family Radio Theatre describes this dramatization as "delightfully disturbing", and I would say that this is a fair description of this product. It is uncanny, and a bit unnerving, although it does provide the mature listener with a lot to mull over and consider.
I would highly recommend this audio set to high school ages and older. There is a reason why most people don’t read The Screwtape Letters until their high school or college years. This is a very meaty, heavy dramatization…definitely not "Anne of Green Gables" here!
Disclosure: For the purposes of writing this review, I received a free copy of this product from Tyndale Publishers. No other compensation was provided.