When I read A Grief Observed and felt Lewis’s palpable pain in losing the great love of his life, I wanted to know more about the woman he loved so fiercely.
You see, I fell into my own kind of love with Lewis when I was twelve years old and read The Screwtape Letters, years before I knew what the words satire or allegory meant. I read Lewis’s other works later in life with as much abandon and fascination. When I learned about Joy Davidman, I felt an odd kinship with her Lewis-adoration. Who was this woman? Who was this poet and novelist who had lived a world away from Lewis both culturally and literally and yet fallen in love with him?
A brilliant writer herself, Joy was a multi-award-winning poet, a novelist, a critic, a protégé of the MacDowell Colony, and much more. She graduated college at fifteen years old and received her master’s degree in fiction from Columbia. Her résumé is nearly as long as Lewis’s.
Everything about Joy seemed ill-matched for an Oxford don and author of Narnia living in England. She was a married woman who lived in upstate New York with her two young sons, and she was a converted Jew, former atheist, ex-Communist. On paper there was not a more impossible pairing. Everything blocked the way to love, but in the end it was not impossible at all.
With intense curiosity I began to read Joy’s work. Her poetry, essays, books, and letters flamed with talent, pain, and insight. She was a force of beautiful prose that many tried to squelch and inhibit. Then there were the conflicting narratives about her life—some complimentary and others outright unkind. Who was she really? A brash New Yorker who inserted herself into Lewis’s life or a brave and forthright woman of such brilliance that Jack loved and trusted her, while she also threatened the men and women who wanted to shove her into what they believed was her rightful place? This was a woman diverse, courageous, and complicated, and a woman whom C. S. Lewis loved with all of his being.
Joy often seemed not to care what others thought of her—but I did.
This work of fiction was meant not only to explore her life, work, and love affair, but also to delve into the challenges she faced as a woman in her time—or by any woman even now trying to live an authentic life while also caring for her family and pursuing her creative life, art, or passion. We are often woefully negligent of the women next to the men we admire, and Joy Davidman is one of those women.
There has been a shroud of mystery about what might or might not have occurred between Joy and Jack during the years of 1950–1956 (as all the letters between them have been destroyed). But some of that unknowing recently changed. In 2013, in a neglected corner of a closet belonging to Joy Davidman’s friend Jean Wakeman in Oxford, Joy’s son Douglas Gresham discovered a box of unpublished stories, essays, novellas, unfinished novels, and poems written by his mother. Inside this box was a sheaf of papers labeled Courage, which included forty-five love sonnets written by Joy Davidman and dedicated to C. S. Lewis. These poems and love sonnets were just released in 2015 (A Naked Tree: Love Sonnets to C. S. Lewis, edited by Don W. King).
I had already read most of Lewis’s work by the time I was introduced to Joy, but during the writing of this novel, I reread many of my favorites with a new eye—seeing Joy’s influence on the prose and in the women who were Lewis’s characters. How had I not seen it all along? I wondered. Why do we not give credit to the women who inspired some of our favorite writers? I want the world, or at least you, the reader holding this book, to know of her influence on his works.
It was Joy’s friendship, intellect, writing, encouragement, and love that influenced most notably Till We Have Faces, Surprised by Joy, Reflections on the Psalms, and A Grief Observed. Many times she was both inspiration and co-author.
For me, C. S. Lewis was an Oxford don, a scholar and a poet, a Christian apologist and an imaginative genius, a master at prose and theme. He has been a man with theories and quotes that both inspire and infuriate me, and I was surprised to find that it was Joy’s life that brought Jack alive for me in a new way.
In this historical fiction, the letters and dialogue between Joy and Jack, as well as their family and friends, were created by my imagination. Although this is a work of fiction, my desire was to stay as close to the bone of the existing and factual skeleton as possible—thus the inspiration, occasional snippets, phrases, and quotes in the letters, in dialogue, and in Joy’s internal musings have come from actual events, letters, poems, essays, biographies, and articles written by and about them both, as well as speeches they gave.
As with any life, there are discrepancies within the many stories that have been written about both Jack and Joy; there are myths and assumptions that have been told and retold. I did my best to gather all of the information, compare it, and unravel it to tell a story that relates an emotional truth. This novel was written with the backbone of research and the work of those who have come before me, yet in fiction, imagination and inspiration must fill the gaps. I have attempted to capture Joy’s courage and fierce determination, as well as tap into the landscape of her heart.
I often felt like a detective digging through conflicting testimony and coming to my own conclusions as best I knew how on this side of their love story.
In the beginning of this journey, it was Joy’s early biographies I turned to, most notably And God Came In by Lyle Dorsett, Through the Shadowlands by Brian Sibley, Jack’s Life by Douglas Gresham, Lenten Lands by Douglas Gresham, and the biography Joy by Abigail Santamaria. The extensive critical work, articles, and edited collections by Don W. King, professor at Montreat College, brought me even closer to her life and work. Yet it was Joy’s own writings, poems, and letters that drew me nearer to her heart.
During the writing of this novel, I traveled to Wheaton College’s Wade Center in Wheaton, Illinois, where most of Joy’s and Lewis’s papers are housed and carefully curated, along with a research collection of materials by and about six more renowned British authors. Joy’s (as of now) unpublished letters, poems, and personal papers were immaculately filed in numerous boxes—a treasure trove for a novelist. Alone in the Wade Center reading room, surrounded by Joy’s handwriting, her letters, her poems, her divorce decree and passport, Joy came alive for me.
This novel is written in a key of empathy for this extraordinary woman. I can only hope that I’ve captured some of her lionhearted courage, conflicted and sometimes disparaged choices, as well as her abiding love for the man we know as C. S. Lewis, but whom she knew as mentor, best friend, and in the end her lover and husband. The man she knew as Jack.
I could not have come to know her as I have (and it is only an imagining of the heart, not a scholarly attempt to dissect her work or her actions) without the insightful, dedicated work of so many others. In addition to the works mentioned above, I found the following texts to be useful in my own research and strongly recommend them for further study and insight.
SUGGESTED FURTHER READING
Armstrong, Chris R. Medieval Wisdom for Modern Christians: Finding Authentic Faith in a Forgotten Age with C. S. Lewis. Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos, 2016.
Bramlett, Perry C. Touring C. S. Lewis’ Ireland and England. Macon, GA: Smyth and Helwys, 1998.
Davidman, Joy. “The Longest Way Round.” In These Found the Way: Thirteen Converts to Protestant Christianity, edited by David Wesley Soper. Philadelphia: Westminster, 1951.
Davidman, Joy. A Naked Tree: Love Sonnets to C. S. Lewis and Other Poems. Edited by Don W. King. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2015.
Davidman, Joy. Smoke on the Mountain: An Interpretation of the Ten Commandments. Foreword by C. S. Lewis. Philadephia: Westminster Press, 1954.
Davidman, Joy. Weeping Bay. New York: MacMillan, 1950.
Dorsett, Lyle W. And God Came In: The Extraordinary Story of Joy Davidman. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2009.
Gresham, Douglas H. Jack’s Life: The Life Story of C. S. Lewis. Nashville: Broadman and Holman, 2005.
Gresham, Douglas H. Lenten Lands: My Childhood with Joy Davidman and C. S. Lewis. New Yor
k: Macmillan, 1988.
Gilbert, Douglas, and Clyde S. Kilby. C. S. Lewis: Images of His World. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2005.
Hooper, Walter, ed. The Collected Letters of C. S. Lewis. Vol. 3, Narnia, Cambridge, and Joy 1950–1963. New York: HarperCollins, 2007. Hooper, Walter, ed. C. S. Lewis on Stories and Other Essays on Literature. Orlando, FL: Harcourt, 1982.
Hooper, Walter. Through Joy and Beyond: A Pictorial Biography of C. S. Lewis. New York: Macmillan, 1982.
King, Don W. “Fire and Ice: C. S. Lewis and the Love Poetry of Joy Davidman and Ruth Pitter.” VII: An Anglican-American Literary Review 22 (2005): 66–88.
King, Don W. “A Naked Tree: The Love Sonnets of Joy Davidman to C. S. Lewis,” VII: An Anglican-American Literary Review 29 (2012): 79–102.
King, Don W., ed. Out of My Bone: The Letters of Joy Davidman. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2009.
King, Don W. Yet One More Spring: A Critical Study of Joy Davidman. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2015.
(Anything by C. S. Lewis, but most importantly for this novel)
Lewis, C. S. The Four Loves. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1960. First published 1960 by Geoffrey Bles.
Lewis, C. S. A Grief Observed. New York: HarperOne, 2015. First published 1961 by Faber and Faber.
Lewis, C. S. The Great Divorce. New York: HarperOne, 2015. First published 1946 by Geoffrey Bles.
Lewis, C. S. The Horse and His Boy. The Chronicles of Narnia. London: Geoffrey Bles, 1954.
Lewis, C. S. The Last Battle. The Chronicles of Narnia. London: Geoffrey Bles, 1956.
Lewis, C. S. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. The Chronicles of Narnia. London: Geoffrey Bles, 1950.
Lewis, C. S. The Magician’s Nephew. The Chronicles of Narnia. London: The Bodley Head, 1955.
Lewis, C. S. Mere Christianity. New York: HarperOne, 2015. First published 1952 by Geoffrey Bles.
Lewis, C. S. The Pilgrim’s Regress. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2014. First published 1933 by J. M. Dent and Sons.
Lewis, C. S. Prince Caspain: The Return to Narnia. The Chronicles of Narnia. London: Geoffrey Bles, 1951.
Lewis, C. S. The Silver Chair. The Chronicles of Narnia. London: Geoffrey Bles, 1953.
Lewis, C. S. The Screwtape Letters. New York: HarperOne, 2015. First published 1942 by Geoffrey Bles.
Lewis, C. S. Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life. New York: HarperOne, 2017. First published 1955 by Geoffrey Bles.
Lewis, C. S. Till We Have Faces. New York: Harcourt, 1984. First published 1956 by Geoffrey Bles.
Lewis, C. S. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. The Chronicles of Narnia. London: Geoggrey Bles, 1952.
Sibley, Brian. Through the Shadowlands: The Love Story of C. S. Lewis and Joy Davidman. Grand Rapids, MI: Revell, 2005.
Santamaria, Abigail. Joy: Poet, Seeker, and the Woman Who Captivated C. S. Lewis. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015.
Tolkien, J. R. R. “On Fairy-Stories.” In Essays Presented to Charles Williams. London: Oxford University Press, 1947.
Zaleski, Philip and Carol Zaleski. The Fellowship: The Literary Lives of the Inklings. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2015.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This novel captured my heart and my imagination as quick and bright as lightening. I owe its fiery force not only to the fascinating and courageous life of Joy Davidman, but also to so many others who contributed to the understanding of her life. I asked, I prodded, I read, I researched, and I could not have written this alone.
From the day I said it out loud, “I want to write a novel that tells the story of Joy Davidman beyond Shadowlands,” there were friends and family who supported the idea with such enthusiasm that they propelled me forward. I am astoundingly grateful for this tribe of writers who knew about it from the from the start and offered an ear, advice, and all-out love: Ariel Lawhon, Lisa Patton, Lanier Isom, Kerry Madden Lundsford, Paula McLain, Mary Alice Monroe, Joshilyn Jackson, J. T. Ellison, Laura Lane McNeal, Karen Spears Zacharias, Dot Frank, Kathy Trocheck, Kathie Bennett, Tinker Lindsey, Lisa Wingate, Jenny Carroll, and Mary Beth Whalen—you buoyed me when I wavered and kept my confidence. Blake Leyers, with her first read, asked me the questions I didn’t even know I needed to answer, and I am grateful beyond measure. To Signe Pike—how do I thank you? This editor (and author) extraordinaire read it from beginning to end and together we took it apart, found its troubles and its triumphs.
Lyle Dorsett (author of Joy’s first biography, And God Came In, an Anglican priest and professor at Samford University Divinity School) is a prince among men. He spent hours with me talking about Joy and her life, her possible motivations and her triumphs and despairs. His prayers and his prodding to “write a story about her life” meant more to me than he will ever know. Also professor at Montreat College and author of numerous works about Joy Davidman, Don King’s work was invaluable as I sent him emails and questions and read everything he wrote about Joy and her writing and poetry.
I would not have finished this novel, at least not in the form it is in, without my sacred time at Rivendell Writer’s Colony under the ministrations of Carmen Touissant. It was there that I often found the heart of the story when I felt it was missing. My love and gratitude are in equal measure.
To the authors who have written about both Joy and Jack before me, whose work introduced me to several facets of them both, I am indebted and grateful (listed in the Author’s Note for suggested further reading).
The Wade Center at Wheaton College and most notably Elaine Hooker were invaluable. As I sat in the reading room with Joy’s papers, passport, divorce decree, poetry, and letters, she came alive for me in a way I hadn’t expected. The Wade Center’s support and careful curating of her papers (and C. S. Lewis’s) allowed me to discover Joy in a deeper way. Elaine answered unending questions and guided me to the papers I needed the most. All authors should have someone like her in a place like this.
To my agent, Marly Rusoff, who believed in this story from the very beginning and championed it to its very end. My gratitude is as endless as my emails.
To the extraordinary team at HarperCollins/Thomas Nelson—you are a gift and a pleasure and I am grateful for every single one of you. To Amanda Bostic who understood not only the story but also why I wanted to tell it from the get-go. Working with you has been one of the greatest pleasures of my publishing history.
To Paul Fisher, Allison Carter, Kristen Golden, Jodi Hughes, Kayleigh Hinds, Becky Monds, and Laura Wheeler—you are the dream team. To TJ Rathbun and Ben Greenhoe, who filmed and produced our videos—you somehow saw the same vision as I did when it came to telling Joy’s story. I am immeasurably grateful, and working with you was one of the best days of this publishing journey. And to L. B. Norton, the copy editor extraordinaire—your eye, your spirit, your generosity and humor made this editing experience more than I could have ever hoped for.
To my team who loves Joy with the same passion—I am grateful to each and every one of you. To Jim Chaffee of Chaffee Managament, who appeared in the most synchronistic and powerful way at just the right time. How happy I am to have you on our team: your insight and energy are boundless. To Meg Walker at Tandem Literary—your calm spirit and innovative creativity are stunning. To Meg Reggie, as always, from my very first novel, you are a gem and a creative genius. To Carol Fitzgerald and her team at Bookreporter, who helped me build a website I adore (and I am sure Joy would love also).
To my friends, who allowed me to talk about this subject endlessly and still hang out with me. I love you—Tara Mahoney for her humor and belief, Kate Phillips for her unwavering confidence, Barbara Cooney for sitting with me through the tough parts, Sandee O for bringing me back to center always when I need it most, and Cleo O’Neal for walking and talking when I needed to ground myself again.
To Douglas Gresham (Joy’s son)—I am profoundly indebted to you and grateful. Your insight and kindness to a complete stranger who wrote about your br
illiant mother was stunning. I am honored to now call you friend. Thank you, Douglas. Thank you. Your legacy holds true to the integrity and kindness of both Jack and your mother.
And my family. When I first told my parents of this idea, they were as supportive of me as always, and yet a sparkle came to their eyes. They knew what Lewis had meant to all of us. I found my first C. S. Lewis book—The Screwtape Letters—in my dad’s office at home. I hope I’ve done them proud here. To my sisters, Jeannie Cunnion and Barbi Burris, and their extraordinary families who support me no matter my eccentricities. To my sisters-in-law, Serena Henry and Anna Henry, who heard so much about Joy and still listened and still asked and anchored me to family when I needed it. To Pat Henry, for tolerating my distant stares and forgotten dinners and early-morning huddles in my office—thank you and I love you. To my children, my love for you is beyond measure and as I wrote every word of this novel I thought of you and your wild and beautiful lives unfolding in their new ways, as always, Meagan and Evan Rock, Thomas and Rusk.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1.Did you know much about Joy Davidman before you read this novel? Did you come with preconceived notions of who she was? How did those change during the novel? What was the most surprising part of this story for you?
2.Joy wrote to Jack in search of answers on her spiritual journey. Was she looking for a friend? Advice? Both? What kept them writing to each other for so many years without meeting face-to-face?
3.Not many people supported Joy’s choices to first travel to England and then move there. There also didn’t seem to be much support from Jack’s friends as their friendship and then love story bloomed. How did Joy find the strength to overcome the resistance? How did they survive this disapproval to come together? What were the strengths that allowed them to resist the naysayers?
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