Out of the Silent Planet (Space Trilogy, #1)

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Out of the Silent Planet (Space Trilogy #1)

3.89 of 5 stars 3.89 · rating details · 28,285 ratings · 1,269 reviews

The first book in C. S. Lewis's acclaimed Space Trilogy, which continues with Perelandra and That Hideous Strength, Out of the Silent Planet begins the adventures of the remarkable Dr. Ransom. Here, that estimable man is abducted by a megalomaniacal physicist and his accomplice and taken via spaceship to the red planet of Malacandra. The two men are in need of a human sacr...more

Paperback, 160 pages

Published March 4th 2003 by Scribner (first published 1938)

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May 13, 2012 Keely rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: uk-and-ireland, science-fiction, reviewed

It is strange to me how often Lewis is mentioned as a leading Christian apologist, since his views on Christianity tend to be neither conventional nor well-constructed. Of course, he's not taken seriously by Biblical scholars or theologians--I suspect this is because his Jesus is a cartoon lion and his God is a space alien.

As Michael Moorcock pointed out, the prominent tone in both Tolkien and Lewis is condescension, and I admit my general impression of Lewis is that he's talking down to the aud...more

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Apr 10, 2010 Manny rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, transcendent-experiences

Not C.S. Lewis's best or most popular book - for every person who reads this, there must be at least ten who read Narnia. However, the exchange between the humans and the Oyarsa (the angelic ruler of Malacandra/Mars) is extremely effective satire, and deserves to be better known. Ransom is the only one in the party who has been able to acquire any fluency in Malacandran. He is given the task of translating Weston's fascist rant, which he clearly rather enjoys:

'Speak to Ransom and he shall turn i

...more Not C.S. Lewis's best or most popular book - for every person who reads this, there must be at least ten who read Narnia. However, the exchange between the humans and the Oyarsa (the angelic ruler of Malacandra/Mars) is extremely effective satire, and deserves to be better known. Ransom is the only one in the party who has been able to acquire any fluency in Malacandran. He is given the task of translating Weston's fascist rant, which he clearly rather enjoys:

'Speak to Ransom and he shall turn it into our speech,' said Oyarsa.

Weston accepted the arrangement at once. He believed that the hour of his death was come and he was determined to utter the thing - almost the only thing outside his own science which he had to say. He cleared his throat, almost he struck a gesture, and began:

(...)

'Life is greater than any system of morality; her claims are absolute. It is not by tribal taboos and copy-book maxims that she has pursued her relentless march from the amoeba to man and from man to civilization.'

'He says,' began Ransom, 'that living creatures are stronger than the question whether an act is bent or good - no, that cannot be right - he says it is better to be alive and bent than to be dead - no - he says, he says - I cannot say what he says, Oyarsa, in your language. But he goes on to say that the only good thing is that there should be very many creatures alive. He says there were many other animals before the first men and the later ones were better than the earlier ones; but he says the animals were not born because of what is said to the young about bent and good action by their elders. And he says these animals did not feel any pity.'

'She,' began Weston.

'I'm sorry,' interrupted Ransom, 'but I've forgotten who She is.'

'Life, of course,' snapped Weston. 'She has ruthlessly broken down all obstacles and liquidated all failures and today in her highest form civilized man - and in me as his representative, she presses forward to that interplanetary leap which will, perhaps, place her for ever beyond the reach of death.'

'He says,' resumed Ransom, 'that these animals learned to do many difficult things, except those who could not; and those ones died and the other animals did not pity them. And he says the best animal now is the kind of man who makes the big huts and carries the heavy weights and does all the other things I told you about; and he is one of these and he says that if the others all knew what he was doing they would be pleased. He says that if he could kill you all and bring our people to live in Malacandra, then they might be able to go on living here after something had gone wrong with our world. And then if something went wrong with Malacandra they might go and kill all the hnau in another world. And then another - and so they would never die out.

Lewis does a good job here of exposing the absurdity of the argument which purports to show that evolution ("the survival of the fittest") somehow justifies selfish behavior. Of course, it does nothing of the kind, as Richard Dawkins has pointed out innumerable times. "The fittest" are by definition those who survive, and, as Dawkins delights in showing you, there is no end to the ingenious survival strategies developed by different species, which involve apparently unselfish cooperation just as often as apparently aggressive competition.

Christian apologists would, however, be on firmer ground if Christians were not quite so keen on justifying aggression in terms of divine justice. It seems to me that this is as much a perversion of true Christian principles as Weston's speech is a perversion of true evolutionary science. If you accept the tenets of Christianity, it should follow that only God can administer justice. He has no need of Man's help to do so, and, since God is omnipotent, justice is inevitable.

What I find interesting here is that strict evolutionary principles and strict Christian principles end up with the same conclusion: the world is, by definition, fairly organized, whether you call this survival of the fittest or Divine justice. People are in neither case required to assist the process.

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Jun 14, 2008 kellyn rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I read this first about 7 or 8 years ago, but found it difficult to get through. This time it was over too soon-I felt like I was on 'Malacandra' myself and feel like I 'experienced' everything that went on as much as 'Ransom' the main character in the book. Lewis explores philosophical questions that if not discussed in the context of another species' existence would strike me as really basic; by discussing these questions in the setting of another world, he refreshes them and has insights that...more I read this first about 7 or 8 years ago, but found it difficult to get through. This time it was over too soon-I felt like I was on 'Malacandra' myself and feel like I 'experienced' everything that went on as much as 'Ransom' the main character in the book. Lewis explores philosophical questions that if not discussed in the context of another species' existence would strike me as really basic; by discussing these questions in the setting of another world, he refreshes them and has insights that we often miss. I really enjoyed it and think it will become part of my 'book consciousness'. (one of the books I often re-read throughout the year)

A discussion between Ransom and a creature of Malacandra by the name of 'Hyoi', that began with Ransom asking if the three main races of Malacandra ever fight, then Ransom must explain about warring peoples of the Earth and how they fight over resources.

"If both wanted one thing and neither would give it," said Ransom, "would the other at last come with force? Would they say, five it or we kill you?"-Ransom
"What sort of thing?"-Hyoi
"Well-foor, perhaps."-Ransom
"If the other 'hnau' wanted food, why should we not give it to them? We often do."-Hyoi
"But how if we had not enough for ourselves?"-Ransom
"But Maleldil will not stop the plants growing."-Hyoi
"Hyoi, if you had more and more young, would Maleldil broaden the 'handramit' and make enough plants for them all?"-Ransom
"But why should we have more young, 'Ren-soom'?"-Hyoi
"Is the begetting of young not a pleasure among the 'hrossa'?"-Ransom
"A very great one, 'Hman'. This is what we call love."-Hyoi
"If a thing is a pleasure, a 'hman' wants it again. He might want the pleasure more often than the number of young that could be fed."-Ransom
"You mean," said Hyoi slowly, "that he might do it not only in one or two years of his life but again?"
"Yes"-Ransom
"But why? Would he want his dinner all day or want to sleep after he had slept? I do not understand."

And so the dialogue goes. It's so great!

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Jan 10, 2010 Eyebright rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010, christian-sci-fi, fantasy, science-fiction

This book was a little hard for me to understand and get through, and I think part of that had to do with my trying to visualize the descriptions, and failing. Not only that, but the conversations that Ransom has with some of the creatures about life and that sort of thing confused me.

Other than that, the book was good, but I wasn't crazy about it.

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Oct 19, 2012 Becca Campbell rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I enjoyed this book more for the abstract ideas behind the story than the plot itself (although Lewis' creativity in developing a foreign world, several alien species and a foreign language is notable).

There are some very intriguing ideas about the nature of our world, mankind, and existence behind the story. Lewis examines society's preoccupation with trying to extend the lives of ourselves, our world, and our species as a whole. No matter how hard man tries, be it through medicine or good heal...more

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Jun 04, 2012 Jacques le fataliste et son maître rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: narrativa, letteratura-inglese, fantastico

Dimenticare Narnia, in primo luogo. La trilogia* fantascientifica di Lewis è un romanzo filosofico, con tutti i pregi e i difetti del caso. Qualche pecca (talvolta imbarazzante) a livello narrativo ma una gran voglia di esprimere idee e di vederle incarnate e attive. È un romanzo adulto, che pone in questione i fondamenti dell’esistenza e della società. Ed è infine un romanzo “limpido”, che mette in scena con grande coerenza un punto di vista conservatore e cristiano. In accordo o in disaccordo...more

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Jan 27, 2011 Hope rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: clive-staples, 2011-reads, sci-fi, reviewed, cover-love, title-love, classics, laugh-out-loud-funny-in-places

First of all, this book has a cool title. I mean, seriously…Out of the Silent Planet… Say it to yourself a couple times. It sounds pretty, almost spooky, sort of dramatic and enigmatic. Ooh.

Man, I love a good title.

I also love a good allegory. And it’s my opinion that C.S. Lewis pretty much wrote the best allegories. Like, for real dude. This is like The Chronicles of Narnia for big people.
(I’m still partial to the childlikeness of The Chronicles though).

So basically, this book is about a ma...more

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Nov 03, 2008 BJ rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

No long summary here...A novel about how men dehumanize humanity.

Though it does not have to do with the one-sentence summary, I like the words of abducted Ransom before he embarks on his journey on the planet Malacandra:

"The adventure was too high, its circumstance too solemn, for any emotion save a severe delight." (Macmillan Publishing, Twenty-third Printing, 1978, 30)

And on another mater, the words of the old sorn speaking of how humanity on earth must be ruled: "'There must be rule, yet how...more

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Dec 04, 2008 Ryan Mac rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi

I'm not quite sure what to think about this book. It was good but I wasn't a huge fan of the writing style. 2 page paragraphs are hard to read. Otherwise, the descriptions of the planet are very vivid and the story is interesting but you get the feeling that there is something big they aren't telling you. Clearly, it is a good vs. evil, mankind struggling with God story. I'm hooked enough to keep going to book 2.

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Nov 22, 2011 Suheil Eid rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Finally I finish "Out of the silent planet" by C.S Lewis ending at page 194. From the many science fiction books I've read, id say this is certainly one of the best so far. C.S Lewis does such a good job in keeping the reader attached to the book. The story starts of with the main charachter Ransom being kidnapped by his fellow scientist and dragged to a planet that turns out to be mars. The planet turns out to be inhabited with aliens. Ransom faces a challenge to survive, learning many new thin...more

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Jul 18, 2007 Beguine rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fans of C.S. Lewis, fairly traditional Christians

This is C.S. Lewis' "science fiction" series. Essentially, this astronaut keeps landing on other planets and encountering the lifeforms God created there. In each book a representitive of the devil shows up and tries to muck things up for God's other children (humanity's cousins?). The first one is sort of neat; our hero is kidnapped by his fellow scientists and dragged to a planet that turns out to be mars for nefarious purposes. There he finds that this is one of the worlds God experimented wi...more

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Aug 06, 2011 David Boyce added it

This is the most un Lewis like of anything I have read of his. It really is in a class of its own. I suspected beforehand that it would remind me of Narnia, but in reality it was very different. How different C.S. Lewis makes this from his other works really impresses me and reinforces my belief that C.S. Lewis was a genius of literature as well as subtle allegory. The story is interesting and takes us to a truly unique world, one that now only exists in the reader’s imagination. As science fict...more

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Mar 03, 2009 Michael rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: english-12

Plot Summary
C.S. Lewis' novel "Out of the Silent Planet" is a book about space exploration and the discovery of new and surprising civilisations. Dr. Ransom was an unsuspecting college professor that was whisked away to a far away planet. Through a chance meeting, Ransom comes across two other professors who lure him into their house where they drug him and put him into their spherical space ship. After the initial shock of waking up in the middle of space, Ransom becomes quite excited about the...more Plot Summary
C.S. Lewis' novel "Out of the Silent Planet" is a book about space exploration and the discovery of new and surprising civilisations. Dr. Ransom was an unsuspecting college professor that was whisked away to a far away planet. Through a chance meeting, Ransom comes across two other professors who lure him into their house where they drug him and put him into their spherical space ship. After the initial shock of waking up in the middle of space, Ransom becomes quite excited about the adventure he is now a part of. However, during the expedition Ransom learns that he is actually being brought to a planet called Malacandra as a sacrifice to the inhabitants. Now Ransom is in a fight for his life. With a narrow escape from the other men after they land, Ransom finds himself lost in a world completely different from his own; one full of colour and mystery. In this world he meets the three species: the Hrossa, the Sorns, and the Pfifltriggi. They all live in peace with eachother and each race plays it's own role in the advancement of Ransom's journey to Oyarsa; the mysterious and powerful ruler of Malacandra. Everything is up in the air when he reaches the home island of Oyarsa. He must stand before the Lord of the planet and answer to his questions about the human race and why they are there. In the end, Oyarsa will decide Ransom's as well as the other two men's fate. He will either let them go back to earth or forever erase them from existence.

Personal Response
In my opinion, C.S. Lewis has done better work. I found this novel a little boring and uneventful. The storyline didn't seem to carry any point. The characters merely went to the other planet, met some creatures, and came back. It was just interesting enough to keep me reading but no more; I didn't really look forward to reading it. The number one aspect i didn't like about this book was the style of writing. It was written in an old-fashioned, proper type of english that I found difficult to understand. More than once I found myself reading but not taking it in because I didn't know what it meant. Also, despite the fact that it was a science fiction, I didnt find the characters believable at all. Even though they were, in a sense, aliens, the creatures from Malacandra were much too "out there" for me. Despite my overall opinion of this novel, there were parts of it that I really enjoyed. I loved the way C.S. Lewis described the thoughts and emotions of Ransom with such detail. it realoly made it easy to characterize him in my own head. I also liked how the author put so much detail into the landscape and extra-terrestrial characters. It painted a very clear and colourful picture of the land he imagined. I think that this novel would appeal to a lot of people because it feeds the imagination. These days people are so eager to believe that there is something more out there because to us, thay would be the most exciting thing ever. With this novel, out imaginations can be given a face; given something else to dream of.

Quotable Quotes
1. In this quote Ransom wakes up for the first time in the space ship and realizes he has no idea where he is.
"Ransom was by now thoroughly frightened—not with the prosaic fright that a man suffers in a war, but with a heady, bounding kind of fear that was hardly distinguishable from his general excitement; he was poised on a sort of emotional watershed from which, he felt, he might at any moment pass into delirious terror or into an ecstasy of joy." (23)

2. In this quote Hyoi, a Hrossa, tells Ransom it's view on the true enjoyment of life.
"A pleasure is full grown only when it is remembered. You are speaking as if the pleasure were one thing and the memory another. It is all one thing." (89)

3. In this quote Hyoi teaches Ransom about light and the "eldila" (creatures made of light that live throughout the heavens).
"We do not truly see light, we only see slower things lit by it, so that for us light is on the edge--the last thing we know before things become too swift for us." (108)

4. In this quote Augray, a Sorn, tells Ransom about the supernatural and mystical aspects of life on Malacandra.
"These things are not strange, Small One, though they are beyond our senses."
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Dec 30, 2008 Edith rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I read this book and its companion volumes--Perelandra and That Hideous Strength--sometime after college, which must have been in the early eighties. I have re-read all three books numerous times since then.

The books show Lewis' deep love of and knowledge of European literature and languages. I stand in awe of his ability to bring together elements of Scandinavian and Celtic and Greek and Roman and English literature to create a universe that can hold the galaxy-spanning intellects of the eldila...more

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Apr 04, 2013 Gale rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi-young-adult

Sci Fi for the Thoughtful Man

Despite respectful references to the legacy of H. G. Wells--acclaimed inventor of the modern sci fi genre--C.S.Lewis has chosen to forge his own stylistic trail through the perils of alien prose. This first book in a projected trilogy is set on Malacandra; it's no secret that the destination is actually Mars. The story relates the amazing experiences (but few actual "adventures") of Dr. Ransom. Kidnapped by two scoundrel scientists, the mild-mannered fellow awakens...more Sci Fi for the Thoughtful Man

Despite respectful references to the legacy of H. G. Wells--acclaimed inventor of the modern sci fi genre--C.S.Lewis has chosen to forge his own stylistic trail through the perils of alien prose. This first book in a projected trilogy is set on Malacandra; it's no secret that the destination is actually Mars. The story relates the amazing experiences (but few actual "adventures") of Dr. Ransom. Kidnapped by two scoundrel scientists, the mild-mannered fellow awakens on board a space vehicle, en route to another planet, where he will presumably be handed over to alien brutes as a human sacrifice.

The tale progresses slowly and could just have easily been written in the first person, since all activity centers around the unlikely protagonist--a university professor of Philology (the study of Words).
Expect many references to the British university system and countless chapters devoid of dialogue; narrative reigns supreme in this CSL novel, with extensive monologues or transliterations. The author's deep concentration on mythology and man's role in the universe will invite readers into deeper realms of thought. The human psyche, as well as human physiognomy, mentality, morals and motivation form the object of intense scrutiny by way of comparison with the three major species on the planet. Dropping veiled hints about the danger of unbridled anthropomorphism, CSL forces his hero (and readers) to reexamine traditional views of man's inalienable right to propagate his seed throughout the galaxy. He questions our immediate reaction of horror at any and all alien life forms. Must they necessarily prove grotesque and brutal?

Thinly-disguised references to the Judeo-Christian heritage may lead meditative readers to ponder space as some sort of Heaven, with the creative blending of mythology and pre history; should man accept a universal protector god-family as both rational and compassionate? Will Professor Ransom be held hostage for the human race or will he offer himself as living ransom in the future? There seems to be much "in a name" and exhaustive linguistic details in this Sci Fi novel. A thought-provoking book which was intended to entertain by more than mere action and dialogue, OUT OF THE SILENT PLANET drags on long beyond the exciting denouement. Definitely not in the Wells or Verne tradition, this read is Sci Di for the philosopher, who may well wonder which of the two worlds deserves to be called "Silent."

(Sept. 9, 2012. I welcome dialogue with teachers.) (less)

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Mar 20, 2013 Jenna St Hilaire rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

In the decade or so since I first read Lewis' Space Trilogy, I've re-read Perelandra once and That Hideous Strength many times, but never—till now—returned to the the first in the series.

It's a short read, and might be called light if not for the fact that as with most of Lewis' fiction, the more you understand of what Lewis knew and studied and believed, the more you'll get out of the tale. I'm not referring just to Christianity. This book made me wish I understood astronomy much more than I do...more In the decade or so since I first read Lewis' Space Trilogy, I've re-read Perelandra once and That Hideous Strength many times, but never—till now—returned to the the first in the series.

It's a short read, and might be called light if not for the fact that as with most of Lewis' fiction, the more you understand of what Lewis knew and studied and believed, the more you'll get out of the tale. I'm not referring just to Christianity. This book made me wish I understood astronomy much more than I do. Lewis, as Michael Ward has pointed out, followed the night sky carefully and understood medieval star symbolism; his imagined landscape for Mars is fanciful, but his concept of the physical relation of the planets is almost certainly scientific (based on the science of 1938), and his astronomical imagery probably has imports that my rudimentary understanding can't make out.

For those of us accustomed to Star Wars and Star Trek, Ransom's space travel seems quaint and more native to fantasy than science fiction. The Mars Rovers have also made it clear that our neighboring planet looks more like Tatooine than Lewis' watered handramits (lowlands) and spiky harandra (mountain ranges). And the Rovers have given us no more sign of hrossa and pfifltriggi than of attractive humanoid races running around in gold lamé and pleather.

None of that mattered to me as I read; Lewis' vision of Malacandra, like that of Narnia, was too beautiful. Once I got past wondering what weird and possibly dangerous chemical would make water actually blue, rather than reflectively so, I lost all disbelief in the gorgeousness of the warm waters, the elongated trees, and the poetic and thoughtful and creative races that lived there.

Ransom's interaction with the various beings belonging to Mars was fascinating. A writer more interested in detailed culture-building might have played out the early work of the linguist dependent on an alien tribe, but Lewis showed more interest in philosophy. He skipped ahead to Ransom's having enough knowledge of the language to talk about the relationships between the creatures and the arts and sciences, as well as between the creatures and their god, Maleldil.

Maleldil, like Aslan, directly correlates to God. It's not so much allegory as, more or less, "that's what the people of this imaginary world call Jesus." Unlike the Pevensie children, Ransom never deals directly with Maleldil; he works instead with the eldila and Oyarses, who are an interesting study in angelology—another subject that Lewis surely knew much more about than I do. Maleldil stays offscreen, but Ransom talks of him and of human sin and weakness with Oyarsa.

That climactic conversation covers expansionism, the claims of science against morality, and the difference between loving humanity as a concept and actually loving humans. As such, it becomes—again, not allegory, but an in-narrative thought piece championing humility, respect, and religious-based morality against an old progressive ideal. It's fairly obvious about making its philosophical points, but then, so is Star Trek. Like the best of all science fiction and fantasy, anyway, the story takes the reader out of this world with the intent of looking back and learning more about himself and the planet he comes from.

It's a beautiful tale, and a fairly easy read despite the philosophy. And as far as the Space Trilogy goes, it's just the beginning; the other two, to my own feelings at least, only get better.(less)

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Feb 24, 2013 Tom Emanuel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

If you thought the mythology of Eden and the Fall has no place in a modern, technological world, Out of the Silent Planet should give you pause. As was the case with the Chronicles of Narnia, you need not subscribe to Lewis's theological outlook to appreciate his mastery of the art of story. Indeed, "Narnia for adults" is actually a pretty good way to describe the first installment in his Space Trilogy: like the saga of the Pevensies, the adventures of philologist Elwin Ransom on the alien world...more

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Jan 07, 2013 Tom rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I read some excerpts from this for a class as a senior in high school. I got some of the point, but missed a lot. I did better in our recent listening as a family on a road trip visiting family just now for Christmas. Probably excerpts didn't get the job done, and I've probably learned a few things in the nearly two decades since high school, too.

First, there is regular (but not worst case) swearing during sections of this book. I didn't remember that, and I didn't expect it from Lewis. I didn't...more I read some excerpts from this for a class as a senior in high school. I got some of the point, but missed a lot. I did better in our recent listening as a family on a road trip visiting family just now for Christmas. Probably excerpts didn't get the job done, and I've probably learned a few things in the nearly two decades since high school, too.

First, there is regular (but not worst case) swearing during sections of this book. I didn't remember that, and I didn't expect it from Lewis. I didn't really appreciate that in audio form. We complain out loud about it with the kids around so they can know we don't approve. For good or ill, we kept listening despite the language.

Beyond that, yes, there are science fallacies. Lewis would have done very well to run things by a physicist for at least 5 minutes. Basic gravity in the spaceship is one thing just horribly wrong, for example. I'd also love to be able to launch an interplanetary craft from my backyard. Sweet.

Also, expect the classic "I'm pretending this is real from some person who experienced the whole deal and with whom I have contact" style that has been popular in fiction sometimes.

As yet another aside, hats off to Lewis for no magic interpreters that translate unknown languages instantly. I get so tired of that in sci-fantasy. The convenient philologist who serves as the protagonist actually has to spend the time to learn a foreign language. And imperfectly at that. I didn't buy every detail, but it was still refreshing to treat language as language. And to treat a very foreign experience as very foreign. The aliens here are definitely more different than those (say) on Star Trek but less so than some more extreme examples of sci-fi. Overall, not terrible.

As for the religious notions, I don't agree with everything Lewis believes, but he still is great to listen to. He thinks deeply and I believe he also was very close to God in his life. From other readings from him, I know he's fine with evolution (whereas I'm not quite so much), and that shows here. It's okay for him to express this, I think. That's one example among many here. I also think there's a mix of "what I believe" and "things I'm wildly inventing that approximately go along with what I believe" in this book. He cares a bit too much for the classic Greek thinking, I believe. Still, lots of good pondering.

I'm inclined to believe this book inspired some of "A Wrinkle in Time" but I think this book was much better overall. (L'Engle's book still is nice, though.)
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Dec 20, 2012 Anna rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I truly believe the C.S. Lewis writes much better nonfiction than fiction. Out of the Silent Planet was no exception. Though it was a much quicker read than some of the Narnia books, it is probably one of those books that you have to read a few times to really get, which can be frustrating when you're a reader with many distractions and not as much leisurely reading time at your disposal. I enjoyed this book, especially for its discussion of linguistics and the joys and challenges of learning a...more

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Dec 17, 2012 Smcleish rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: owned

Originally published on my blog here in August 2001.

Out of the science fiction he admired - clearly discernible influences on this novel include H.G. Wells and David Lindsay - and ideas from Christian theology, Lewis created a truly original classic of science fiction in his adult trilogy.

The central character is Cambridge don Ransome, who is kidnapped while on a walking holiday during the long vacation, and forced to travel in a spaceship to an unknown destination, by brilliant but utterly hear...more

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Oct 28, 2012 Erik Erickson rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi, prose, allegorical

Tagline: An Allegory of Christianity for the Progressive and Nerdy

Normally I love detailed exposition of steampunk tech and alien environments but I didn't enjoy it here. It is too mechanical, as the author seems to want to be as accurate as possible so the reader can establish the scene perfectly in their mind, which is going too far. Or maybe my brain has been turned to mush by Burroughs' Barsoom series and Zelazny's Chronicles of Amber.

While the story itself is interesting, it's similar to o...more

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Aug 10, 2012 Von Sowards rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, christian

When a man has a passion it tends to come out in ever aspect of what he does. If his heart belongs to music he will decorate his house with instruments and notes and eventually he will end up writing songs about singing song and about music being the fiber of this world. If a writer has a passion for books then his characters in his story will use books to save the day. As you read Lewis's books you will feel his passion for loving and trusting out Savior. Though often his stories lack in the "c...more

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Jul 15, 2012 Maurinejt rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I waffled between a 2 and 3 stars, because I did not personally enjoy this book much. The long winded descriptions reminded me why I hate The Last Battle, and the main character was too much of an everyman without a real personality to serve as an engaging point of view. However. What makes Lewis' work great is his ability to deal with matters of the soul and religion in a sincere and visceral way without a trace of sentimentality. It is easier for an author to seek catharsis with something horr...more I waffled between a 2 and 3 stars, because I did not personally enjoy this book much. The long winded descriptions reminded me why I hate The Last Battle, and the main character was too much of an everyman without a real personality to serve as an engaging point of view. However. What makes Lewis' work great is his ability to deal with matters of the soul and religion in a sincere and visceral way without a trace of sentimentality. It is easier for an author to seek catharsis with something horrible, we all understand pain and fear. But asking the reader to relive a cosmic experience of intense joy--and joy completely of the spirit--is almost impossible. The temptation is great to slip into cliche. (Sort of like a character asking "Do you want to talk about it?" to elicit exposition. Who SAYS that?)

But despite its flaws, I love the idea of it, I love the reason why he wrote it: to counter the empiricist views still prevalent at the time. When other SF writers were penning books about colonies and subjugation of obviously inferior races, Lewis points out that with all our problems, we could very well be the backwards, black sheep of intelligent life forms and have absolutely no right to interfere with superior cultures. Kind of like the sophisticated cities sacked by Genghis Khan, with the resulting losses for all. As I was reading it was like a missing line of an elaborate drawing being connected: I suddenly could see how Madeleine L'Engle had read this and took exception with the premise that Earth had already fallen to shadow, her rebuttle became A Wrinkle in Time. I saw its influence in a more recent book I had read, The Sparrow, where a linguist leads a team to first contact on an alien planet and deals with two sentient species, ignorantly destroying an ancient balance. I was even reminded of an instance in a beloved fantasy series where a cataclysm had forced dwellers to abandon surface life for something underneath, protected and led by a deity.

And mad props to the post script, where Lewis deftly acknowledged some of the more obvious plot holes and fixed them without having to retype the whole thing, while laying ground for a sequel. I think we forget how laborious it was to write in those days, if you made an error you had to retype the whole page, often the whole chapter. It also occurred to me that it may have been added after the first edition when he started getting pointed questions from fans. Either way, it's sheer brilliance.

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Jun 29, 2012 Matt Luedke rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I enjoyed the Narnia series as a kid, with the 'Dawn Treader' probably being my favorite. But in any case, in high school I got into CS Lewis's other stuff, namely his Space Trilogy. All 3 books in the series are different enough from each other that each was fresh and exciting.

None of them are action-packed, or very technical. One could even argue they are better described as "fantasy novels that happen in space" than sci-fi novels. Remember that it is pretty old-- like 1940's old! So this firs...more

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May 25, 2012 Bart Breen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Narnia for Adults?

CS Lewis was a tremendously diverse and engaging writer. Apart from being the most celebrated modern apologist for the Christian Faith, Lewis brought to the table a very sophisticated appreciation and understanding of great literature.

Out of the Silent Planet weaves a tale of Science Fiction before the genre became vastly more popularized in the 50's and following(in large part due to the influence of contemporary friend and member of local literary group, The Inklings, JRR Tol...more

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Apr 01, 2012 David Mcdowell added it · review of another edition Recommends it for: Q

Also notable for being the first e-book I've read from start to finish. It was overall a good experience (on the Kindle) although since it was a free download I was relying on Sigil to correct the typos and formatting and on Calibre to convert from epub to Mobi.
I've been meaning to read this for ages since recommended by Ross Hetherington. When I picked up the 2nd and 3rd in the trilogy from Oxfam it seemed perfect to download the first.

Not disappointing. The author conjures up a believable and...more

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Jan 03, 2012 Bill added it · review of another edition

My girlfriend got me these books for my birthday. I hadn't read them since I was in elementary, so I decided to give them another run through. It's also my goal to at least pretend like I have something interesting to say about all the books I read, so... here goes. Full of spoilers.

This book starts out like an old school sci fi in the vein of H.G. Wells. We have a visitor to another planet (he's actually captured on Earth and taken there), but the other planet feels like a more exotic Africa or...more

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Oct 27, 2011 R. Jacob rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: jesus-in-space, science-fiction-philosophy, quick-read

Months after first seeing the spines of C.S. Lewis' Space Trilogy on my girlfriend's bookshelf, scanning them curiously, and deciding that a space adventure laced with biblical references wasn't my idea of a fun summer read I planted this series on the back-burner till another time, presumably never. Having read a majority or maybe just two of his Chronicles of Narnia, and enjoying them well enough but finding myself unable to maintain sufficient interest to finish the entire series, I didn't se...more Months after first seeing the spines of C.S. Lewis' Space Trilogy on my girlfriend's bookshelf, scanning them curiously, and deciding that a space adventure laced with biblical references wasn't my idea of a fun summer read I planted this series on the back-burner till another time, presumably never. Having read a majority or maybe just two of his Chronicles of Narnia, and enjoying them well enough but finding myself unable to maintain sufficient interest to finish the entire series, I didn't see how combining those sensibilities with science fiction would craft something of relevance to me. I am a bit of an atheist. I dislike science fiction. And I don't like an overly moralistic read. Yet, The Space Trilogy remained slightly intriguing.

Then a few days ago while wandering randomly in a book-enduced haze through the Earl K. Long Library, I stumbled upon the shelf containing all of C.S. Lewis' work. Out of the Silent Planet stared at me until I picked it up. And read it this time.

I persevered through the setup of the story: the kidnapping of Dr. Ransom, the travel into space, and the plan to sacrifice him to whatever beings inhabit the planet of Malacandra. Not that these sections were boring, I just found them relatively unnecessary. Start the reader in the thick of it and catch us up, if relevant, on the past. Chapter Eight kicks the story into its higher gears as Ransom is left to travel the mysterious planet on his own. Just as Dorothy went down the yellow brick road, Ransom must endure the terrain, occasionally gaining the assistance of the hross and other forms of life that inhabit the different lands. Here, C.S. Lewis is able to inject his various philosophical ideologies. Ransom is tossed into these literally alien cultures, and forced to become one with them. I couldn't help but draw comparisons to modern examples of this story archetype, including films like The Last Samurai, Dances with Wolves, and Avatar. Humans are presented as savages in comparison to the creatures of Malacandra, all of which are initially described as monsters and brutes. What we fear most is ourselves and the outlook of the world that has been instilled in our culture; few things are as horrifying as the wrongs committed by humans against one another.

I won't ruin the journey, but Lewis is, of course, brilliant in his portrait of Ransom in this awe-inspiring land. It is great to witness him evolve, and the reader is allowed to change as well. I noticed in myself the progression from fear of the unknown to a feeling of trust in the universe, in cultures I fail to understand. The evolution of Ransom is the evolution that every educated person makes when sacrificing comfort for knowledge. Bravery is necessary to better ourselves. Man always assumes the worst of others, whether deserved or not- this fear is the weakness of our kind. Oh, and there is a lot of Jesus buried in here. I just chose to dodge that layer; like...scraping the frosting off of a piece of cake. Cake is still good without the frosting, right?

Favorite passage:
"He became vividly conscious that his knowledge of Malacandra was minute, local, parochial. It was as if a sorn had journeyed forty million miles to the Earth and spent his stay there between Worthing and Brighton." (157)

Live for the journey, even though the knowledge gained is only relative.

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Oct 17, 2011 Christopher rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: science-fiction

To start things off I have to say that I love C.S. Lewis. I loved the Screwtape Letters, I loved Mere Christianity and I have read most of the Chronicles of Narnia. But this is a bit of a head scratcher. It's not that the story is bad. Quite the opposite in fact: it is a very interesting story and shares many similarities with the classic sci-fi of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells. The problem for me, and one of the problems I've always had with Lewis, is that he is too smart for his own good. There i...more

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Aug 31, 2011 Cori rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It’s been a long time since I’ve picked up a book and not stopped reading until I finished. I did just that with Out of the Silent Planet, enjoying my Sunday afternoon curled up on my sofa with a glass of lemonade. It was heaven.

Other reviewers didn’t particularly like the flowing, descriptive language of Out of the Silent Planet, but it really worked for me. I think it is because Dr. Ransom is a philologist (one who studies language in written historical sources), so the strange words and odd t...more

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About C.S. Lewis

CLIVE STAPLES LEWIS (1898–1963) was one of the intellectual giants of the twentieth century and arguably one of the most influential writers of his day. He was a Fellow and Tutor in English Literature at Oxford University until 1954, when he was unanimously elected to the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance Literature at Cambridge University, a position he held until his retirement. He wrote more th...more

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Books by C.S. Lewis

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia, #2)

The Chronicles of Narnia (Chronicles of Narnia #1-7)

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Chronicles of Narnia, #3)

The Magician's Nephew (Chronicles of Narnia, #1)

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Quotes from Out of the Silent Planet

“The love of knowledge is a kind of madness.” — 53 people liked it

“And how could we endure to live and let time pass if we were always crying for one day or one year to come back--if we did not know that every day in a life fills the whole life with expectation and memory and that these are that day?” — 29 people liked it

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Out of the Silent Planet (Space Trilogy #1)

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