Although it is easy to get too obsessed with C. S. Lewis (Lewis Study Bible, anyone?), the man was obviously a prodigy in the way he embodied the culture of the Western tradition, and reading him almost always pays dividends.

One way he can help modern readers is through his writings on fantasy literature and "children's literature." Lewis, in thought and in deed, reflects an approach to literature that connects us with the deepest well-springs of the Western tradtion while also speaking cogently about modern concerns (such as how science fiction can do things that other genres can't). Some short essays of his are worth looking at (though the stories in this selection are not among his best).

Of Other Worlds: Essays and Stories