Out of the Silent Planet (Space Trilogy) - Book Review

C.S. Lewis. The name is enough to instill excitement and the urge to pick the book and start reading immediately. Out of the Silent Planet is a science fiction novel, the 1st book in the series of Space Trilogy. Planning to read this book? Go through our review before that. No spoilers, promise!

The Story

Did you, as a kid or as an adult, ever wondered about whether there is life on other planets? This book answers your questions through the imagination of Lewis. He creates a highly innovative world on another planet, which gives wings to your own vision about the world.

This story is about Dr. Ransom, who gets abducted and transported out of space to Malacandra or Mars. The reason he has been kidnapped and brought to this planet is his captivators want to sacrifice him to the creatures lurking at Mars. But that is not what the creatures wanted. The captivators assumed that the Mars people were asking for a human sacrifice to be able to give them all their wealth. They completely misunderstood what was being said! So they abduct the first person they see on earth and bring him here. But the captivators’ dream of returning to earth loaded with riches is busted as Dr. Ransom escapes, starting a series of exciting adventures.

The story then takes a philosophical turn apart from adventurous as Dr. Ransom gets to know the people who inhabit the planet and learns about their lives and eventually his, in a way he never imagined.

The Writing

Out of the Silent Planet feels so fresh and new, even though it is an old book, initially published in 1938. It was written way before the man went out of space in reality. C.S, Lewis’s writing does a great job of transporting you to the other world and making it all, the place, the aliens and the adventures so much real.

But since this is an old book, the language is quite ancient and might seem slow for today’s readers who are used to fast-paced books in this genre. This novel demands to be read very slowly because of the philosophical meaning attached to most of the lines. So you might find yourself going back to the lines you have read to fully understand what is being said.

Verdict

We rate it 4.5/5 stars. We took half stars because of the slow reading and outdated language. Other than that, there is nothing in this book that is not likable. We highly recommend Out of the Silent Planet. Continuing this fun, insightful and adventurous space journey are the other books in the series named Perelandra and That Hidden Strength.

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Out of the Silent Planet (Space Trilogy) by C.S. Lewis