A Severe Mercy, by Sheldon Vanauken, is a heart-rending love story described by its author as "the spiritual autobiography of a love rather than of the lovers." Vanauken chronicles the birth of a powerful pagan love borne out of the relationship he shares with his wife, Davy, and describes the growth of their relationship and the dreams that they share. As a symbol of their love, they name their dream schooner the Grey Goose, "for the grey goose, if its mate is killed flies on alone and never takes another."

While studying at Oxford, Sheldon and Davy develop a friendship with C.S. Lewis, under whose influence and with much intellectual scrutiny they accept the Christian doctrine. As their devotion to God intensifies, Sheldon realizes that he is no longer Davy's primary love--God is. Within this discovery begins a brewing jealousy.

Shortly after, Davy acquires a fatal illness. After her death Sheldon embarks on an intense experience of grief, "to find the meaning of it, taste the whole of it ... to learn from sorrow whatever it had to teach." Through painstaking reveries, he comes to discover the meaning of "a mercy as severe as death, a severity as merciful as love." He learns that her death "had these results: It brought me as nothing else could do to know and end my jealously of God. It saved her faith from assault. ...And it saved our love from perishing."

Replete with 18 letters from C.S. Lewis, A Severe Mercy addresses some of the universal questions that surround faith--the existence of God and the reasons behind tragedy. --Jacque Holthusen


Robert Kirsch, Los Angeles Times
"An adventure story of intellect, faith, and ideology, a love story....filled with the reality of one relationship and one search, with questions that can't easily be ignored."


The Washington Post
"No brief review can do justice to the human depth of his book. It invites us to explore a beautiful dollhouse of love and to witness the destruction of a relation too exquisite to last."



"Here is a book for anyone who has truly loved another person."


Eternity
"A gem of a book...a study in conversion, in human love, in grief, that delivers an extraordinary impact on the reader."


New Oxford Review
"A towering and noble work in its own right, wrought by a real craftsman...forged with an austere and truly civilized imagination and intelligence."


Christianity Today
"Here is a book for anyone who has truly loved another person. And for anyone who has ever known the loss of a loved one."


Book Description
Beloved, profoundly moving account of the author's marriage, the couple's search for faith and friendship with C. S. Lewis, and a spiritual strength that sustained Vanauken after his wife's untimely death.


From the Publisher
Beloved, profoundly moving account of the author's marriage, the couple's search for faith and friendship with C. S. Lewis, and a spiritual strength that sustained Vanauken after his wife's untimely death.


From the Back Cover
This celebrated memoir, winner of the National Religious Book Award and the Gold Medallion Award, traces the idyllic marriage of Sheldon and Jean Vanauken, their search for faith and friendship with C. S. Lewis, and the tragedy of untimely death and lost love. It includes eighteen letters by C. S. Lewis.


About the Author
Sheldon Vanauken is the author of Gateway to Heaven, The Glittering Illusion, and Under the Mercy.

ANNOTATION

Winner of the National Religious Book Award. A portrait of a marriage and faith as well as of the author's friendship with C. S. Lewis.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Beloved, profoundly moving account of the author's marriage, the couple's search for faith and friendship with C. S. Lewis, and a spiritual strength that sustained Vanauken after his wife's untimely death.

FROM THE CRITICS

Judith E. Smith - Weavings