C.S. Lewis

One of the United Kingdom's most esteemed 20th-century authors, C.S. Lewis is best known for his Chronicles of Narnia fantasy series. Born and raised in Belfast, Ireland, Lewis was an avid reader in his youth. Attending Oxford University and excelling as a scholar, Lewis went on to tutor at the school, and fell in with a literarily inclined group that included J.R.R. Tolkien. In 1933, Lewis' debut novel, The Pilgrim's Regress, was published to little attention. The far bolder and more imaginative Out of the Silent Planet (1938) followed, and the science-fiction story led to two sequels. Meanwhile, Lewis kept busy with various nonfiction works that often carried Christian themes. In 1942, he unveiled the satirical novel The Screwtape Letters, but his greatest literary success arrived in 1950, when he released The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, the first installment in his seven-book Narnia series, which became the foundation of his legacy. Lewis died in 1963, and appreciation for his work has endured over the decades, with popular movie adaptations of his Narnia stories introducing younger generations to his thoughtful, engaging and wonder-filled writing.