Profile of the Day: C.S. Lewis

Statue of C.S. Lewis looking into a wardrobe

Remember reading The Chronicles of Narnia? On this day in 1898, author C.S. Lewis was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

He was born Clive Staples Lewis, but was known as “Jack” by his family and friends. At the age of 4, he declared his name to be “Jack” after his beloved dog “Jacksie” was hit by a car and died. Lewis became an avid reader at a young age and began writing his own fantasy stories early in his life.

During World War I, Lewis served in the Third Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry of the British Army and fought in the trenches at the Somme Valley in France.

A prolific writer, Lewis wrote more than 30 books throughout his career. His most famous and successful series, The Chronicles of Narnia, has sold over 100 million copies around the world and has translated into 47 languages.

Lewis died on November 22, 1963 at the age of 64. At the time, news of his death was largely overshadowed by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, which occurred on the same day. On the 50th anniversary of his death in 2013, Lewis was included in the Poets’ Corner at Westminster Abbey, joining some of Britain’s greatest writers in history.

Explore C.S. Lewis’s family tree on Geni and share your connection to the author!
 

View C.S. Lewis’s Geni Profile

Image: Genvessel / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)