A Severe Mercy
By Sheldon Vanauken
In this memoir, Vanauken tells the tender love story of his wife Davy and himself, a couple so devoted to each other that they vow not to have children (who could potentially come between them), create a virtual shield (the "shining barrier") to protect their love, and initially avoid including others in their activities. As Sheldon is from a wealthy family, they can enjoy dinners out, quite moments by the fireplace in his father's club and, when the father leaves him a lot of money, build a yacht to sail on for months at a time. After college ean grad school, Sheldon and Davy head to Oxford to study for two years. They come to realize that most of their friends are Christians - and they are very appealing people! Eventually Davy, then a reluctant Sheldon, come to accept Jesus' teachings as true, and their lives are changed forever.
C S Lewis, a respected professor of literature, is influential in Sheldon's decision, and many of Lewis's letters are included (Lewis himself marries, then loses his wife to cancer in the course of this story). In Oxford, and later in the US where Sheldon accepts a teaching post at Lynchburg College, the Vanuakens' home becomes the center of a Christian fellowship, made up of an evolving group of students. Davy develops a debilitating illness which would prove to be fatal, and Sheldon cares for her, eventually coming to a place of peace over this woman who had been the center of his life.
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