Spirits in Bondage was C. S. Lewis's first published work, released in 1919 and was originally published under the pseudonym Clive Hamilton. The book, subtitled A Cycle of Lyrics, and is composed of three different sections of poetry. This collection of forty poems give a look into the heart of C. S. Lewis. They are divided into three parts, The Prison House, Hesitation, and Escape. This 3-part cycle of poems chronicles Lewis' spiritual quest during World War I and his student years at Oxford. Spirits in Bondage stands out among Lewis's writings because of the focus on poetry rather than prose and because the Lewis had not yet made his conversion to Christianity; therefore the themes and worldviews offered in Spirits in Bondage differ greatly from those for which Lewis is most well-known. Clive Staples Lewis was a novelist, poet, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist from Belfast, Ireland. He is known for both his fictional work, especially The Screwtape Letters, The Chronicles of Narnia and The Space Trilogy and his nonfiction, such as Mere Christianity, Miracles and The Problem of Pain.