Chronicles of Narnia reviews

The seven volumes of The Chronicles of Narnia are briefly reviewed below in order of their original publication. Recent editions of the series have renumbered the volumes to keep the overall story in chronological order, but we believe that reading the books in the order they were published provides the best entrée into the Narnian world.

C. S. Lewis  The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe; illus. by Pauline Baynes
     Macmillan
     Reviewed 01/51
Entirely different from the above [review of The 13th is Magic by Joan Howard] is this fantasy in which children also enter another world right in their own house. Here they go through the back of a wardrobe into the mysterious land of Narnia where the lion, King Aslan, and his subjects are under the spell of a wicked witch. Beautifully written by the author of Screwtape Letters it is reminiscent of George Macdonald in its allegorical quality. Two of the distinguished illustrations are reproduced in this issue with the article “Over the Drawbridge and into the Castle.” j.d.l./s.m.a.

C. S. Lewis  Prince Caspian; illus. by Pauline Baynes
     Macmillan
     Reviewed 12/51
In this sequel to The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy, on their way back to their schools, leave the train at a junction and suddenly find themselves once more in the land of magic. They meet Prince Caspian, a boy like Peter, who lives with his uncle, King Miraz of Narnia, and his aunt, Queen Prunaprismia. Adventure follows adventure as the evil forces of the White Witch battle the forces of goodness under the Lion, King Aslan. Finally King Peter defeats King Miraz in a duel, and the children return to the real world, Peter and Susan knowing they are now too old to visit Narnia again, though Edmund and Lucy will return. Convincing fantasy unusually well written. b. e. m.

C. S. Lewis  The Voyage of the Dawn Treader; illus. by Pauline Baynes
     Macmillan
     Reviewed 02/53
This is the third story about Lucy and Edmund and their adventures in the land of Narnia, and just as good as the other two. The enchantment here begins when a ship in a picture in Lucy’s room suddenly becomes a real ship and the children find themselves swimming toward her in real water. One can imagine that twenty, thirty years from now, grownups will be recalling the Narnia tales with the same nostalgic pleasure many people today feel for the E. Nesbit books. Both these writers should be introduced to all imaginative children. j. d. l.

C. S. Lewis  The Silver Chair; illus. by Pauline Baynes
     Macmillan
     Reviewed 10/53
According to Narnia time, it is seventy years after the close of Voyage of the Dawn Treader and Caspian is an old king grieving for his missing son, Rilian. Through a door in a school wall Eustace now returns to that highly believable land of fantasy, taking with him Jill, a school-mate at Experiment House. Their great adventure is a search for Rilian over the moors and through the Underland below Narnia. Those who have accepted Mr. Lewis’ three earlier Narnia stories as favorites will find this one equally entrancing and it may be introduced as a first to any lover of make-believe. Adults reading it aloud will appreciate its distinction of style — the deft characterizations, colorful descriptions and playful bits of satire. v. h.

C. S. Lewis  The Horse and His Boy; illus. by Pauline Baynes
     Macmillan
     Reviewed 12/54
This is the fifth book about the wonderful country of Narnia and, since C. S. Lewis is to children of today what E. Nesbit was to an earlier generation, its coming has been hailed with delight. The chief characters are a boy and a girl and two talking horses, all escaping from Calormen to “the heathery mountains and the thymy downs” of Narnia. It is a good story, well written and true to the land of fancy, but it lacks some of the richness of the first four. Children who have already read those will want to read this, too; but to introduce C. S. Lewis to a child I should begin with the first book, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and let him have the others in their proper sequence. j. d. l.

C. S. Lewis  The Magician's Nephew ; illus. by Pauline Baynes
     Macmillan
     Reviewed 10/55
This is the real beginning of the Narnia story, “of all the comings and goings between Narnia and our world, which you can read of in other books.” As beautifully conceived as the other tales, it will please their imaginative audience. It opens in natural and lively fashion with Digory and Polly becoming friends in search of adventure and, by power of an uncle’s magic rings, journeying into another world. It is the world of an evil witch and of Aslan the singing lion who, before their very eyes, in passages of rare mystery, creates Narnia and the talking beasts. The author’s concern with the struggle between good and evil is strong again, but never interferes with the action. v. h.

C. S. Lewis  The Last Battle; illus. by Pauline Baynes
     Macmillan
     Reviewed 10/56
Tirian inherited the Narnian throne six generations after Rilian. For hundreds of years Aslan, the magnificent and all-powerful lion, had not been seen in Narnia; some of the more cynical thought him legend. One of these was Shift, an ape with an eye to the main chance. When he found a lion's skin in Caldron Pool, he devised a clever scheme for enslaving Narnians to his own profit: he costumed Puzzle, a donkey, as Aslan, and proceeded to issue orders as his spokesman. Tirian, sensing fraud, gave battle and was captured. He remembered the stories of Earth children who had aided his ancestors and called on them in Aslan's name. Jill and Eustace came. The rest of the story tells of the plans and battles that followed, of the end of the Narnia which the children had known, and the beginning of something which only Aslan could have foretold. This is the seventh and last book about Narnia. It is, like the others, exceptionally well written. Unlike the others, it does not stand alone well. Children will have to have read the previous books to realize that Aslan is not legend and to appreciate the irreverence of Puzzle's masquerade. The characters of Jill and Eustace are not fully established; their earth lives are hardly mentioned. The book's climax brings back many old friends but none is thoroughly identified. However, even if the above were not true, it would still be a shame to "spoil the ending" by reading this book first. Although it tends to take itself a bit too seriously at times, it is the culmination of an excellent series, and boys and girls who have loved the other books will find it very satisfying. h. p. m.

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