The Chronicles of Narnia

I first read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe when I was fairly young, and re-read it for an English assignment in 7th grade - at which point it became my favorite book. For years afterward, I wanted to read the rest of the series, but aside from a few attempts, I didn't actually read the rest of them until my senior year in college when I took a class on CS Lewis. My high expectations of the rest of the books were certainly not let down in the least.

Lewis weaves a great tale, managing to keep threads of continuity throughout changing storylines, settings, and characters, all the way through the last book in the series. Some people wonder what the best order is to read the stories - most editions now, especially the seven-in-one books, have the books in chronological order as opposed to the order in which Lewis wrote them. Personally, I think the published order is the better way to read them - but it is harder to find sets in this order. As my professor for that CS Lewis class said, when the books are read in chronological order many of the secrets of Narnia are given away right from the start. But often in life we have to go through learning piece by piece the story of what is going on around us, and we don't get all the answers right from the beginning - we don't see how things fit together until we reach the end and can look back. In the published order, we learn the hows and whys of Narnia little by little which, in my opinion, gives the story more impact. Whichever way they are read, though, these books should be read by everyone.

Most people know at least the basics of the first story, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. We meet the Pevensie children, who eventually introduce us for the first time to the land of Narnia - at that point stuck in perpetual winter thanks to the White Witch. With the help of Aslan, the children try to help the creatures living in Narnia. In the second book, Prince Caspian, the children are once again magically transported to Narnia, where several hundred years have passed since they were there last. They must help Prince Caspian claim the throne that is rightfully his. In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, only Lucy and Edmund - the younger of the Pevensie children - return to Narnia, this time with their irritating cousin Eustace. They meet up with Prince Caspian again (now King Caspian), who is several years older by this point, and accompany him in his ship, the Dawn Treader, on a journey to sail to Aslan's land. Some of my favorite scenes from the series occur in this book.

The next book in the series, The Silver Chair, includes one of my favorite characters - Puddleglum the Marsh-wiggle. In this story, Eustace returns to Narnia with a friend from school, Jill. They must help find the son of the old and ailing King Caspian, who has disappeared. Puddleglum accompanies the children north through dangerous territories in their attempt to find the prince. In The Horse and His Boy, the story departs from what we are used to, taking place in the country of Calormen during the time when the Pevensie children were still Kings and Queens of Narnia. The main character, Shasta, must escape his evil father who is going to sell him into slavery. He finds a horse named Bree who begins to talk to him, and convinces him to ride to Narnia, Bree's homeland. Although the storyline departs from the land and people we've known throughout the previous four books, The Horse and His Boy is my favorite of the series (although it's hard to pick just one favorite). The Magician's Nephew, the sixth book in the series, tells us the story of how Narnia began, through the eyes of children Digory and Polly. The children's world takes place decades before that of the Pevensie children. Many aspects of Narnia that have not yet been explained, particularly questions that come up in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, are answered in this book.

The final book of the series, The Last Battle, once again reunites us with Eustace and Jill, who have come back to Narnia yet again to help in the country's greatest time of need. We also meet up with the Pevensie children once more. The last few chapters of this book include some very fantastic imagery. It is the perfect end to this wonderful series.

Nothing I say about the series can really do justice to CS Lewis' writing, but if you haven't read all of these books, you really should. Everyone should have a copy of the series in their personal collection, and should read them more than once. No matter how many times they're read, there is always something new to take from them, some new brilliant piece of writing to latch onto and remember. And the best part is, they can be read with the whole family! These books have been beloved for many years, and there is a reason for that - many reasons, actually. Read them and find out for yourself!