Tag Archive for: Middle Grade

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The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader

The Voyage Of The Dawn TreaderTitle: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
Author: C.S. Lewis
Series: Chronicles of Narnia #3
Genre: Classic, Fantasy, Middle Grade
Format: Hard Cover
Pages: 256
Reason Read: Just Because
Rating:

Also in this series: The Magician's Nephew, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Horse and His Boy, Prince Caspian, The Silver Chair, The Last Battle
My Thoughts

After reading THE VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER, PRINCE CASPIAN is still my favorite of the series so far, but I enjoyed reading this story very much. I enjoyed all the adventures the characters had and all the people the characters met. At first, I didn’t like Eustace and he almost poisoned the book for me. But then, I started to ignore him and really enjoyed the story. Of course, it was very nice to see him change for the better as it made reading the book a bit more enjoyable. 

My favorite part about this story was how much Aslan was in this book. Even though he was in the other four as well, we didn’t see a lot of him. In THE MAGICIAN’S NEPHEW, he doesn’t show up until about the middle of the book. In THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE, he doesn’t show up until a little after the middle of the book and the story focuses on the other characters until the stone table. In THE HORSE AND HIS BOY, Aslan’s there a lot, but you don’t always realize it’s him until the end when he tells the characters it’s him. In PRINCE CASPIAN, Aslan doesn’t show up until Lucy sees him, and again the story focuses on other characters so he’s not there that much. Whereas, in this story, he’s there almost throughout the entire story.

Even though I know Lucy and Edmund find their way back to Narnia in the last book, I was pretty sad when Aslan told them they were too old to return. I’m very intrigued as to why they (and Peter) get to come back. 

I’m going to miss Reepicheep. I hope he somehow finds his way back into one or both of the last two books.

2022 Reread

THE VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER is my favorite book in this series so far, even more so than PRINCE CASPIAN. I love how Edmund, Lucy, and Eustace get to Narnia, and I love reading about their adventures while sailing the Dawn Treader with Caspian and his crew. I think all of the different circumstances they find themselves in on each of the islands are interesting. My two favorite islands are Dragon Island and the one with the Dufflepuds.

I’m glad Dragon Island is one of the first islands they sail to. I don’t think I could’ve taken Eustace’s constant nagging, complaining, conceitedness any longer. The interesting thing is that Eustace actually becomes one of my favorite characters in the series after his time as a dragon. I love getting more of Reepicheep in this adventure. He’s such a fun character. If I had a chance of meeting him, I’d be exactly like Lucy, wanting to pick him up and cuddle him. I adore him so much.

I said this with THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE and PRINCE CASPIAN, but I think every one of these books ends kind of abruptly and a little bit weirdly. This one is probably the least out of the three so far because it at least winds down unlike the previous two.

As with the previous two, a few things regarding the allegory stood out to me during this read. I thought the way Eustace explained how he transformed back into a human with Aslan’s help was really interesting. It was almost like he was baptized and had his sins washed away. Instead of Aslan bleeding like Christ did in the Garden of Gethsemane, Lewis turned it around by making Eustace hurt and bleed after Aslan cut through his dragon skin with his teeth or claws (I can’t remember which).

The other thing I noticed about the allegory is how Aslan was really only in this story via second-hand accounts and the characters seeing visages of him when they were in danger. It was almost like Lewis was trying to portray Aslan as those of us who believe in Christ talk to Him through prayer.

I do like the ending when Aslan tells Lucy and Edmund the reason the Pevensies came to Narnia in the first place was so they’d recognize Him in their own world. It helps me make sense of why Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy are now too old to return to Narnia, even though in my mind no one is too old to be in Christ’s presence.

My rating stayed the same after this reread.

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Prince Caspian

Prince CaspianTitle: Prince Caspian
Author: C.S. Lewis
Series: Chronicles of Narnia #2
Genre: Classic, Fantasy, Middle Grade
Format: Hard Cover
Pages: 236
Reason Read: Just Because
Rating:

Also in this series: The Magician's Nephew, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Horse and His Boy, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Last Battle
My Thoughts

I really loved PRINCE CASPIAN. I loved that all the Pevensies are back in Narnia. I think it was interesting to see Narnia in ruin and that the story took place years after the Pevensie children ruled as kings and queens in Cair Paravel.

I also loved the new characters, except Nikabrik. I wanted to strangle him, especially when Peter, Edmund, and Trumpkin happened upon the council in Aslan’s How. It frustrated me so much that they waited as long as they did to go into the meeting. My favorite new character was Reepicheep. I adored him.

I thought the ending of this book was just as abrupt as the one in THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE, but for some reason it didn’t bother me as much. Maybe, it was because I thought the last line was funny whereas the other is more serious.

‘Bother!’ said Edmund. ‘I’ve left my new torch in Narnia.’

2022 Reread

As with THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE, a couple things regarding the allegory stood out to me more during this read. I thought it was interesting that Lucy, the youngest, sees and believes Aslan has returned first. This reminded me of how pure a child’s faith is compared to an adult. Children believe so easily and so strongly (e.g., Santa Claus, Easter Bunny) whereas adults are much more skeptical and cynical. When I was a child, I believed wholeheartedly in the tenets of my own faith. Now, as an adult, I have to work at it much harder. Lewis captures my own journey with faith and religion perfectly in the chapter “The Return of the Lion.”

The other thing I noticed about the allegory this time was the timeframe of Narnia and Aslan’s return. In the Christian faith, most believe that Christ will come again to deliver the faithful when the world has fallen into sin, ruin, war, and chaos. When the Pevensies return to Narnia in PRINCE CASPIAN, it has been thousands of years and Narnia is in ruins and war. As the children and Trumpkin head to Caspian and his army, Aslan returns to help the Narnians who believe in Old Narnia.

The parts of the series that don’t make any sense to me start to crop up in this story. At the end, Aslan tells Peter and Susan they’re too old to return to Narnia. If Aslan is Christ, or as Lewis said in COMPANION TO NARNIA: REVISED EDITION:

Since Narnia is a world of Talking Beasts, I thought He [Christ] would become a Talking Beast there, as He became a man here. I pictured Him becoming a lion there because (a) the lion is supposed to be the king of beasts; (b) Christ is called “The Lion of Judah” in the Bible; (c) I’d been having strange dreams about lions when I began writing the work.

Then why would Peter and Susan outgrow being in Aslan’s presence? Add this to THE LAST BATTLE when Susan isn’t allowed into Aslan’s country because she likes nylons, lipstick, and invitations. You can see how much Lewis’ choice here bothers me. I am trying to keep an open mind as I read through the series a second time, but it’s hard in these instances because they bother me a lot. 

My rating stayed the same after this reread.

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The Horse And His Boy

The Horse And His BoyTitle: The Horse and His Boy
Author: C.S. Lewis
Series: Chronicles of Narnia #5
Genre: Classic, Fantasy, Middle Grade
Format: Hard Cover
Pages: 224
Reason Read: Just Because
Rating:

Also in this series: The Magician's Nephew, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Last Battle
My Thoughts

I enjoyed reading THE HORSE AND HIS BOY immensely. I liked that it wasn’t as slow as THE MAGICIAN’S NEPHEW was and that the ending wasn’t as abrupt as THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE did. I also liked the depth of the story and the characters in the book.

I loved Aslan’s compassion and willingness to forgive the characters that didn’t deserve forgiveness and that he wouldn’t tell the characters anything but their own story.

2022 Reread

When I first read THE HORSE AND HIS BOY 14 years ago, I really loved this story in the series. During my reread, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I did the first time I read it, but I still enjoyed aspects of it. My favorite part of the story was when Aslan told Aravis why he scratched her.

‘It was I who wounded you,’ said Aslan. . . . ‘Do you know why I tore you?’

‘No, sir.’

‘The scratches on your back, tear for tear, throb for throb, blood for blood, were equal to the stripes laid on the back of your stepmother’s slave because of the drugged sleep you cast upon her. You need to know what it felt like.’

This reminded me of Christ’s Atonement and suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane. He took on our sins so that He would understand how we felt because He was without sin.

I think the reason I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I did the first time is because I noticed the problematic language and descriptions of the Calormen. I’m sure many readers pictured characters that look Arabic or Muslim in appearance because of Lewis’ descriptions. He may have drawn inspiration directly from ONE THOUSAND AND ONE NIGHTS, which felt like cultural misappropriation.

While I think a book written like this today would be extremely inappropriate, I do try not to cast judgment on people in the past using today’s lenses. Yes, racism and cultural misappropriation were just as wrong in Lewis’ time as they are now. I personally think it’s better to learn from our past mistakes than to condemn a man for participating in socially “acceptable,” albeit reprehensible, behavior at the time. It’s the same reasoning I don’t think we should throw out Mark Twain’s books either.

My rating has changed from 4 stars to 3 stars after this reread.

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The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe

The Lion, The Witch And The WardrobeTitle: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Author: C.S. Lewis
Series: Chronicles of Narnia #1
Genre: Classic, Fantasy, Middle Grade
Format: Hard Cover
Pages: 189
Reason Read: Just Because
Rating:

Also in this series: The Magician's Nephew, The Horse and His Boy, Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Last Battle
My Thoughts

I’ve known the story of THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE since I was young. I’ve always liked the story and I really enjoyed actually reading it. I’ve always thought the ending was kind of abrupt. One moment the Pevensies are in Narnia, the next moment they’re not and the story’s over. I’ve always thought the abruptness might be a symptom of the adaptation not being able to fit more of the story into the required amount of time. However, as I read the book, I realized how faithful it was to the book. I guess my only complaint about this story is that the ending’s way too abrupt. It didn’t feel like there was much closure to the story.

My two favorite characters were Lucy and Aslan. I think it’s obvious why Aslan’s one of them. Lucy’s one of them because I relate to her the most. She and I are both the youngest in our families, seen as small (her in stature, me in manner) but fierce, wear our hearts on our sleeves, think of others, and are especially fond of animals.

I’m quite happy that I’ve actually taken the time to read (or start reading) the series. I’m probably the only person that didn’t read the books as a child. 

2022 Reread

During this read, certain parts of the allegory made more of an impact on me. Of course I understood Aslan’s sacrifice the first time I read THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE. This time, I noticed the wording surrounding the Deep Magic regarding Edmund’s treachery. Lewis termed the Deep Magic as “law” and when the White Witch and Aslan discussed what to do about Edmund, the White Witch said the law stated that anyone treacherous belonged to her. It immediately brought to mind an image of Satan and Christ bargaining over a wayward soul.

I’m also much more well-read this time around and I noticed that Lilith, Adam’s first wife in Jewish lore, was mentioned as part of the White Witch’s heritage. I actually really like the Lilith lore and I love reading stories that include her in them.

My rating has changed from 3 stars to 3.5 stars after this reread.

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The Magician’s Nephew

The Magician’s NephewTitle: The Magician's Nephew
Author: C.S. Lewis
Series: Chronicles of Narnia #6
Genre: Classic, Fantasy, Middle Grade
Format: Paperback
Pages: 221
Reason Read: Buddy Read
Rating:

Also in this series: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Horse and His Boy, Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Last Battle
My Thoughts

While I enjoyed reading THE MAGICIAN’S NEPHEW once the characters arrived in Narnia, I thought it was a bit boring and slow. I did enjoy reading about Aslan for the first time and I thought it was neat to read about the birth of Narnia and learn where the wardrobe came from.

2022 Reread

I didn’t remember much from my previous read 14 years ago, but I knew THE MAGICIAN’S NEPHEW followed the Professor as a young boy during the creation of Narnia. As I started rereading it, I realized that I’d forgotten or missed a lot of the story that first time through.

When I first read this story back in 2007, I didn’t know there was a published order and a chronological one. I made the mistake of reading this book first and I thought it was slow and boring. I also didn’t really get much out of it other than the origin of Narnia, the White Witch, and the wardrobe.

I wasn’t sure if reading the books in published order would make that much of a difference or not. However, I’m now a believer that everyone should read this series in published order. I enjoyed THE MAGICIAN’S NEPHEW so much more with the background of all that had already happened in the previous books. I also got more out of the allegory this time around.

The allegory’s my favorite part of the overarching story. I love trying to find meaning and connections with Christianity while reading each book. The allegory in this story aligns so much with my own beliefs that it made it a joy to read and it’s now one of my favorite books in the series.

The obvious connection to Christianity in this story is the creation, the Garden of Eden, and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. I also thought it was interesting that Lewis alluded to the worlds without number that God has created in the Wood Between the Worlds.

I think this quote from this book sums up my reading experience quite nicely:

What you see and what you hear depends on where you are standing. It also depends on what sort of person you are.

Anyway, after reading this story, I find myself looking forward to reading THE LAST BATTLE for the first time since I started the Narniathon.

My rating has changed from 2 stars to 4 stars after this reread.