El leon, la bruja y el ropero

The Chronicles of Narnia #1

by C.S. Lewis, Pauline Baynes (Illustrator)

Here is the Spanish language ebook of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, book two in the classic fantasy series, The Chronicles of Narnia. This edition features rich black-and-white illustrations by the original illustrator, Pauline Baynes.

Four adventurous siblings—Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevensie— step through a wardrobe door and into the land of Narnia, a land frozen in eternal winter and enslaved by the power of the White Witch. But when almost all hope is lost, the return of the Great Lion, Aslan, signals a great change . . . and a great sacrifice.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is the second book in C. S. Lewis's classic fantasy series, which has been drawing readers of all ages into a magical land with unforgettable characters for over sixty years. This is a stand-alone novel, but if you would like to journey back to Narnia, read The Horse and His Boy, the third book in The Chronicles of Narnia.

Genres: Fantasy, Classics, Fiction, Young Adult, Childrens, Middle Grade, Adventure

61 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 16, 1950

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Clive Staples Lewis was one of the intellectual giants of the twentieth century and arguably one of the most influential writers of his day. He was a Fellow and Tutor in English Literature at Oxford University until 1954. He was unanimously elected to the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance Literature at Cambridge University, a position he held until his retirement. He wrote more than thirty books, allowing him to reach a vast audience, and his works continue to attract thousands of new readers every year. His most distinguished and popular accomplishments include Mere Christianity, Out of the Silent Planet, The Great Divorce, The Screwtape Letters, and the universally acknowledged classics The Chronicles of Narnia. To date, the Narnia books have sold over 100 million copies and been transformed into three major motion pictures.

Lewis was married to poet Joy Davidman.
W.H. Lewis was his elder brother]

Reviews

[Miranda Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

"One day, you will be old enough to start reading fairytales again."

It's like C.S. Lewis was speaking to me. I never read these as a child but now that I'm in my mid-twenties, I'm feeling the urge to visit all those childhood classics I never read. And I'm so glad I did.

"Peter did not feel very brave; indeed, he felt he was going to be sick. But that made no difference to what he had to do."

Four siblings on a rainy day play hide-and-seek. The youngest discovers an incredible secret in the back of the old wardrobe in their uncle's house. After a fair amount of convincing, she and her three siblings set out to explore and are soon whisked into the land of Narnia.

"Narnia! It's all in the wardrobe just like I told you!"

Could you imagine a more magical world? I've watched the movie as a kid but reading the book? It's 110% better. The amazing characters - from Mr. Tumnus to the White Queen - just tie this story together. Unforgettable.

Audiobook Comments
Read by Michael York and this was a pleasure to listen to. I felt like a little kid being read to!

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[Lisa of Troy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Get your Turkish Delights ready!

Brothers and sisters, Edmund, Peter, Susan, and Lucy discover the world of Narnia by hiding in a wardrobe. However, all is not well in Narnia which has been gripped by the terror of the Witch. Can the Witch finally be defeated once and for all and at what cost?

This book is a quick read and plunges right into the adventure. Within 20 pages, we have been introduced to Narnia which was a welcome relief after reading too many books with extremely long ramp up periods. The Lion, the Witch, and The Wardrobe also knows how to stir the emotions and perfectly described the feelings of disappointment when one of the characters told the truth only to be devastated when her family member does not back her up.

There were some repeat characters from the first book; however, I just did not get enough of the Witch. She says things that are laugh out loud funny. In contrast with The Magician's Nephew, this book did not seem as well written as the first. The first book was not as predictable as this one, and I found it more interesting. This book read more like a feel-good family story. Also, The Magician's Nephew has in my opinion one of the most memorable endings ever written. In The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, the ending was not nearly as remarkable.

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[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book where I chronicled my thoughts as I read through it with my son. I don't know how easy it is for y'all to access the record of those here on Goodreads, but if you're looking for a detailed account of my thoughts on the book, you can look there.

I'll say this. I've read a lot of books to my little boy these last couple years, and I can honestly say that This book is among the best. Good, tight writing, good description. Good action. Also there's not a lot of dead space or trashy empty dialogue that just seems to be there to take up space. (That's become a particular peeve lately. And when you're reading a book aloud, it becomes really obvious.)

The British slang will be a stumbling block to some. But it's not too bad. And there were a few slight pieces of sexism that I ignored, skipped over, or re-worded on the fly. But honestly, this book was written 60 years ago, and you need to cut it a little slack because of that. And in my opinion, it only needs a little slack. Truth be told, I've read books written this year that have ten times the sexism this one does.

Also, I'd like to make it clear that this is the FIRST book of the Narnia Chronicles. This is where you start the series. I'm sorry if you read them in the wrong order, but if you did, it's better than you admit it now, come to grips, and move on with your life knowing the truth.

[Sean Barrs · Rating 5 out of 5]

“If ever they remembered their life in this world it was as one remembers a dream.”

The real world is boring; it’s mundane, unimaginative and dry. So humans create fantasy as a means of escape. We watch movies or go to the theatre to see something more interesting than the standard realities of the everyday. We paint pictures and gaze up at the stars. We play video games and roleplay. We dream. Authors like C.S Lewis and J.K Rowling show us this miserable world; they show us its tones of grey. Then underneath it all they reveal something spectacular: they reveal fantasy.

So we have four rather ordinary children about to embark on an extraordinary adventure. As a child I used to always daydream. I’ve always been somewhat introverted and would prefer imagining faraway places than existing in the now. I still do this as an adult. And this is why I love fantasy so much because it is so immersive; it literally takes my mind away. Lucy, Susan, Edward and Peter are the lucky ones. When they stumble across the wardrobe, the gateway into a more interesting realm, they experience something spectacular.

“She did not shut it properly because she knew that it is very silly to shut oneself into a wardrobe, even if it is not a magic one.”



Sure, there’s a war going on. And, certainly, there’s an evil witch going around murdering people. But, for me, that’d be a price worth paying. For in Narnia there is also Aslan and a whole bunch of interesting characters. There is hope, magic and companionship. The wise old Aslan though is the star of the show. He sacrifices himself for his friends, for his people. Though one issue I have with the book, and one that makes me very much aware of the text as a construct, is the questions over why Aslan actually needed to the four children. He pretty much deals with the problems by himself. There’s prophecy involved, but on a plot level he clearly could have sorted this mess out without any outside interference.

I’ve seen a lot of hate over these books because of the Christian allegories involved in the storytelling. Now I find this somewhat stupid. I’m not a Christian, far from it, but you can’t really criticise a book because of this. It’s incredibly naïve. It would be like judging Jane Eyre based on its feminism aspects or Shakespeare’s exploration of colonialism in The Tempest. It’s silly. This book is, undeniable, full of Christian dogmatism. But it’s what the author wanted it to be. If you read Tolkien’s work there are so many allusions the world wars; this doesn’t affect the overall storytelling. It’s simply what is there. Read this with an open mind, as an English Literature student, I read the bible. I don’t believe the words inside, but I can still enjoy the experience. And this story is no different. Take it for what it is.

“Wrong will be right, when Aslan comes in sight,
At the sound of his roar, sorrows will be no more,
When he bares his teeth, winter meets its death,
And when he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again.”



And that’s something special. I do, however, much prefer the works of Tolkien. I feel that his writing is more universal in terms of age audience. With this though, I’m very much aware of it as a children’s book. The prose is designed to sound like a children’s bedtime story in places. That’s not exactly a bad thing though. I love Narnia but I can, at least from my perspective, objectively say that Tolkien was a better writer. Though what Narnia does have is Aslan. It’s hard not to Aslan. Wouldn’t it be just wonderful if he met Gandalf? Could you imagine the stories those two could share? I'm dreaming again.

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[J.G. Keely · Rating 2 out of 5]

My greatest disappointment in 'The Screwtape Letters' was that Lewis was not able to demonstrate what made his good people good or his bad people bad. The closest he got to defining goodness was that you could tell the good people from the vague aura of light that surrounded them--and which even shone in their cat. In this book, the cat is much bigger.

Aslan had no character, he was just a big, dull stand-in. Lewis often tells us how great he is, but never demonstrates what it is that makes him great or impressive. Sure, he helps the kids, but all that makes him is a plot facilitator. He also has his big Jesus moment, but that has the same problem as the original: if he already knows that there will be no lasting negative outcome, how much of a sacrifice is it, really?

But then, Aslan isn't based on the original fig-cursing, church-rejecting, rebel Jesus, but the whitewashed version. Like Mickey Mouse, Jesus started out as an oddball troublemaker with his fair share of personality, but becoming the smiling face of a multinational organization bent on world domination takes a lot out of a mascot, whether your magic castle is in California or Rome.

Such a visible figure must become universally appealing, universally friendly and loving, lest some subset of followers feel left out. And it's this 'Buddy Christ' tradition from which Aslan springs. Devoid of insight, wisdom, or charm, Aslan is just here to do all the things that our protagonists can't do.

This also beggars the question: why didn't Aslan just take care of all this stuff long before the kids arrived? Why did all the animals and fairies and giants have to suffer the pain of an endless winter? We're never given any good reason Aslan had to wait for the kids--since in the end, he does it all on his own, anyways. Sure, Lewis mentions something vague about a prophecy, but in fantasy, prophecy is always a bandaid authors stick over their plot holes: 'Uh, the shlubby nobody is a hero because the prophecy says he is--he defeats the ultimate evil because the prophecy says he can'.

The only thing the kids do is help run the battle, but this is only necessary because Aslan is absent, and he's only absent because the kids screwed up, meaning the entire thing would have gone off without a hitch if they had never showed up in the first place.

In that regard, I have to say Lewis did an excellent job boiling down Christianity into a fable, and leaving the problem of evil completely intact. Some readers suggest that Aslan lets the queen take over to teach the kids a lesson, but is it really worthwhile to let all the inhabitants of a kingdom suffer a century of misery just to teach a few kids about the true meaning of friendship?

The villain is just as poorly-constructed, and seems less concerned with defeating her enemies than with being pointlessly capricious. She manages to trick one of the children, but instead of taking advantage of this fact, she immediately makes it clear that she tricked him. I mean, how did someone that incompetent take over in the first place?

Selectively stupid characters are silly and convenient, especially as villains, because this completely undermines their role as foil. It is impressive when characters overcome challenges, but not when challenges simply crumble before them. The children are lucky the Queen was more of a fart-stealing Old Nick than a Miltonian Satan, otherwise they never would have stood a chance.

It is interesting to look at how many Christian authors have tried to reconcile their faith with complex fairy mythologies; not that Christianity doesn't have its own magical fairy tales, but these other traditions are not exactly compatible. Dante has Virgil lead him through hell, the Buddha was made into a saint, holidays were given new meanings (even if they often kept old symbols and names), and magical monsters were also given a place in the new faith.

In the Middle Ages, monks compiled 'Bestiaries', which described the roles of dragons, unicorns, and real animals in Christian synbolism; there were even century-spanning debates about whether dog-headed men were descended from Adam. These books were rarely accurate, but allowed Christian theology to adopt many stories and superstitions from earlier periods; for instance, the connection between unicorns and virginity or the belief that pelicans fed their own blood to their young, in imitation of communion.

So Lewis' attempt to take myth and adapt it to a Christian cosmology is hardly new--there is a long and storied tradition explored throughout the Chivalric period and recognizable today in books like The Once and Future King, but Lewis doesn't do a very good job of reconciling these disparate mythologies.

Like most Protestants, Lewis' religion was a modern one--not magical and mystical, but reasonable and utilitarian. He did not draw on the elaborate, convoluted apocrypha of hallucinatory monsters and miracles that mystics obsess over, instead, he made a small, sane, reasonable magical world--which rather defeats the point. It is unfortunate that many of today's readers think of Lewis' writings as defining English fairy tales, since his late additions to the genre are not original, nor are they particularly well-executed examples.

Many authors have come to the genre with much more imagination, a deeper sense of wonder, and a more far-reaching exploration of magic. We have examples from Kipling, Lewis Carroll, Dunsany, Eddison, Morris, and even modern updates by Gaiman and Clarke. Lewis, like Tolkien, may be a well-known example, but both are rather short-sighted, and neither one achieves as much as the many talented authors who came before.

I'm not saying Lewis is bad, merely that he is unremarkable, and is hardly preeminent in fantasy, or even in children's fantasy. However, I do think his fundamental message is a bad one, even if he didn't realize he was creating it.

In all his worlds, all his stories, he takes the sorts of people he dislikes, defines them as 'evil', then sets himself apart from them. There is no attempt to comprehend or to come to mutual understanding. I cannot respect a book which encourages people to vilify what they don't understand and to call isolation righteous. If any worldview deserves the epithet of 'evil', it is the sort of willful, prideful, self-indulgent ignorance Lewis displays.

My List of Suggested Fantasy Books

[chloe · Rating 5 out of 5]

LONG LIVE LUCY QUEEN OF NARNIA!
LONG LIVE PETER KING OF NARNIA!
LONG LIVE SUSAN QUEEN OF NARNIA!
edmund get out of my face

[Fergus, Weaver of Autistic Webs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been a compulsive reader all my adult years - I always read because I was DRIVEN to see how a book ENDS. That is wrong-headed - as any Narnian will tell you. We must read DEVOTEDLY - purely out of Love!

But know what? I'm now an old senior who, as T.S. Eliot says, has been "driven inland by the Trades." For the endless manoeuvring of buying and selling - and by extension treating your life as if it were a means to satisfying ends and nothing else (it's everywhere now) - has driven me deeply back into my soul: yes, even as far as Narnia!

So here I am once again, as I was when I was five and reading picture books - reading DEVOTEDLY.

With Love. It feels SO good.

Now, the first time I reviewed this book I was not ready to read with Love. The storm of agnostic protest my review elicited (as you can see below) "bashed my head in" - as Sylvester always wanted to do to Tweety - and forced my hand.

And my hand had nary a Trump card. What can I say? Politics is not my cuppa.

So here I was, at the start of this July 4th weekend (fast upon our Canada Day) wanting to GO BACK TO MY DREAMS.

And Dream is what I did - gulping down this book in two days.

You know, we Christians LIVE in Narnia. But those folks who carry agendas toil for the White Queen - as does all of Organization Man (a title that hits the nail in the head). You know 'em - the Movers & the Shakers: the Armies of the Night, as Mailer said in 1968.

My friends who first commented below form the political opposition to those Armies, bless 'em all. But my more apolitical friends ignore the melee and keep reading. Devotedly. And they're right...

I plan to join their ranks now, dreaming, like them, my own way to the Wild Blue Yonder:

Narnia, I'm coming back.

You know, when Lewis Carroll's Alice saw THROUGH the Trump cards' wicked hand, she simply shouted, "Why, you're all NOTHING but a pack of cards!" and they all scattered to the four winds, all form without substance.

Let them go.

Enough is enough.

Let's all, gentle readers, abandon the sad sights of the blind leading the blind for the Real world of Narnia, once again.

Let's go back to reading Devotedly...

And LOVING it!

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Y'all are out there watching Avengers: Endgame while I am at home watching the classic 80s cartoon of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. A whole lotta nostalgia going on.

Why am I watching it right now?

Well, I just finished a reread of the book, and it is simply as magical as I remember. It is a well written fantasy story that is not too complex and, therefore, is accessible to young and old alike. It does indeed have Christian allegory, but it is up to you whether you want to read it with that in mind or not.

One thing about the dialogue is that while it is simple, there are some words and phrases that are dated to the time period it was written. Because of this, a dictionary may be helpful every so often throughout the book. One place where Google came in quite handy was in the chapter about Turkish Delight. It might have been more common long ago or in other parts of the world, but I was not quite sure what it is.

Finally, the best part of this reread was that I read it out loud to my 7 and 5 year old. It feels great to pass great books on to them. Also, it was magical to watch how much they enjoyed it. They we're even drawing pictures of the characters and running around the house pretending to look for the wardrobe!

Side note: some versions of the series have this as the first book. Some have it as the second. Even though I have read them all before, I don't really have an opinion on the matter. I think either order is just fine.

[Baba · Rating 4 out of 5]

A truly golden and classic story that has been read and loved by millions all over the world. For those that bemoan that it's just a retelling of the Christian story. Pants! It's also about a little girl untarnished by the adult world and open to change, who still sees the world as a beautiful place full of wonder and potential, who finds Narnia first, and has to battle her own ego-driven brother for the truth, when her two other siblings decide not t0 believe the little girl, because she's a little girl! It's a timeless and wonderful story.

A story tied to foretold fates and destinies. A story that says evil cannot reign forever and that to truly win, sometimes you have to make a great sacrifice. The series that made me fall in love with books and reading around aged eight! Thank you Mr Clive Staples Lewis. Thank you so much. 9 out of 12 a fierce lion Four Stars. The absolutely beauty of this book, was informing me at an early age of the egocentricity of men and how dangerous their fragile egos can be to others. Lucy is, and was, my first ever superhero!

2025, 2021, 2015 and 2004 read

[Lala BooksandLala · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 22 of 30 for my 30 day reading challenge.

[Melanie (meltotheany) · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Lucy looks into a wardrobe”

I was feeling rather nostalgic this holiday season for some reason, and I thought what better way to pay homage to my childhood than by rereading The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe for the first time in a very long time! And, friends, I fell so in love. I actually think I’m going to make it a holiday tradition to read this book every single December for the rest of my life.

And it was so funny, because I was very apprehensive going in, because when I was little, I think the religious themes went over my head, but I didn’t know how overbearing they would be reading this story for the first time as an adult. But it honestly wasn’t too much. I mean, some of the characters in Narnia refer to the kids as “Son of Adam” and “Daughter of Eve” and like I get the parallels with Aslan and Jesus now! But I still think it was very thoughtfully done and didn’t pull me out of the story or anything like that.

But if you are unfamiliar with this beloved children’s tale, this is a story about four children who have been recently adopted by an old professor who lives in a massive house. And one rainy day, while the kids are bored, they decide to explore the house that is now their new home. And the youngest of the children find a portal to a magical land, ruled by the White Witch, who is causing an endless winter.

➽ Lucy - The Best Character.
➽ Edmund - What A Little Shit.
➽ Peter - Good Guy.
➽ Susan - Group Mom.
➽ Aslan - Simba Who?
➽ Tumnus - Second Fave, Even Though He Almost Kidnapped My First Fave.

But there was so much that I forgot about this story: Mr. Beaver poppin’ open a cold one at dinner, Tumnus almost kidnapping Lucy, Everything the professor says to the kids and how he helps them, Edmund being the such a little shit that even my patience was getting tested, Turkish Delights, Father Christmas, and him giving the kids weapons as gifts!

Overall, this was just the perfect winter wonderland to me. From closet, to lamppost, to dam, to forest, to castle, I never wanted to leave this adventure. I am not sure if it is a lot of nostalgia talking, but this was maybe the best thing I read all holiday season. It was exactly what I wanted, and I was truly enthralled from the first to last page. I never wanted to leave this endless Winter.

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Buddy read with Julie from Pages and Pens! ❤

[s.penkevich [hiatus-will return-miss you all] · Rating 4 out of 5]

To enter the novels of Narnia is not unlike taking the first few steps through the titular wardrobe itself. As a good fantasy ought, it pulls you from the world around you into a new realm of possibility, or magic and mystery, of epic quests filled with fierce battles and friendships that withstand even the darkest of hours to keep hope burning bright. Over the years I’ve returned to C.S. Lewis’ The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe having read it myself as a child and then again to my own children when they reached an age to follow along. Each time I find the journey to be just as magical, yet increasingly more joyful as I can bring a new young reader into the world for their first time and experience the magic with them. I can remember many days of reenacting scenes from Narnia with my oldest in our apartment living room when she was 6 and we even went for Halloween as Lucy and Mr. Tumnus. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is a delightful story to kick off a rather delightful series that isn’t without issues but never fails to bring a smile to my face. How can you not love beavers dispensing whiskey to kids to get them to sleep or a Santa passing out weapons, and for a story of good and evil the series does a fairly nuanced look with morally grey elements. A tale of good and evil, warfare, betrayal and redemption, bravery and hope, and a tale that has lasted for generations.

First published in 1950, Lewis wrote The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe for his granddaughter, Lucy Barfield, and dedicated the novel to her. Her namesake becomes one of the great fantasy characters, a young, kind, and brave girl who is ‘a good leader’ at a time when most fantasy leads were still boys. For the uninitiated, this first story takes the four Pevensie siblings—Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy in descending age order—out from under the bombs of the London Blitz into a magical world where The White Witch rules with a ruthless and violent grip on the talking animals and spirits who live there. A world where it is ‘always winter and never christmas,’ but the arrival of these ‘Daughters of Eve’ and ‘Sons of Adam’ may be the spark to light the fire of revolt and liberate Narnia. If they don’t get caught by the witch first…

The first in the series, it isn’t necessarily Lewis’ strongest writing and at times it may feel a bit dry for children (at least in the modern day) whereas the style feels more fluid in later books. Still, it is magical, fun and full of unforgettable characters like Aslan, a Father Christmas who hands out weapons, and my personal favorite, Mr. Tumnus, who was Lewis’ initial idea for the tale all the way back when he was 16 with ‘a picture in my mind — of a faun carrying an umbrella and parcels in a snowy wood.’ The infamous lamppost, the symbol of light that connects the two worlds, also preceded the novel with Lewis walking home from Malvern pub one snowy night with fellow ‘Inklings’ J.R.R. Tolkien and George Sayer, commenting that the imagery of the lampposts aglow in the snow would be perfect in a novel. It is also rumored to have been in response to Tolkien’s insistence that a lamppost was not suitable for a fantasy novel. While this may be just a rumor, Tolkien did write something similar about electric lights in his essay On Fairy Stories :

‘The electric street-lamp may indeed be ignored, simply because it is so insignificant and transient. Fairy-stories, at any rate, have many more permanent and fundamental things to talk about. Lightning, for example. The escapist is not so subservient to the whims of evanescent fashion as these opponents. He does not make things (which it may be quite rational to regard as bad) his masters or his gods by worshipping them as inevitable, even “inexorable.” And his opponents, so easily contemptuous, have no guarantee that he will stop there: he might rouse men to pull down the street-lamps.’

Given the competitive nature between the two (and the Inklings at large) I’ll choose to believe Lewis put this in just for the dig. It’s more fun that way.

‘The whole story, paradoxically enough, strengthens our relish for real life. This excursion into the preposterous sends us back with renewed pleasure to the actual.’
—Lewis, On Stories: And Other Essays on Literature

Fantasy is often thought of as escapism, yet Lewis takes the children from his tale from one war into another. They escape the bombings to a quiet home in the country but quickly find themselves running from the White Witch in Narnia and doing battle with great beasts. There is a sense of Lewis demonstrating that war is inescapable and hardships follow us wherever we go, but there is also an impression that we cannot try to avoid evil and must confront it. In Narnia the children are able to be the heroes, to stand up to evil in a way they could not against the Nazi bombs falling upon their city, and it is empowering. ‘Fairy tales do not tell children the dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist,’ G.K. Chesterton once wrote, ‘Fairy tales tell children the dragons can be killed.’ And in Narnia, children learn that evil can be conquered, wrongs can be righted, and redemption can be had.

‘All shall be done, but it may be harder than you think.’

I’ve always loved the character Edmund, such a shit in the first book but later one of the best characters (Eustace follows a similar trajectory later on). He initially sells out his siblings to the White Witch for a taste of Turkish Delight—a food that was made with sugar which would have been hard to come by under WWII rationing and also would remind him of good times. I enjoy how it is in keeping with Fairy Tale tropes that eating food within the fairy tale is always a bad idea and we see the Turkish Delights become a symbol of temptation. But, with the love of family that is willing to take him back, Edmund is able to find his redemption.

‘We have nothing if not belief.’

There is a very moral message underpinning much of this novel and many are quick to point to it as a Christian parable. One can read it this way, of course, or enjoy the surface fantasy, and I think both are held fairly well in his text. In An Experiment in Criticism, Lewis writes:

‘We sit down before [a] picture in order to have something done to us, not that we may do things with it. The first demand any work of any art makes upon us is surrender. Look. Listen. Receive. Get yourself out of the way.’

Lewis argues for approaching a book by allowing it to consume us and wash over us, not to approach it with the intent to pick it apart on the first go and I think this is also the best approach to a first read of Narnia. But one cannot escape the Christian stories going on either. Aslan as a symbol for Jesus and the resurrection for instance. But in his article Sometimes Fairy Stories May Say Best What’s to Be Said, which appeared in the New York Times in 1956, Lewis states that the story is itself just some images that made a fun story and were never written with the total intend to be a “Christian fairy tale”:

‘Some people seem to think that I began by asking myself how I could say something about Christianity to children; then fixed on the fairy tale as an instrument; then collected information about child-psychology and decided what age-group I’d write for; then drew up a list of basic Christian truths and hammered out “allegories” to embody them. This is all pure moonshine. I couldn’t write in that way at all. Everything began with images; a faun carrying an umbrella, a queen on a sledge, a magnificent lion. At first there wasn’t even anything Christian about them; that element pushed itself in of its own accord.’

Of course, later on Lewis would write in a letter to a friend a much more Christian focused idea of creating Aslan:

‘[Aslan] is an invention giving an imaginary answer to the question, ‘What might Christ become like if there really were a world like Narnia and He chose to be incarnate and die and rise again in that world as He actually has done in ours?’”’

The idea of Aslan as a Christian symbol for God is quite clear in later novels too. Lewis does have a religiousness but even if religious stories aren’t your thing this story is still just as fun. I also greatly appreciate the effort towards a moral greatness where characters can be flawed but still not bad. It’s quite refreshing. ‘People who have not been in Narnia sometimes think that a thing cannot be good and terrible at the same time.’

Okay, sure there is an element where Lewis gets criticism for some not great moments around women. Lucy is assured her bravery isn’t questioned when told to stay out of battles but that battles get ugly when women are involved. Which, okay??? What? Sure, battles are pretty ugly when men are involved too. And there’s some pretty old timey “my damn wife” style of humor around the beaver couple which didn’t age great, so be advised. Yet on the whole it’s pretty fun still.

I have long loved The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and I am thrilled to find that I enjoy it again and again with repeat readings. While not the strongest in the series, it makes for a good start and plenty of good fun. Especially when you share it with others.

4/5

[emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book is very close to my heart, because i too am one of four siblings and would also betray them for a sweet treat in a literal millisecond.

it doesn't even have to be a queen making the deal. but that would be a bonus.

so nice to see yourself represented on page.

part of a series i'm doing in which i review books i read a long time ago

[Cecily · Rating 1 out of 5]

Although raised as a Christian, I've long been an atheist and perhaps that's partly why I'm uncomfortable with this retelling of the life of Jesus as Aslan the lion. I have no objection to Bible stories as part of our culture and heritage, but this is more underhand.

As a child, I loved this series, even when I learned the metaphor. That was probably partly a reflection of my mother's enthusiasm, and it insulated me from the guilt and horror that some of the commenters below felt about Aslan's sacrifice.

Then I read it to my own child. I was increasingly uncomfortable, and fortunately, kiddo wasn't interested in my reading the rest of the series to them. It is too preachy, and the way Mr Tumnus lures Lucy to his lair doesn't feel right, despite his upstanding character. Nevertheless, we did see the 2005 film. Mr Tumnus was SO human - and naked (except for a little scarf) - from the waist up, that his taking Lucy home seemed even worse than on the page. Way worse.


Image: James McAvoy as Mr Tumnus and Georgie Henley as Lucy Pevensie (Source)

There are plenty of better written and more engaging stories in this genre, most of them without Lewis' agenda. As Michael cites below:
“Any amount of theology can now be smuggled into people's minds under the cover of fiction without their knowing it.” ― C.S. Lewis

Lewis also wrote:
“No book is really worth reading at the age of ten which is not equally (and often far more) worth reading at the age of fifty – except, of course, books of information. The only imaginative works we ought to grow out of are those which it would have been better not to have read at all.” ― CS Lewis, Of Other Worlds: Essays and Stories
I agree - but only because, for me, it would have been better not to have read this at all.


EDITED eleven and thirteen years after original brief review to take account of comments.

[Luffy Sempai · Rating 5 out of 5]

What's it with British literature? How from a relatively small pool of population can such creative writers emerge? I don't like C.S Lewis's non fiction books, but here he knocked the ball out of the park.

Aslan, whose antics and decision making and beliefs are difficult to map, is the way by which the children triumph. If Alice in Wonderland was positively secular, TLTWaTW is heavily defined by the Christian mythos.

There are many shining examples of pause to let the tension play out, before a little more of the adventure is revealed. Curiously, along with wonder, it is with the realization that I read this book. It's very much Anglo Saxon in nature, yet it lends itself to translation so easily. It's a book that does not belong to any age, decade, or era.

It's a little wonder of writing. The figures agree with me: This book is apparently one of the top 10 bestselling books of all time.

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

What are you doing on that wardrobe? Narnia Business!!

I read this book as a book challenge and adored it. I had not read this book before and did not know of its existence as a child. I would have loved it even more then, I imagine.

Four English children, removed from London for their safety during WWII, are sent to a country manor to live with a professor. Lucy is the first to enter the wardrobe and be transported into the secret world of Narnia. There she meets a talking faun who eventually warns her about the white witch who keeps Narnia in a constant state of winter. A human’s presence in Narnia is threatening to her and the animals are under orders to inform her at once. Once back home, she informs her siblings who do not believe her until they too eventually enter the wardrobe and the world of Narnia.

Narnia is full of talking animals, magic, and the loathsome witch who turns animals into stone statues if they do not do as she pleases. With the help of a Beaver couple, they escape in time and get to meet Aslan, who teaches them true bravery, sacrifice and teamwork.

This is a great fantasy book for both children and adults alike. Suspension of belief and a desire for entertainment is all one needs to enjoy this book. The illustrations are precious and go perfectly with the story.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars to C.S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Adored it. I must have read it three or four times as a child. Hits all the spots in my reading dreams. a forest. A large family. Talking animals. Secrets. Mystery. Drama. Hidden messages. Saga and series. Every child should read it.

Imagination runs free here. 4 children stuck a house. 1 goes exploring and finds herself lost in the world of Narnia. And the rest follow her.

Siblings fight. The book shows what happens when you don't listen to one another.

Aslan, the hero lion, helps show what sacrifice is all about. Good stuff.

I spent many a days looking for the secret world hidden somewhere in my closets. While I never actually transported to another world, this book is like its own Narnia - a transport into something magical.

[Steven Serpens · Rating 2 out of 5]

CALIFICACIÓN REAL: 2.5 estrellas

A través de un armario mágico, cuatro hermanos londinenses llegan al gélido mundo de Narnia. Pero, aquel mundo lleva incontables años siendo azotado por un cruel encantamiento impuesto por la Bruja Blanca, el cual hace que siempre sea invierno. No obstante, hay una profecía que indica que estos niños serán los salvadores de dicho reino; por lo que se embarcarán en la aventura de sus vidas, una que jamás hubiesen imaginado vivir, de manera que, tendrán que batallar en contra de las fuerzas del mal, para así poder cumplir con sus ya marcados y profetizados destinos: el de otorgarle la merecida prosperidad al sufrido país de Narnia.

Primero que todo, debo aclarar que El león, la bruja y el armario es un título muchísimo más básico y sencillo que su predecesor. La historia que ahora se nos presenta es bonita y con una ambientación acorde para una obra de esta naturaleza, e igualmente se destaca en su rapidez por saltar enseguida a la acción o a lo que es de interés, pues, en las primeras páginas, Lucy ya incursiona en Narnia.
Sin embargo, la terminación de los capítulos no suele enganchar ni se hacen atrapantes como para querer continuar de inmediato con el siguiente, tal como sí ocurría y de una forma muy bien lograda en el libro anterior. Puede que esto se deba a que no es una obra ideada con una intención del todo comercial, cosa que se nota; ya que fue concebida como un regalo para la ahijada del autor, lo que podría jugarle un poco en contra a esta entrega.

Cambiando de tema, si leen mi reseña de El sobrino del mago, podrán ver que allí habían varias alegorías y paralelismos con el cristianismo, y que aquí también las hay, pero en menor medida y complementado con otras culturas. Por ejemplo: hay varias referencias a criaturas y divinidades grecorromanas; así como también, hay más de algo alusivo a seres y eventos de otras mitologías, como la germánica o céltica. Esto se ve reflejado en el encantamiento de Narnia, ya que, de algún modo, me da la sensación de que este eterno invierno estaría inspirado en el Fimbulvetr nórdico; así como el sacrificio de Aslan y lo que posteriormente le sucede con la Mesa de Piedra, claramente son una representación de la crucifixión y resurrección de Cristo, ni tampoco descuidar que dicha mesa recuerda a Stonehenge; además, creo que Edmund podría simbolizar a Judas, aunque con una redención; y la batalla final, que, aunque apenas sea mencionada, es el típico cliché del bien contra el mal tan común del judeo-cristianismo: el blanco y el negro, la luz y la oscuridad.

Y nuevamente, así como en la entrega anterior, hay un par de incoherencias, pero en esta ocasión no son tan mínimas ni insignificantes. Por ejemplo: se menciona que Aslan es hijo del ‘’Gran Emperador’’, figura que aparentemente se trata de Dios, cosa que no me parece mal. El problema es que ese dato está fuera de lugar, ya que, en El sobrino del mago, apenas se da información sobre Aslan como para que nos restrieguen en la cara el dato random de quién es su padre, cuando nunca antes se había mencionado algo sobre ese tal ‘’emperador’’. Por ahora, este pequeño dato queda en el aire, pero espero que no continúe así en los demás títulos.
Asimismo, la ‘’magia insondable’’ es la cual permite que Aslan pueda revivir torciendo la profecía referente a las traiciones, y se dice que fue puesta gracias a ‘’la magia del emperador’’ desde un comienzo; pero, si consideramos que el libro anterior es sobre el origen cosmogónico y fundacional de Narnia, y que así supimos cómo se creó tal mundo, de antemano sabemos que todo fue 100% obra de Aslan, ya que no se mencionó algo sobre las leyes o magias que iban a regir en estos confines. Lo único que podría considerarse así en cierto modo, fue la mención de que el poder de la bruja aumentaría en muchos años más. Y, aun así, se tomaron las medidas pertinentes con respecto al árbol que protegería a Narnia de ella; pero tampoco se nos dice algo sobre ese árbol tan especial ni qué le sucedió para que Jadis pudiese acercarse. Esta ‘’magia insondable’’ se siente como otro elemento descontextualizado que se contradice con lo del primer libro, ya que tampoco se mencionó algo relacionado a eso ni mucho menos al emperador poniendo su magia. Y si analizamos los diálogos, podemos notar que hay una clara jerarquía en la que Aslan está por debajo de ese tal emperador.
Por otra parte, esto me perturbó un poco, pues, se da a entender de que nunca ha habido humanos en Narnia; pero ¿qué hay de Polly, Digory y el tío Andrew?, ¿o del cochero y su esposa, que luego serían los primeros reyes narnianos para tener mucha descendencia? Es como si los hubiesen borrado de la historia, ya que por algo el humano es un mito en el mundo de Narnia. Y sí, ya sé que los libros no fueron publicados cronológicamente, pero no puedo dejar pasar estas incoherencias, que igual afectan la experiencia en cualquiera que sea el orden de lectura que escojan para la saga.
Asimismo, ¿la reina acaso conocía algún camino hacia el mundo de los humanos? Es lo que se da a entender, ya que ella le dice a Edmund hacia donde ir cuando él le indica que no sabe ni recuerda cómo regresar a su propio mundo. Si tanto interés tenía la bruja por la Tierra (cosa que solo se enfatiza en el primer libro), ¿por qué nunca intentó venir si supuestamente ya conocía alguna supuesta ruta hacia nuestro mundo?
Otra cuestión similar a lo anterior es con respecto al profesor mencionando algo así como que ‘’no se puede regresar a Narnia por la misma vía’’. El problema es que Lucy ya había usado esa misma vía tres veces y Edmund dos... Pero, claro, quizá la excepción a esto se deba a que la profecía tenía que cumplirse sí o sí; pero ¿cómo se enteró de esto? No recuerdo que ese dato se haya mencionado en el libro predecesor, en donde el profesor ostentaba el rol protagónico. Y hablando de este personaje, con su tan poca participación que tiene en esta ocasión, siento que en algunos comentarios o en su forma de expresarse, podría evocar alguna reminiscencia hacia su tío Andrew (salvando la distancia entre la personalidad e intenciones de ambos), lo cual es algo que me agradó.
Por último, en El sobrino del mago, vemos que Aslan le da el don de la palabra a un selecto grupo de especies animales, estos son: castores, leopardos, ciervos, conejos, topos, elefantes, caballos (por Fresón/Alado), cuervos, búhos, panteras, bulldogs, alces, osos, jabalíes, tejones, tapires, asnos, ardillas y avifauna no especificada. Todo bien hasta el momento y no necesariamente tendría que habérsenos mencionado a cada especie escogida para aquello; pero, en esta oportunidad, solamente son dos las bestias parlantes que concuerdan con las ya mencionadas: los castores y las ardillas, que de seguro son descendientes de los primeros animales bendecidos con dicho don. Los demás animales que se sabe por primera vez que pueden hablar son: los zorros, los lobos y un león. Perfecto, y reitero en que no tendrían por qué haber sido mencionados, ya que no se nos iba a nombrar uno por uno acerca de todos los afortunados. El problema con esto es que Aslan no es el único león en Narnia... Y, al tratarse de una deidad metamorfoseada en este tipo de felino, que como avatar le queda ideal, ya que es acorde a la grandeza y solemnidad que se le quiere dar como personaje, no concuerda con el hecho de que haya más leones parlantes, ya que le restan mística y aura, y hasta se me hace incoherente, porque, de haber habido otro león, eso sí que tendría que haber sido mencionado en El sobrino del mago; aunque igual esto se deba para reforzar en cierta medida el trato de Aslan con sus congéneres, porque el otro león se siente muy halagado cuando Aslan lo alude diciendo ‘’nosotros los leones’’ o algo así. Pero, en fin, pensaba que Aslan era único en su especie. Parece que la única diferencia física es que Aslan tiene un pelaje con tonalidad dorada.

En mi reseña de la precuela, indiqué que el autor aclaró muchas dudas futuras, pero que también dejó otras tantas en el tintero para posteriores entregas. Algunas fueron respondidas en cierta medida, otras pasaron al olvido. En esta oportunidad, me refiero a lo siguiente: información acerca de Lefay o la Atlántida, de las que aparentemente no sabremos más; del linaje de Jadis, ya que se decía que podía tener sangre de gigantes. Y bueno, sabemos que los humanos son descendientes de Adán y Eva, pero ahora se nos revela que Jadis es descendiente de Adán y Lilith, y que algo tiene que ver con los genios. O sea, que, ¿Adán pudo viajar entre mundos? ¿Eso quiere decir que el Jardín del Edén es otro mundo? Me hago esta pregunta ya que Jadis no tiene su origen en la Tierra como los humanos, ella es del mundo de Charn... y la castora da a entender que ella se da el derecho de autoproclamarse reina por fingir ser humana, aunque lo sea a medias; siguiendo con Jadis, el castor insinúa que ella fue verdugo del emperador, y ese dato tan fugaz me parece interesantísimo; y por último, así como ya mencioné anteriormente, parece que los primeros reyes de Narnia y toda su dinastía fueron condenados al olvido, si es que el autor aún no tenía idea de sus existencias y no supo cómo hacerlos encajar en el futuro cuando estaba escribiendo acerca del pasado, considerando que la saga no fue publicada en orden cronológico.
Tampoco sé dónde ubicar este otro dato, pero entendí la referencia o cameo de Fresón/Alado; y que aparentemente es la única mención o alusión a algún personaje del libro anterior, aparte de Aslan y la Bruja Blanca.

Del mismo modo, hay nuevas interrogantes a futuro, como las siguientes: ¿Quién fue Cair Paravel y qué tiene de especial su castillo?; En dónde están las Islas Solitarias y qué tienen que ver con Jadis; con respecto a ‘’la palabra deplorable’’, que tanto caos causó en el lore del otro libro, aquí se quedó en nada. Esperemos que algo de eso se mencione a futuro; incluso, nos enteramos de que Aslan se encarga de otros mundos, asunto en el que estaría interesante indagar; también sobre el norte de Narnia, en donde está la frontera con los gigantes belicosos (diferentes a los de la raza de Torpón), o esperar que tengan algún rol más importante en otra historia; ¿Qué sucedió con el zorro, las ardillas, sus amigos sátiros y el enano que estaban merendando en el bosque? Ya que Aslan no los liberó de estar convertidos en estatuas; acerca del dicho que reza que ‘’quien es rey o reina en Narnia lo será para siempre’’... a esperar qué sucederá con eso cuando los cuatro hermanos regresen a Narnia; y, por último, más sobre el lore de este mundo en general, como los enanos rojos que se dedican a la minería, etc.

En cuanto a los personajes, la única que se me hizo destacable fue la Bruja Blanca. Ella tenía un muy buen rol en El sobrino del mago, y aquí, aunque su participación es más reducida y/o limitada, no deja de ser un personaje que por lo menos cumple y cae en gracia, a pesar de ser la antagonista. Me encanta que sea sarcástica, déspota y prepotente. Una lástima que ya no se mencione nada acerca de su trasfondo, como su tan potente hechizo de ‘’la palabra deplorable’’, su poder para leer las mentes o su fuerza sobrehumana. En esta ocasión, hasta le pide a Edmund que les ayude a ella y a su enano a mover su trineo fuera de la nieve... La Jadis de El sobrino del mago habría hecho eso con una sola mano, si es que antes no obligaba al enano y al niño bajo alguna mortal amenaza solo para su disfrute.
En cambio, sobre los hermanos, se me hacen demasiado sencillos y simplones (aunque sean niños), a diferencia de Polly y Digory del otro libro, que tampoco es que fueran la gran cosa, pero estaban mejor desarrollados y hasta podrían ser recordables en cierto modo: porque Susan es inexistente en esta historia; Lucy se me hizo algo molesta y fastidiosa como la hermana menor; y a Peter lo encontré demasiado ausente como para aspirar al rol tan sublime de primogénito que se le pretende dar. Al único que destaco de ellos es a Edmund por su desarrollo y evolución, a pesar de que también sea un personaje totalmente olvidable, débil o falto de carisma; pero es el único de los hermanos que está trabajado como tal.
Con respecto a Aslan, no es un personaje muy interesante (al menos en esta ocasión), ni mucho menos se hace memorable o entrañable su intervención como sí lo fue en El sobrino del mago. Allí su participación fue muy similar a como lo adaptaron para la película del 2005; pero aquí se siente un poco genérico y hasta aburrido, aunque no ha dejado de caerme bien, ya que simpatizo con él.

Y como ya he mencionado en más de una oportunidad, este es un libro extremadamente básico. Por lo menos se agradece de que avance rápido, no aburra con su lectura y que siempre vaya directo al grano; a pesar de no generar tanto interés como su precuela sí lo hacía. Y a diferencia de El sobrino del mago que no se me hizo que fuera un libro para niños, sino que disfrutable para todo público, acá sí sentí el toque más infantil.
Siendo honesto, esta lectura no me causó nada especial. Creo que conocer tan bien y casi de memoria la historia gracias a la película afectó sobremanera mi experiencia, y más si se trata de una adaptación tan fiel al libro.
El final se siente meh, pero se entiende de que originalmente no fue una obra ideada para tener alguna secuela; además de que aquí se deja en evidencia que el profesor algo sabía sobre Narnia, y que justamente por eso nunca fue incrédulo con Lucy. También siento que es un crimen lo tan exprés que se describe a la ‘’gran’’ batalla final en un par de páginas, sin acción.
Sin embargo, es posible decir que El león, la bruja y el armario sea agradable como libro, a pesar de toda su simpleza, pero no siento que cumpla en un 100% como lectura. Igual, hay que ser sinceros y no es que tenga una trama apoteósica o trepidante, y si bien su precuela tampoco cumplía con esto último a rajatabla, ofrecía una experiencia mucho mejor.
De igual forma, este título se siente muy plano y puede que, hasta carente de personalidad, a pesar de su tan simpática trama, la cual como ya he indicado, es presentada de una forma extremadamente básica.

En conclusión, éste es un libro flojo o débil dentro de la belleza que puede ostentar en su historia y ambientación. Siento que a regañadientes le otorgaría ★★★☆☆ de calificación, ya que 2.5 estrellas es más concordante con mi rúbrica y criterios personales que empleo a la hora de darle una valoración final a un libro. Pero, a pesar de que la historia es bonita, breve y no aburra, creo que muy acertadamente me decanto por la segunda puntuación.
Y seamos realistas, este libro suele liderar el primer lugar de casi todos los tops que hay sobre cuál es la mejor entrega de la saga, pero los únicos argumentos que se usan para justificar esto suelen ser: que fue el primero en ser publicado, que porque es el primer libro de la saga leído por quién organizó el ranking, porque es una lectura de su infancia y que evoca su nostalgia, etc. Ningún argumento que realmente sea válido o racional. Todos nublados por sesgos que ni siquiera tienen sentido y que nomás sobrevaloran la obra. Una cosa es que tengas algo favorito, lo cual está bien; y lo otro creer que por eso mismo sea lo mejor. ¿Se imaginan que cualquier saga de películas, videojuegos, libros, alguna serie o banda musical tenga su magnum opus fundamentado en apelaciones nostálgicas? Descabelladísimo. Pero, bueno, de momento, el mejor representante de la franquicia es El sobrino del mago, lo cual ya argumenté en su reseña pertinente.
Ahora, el siguiente título que cronológicamente corresponde es El caballo y el muchacho, pero es infame por estar entre las peores entregas, y si aquí no me convencí del todo..., tampoco es que eso sea impedimento para que de igual forma quiera leer su continuación, ya que esta es una saga que me sigue interesando mucho.

Pero antes de terminar la reseña, recomiendo encarecidamente a todos quienes estén interesados en este libro y que aún no hayan visto la película, que no la vean y espérense un poco más. Primero lean el libro o podría arruinarles la experiencia; aunque, si están interesados en la saga y deciden ver la película antes, es totalmente válido, porque, al menos en este caso, la película es superior al libro gracias a los pequeños cambios y diferencias que tiene para mejor; además de la tan épica y espectacular batalla final, en conjunto con su maravilloso soundtrack. La adaptación del 2005 le hace una justicia y favor abismal al libro y a la vez todo lo contrario, ya que siento que lo opaca en todo sentido.
Finalmente, quiero concluir citando a la profecía: «Cuando el hijo de Adán en carne y hueso en el trono de Cair Paravel esté sentado, los malos tiempos habrán acabado». Y, en efecto, aquella profecía se cumplió. Así que, en teoría, ya no debería de haber más malos tiempos en Narnia, porque se han acabado por los siglos de los siglos. Veamos qué sucederá en futuros libros cuando se contradiga esta profecía, al incluir nuevos malos tiempos para otras historias.

FRASES Y COMENTARIOS QUE SEAN INTERESANTES PARA DESTACAR:

- ‘’Nadie puede decir que has robado un abrigo mientras no salga del armario donde lo has encontrado. Y supongo que todo este país está dentro del armario’’.

- ‘’Tal vez te ha sucedido alguna vez al soñar que alguien dice algo que no entiendes pero en el sueño parece como si tuviera un enorme significado; puede ser un sentido aterrador, que convierte todo el sueño en una pesadilla o, por el contrario, uno demasiado magnífico para poder expresarlo con palabras, que convierte el sueño en algo tan hermoso que uno lo recuerda toda la vida y siempre desea repetirlo’’.

- [...] ‘’si existe alguien capaz de presentarse ante Aslan sin que le tiemblen las rodillas, o bien es más valiente que la mayoría o es sencillamente un necio’’.

- ‘’He conocido enanos buenos [...], pero realmente pocos, y son los que se parecen menos a los hombres’’.

- [...] ‘’indicó Aslan a Peter en voz baja; tan baja que sonó casi como un ronroneo, si no resulta irrespetuoso decir que un león ronronea’’.

- [...] ‘’pero si alguien se ha sentido así -si ha permanecido despierto toda la noche y llorando hasta quedarse sin lágrimas- sabrá que al final llega una especie de calma’’.

Para no perder el hilo con las demás reseñas de la saga de Las crónicas de Narnia en orden cronológico:

• 1) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
• 2)
• 3) https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Manuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book.
It was first read to me in 4th grade. We would all come in from lunch and our teacher would read to us for about 30 minutes before we would start class.
I remember this book because it wasnt read to us by Mrs Graham, but instead it would be read by Mr Goodwin, her long-haired, bearded, Birkenstock wearing teacher's aid.
Over the next few weeks we were enthralled by this story, we couldnt wait for lunch period to be over so we could hear what was happening in this magic kingdom, called Narnia.
From the begining we all identified with Lucy and her siblings. How was it possible that an English girl could transport herself to another place, simply by hiding in a wardrobe? And once through the wardrobe, there was this wonderful and friendly creature called a faun, Mr Tumnus. All this in only the first chapter.
As the chapters progressed we got to know more about the siblings and the other creatures who inhabit Narnia.
Some people critisize C.S Lewis for using too much Christian symbolism, but I was in 4th grade and to me this was the most wonderful and exciting book ever written for children.

When Mr Goodwin finished the book. I instantly went to the library so I could read it myself. I was very proud this was the first book I read "without pictures". To my joy, I discovered there were other books about Narnia and I eventually read all of them too. Evenutually I discovered other wonderful places in other books and I continue to look for them today.
I will always be grateful to Mr Goodwin, he started off by telling me about Narnia, but in the end, he introduced me to so much more through my on going love of books.
Thank you Mr Goodwin, for everything.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

How do you rate a childhood favorite?



Along with A Wrinkle in Time, the Chronicles of Narnia defined what a good children's book was for me. Because, while I loved Ramona Quimby, there was always something better about a little magic in the world.
Besides, her family was a little too normal. I grew up in a cult-y home, so reading about her family, or the problems that the characters in a Judy Blume book had, was more like a peek into another world that didn't quite make sense to me.
It was easier to wrap my head around what was happening in Narnia.



I don't think all the themes translate well into a modern-day children's fantasy, simply because there's too much of a cultural gap at this point. Aslan telling Susan she was never to fight in the war, for example. But there are some incredibly nuanced character developments that are still striking to this day.
Edward, the somewhat cruel older brother to Lucy, and peevish younger brother to Peter & Susan, really hit that middle child angst dead center. You can see his desperation to impress Peter and not look foolish to Susan spiral out of control when he realizes that Lucy was right about another world inside the wardrobe. If he had just come out of that closet and backed her story up, how different his story would have been.
It's a good lesson we (hopefully) learn in childhood - why it's important to admit when you're wrong, and how quickly small white lies can spiral into horrible life-changing ones.



I loved these books when I was a kid. And I'm not sure I want to revisit the entire series with my jaded adult eyes, but regardless of what I think of C.S. Lewis' religious themes now, I'll always have a soft spot for this children's fantasy.



Recommended for that classic nostalgia.

[Chrissy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic, good versus evil, children's story with appeal for all ages and strong Christian message. Have read this lovely book a few times over the years, this time with my son. I wonder if he'll be looking for Narnia in his wardrobe, like I did as a child.
I'd like to recommend reading the series in publication order, not in chronological order, starting with The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and not The Magician's Nephew.

[Saranya (v busy) · Rating 3 out of 5]

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ʙᴜᴛ ꜱᴏᴍᴇ ᴅᴀʏ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡɪʟʟ ʙᴇ ᴏʟᴅ ᴇɴᴏᴜɢʜ ᴛᴏ ꜱᴛᴀʀᴛ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ ꜰᴀɪʀʏ ᴛᴀʟᴇꜱ ᴀɢᴀɪɴ. ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴀɴ ᴛʜᴇɴ ᴛᴀᴋᴇ ɪᴛ ᴅᴏᴡɴ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ꜱᴏᴍᴇ ᴜᴘᴘᴇʀ ꜱʜᴇʟꜰ, ᴅᴜꜱᴛ ɪᴛ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴛᴇʟʟ ᴍᴇ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʏᴏᴜ ᴛʜɪɴᴋ ᴏꜰ ɪᴛ. ɪ ꜱʜᴀʟʟ ᴘʀᴏʙᴀʙʟʏ ʙᴇ ᴛᴏᴏ ᴅᴇᴀꜰ ᴛᴏ ʜᴇᴀʀ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴛᴏᴏ ᴏʟᴅ ᴛᴏ ᴜɴᴅᴇʀꜱᴛᴀɴᴅ ᴀ ᴡᴏʀᴅ ʏᴏᴜ ꜱᴀʏ,
ʙᴜᴛ ɪ ꜱʜᴀʟʟ ꜱᴛɪʟʟ ʙᴇ ʏᴏᴜʀ ᴀꜰꜰᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴᴀᴛᴇ ɢᴏᴅꜰᴀᴛʜᴇʀ, ᴄ.ꜱ. ʟᴇᴡɪꜱ.

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I love reading children's books. I loved the characters so much- Lucy, Susan, Peter, Edmund, Aslan, the beavers and many more. But my only critique is that I found myself wishing for a slightly more expanded storyline. It has definitely left me hungry for the rest of the series.

Now can I have my Turkish Delight?🥺

[Cindy Rollins · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you read a book over and over and over again, sometimes in the same month though to a different student and you never once become uniterested then that book gets 5 stars. Forever and always, 5 stars.

Also I am completely charmed and tickled to now have a granddaughter named Lucy, and a grandson named Peter.

Update: 4/11/23 needed a fresh breath of air and nothing has fresher air than Narnia.

[Henk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liked this installment a lot more than the prequel, with some moral ambiguity with one of the siblings and a nice blend of fairy tales (and even Santa Claus) coming together
Always winter but never Christmas

I can't say too much about the storyline itself, I think it is overly familiar to most and for the rest The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a quite classical tale of Good versus Evil, with some very clear Christian symbols.

Edmund using fake news conspiracy theory logic to get his way back to his addiction felt a bit close to our current 2020 world. But I really appreciated him as a character, because he brings in a bit more realism of children sometimes being awful and with it some more complex feelings like remorse and guilt.

Interesting enough both the battle at the end of the book and Aslan his fate have a lot in common with respectively Helm's Deep battle and the Gandalf the White storyline from The Two Towers of J.R.R. Tolkien
And the concept of old, love based magic superseding “regular” magic gave me distinct J.K. Rowling vibes.

A solid book and a much better start into the world of Narnia than the storywise earlier The Magician's Nephew, this is a nice read for the wintertime.

[Jonathan Terrington · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Defence of C.S. Lewis...or a brief attempt at such

Some thoughts recently crossed my mind in regards to arguments one could offer as a defence of the Christian side of this novel. The main arguments against this novel as a 'Christian allegory' that I have heard are: 1)Aslan is not a strong Christ-figure 2)That C.S. Lewis 'preaches' a black and white morality. So I'm going to roughly address them from my perspective and hope it encourages some discussion.

1) I will agree that Aslan is not a strong Christ-figure. Firstly for Aslan to really represent Christ he would have to be true to the gospel story. In other words he would have to be god made into man come to die for all mankind. However as he only dies for the one traitor again it's not sticking true to the Biblical gospel that all have sinned and that Christ was needed as a sacrifice for that sin. If you take things too literally here, C.S. Lewis' novel doesn't make much that much sense theologically as a result. I'll explain where I am/was going with that in a moment.

2) I debate that C.S. Lewis preaches in his novel. Occasionally he can be a touch patronising but compared to many authors he rarely slips into such condescension. As for his morality I think you must understand it from the perspective of Christianity. Christianity is about black and white morality essentially: good versus evil, light vs. dark and truth vs. lies etc. It is also very grey in that Christianity is about life and the fact that no one is perfect, that everyone fits into that moral grey area. Of course I explain roughly and inadequately.

Ultimately I see that there is room to argue that C.S. Lewis does a poor job of writing an allegorical novel. However I see it as a very subtle novel that unlike others (for instance The Alchemist) does not build its story around expressing an ideology but rather incorporates an ideology into its storytelling. I think that if one wants to criticise this novel it should be for not properly showing the gospel rather than for 'preaching'. I know that I and many others enjoyed the story first before seeing the connection between it and the Biblical tales. I enjoyed it even more afterwards so, then again I could be a tad biased.

Original Review

To begin I must note that I grant this such a high rating due to the impact it had on my life. It to me is one novel that were I to pick the one novel that forged a love of books for me it would be The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. Why? Because I can remember back about twelve years ago when I was homeschooled by my mother as a five year old. We wandered down during winter into the warm back room and she read the first Narnia book to us. The image of a red faun carrying parcels as he passed a growing lamppost would stick with me from that moment (as it stuck with C.S. Lewis). As I learned to read the Narnia books were the first novels I sunk my growing reading teeth into. And to this day I have read and re read the novels back to front (and maybe front to back).

The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe is a novel written for both children and adults. It contains highly allegorical elements as C.S.Lewis was a well-known apologetics writer. However he wrote that he did not write his novel as a pure allegory but as a story. And that is what The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe is, a story to be enjoyed by everyone. And although written in simple language the reader can quickly, concisely and easily imagine the world without the clumsy constraints of overused words. I personally cannot imagine a world without these novels.

Additional thoughts:

1. Just a question at last. And one with a highly philosophical twist to it. Why is it that people so readily condemn those books which are considered as moral tales? You'd think we could do with more morality in such a twisted and confused world regardless of accepting the belief systems.

2. I have heard many people describe the entire series as silly and far too preachy. I do not see it that way at all. Trust me if C.S.Lewis wanted to be preachy he would have written a lot more philosophy and less story. Yes I can see how some would call this silly but then I argue that they are missing the point. It's a fairytale type fantasy intended mainly for children (and for those children again as adults or for their parents perhaps). But I argue that as Lewis only wrote this story based on the story of the crucifixion in many ways that it was not intended as a preachy book. My question is that why is it that if I were to base a story along what some call the 'Christian myth' it is claimed as preaching while as if I were to base it on any other mythology or story it would be deemed as merely copying the themes of another mythology? Is this yet another example of doublethink?*

*See 1984

[Sofia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seriously, Edmund? Turkish delight? If you're going to betray your family, choose something a little heartier.

[Cam (Lana Belova) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lucy hugs Aslan in the Forest by CHYsheryl

One of the most beautiful books I've ever read, love every part of it! The characters, the setting, a magical portal, awesome adventures were all something for unforgettable, magical story. I hold so much love for Narnia and the Pevensie family, the magic of these stories never ends - this beautiful book, along with a new spring sun, once again lit the room, as well as my heart, spreading the happiness in my soul and mind.

Reading this feels like coming home, the lamp-post light always is a welcoming glow leading to a close friend :)

[Imme van Gorp · Rating 5 out of 5]

|| 4.5 stars ||

Oh this is such a gorgeous and charming story! It’s an almost perfect children’s fairy tale filled with wonder and magic!

The writing is so pleasant and pretty. The descriptions of the land of Narnia and its inhabitants are simply stunning, and their adventures completely hook you from start to finish.

The characters are just lovely as well: Peter is brave and fair, Susan is kind and humble, and Lucy is adorable and precious.
The odd one out is Edmund who can’t be described as anything other than an annoying little brat. He has a very interesting character arc, though, and his actions were quite realistic for a troubled little boy who’s also very jealous of his siblings.


'The Chronicles of Narnia':
1. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - 4.5 stars
2. Prince Caspian - 3.5 stars

[Shovelmonkey1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Role (bibli)call:

The big cuddly cat = Jesus. Strange that a lion should be chosen to represent the big man when Lions are notoriously aggressive, solitary carnivores who are more likely to eat any potential apostles than than teach or lead them.

The white witch = Satan or Eve the temptress depending on which side of the tree of knowledge you're most likely to be barking up. Famed for a monochrome wardrobe in the A/W line only. Like Alan Rickman in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, she has cancelled Christmas.

Edmund = Judas Iscariot. Judas has been proven to be a more astute bargain maker and walks off with 30 pieces of silver for his denials. Edmund gets a box of sweets.

Lucy, Peter, Susan = apostles, knights and other positive biblical forces. An unusual scenario given the general hoo-hah about whether or not any of apostles were female (see last supper male/female image debate).

Mr Tumnus the faun = an aberration. With his goat like legs and general caprine features you might be forgiven for imagining that he might be an agent of Satan, or Pan or some other pagan deity. Nope. He's on the side of good and not evil and that there throws the nice set of biblical allusions into chaos.

Beavers, birds, satyrs, fauns and other ancillary creatures = collateral damage.

Plot summary: Icing sugar, picture perfect winter wonderland accessible through the rear of roomy wardrobe handily equipped with high-end (but non PETA approved) all weather garb. Ruled in supremely effective manner by single minded, highly organised, independent woman until arrival of children and large pet. Maybe this book is actually a metaphor for home life in the modern age.

[Dem · Rating 4 out of 5]

Novels were not a part of my life until my mid teens and therefore I missed out wonderful reading experiences like the Chronicles of Narnia but while I wish I had read more as a child I am having an absolute ball catching up on all these enchanting books when I can appreciate them on a different level

image:
The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe is a compelling story that is both enchanting and filled with fantasy and adventure and I think can be appreciated by both adults and children alike.

Writen by C.S. Lewis in 1950 for his god daughter Lucy, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe is part of a book series which is known as The Chronicles of Narnia. Set in England during the Second World War and tells the story of four children who are sent to the country to stay with a wealthy, eccentric professor in large county house. While playing hide and seek in the many rooms of the house on a rainy day one of the children discover a Wardrobe and the fantasy and adventure begins.

Beautifully written, intriguing even for someone like me with a low tolerance for fantasy. I was charmed with the setting, the atmosphere and the wonderful complex and charming characters I met along the way. I loved the themes explored in the novel and really enjoyed the reading experience as an adult.