Chronicles of Narnia

[Loopy]

I reread the whole series recently, and loved it.
(I hadn't read it since grade school).

Edmund and Lucy are still my favorite characters.

[emilsson]

I liked these books when I was a kid. The Lion, The with and the wardrobe is my favorite book.

Favorite character? That´s got to be Peter.

[M L Crewe]

The Narnia books were the best! ;) I can't remember them well enough to know who my favourite character was... but my fav. books were The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe and The Magician's Nephew.

mlc

[anduin]

M L Crewe....in case you were wondering, I moved your "fav. fantasy movies" thread to the movie forum. "General Fantasy" is only for books only. Sorry for the inconvience. ;)

[Gwaihir]

The Narnia tales have always been the best work C.S. Lewis every did, at the exception of "The Screwtape Letters". When I was 10, our drama group at Church *tried* to form a play out of "The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe", but, alas, it was horrible. (;

We still have the video tape of it, and all I do is laugh when I watch it over again. I had the uncomfortable part of "Mr. Beaver", so I had the whole get up: Beaver ears, tail, blue overalls, and slippers that were supposed to resemble Beaver feet. :)

David

[IronParrot]

I haven't read any of these since I was very little... I lost interest midway through - partially because of my short attention span, but partially because I didn't take these up in order. I never got through the whole thing... can somebody please provide me with the order, and perhaps a little encouragement to get back into these?

[bmilder]

I read these books a long time ago, in second grade or so. :)

I must've liked it, since I know I read the whole series, and reading Narnia probably helped me appreciate The Hobbit and LotR when I got to them a few years later. :p

[Elanor]

I love the Chronicles of Narnia, and have read them all many times, once to my little sister. My favorite book is The Horse and his Boy, and my favorite characters are Eustace, Lucy, and Shasta. My family has been trying to collect the BBC/Wonderworks videos, but I don't think they ever got past The Silver Chair... They don't seem to have had much of a budget, but the movies they've done are great. I greatly admire C.S. Lewis too, and I love both the fantasy/adventure and the allegory aspects of the books. (This is another thing that my whole family loves and assigns roles for--I ended up as the White Witch in this one.)

The original order:

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Prince Caspian
Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Silver Chair
The Horse and His Boy
The Magician's Nephew
The Last Battle

Some other publishing company recently put TMN first and THaHB third, but just ignore that and read them in the order Lewis intended!

[bmilder]

Yeah, that would be like reading The Silmarillion before Hobbit or LotR :p

[Gwaihir]

Not exactly, Bmilder, since they're about 500 pages shorter, and were meant for children under the age of 12. :) You can really read them in any order, but the best would probably be the form they were originally published in:

"The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe"

"Prince Caspian"

"The Voyage of the Dawn Treader"

"The Silver Chair"

"The Horse and his Boy"

"The Magician's Nephew"

"The Last Battle"

I have first editions of TLB, TMN, and PC, which have become extremely difficult to find in acceptable condition.

David

[Darth Tater]

I think the books are good when read out loud, but quite frankly I didn't like them when I tried to read them on my own.

[Elanor]

What are your favorite scenes from these books? I love the chapter in Magician's Nephew when Aslan sings everything to life (kind of like the Ainulindale but much more exciting!), the description of Eustace's transformation and the light/sweetness of the Utter East in Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Shasta's walk across the pass between Archenland and Narnia in Horse and His Boy, the end of the Last Battle, and the meeting between the living and the legends in Prince Caspian. They are beautiful, imaginative, meaningful, and amazingly written.

[IronMongery]

I love those books! i like the last one the best with the stuipd ape and the donkey.

my fav caracter has gotta be edmund. he's an ass. he's cool.

[Brewhaha]

I remeber when my gr.3 teacher used to read "the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" to us. I like the ice queen, she is really cool (no pun intended)

[etherealunicorn]

Sadly enough, I have never read the Narnia books. However, supposedly I have them on backorder, if they ever get here. I am looking forward to reading them.

[andustar]

i love them

but i was so dissapointed to find that they were an allegory!

[etherealunicorn]

Yay! My books finally came in last week and I have now read all of them but the last book(left to go out of town before I finished them all). So far, my favorite character, I believe, is Edmund. Not really sure why but I like him.

[arynetrek]

love Narnia, reread the series about every two years - i've got a friend who's obsessive about it & we always end up reading the same book at the same time...

as for favorites, my favorite character is either Edmund - he had that great line in DT to Eustace "you were only an ass, but i - i was a traitor"; Aravis, because she just kicks ass; Puddleglum, for no apparent reason; or the Hermit of the Southern March or Ramandu, because i have an obscure-character thing. Lucy always felt too innocent & believing to me. Peter became a king because it was his destiny, (that sounded cheezy), Edmund out of love/respect to Aslan who saved him, & Susan because she fit the stereotype of a princess too well - but then i didn't really like her anyway.

Favoite scenes - when the kid-kings come back to Narnia at the beginning of PC or the island of despair in DT. Or maybe the last 2 chapters of Silverchair where Caspian came to everyone else's world.

here's some pointless trivia - and remember that i'm an obscure-character freak...

I'm a 15-year-old (approx.) girl, married to a warrior. I love nothing better than parties, clothing, & other frippery. And in my own mind, i am one of the "palace people." Who am i? (hint: she's not a Narnian)

enjoy...

aryne *

[Gwaihir]

BIG DUH!!!!! :)

It would have to be Lasaraleen from "The Horse and his Boy". She's my favorite female character in that book. For being a cooped up old bachelor, C.S. Lewis sure did know how to write realistic females. :)

[Dfsg]

Gosh I love the chronicles of Narnia! My favorite book would have to be the Dawn Treader, and my favorite Character would have to be REEPACHEEP!!! I LOVE THAT LITTLE MOUSE-CAPTIAN! Puddle-gum was cool too.

Favoite scenes- Hmmm.. Haven't read the books in a while, but I must say that When Peter, Edmund, Lucy, and Susan came back to Cair Paravel in "Prince Caspian"

And I also agree that the books are much better in the original way than the way that book companies tried to change it to. I spent a lot of time after school aranging the cronicales to the way that they should be.

[Lost in Coruscant]

CS Lewis later wrote to a young fan and told him that he should read them chronologically...he didn't have the whole series planned out when he wrote them, The Horse and His Boy just came to him.

So read them like this:

The Magician's Nephew
The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe
The Horse and His Boy
Prince Caspian
Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Silver Chair
The Last Battle.

I've never cared much for Lucy, the movie actress got on my nerves.

[Gwaihir]

Far be it from me to disagree with the author, but I must. ;) I believe the best way to read them was the way they were originally printed. I realize that books like "The Magician's Nephew" don't follow the series like a true series, but that's way it's called the prologue chronicle.

Just my opinion, though. :)

David

[cee2lee2]

These books really stand up to the test of time. I didn't read them for the first time until I was an adult. Loved them first time around and still love them. Read straight through the series (in order published) almost every year.

One of my favorite scenes is in the first book when Christmas finally comes. Can you imagine -- always winter but never Christmas!

Edmund becomes quite a noble character, but I've always felt a little sorry for Susan. How sad that she chose to deny her experience.

[Dfsg]

Awww... Stupid Edmund and the Turkish Delight...

[Gwaihir]

I think ultimately one of the children had to give up their experience, writing it off as childish. It was just another allegory on the part of Lewis.

David

[inSANaTEE Ordrin]

I personally loved the original. TLTWATW was definitely something that captured the spark to get me reading all those many novels again. Always such great stories that went on and on and on.

[arynetrek]

inSANaTEE, love your quote.

aryne *

[Elbreth of Carhouth]

I've been reading these since I was about 4 or 5, love them nearly to death. I've had two sets because I wore out the first!

Regarding the debate over which order to read them in, I always read them in order of occurance, not order of publishing. Magician's Nephew is first because Digory (sp?)
is the professor from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. The Wardrobe is made from the wood of the tree that grew from the apple core the kids planted by the buried rings. That's why it's a doorway.

The Horse and His Boy happens during the story of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, just a few years before the kids go back home.

I think my favorite characters have to be Polly, Peter, Shasta/Cor, Reepacheep, Rillian, and Jewel the Unicorn.
I don't have a favorite book 'cause it's all one story to me.

[Miralys]

Ah...Narnia. I absolutely loved these books when I was a kid and I still do. I read the whole series every few years and I always find new things in them. This is why I didn't understand someone's comment that they enjoyed Narnia less because they found out it was an allegory? I dont know....I guess its all a matter of taste but to me the fact that something can be looked at on more than one level adds to my enjoyment of the story, poem etc. I never had someone say, "hey lookey here this is an allegory" but rather came to realize it over several readings. I guess you could say that it grows with the reader.


It's hard for me to pick a favorite character since they are all so wonderful and unique. I think it would have to be Puddleglum or the White Witch, simply because her character has so much depth to it if you look at the overall development of it.

One thing about the series that has been bugging me a little is Mr. Tumnus, as in faun Tumnus. Then a few years ago I found out what a faun is in mythical stories. Apparently they're um....I dont know what word to use here...lecherous? It kinda threw me for a loop and made me look at Mr. Tumnus differently. So is he just outside the norm or did Lewis mean something different when creating Mr. Tumnus or what? Can anyone help me out with this?

[Elbreth of Carhouth]

As far as I know, Mr. Tumnus is simply meant to be seen how he is portrayed. All creatures suffer from greed in at least a minor amount, and no doubt the Witch's offer sounded good at the time. He knew what he was doing was wrong, and was truly sorry when he discovered how wrong, and that it wasn't too late to change. He was partly a victim, and partly at fault himself. It was his choice to do wrong, because all wrongdoings come from a direct choice. He did see that is was wrong, but wouldn't admit it to himself. And the Witch is very cunning, and very deceitful. I believe that is the only way Tumnus was meant to be seen.

[inSANaTEE Ordrin]

Lewis wrote him as something different from what the actual definition of a faun was. Or he understood it as something different back then, and that definition apart from his has changed over time.

Thanks aryne, it is funny how much we forget about how much our soldiers have done for us over time. That impression of the soldier has been lost over time. And they should be, at least IMHO, looked upon with some respect. For all that they have to deal with for one, and considering that their responsibilities are expanding amid the cutbacks, it is even more astounding.

[Elanor]

soldiers have done amazing things for history, more than any other profession, possibly.

I guess it would be possible to read the books chronologically and enjoy them as much; I guess I always think of the order they were published in as the order that different truths about Narnia are revealed to the reader. I remember how amazed I was the first time I read The Magician's Nephew, realizing that Digory would become the Professor, and about Jadis' past. I don't know if I could have enjoyed tLtWatW as much, or in the same way, if I had read tMN first. I guess the Horse and his Boy could be read at any time during the series, as long as it's after TLWW, and before the Last Battle, when the characters show up again.

I really identify with Jill, having experienced similar feelings of self-doubt and rejection in school. I first read tLtWatW when I was a kid, and my parents told me that Aslan was supposed to represent Jesus Christ. I thought that was very cool and read the rest of the books with that in mind. It wasn't until the 3rd or 4th reading that I realized how much more allegory there is! I think it really enriches the story, which is already a fine fantasy for non-Christians, but with even more meaning and depth because of the allegory. I love the Last Battle and how all the characters from the different stories and settings meet up and have this big party! Is it just my imagination, or did Tirian have a crush on Lucy?

It's interesting how much Greek mythology is in the story, mixed with Celtic, Hindu, and Christian elements, and still making a harmonious whole. Like Bacchus and the maenads showing up to help Aslan free Narnia from Miraz and cruel English-type schoolteachers? Mr. Tumnus, a faun who complains about not having Christmas, and carries an umbrella and packages through the snow? I definitely don't think he's supposed to represent the stereotypical faun--he is simply physically half man-half goat. C.S. Lewis used many different settings, but they are sometimes symbolic or just there for entertainment-interest.

[Salli Canaliya]

I'd just like to comment that I agree about reading in publication order. (I almost always believe rather adamantly in publication order.) Reading Narnia in the chronological order they put them in now is something close to sacrilige. ;)

[SarahStar]

Something close to?!? :eek: It's just plain wrong!!!

I am militantly obsessive about reading books in the order in which they were originally intended to be read. The Magician's Nephew does not come first. It is not supposed to come first. C.S. Lewis knew what he was doing.

[Loopy]

I think reading TMN first would kind of ruin it.

The cool thing about TLTWATW is that you don't know where the wardrobe came from, you don't know why it does what it does, but you never doubt it for a second. It's just beautifully done. Reading TMN first would take away that sense of childish mystery.

[Elbreth of Carhouth]

You know, authors do<!--EZCODE
ITALIC END--> write backstories later...
Usually they have
an idea that doesn't quite fit in at the moment, but it's the
history of that "world", and does have some importance.
They figure out later how to make it work.

George Lucas
did the same thing, you can't say Episode I is meant to be watched
after IV, V, and VI.

[IronParrot]

I just read these again - well, I'm not finished yet... I'm on The Silver Chair. I wanted to read them in the originally written order but I forgot what the originally written order was... and I have a one-volume edition, you see. So I gave in to Lewis' second, recommended, chronological order... even though I too am a nut about reading books in the order they were originally written.

So far, I've enjoyed them a lot more this time than my first unsuccessful attempts years and years ago...

[Elrond]

I haven't read these books for some time, but I don't think I read them in anything close to either of the given orders the first time through. It made no difference really. I loved them all, except the magician's nephew, which I tried to read when I was really little and didn't understand properly. The witch scared me (we are talking really little here). I read it again, long after I'd read all the others, and enjoyed it properly.

[IronParrot]

Okay, I've now finished the Chronicles of Narnia, so I can discuss the books properly... for anyone who hasn't read them, spoilers do follow. But of course, that was the case in many of the above posts as well, so hey.

I read them in Lewis' recommended chronological order, but I will certainly read them in the order they were originally written someday.

The Magician's Nephew

This was a nice beginning, and it definitely had the feel of a "beginning". In the chronological order, I do agree with others that this is quite out of place. Even though it touches on the beginnings of Narnia, it simply does not introduce the world as well as The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The segue at the very end that reveals the origins of the wardrobe from the Tree of Protection and that Digory is the Professor was clever, but went by so quickly that I couldn't help but feel a little cheated.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

I liked this a lot, to be sure. Edmund was probably the most interesting character to me... this novel, easily the most "stand-alone" of them all as that was how it was originally intended, worked very well in painting a picture of this mythological world.

The Horse And His Boy

Easily my least favorite of the lot. It never really goes beyond being "a story in Narnia" and has little significance alongside the rest of the Chronicles, in my opinion. In fact, all it really does is cover Archenland and Calormen in more detail, setting up for the role of the Calormenes in The Last Battle in a way. And yeah, the allegory to the Book of Exodus was definitely on the excessive side.

Prince Caspian

Perhaps my favorite part of the saga. From beginning to end it is an exciting journey that does a remarkable job of following up TLWW, and the long transition that occurs with the passage of time since the Golden Age of Narnia is well done. Reepicheep rules. And those Black Dwarfs hinting that they had a way of calling back the White Witch? That was great... it was (sort of) developed again in The Silver Chair, and I liked how that tied in together...

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

The only Narnia novel that really gave me the feeling that a quest was going on... and one with ambition, to be sure. The part when they sail as far east as they can and... well, all that... one of my favorite parts imagery-wise, alongside the end of Narnia in The Last Battle.

The Silver Chair

Pretty decent... I thoroughly enjoyed the return of the Witch in green (yes, I interpreted it as being the same witch as Jadis). Very interesting indeed.

The Last Battle

Now this one I have a couple of qualms with... particularly, the fact that it took a stance of "Aslan is God, Tash is Satan" when really, Tash never figured into the saga at all, and the recurring symbol of villainy was the Witch. This sudden shift in focus just didn't work for me... of course, anything to do with Calormen didn't really work for me (see The Horse And His Boy).

However, what I absolutely loved was the ending... the VERY ending, when we find out that the "friends of Narnia" have in fact, quite literally "died and gone to heaven." It was disturbing, yes, but in a hauntingly memorable way. Wonderful. And the end of the "shadow" Narnia itself was really cool, imagery-wise. I mean... holy paradigm shift.

Overall... I liked Narnia a lot more than I last remembered upon reading it this time. Still not among my favorites in terms of fantasy sagas - maybe because I couldn't really connect with the abundant Christian allegory very well. It was definitely worth reading, though, and I do intend to read the books again in the future in the originally written order.

[galadriel1]

Well, I guess I`m kinda the oddball in this topic. For some reason, this series of books just didn`t excite me that much. I read the series through once. A few years back, I started to reread the series thinking that maybe I would get more out of them. I read a couple of the books but never finished the series the second time. I had a hard time keeping an interest. To each his (or her :) ) own, I suppose.

[Lief Erikson]

Not a complete oddball. I also am not crazy about them, although I do like them.

The movies that are out now are really good, though. Especially the Silver Chair. There are movies out on 'The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe' as well, also 'The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.'

I think they're quite well done, although TVotDT was a bit slower than the other two.

I've never been as into them as the LotR, but they're okay.

[Idril Celebrindal]

I'm sure there was one of Prince Caspian, too... it wasn't a film, really, it was one of thos BBC dramas, in several parts. When I was really little, this is. Probably about 10 years ago, or slightly under. Anyone remember that? I think they did a whole sreies of them, because there was definitely a VotDT one, although that may be something different.

[Lief Erikson]

Not I, believee me.

[galadriel1]

Hey, I`m NOT alone! The books are ok but I just had trouble keeping an interest. A matter of preference I guess. I`ve never seen any of those movies / productions.

[Lief Erikson]

Too bad. :/

[Miralys]

I've seen those BBC productions. Not as in watched them but I've seen them for sale. A&E has them for sale in their brochure and I think you can probably get them direct from BBC too.

I do remember the animated film though. I watched it countless times when I was younger. I would very much like to see it again. I thought it was rather well done. Any one else remember the animated version of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe?

[Lief Erikson]

You really should see the BBC productions. They're very good, although never having seen the animated version, I can't launch a comparison.

[IronParrot]

Bringing this back to the top.

[Strange-Looking Lurker]

VODT is probably my fav...and TMN is really good too. I've alwasy thought it would have been interesting for Lewis to write a story in which he was the main character, going through all sorts of adventure while researching for the Narnia books!

Susan was my fav. character, and I wanted to shoot Lewis with a bazooka when she quite believing in Narnia. How dare he ruin my fav. character? Makes me mad just thinking about it.

[galadriel]

I was a Lucy fan. I think I related with her or something. And Reepicheep (I probably misspelt that), the Talking Mouse, he was hilarious!

My favorite books were Voyage of the Dawn Treader and the Last Battle. The scene at the end, when all of our favorite characters from all the books meet up in HeavenNarnia, that was totally heartwarming and cool.

[Varda]

Well I was introduced to The Chronicles of Narnia from the animated version of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. I really liked Lucy in that. Peter and Susan didn't stand out to me as much, and I thought Edmund was interesting. I was really little at the time.

I saw the BBC ones I think... with Lucy as the chubby brunette girl... There was one for TLWW, PC, TVDT and SC. I liked the one for SC best. I didn't like Lucy in that, though. My roommate saw that one first, and as a result she didn't like Lucy in the books as well either, while I always had the image of the cute blonde girl from the animation.

I think I finally got through all the books sometime in the middle of elementary school. Right now I have loned out TMN to a friend who has not returned it yet. I reread the series minus that one recently, and it just wasn't the same! It is my favorite one, because I like books that come full circle like that.

Also, I don't know if Lewis intended this, but Aslan singing everything into existence is very much like the Navajo tradition, which involves a spider singing the world into existence. Knowing Lewis' Christian views, I wouldn't think it likely that he would borrow from a "pagan" tradition like that.

[Varda]

oh, and in addition, I'm sure I have not caught all of the allegory stuff since I am not very Christian or knowledgeable about such things. Besides Aslan being God/Christ or something like that... and the Last Battle... I don't think I caught very many if there were more.

[galadriel]

There were lots of subtle things that were allegorical, although I can't remember most of them. The only one that sticks out in my mind is the banquet in Dawn Treader where they find the two guys asleep. There's a lot of references that connect the banquet with communion.

[IronParrot]

The Horse And His Boy is essentially a good chunk of Exodus.

Shasta = Moses

And the rest is easy to figure out.

[galadriel]

duh. :p

How did I not get the Shasta-Moses connection before?

[IronParrot]

[Bringing this thread back to the top... seems to be an influx of Narnia fans about.] :)

[Reumandar]

I Love Chronicles of Narnia they are sssooo awesome:D
My favorite books are... hmmm... thats hard... The magicians(spl) Nephew and Prince Caspian and The Voyage(spl) of the Dawn trader might be my favorites... And favorite Person(s)... Peter and Prince Caspian and Mr. and Mrs. Beaver
I LLLUUUUUUUUUUUUVVVVVVVV These books:) :D

[Finrod Felagund]

I love Chronicles of Narnia.

It's also cool how Tolkien helped convince Lewis about Christianity and how they were such good friends.

[crickhollow]

I love how his idea was to take the Christian message out of its sterilized "Christian" surroundings, and put it across in a way that would be real to people

[azalea]

Originally posted by Reumandar
And favorite Person(s)... Peter and Prince Caspian and Mr. and Mrs. Beaver


It's funny, my favorite was always Edmund.

[sun-star]

My favourite was always Edmund too, but I liked Peter sometimes and, of course, Caspian (how can anyone not? :)) My least favourite book is the Horse and his Boy - there's not enough Narnia in it, but then you could say the same about Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and that's my favourite... hmm. Not enough Narnian atmosphere, perhaps.

[IronParrot]

I agree with sun-star in that Dawn Treader is perhaps my favourite (or maybe Caspian), and The Horse and His Boy my least. Maybe because the allegory in THaHB is annoyingly blatant, but also because the journey in Dawn Treader was just more enthralling on the whole, and the imagery far lusher.

[Reumandar]

I did not get the allegory in TH and HB; what was it?

[IronParrot]

Well, summed up into two lines...

Shasta = Moses
Aslan = God

[Reumandar]

oohhhhhhhhhhhh:confused:



still don´t, get it sorry:D

[webwizard333]

To put it blunty, it's basically an overview of the events in the book of Exodus minus the Ten Plagues, and then made to fit in the book of Narnia. Alsan is the Hebrew god leading them to the promised land (Narnia) out of the desert kingdom of the people whose name begins with C :o who live in the desert as did the Egyptians. Also, Shasta is a leader like Moses seeing as he's leading the ragtag group of escapees, though at the same time escaping himself as well as being flawed and sometimes doubtful.

[Reumandar]

OOOOOOOOhhhhhhhhhhhhhh


Thank ee' for explaining

nú skil ég, takk

[IronParrot]

Yeah, if I recall correctly, the parallels are pretty direct - like Moses, Shasta first arrives in Calormen by way of floating in from the river...

[Reumandar]

Did C.S. Lewis mean for his stories to be Symbolic, or was it an accident... or was it not meant to be interpreted (spl?)?

[IronParrot]

I believe C.S. Lewis intentionally created Narnia as a model through which he could introduce children to principles of Christian faith.

[Lief Erikson]

The symoblism to me which is the most certain and the most obvious is the parallel between the death and resurrection of Aslan, and the death and resurrection of Jesus. And he uses this to defeat evil's grip on the world/The witch's grip on Edmund. The simple fact that this plain symbolism happened makes it very likely that the symbolisms in all the others also really were intended that way.

[Reumandar]

Are you sure he did it intentionally? I think he did the lion the witch and the wardrobe like that but are you sure about the rest does it say that somewere?

And where did you get your name Lief Eirikson?

[Lief Erikson]

Well, C.S. Lewis was a Christian, and if he did all of the symbolisms in his books by accident, then either it was a divinely intended accident, or it was one of the most incredible pieces of 'chance' that ever happened.

And my name isn't Lief Eirikson, but I got Lief Erikson from a hero I invented when I was younger. He's the son of Ronin Erikson, who is married to Nres Erikson, and his brother is Reran Erikson. Those are all of his family that I've created, except Wolf Erikson who is a later descendent. I'm not sure who his mother or father are. They're primarily Star Wars heroes, although Lief Erikson has been through a lot of other things as well besides Star Wars.

[Reumandar]

Wow there is a famous(spl?) Viking named Leif Eirikson
his father found Greenland and his fathers name was EirÃ*kur Rauði or Erik the red

[Lief Erikson]

I know that, and I knew that there was a real Leif Erikson in history too at the time I chose to use the name. I didn't know who he was then, though, and I was younger. So I didn't know how to spell 'Leif.' When I chose to use it on Entmoot, some time later, I simply went on spelling it the same way I always had.

There. Now I think you're one of the few people on Entmoot to have the scoop about my username :).

[Reumandar]

Ohhhhhhhh
ok thank you for the time you took to explain it to me :)

[Lief Erikson]

A pleasure. Would you like to reciprocate with information about your own user name?

Not that this isn't completely off topic, but I think we're the only two posting here anyway ;).

[Reumandar]

Well nothing special I made it up and liked it
made it up by adding allot of letters together and it spelt Reumadar
I thought it very powerfull and Lordly
I don't know:D

Really off topic though he he:D

[englishnerd]

Symbolism in Narnia:

Lewis was much less hostile to the idea of allegory than Tolkien was. You can't do a straight allegory to anything, but the principles of christianity; loving self-sacrifice, childlike faith, and many more are clearly visible. The idea that drove Lewis (and Tolkien, though they used different ways to express it) was that all the stories that were ever invented were merely copies, "dim reflections" if you will, of a TRUE story, which was the story throughout the ages of time of the gospel. Sin, salvation, redemption, eternal life...those are all elements of these simple copies which point toward the one true story...they are ways of naming the true story. Sorry about the crossover, but think of Treebeard and his lengthy names and depth of history. A name like a "tree" for a thing so deep and historical as a real tree is is "just too hasty". Lewis "Deep Magic" is older and deeper than time, and quite unknowable, but all the other magic of his world stems from and points to that deep magic.

[Fred Baggins]

I read it along time ago, and have been trying to read it again, but I never have enough time. Lucy is definatly my fave. My fave book is "The voyage of the Daw Treader". I love that one, and I cry every time, at the end, where the mouse((Like I said it was a long time ago, I don't remeber his name)) when the mouse left.

Wow Englishnerd, you make it sound so easy to explain it. I could never come up with that without taking hours, then i would still not have it sound right.

[englishnerd]

Hey FredB, it's so good to find someone else whose fave is the Dawn Treader! Most of the others I've talked to said it was their most unfavorite. btw, the mouse's name is Reepicheep :-)

Reumandeur...check out the symbolism in "the horse and his boy" if you think about it in terms of the story of Moses...wandering through the desert, Aravis' servant-maid being beaten for her sin, the flight through the desert to "Narnia and the North!" Aslan revealing himself to Bree on the wall at the Hermit's rest...let me know if you see it.

[Fred Baggins]

Reepicheep! Thankyou, much!

[Reumandar]

I like the Dawn Treader it's awesome!!!
and I will read the horse and his boy, and tell you if I get it if you really want me to.

[englishnerd]

I didn't get the moses thing until someone else pointed it out to me...but now I can totally see all of those parallels. it's not straight allegory, of course, but there are similarities in the lessons learned, etc. it's pretty cool, hope I didn't spoil it for you, R.

[Lief Erikson]

I didn't see any of the parallels in the series except for the ones in the first book, which were plain as day to me.

But I don't feel very guilty, so that's all right :D.

[englishnerd]

Well, the parallels in the other stories are much less obvious than in the Lion, Witch Wardrobe...except for things like the creation imagery in The Magician's Nephew, and the New Heaven and New Earth/ Revelation imagery in The Last Battle. Most of the others include principles that are relatable to the Christian faith. Reepicheep in his never quitting, but going on even in the face of lonliness, loss of resources, and an unknown future...and in the Silver Chair, Eustace's confirmation of belief that breaks the witch's spell..."If it is all a dream--well, our dream world beats this world clean hollow! I'll keep believing in a real sun and in a real Aslan even if there is, as you say, no real sun or Aslan to believe in!" (totally paraphrased, but you get the gist). And again in the Dawn Treader, when Eustace the dragon (a form put on him as a consequence of his greediness) sheds his dragon form and bathes (think baptism) according to Aslan's direction...a total symbolic episode of putting off the old and being raised to new life. I've heard many people complain that the allegorical perspective takes away the power of the story, but I think these "illuminations" make it so much more powerful...at least, maybe I just think so because I'm a Christian...

[Reumandar]

Originally posted by englishnerd
hope I didn't spoil it for you, R.
I have read it.. I just read it though.... I don´t really ever see (maybe I'm a little slow:D(Jk)) them ( maybe I am a little slow:( :D)

[Lief Erikson]

Englishnerd, thanks for cluing me in on some of those symbolic instances! I really didn't see them, and that does make the story seem more interesting to me. I didn't enjoy it an enormous amount the first time I heard the series read. I liked them, but not very much, and I wasn't looking for symbolism at all.

[IronParrot]

Good analysis, englishnerd. However, I think Lewis' placement on the allegory-applicability spectrum (i.e. intent of author vs. openness of interpretability by the reader) is starkly different from Tolkien... and I far prefer Tolkien.

"I've heard many people complain that the allegorical perspective takes away the power of the story, but I think these "illuminations" make it so much more powerful...at least, maybe I just think so because I'm a Christian..."
Could be. Personally, my complaint about the allegory isn't that it takes away from the power (the ending of The Last Battle was a very powerful segment) - but on many occasions, it seemed to me that Lewis was needlessly sacrificing plot (or at least drawing focus away from it) for the purpose of trying to demonstrate something about Christianity. In short, it seemed a bit intrusive from time to time.

Not that I don't like the books - I quite enjoyed them. But I point to The Horse and His Boy as something that was perhaps just a touch too out of place, probably as a result of its emphasis on allegory.

[Lief Erikson]

Strange. It was near the top of my favorites in the series, and that was before the allegories were explained to me.

But I agree with you about the difference between Tolkien's and C.S. Lewis's emphasizing Christianity. Tolkien had several circumstances and themes in his that were decidedly Christian, but his overall aim was for a better story. C.S. Lewis, I think, was focused much more on purposely making allegories and connections. Whether that detracts from the story or not is a matter of opinion (I likewise think that it adds to it another level of depth).

[Miranda]

I think Lewis' books are great because they can work on so many levels. I babysit for a few families and find the Chronicles are great bed time stories. One family is completely non religious and the other is very religious. The kid from the first family loved all the books but just on the simple story but the second kid stopped my after Aslan came back from the stone table and said "Is Aslan meant to be Jesus? Jesus came back too." I thought it was so cool that a six year old kid could find the parallels so easily and appreciate them. Everytime we reached a bit he recognised as biblical he stopped me and told me about it. It was great because people had told me that it had religious references but not being religious myself I couldn't see them so it was nice to be shown and through the eyes and innocent, honest words of a child. Mx

[Reumandar]

I think I am really really slow... 'cuz I didn't get any of this stuff ... I sorta got the Aslan thing but that was only sorta...

[sun-star]

The only part of the allegory I understood when I first read the books (i.e. without having it pointed out to me) was about Aslan, and I think I preferred it that way. I'm only speculating, but I think that as a child I would have found "so this equals that, and this equals that" rather frustrating. It would have destroyed my belief in the characters as characters, and in Narnia as a real world, if I were always looking for what they "really meant".
Now that I'm older, the allegory does enrich my enjoyment of the stories, and help me in a moral way (if that makes any sense). But they can still be enjoyed as stories, as well as moral lessons.

[Lief Erikson]

You're quite right, sun-star. I agree completely :).

And thanks for sharing that story, Miranda; it was really sweet.

[englishnerd]

Hey sunstar, you are quite right about the story as story...in point of fact, when Katherine Lindskoog pointed out some of the parallels and significant allegorical points in a grad thesis paper that she later sent to Lewis, he indicated that he much appreciated her viewpoint, and many of the ideas she presented he hadn't even thought of in the writing of the chronicles, but he thought she was quite right in her analysis. The thing is, the story is central. But Lewis (and Tolkien, for that matter)saw story...any story...as a symbol, sign, or NAME for the REAL story. Lewis drew in the parallels a bit more clearly and definitely than Tolkien, choosing to make his names for the real thing a bit more obvious. Tolkien's story uses detail, subtlety, and complexity to point in the same direction as Lewis, though Lewis uses clarity, simplicity, and brevity as his main tools. There's really no comparison, exept that they were friends and partners in their ideas. But story is the main thing, NOT allegory. :-) in a way, allegory is our "name" for a story that points to the REAL story.

--> where I'm getting this is a conversation reported between Lewis and Tolkien just previous to Lewis' conversion. They were talking about stories, and Tolkien pointed to a grand tree along the path, and said (think of treebeard!) "look at that. Imagine all the strength, the power, and the history of that tree....and what do we call it? a TREE! such a brief name for such an enormous thing. what if all of our stories and tales are but names or symbols we use to point to the real story, the true story?"

[englishnerd]

wow. i guess that was a train-stopper. this thread has been inactive for a while! sorry, guys. didn't mean to cut out discussion. as an opener for a new topic, what do you think of Puzzle in the Last Battle? He has an interesting part in the drama. I forget the Ape's name... oh yeah! Shift. Their relationship always puzzled me...ooooh, sorry for that pun.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

It's been a while since I read those books, and now I don't even have a copy of them anymore. :( I'm almost certain that the Magician's Nephew was my favorite, though I liked them all. I think Lucy was my favorite character, too. If you mean the Earthlings. If you mean Narnians, I really don't know.

[Faelnor]

Mmm, narnia, my favorite books when I was little. My dad read them to me first then I read them by myself. My favorite book is The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. And my favorite character was......darn, I can't remember what his name was, but he was a mouse, I remember that. And my favorite "Earthling" character, as Gwaimir put it, was Peter.

[Lief Erikson]

Ah, your favorite character was Reepecheep! Good choice (Sorry if I spelled his name wrong)!


I can't very well remember the Last Battle- sorry Englishnerd :).

[Diaxion]

I read the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe and that was a good book but the others were pretty bad so bad that I quit reading them which is rare for me to quit a book

[Reumandar]

Personally at first I thought he was just confused and controled by the ape but in the end I was confused and Hated him and the ape for what they did

Sorry but what does IE mean?
and EG?

[Gwaimir Windgem]

I think they mean like such as, or for example.

[Reumandar]

Oh ok

[annunerin]

guys the official movie site of CoN is up and running, head on to http://www.narnia.com

[Gwaimir Windgem]

I had no idea there was an upcoming Narnia movie!

Stated Gresham, "It has been our dream for many years not simply to make a live-action version of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, but to do so while remaining faithful to the novel. We are delighted to make this film with Walden Media, which we are confident will create the adaptation that my stepfather would have wanted."


(tents fingers) Excellent...

[azalea]

Oh, that's exciting! I hope they do a good job!

[annunerin]

someone said that the CGI will be done by WETA, if i'm not mistaken.

[englishnerd]

Wow, hello everyone, it's been a while for me...

That is an awesome website...very much like the one for the LOTR movies. Can't wait to see more.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Hullo! Welcome (back?) to the Entmoot! :)

[Lief Erikson]

Well, the movies that are out now for "The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe", "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" and "The Silver Chair" were really, really great. It'll be tough for them to beat those movies, even if modern special effects give some small advantage.

I say the advantage is small because often special effects become too much of a focus and character development is skipped out on in favor of it. In this case, they'd better try not to omit or bury the symbolism, for that is the strongest aspect of the Narnia series.

[englishnerd]

mmm...I agree with you lief. as a side comment, not a discussion topic, I think that was one of the weaknessess with the LOTR movies...that the actual movie magic overshadowed the story and character development.
However, the Narnia website indicates that they have a good screen writer who is committed to being faithful to the books, and they have Douglas Gresham involved, too.
I'm confused...the only movies I've heard of about Narnia are the animated LWW, which I haven't seen, and the BBC productions of about ...10 or so years ago (?) I saw the BBC LWW, and VDT, but not the Silver Chair or any of the others. Did you really like the BBC ones? I thought they were faithful to the story, but the stuffed lion wasn't impressive. I would like to see some CG effects to further create the world visually.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

One good thing about the low-budget ones is that they have to rely on the story, rather than SF or battle scenes.

P. S. - Wasn't Prince Caspian and the Voyage of the Dawn Treader on the same one?

[Lief Erikson]

Yes, those two were on the same tape. I personally really liked the BBC productions; you're missing out by not seeing their The Silver Chair, englishnerd. It was my favorite of them.

Though I agree with you that their lion isn't impressive :D. But then, no real lion would be right for Aslan either.

[englishnerd]

too true, Lief. I'll have to check out that silver chair. I think I was afraid of seeing it because the first two were kind of disappointing.

[crickhollow]

Originally posted by Lief Erikson
Yes, those two were on the same tape. I personally really liked the BBC productions; you're missing out by not seeing their The Silver Chair, englishnerd. It was my favorite of them.

Though I agree with you that their lion isn't impressive :D. But then, no real lion would be right for Aslan either. The rubber (or maybe it was paper maché? It's been a while) serpent in SC is just as impressive as the stuffed lion :D

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Was he stuffed? I thought he was two guys in a suit.

[crickhollow]

maybe it was a puppet

[Lief Erikson]

Originally posted by crickhollow
The rubber (or maybe it was paper maché? It's been a while) serpent in SC is just as impressive as the stuffed lion :D

I liked the lion better, actually. At least it managed to look wise ;).

[englishnerd]

hmmm... I just wish that the excellence of the form matched better the excellence of the content in the BBC productions. I did really like the dialogue, and how they stayed so true to the text.

:-)

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Ditto. :D Wish they'd made a LOTR mini-series...

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Anyone know any more info about the Narnia movies?

[Anglorfin]

There's going to be Narnia Movies? Where have I been?

I should read the books again.

[The Ben]

Originally posted by Anglorfin
There's going to be Narnia Movies? Where have I been?

I should read the books again.


IP have told me about the CoN movies a few months ago when i was doing my book report on the books. Cant wait. Those are great books.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

They sure are. I recently got a single-volume "Complete Chronicles of Narnia" book, and am looking forward to getting it out and reading it (After I settle down, and read the books I haven't read yet (excluding HoMe, which I think will take a long time).

[sun-star]

I heard about this yesterday:

movies (http://filmforce.ign.com/articles/453/453096p1.html)

Looks good :)

[hectorberlioz]

anyone heard that a lion witch and the wrdrobe movie is bieng made?
the dir. of shrek is directing...which is not a good choice at all...but, c.s lewis's grandson said he wont let the movie be released unless it stays extremely close to the book...

[b.banner]

i love narnia i have read them all exept the magicians nephew my favorite character is peter shasta puddleglum and king tirianSome other publishing company recently put TMN first and THaHB third, but just ignore that and read them in the order Lewis intended! i never read any of them in any of the orders :D

[Lord Boromir]

Originally posted by Elanor
I love the Chronicles of Narnia, and have read them all many times, once to my little sister. My favorite book is The Horse and his Boy, and my favorite characters are Eustace, Lucy, and Shasta. My family has been trying to collect the BBC/Wonderworks videos, but I don't think they ever got past The Silver Chair... They don't seem to have had much of a budget, but the movies they've done are great. I greatly admire C.S. Lewis too, and I love both the fantasy/adventure and the allegory aspects of the books. (This is another thing that my whole family loves and assigns roles for--I ended up as the White Witch in this one.)

The original order:

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Prince Caspian
Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Silver Chair
The Horse and His Boy
The Magician's Nephew
The Last Battle

Some other publishing company recently put TMN first and THaHB third, but just ignore that and read them in the order Lewis intended!

Well actually, Lewis said he PREFERED the CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER.

For news of the movie/movies, check out: www.narniaweb.com

[Lótiel]

Originally posted by Lord Boromir
Well actually, Lewis said he PREFERED the CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER.

For news of the movie/movies, check out: www.narniaweb.com I actually like the published order better, then you get more of a flow in the history of the children. The Horse and His Boy sort of breaks in and disturbs for me.

Movienews from Walden are probably the most reliable, check out http://www.walden.com/lww.html For a while the name of John Howe was on the crewlist, but now it´s gone, so I guess he´s not in after all.

[Underhill]

I have read the chronicles of narnia many times. My mom read The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe to me when I was little. I hope pj makes it, but not over The Hobbit. Lewis and Tolkien were good freinds and Tolkien was a devoted catholic.

[Dwarven Sen]

i love these books, read them again over christmas. My favourite was always Last Battle. I don't understand how anyone can start reading the series without beginning with L,W&W. Surely it wouldn't make sense?

[Nurvingiel]

*bump* I started a thread on these books too, but now I can't find it.


Actually, it does make sense to start with "The Magician's Nephew" too. Chronologically, it works that way.

Starting with LWW makes MN a great prequel, which works too.

[rohirrim TR]

could some one start a narnia trivia thread? it seems like there are a lot of narnia fans around that would dig it

[tomstheman]

What amazes me most about CoN is that it has something for everyone. I mean when you read them as a kid you think they're just a great story, but if you reread then again as an adult you realize that C.S. Lewis actually had a lot more going on in his head than you thought as a kid. Another amazing fact is that when C.S. Lewis started the CoN he was an atheist, but when he finished he was a Christian. Which is one of the reasons that he portrayed Aslan as Jesus Christ. It's amazing or at least i think it is.

[inked]

tomstheman,

Your timeline is off, good sir. Mr Lewis was a Christian convert and apologist for many years before he wrote TCON. You might enjoy his autobiography, SURPRISED BY JOY.

[Tree Dweller]

[QUOTE=Lótiel]I actually like the published order better, then you get more of a flow in the history of the children. The Horse and His Boy sort of breaks in and disturbs for me.
[QUOTE]


I know what you mean, but I actually LOVED that book. It has to be my second favorite next to The Last Battle.

The descriptions of running at incredible speed, but never sweating or getting tired...that's gotta be what heaven is like! ;)

[rohirrim TR]

have any of you looked at the some of the the sound tracks(actually song inspired by) click here (http://www.narniaweb.com/soundtracks_lww1.asp) tell me what you think :)

[Butterbeer]

*bump*


Actually, it does make sense to start with "The Magician's Nephew" too. Chronologically, it works that way.

Starting with LWW makes MN a great prequel, which works too.

well chronologically, is very debateable ... it was written AFTER LWW and CS Lewis refers to the previous story in that book .... so it would be bad form imho opinion to put that first...

LWW establishes the story, the world, some characters, aslan etc ...
Magician nephew is definately a back story .... and chronologically (in England) after Peter,Susan etc have been to Narnia

by ALL our timelines here on earth it is chronologically AFTER LWW.

[Curubethion]

I like Lewis' original order, because then all of the information falls into place the right way. He wrote LWW first, and then went back and wrote all of the background to fit it. That should be the order it's read in.

[Lenya]

I see many of you have read these books when you were children. I didn't and I must say I regret it. It's just not such a big thing in South Africa. I read them this year and they were great. But make no mistake, I'll read them to my children one day :) Them, and all possible Dr. Suess books.

[Acalewia]

LWW is the only book i've read. I read that when I was about 11 or 12. I'll always see LWW as the first book. Unfornintly my local libary doesn't carry the rest of the series. It's off to Hastings or B & N for me to pick up the whole series. I'm planning on buying the MIB... CD. love the music.

[The last sane person]

MIB? Whats That? anyways, I am really actually wanting to see this movie, it looks so damn good! that and i've always loved the books, not really CS lewis....

[rohirrim TR]

MIB=music inspired by.

[Nurvingiel]

Okay, you know the Narnia movie that just came out? They made a novelization of it! So... much... rage... :mad: There's already a book about this! Gah! Don't dumb down one of my favourite children's books of all time!

Then again, the only reason I've read Oliver Twist and Les Misérables is because there's abridged versions of them. However, Narnia isn't exactly Victor Hugo; I find all the Narnia Chronicles highly accessible.

[inked]

There is no text which Hollywood cannot attempt to "improve" upon for merchandising, Nurv.

Take a deep breath, ...count to 20million, ...just don't hold your breath~ :p !

[Nurvingiel]

You're right... no sense getting mad... maybe I'll calm down with an Aslan plushie... no! It's too much! Aaa!

:D

[Rían]

"Aslan plushie" !!!!! :eek: :D ROTFL!!!

Yes, I was at our local bookstore and was disgusted to see a book titled something like "Lucy's tea party with Tumnus" :mad: *gag*

How could they DO that?!?!?!?! It must have been Douglas Gresham, but - yuck!!!

[rohirrim TR]

its called marketing i think. ASLAN PLUSHIE????! :eek: well i won't say that its bad, but thats because i have to go throw up, excuse me *runs out door*

[Curubethion]

WHAAAT?????? :eek: :eek: :eek:
Oh well, that's Disney for ya...
( :mad: stupid 90 second rule...)
EDIT: They novelized Narnia? Talk about idiotic.

[Nurvingiel]

WHAAAT?????? :eek: :eek: :eek:
Oh well, that's Disney for ya...
( :mad: stupid 90 second rule...)
EDIT: They novelized Narnia? Talk about idiotic.
I know! Actually, there is a really good novelization of The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. It's by C.S. Lewis. [/sarcasm]

I'm not 100% sure about the Aslan Plushie. It may just be a figment of my paranoia that marketing will be huge with The Chronicles of Narnia just like it was with Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter.

[Grey_Wolf]

A question for all you.
Are you equally fond of all seven books or do you have a particular favourite among them?

[rohirrim TR]

who are you asking?
i for one like them all, although my least favorite would be "the magician's nephew"

[brownjenkins]

the magician's nephew is actually one of my favorite's... kind of like the silmarillion of the series... but they are all pretty good, and short enough to almost be one book

[rohirrim TR]

yeah, i've seen an edition that puts them all in one volume kind of like they did with LOTR. i think they have it in chronological order too so TMN would be the first one.

[sun-star]

For me The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Silver Chair are sort-of favourites, but I think I like all of the books equally except The Horse and his Boy. That one's just too unlike the rest, and the characters get on my nerves.

[tolkienfan]

My favorites are: The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Horse and His Boy, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and The Magicians Nephew. :D

[Acalewia]

i really do need to read the rest of the series. and im confused.
one person says LWW is first, then somebody else says TMN whats the offical order and by that i mean in what order were they written? :confused:

[Grey_Wolf]

Here, Acalewia, is the correct reading order:

CHON-1: THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW
CHON-2: THE LION, THE WITCH & THE WARDR.
CHON-3: THE HORSE AND HIS BOY
CHON-4: PRINCE CASPIAN
CHON-5: THE VOYAGE OF THE DAWNTREADER
CHON-6: THE SILVER CHAIR
CHON-7: THE LAST BATTLE

Cheerio,
GW

[Acalewia]

thanx, doc.

[Elanor]

I like Lewis' original order, because then all of the information falls into place the right way. He wrote LWW first, and then went back and wrote all of the background to fit it. That should be the order it's read in.

I agree with this. This is the order in which the books were written:

1: THE LION, THE WITCH & THE WARDROBE
2: PRINCE CASPIAN
3: THE VOYAGE OF THE DAWN TREADER
4: THE SILVER CHAIR
5: THE HORSE AND HIS BOY
6: THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW
7: THE LAST BATTLE

I think kids will be drawn in more if they follow Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy's journey, then find out the backstory, and finally get the resolution for all the characters. Plus, if you already know the history of Professor Kirke and Jadis, it takes some of the mystery away from the experience of reading LWW.

I also agree that the 'novelisations' and silly little 'chapter' books are ridiculous. My 15-year-old sister has Down's Syndrome (she reads on the level of an 8-year-old or lower), and she's read all the original Narnia books and understood them perfectly!

[Grey_Wolf]

thanx, doc.

Y'r welcome. :)

[Acalewia]

I finally got around to reading the Chronicles. I'm now on DT. They're great! I can't believe I never read them before now!

[inked]

Good news. PRINCE CASPIAN will be made! http://www.narniafans.com/?id=720

:D

[rohirrim TR]

awesome, :) now if only we can get a different director this time. Not that Adamson was bad mind you, but I'd like to see them try to be slightly more accurate this, time PC is one my favorites.

[Rían]

oh, I sure hope they do Dawn Treader!

[Valandil]

FINALLY read all these. Read LWW a few years ago when that movie came out. This past winter/spring I read Prince Caspian in advance of the movie (haven't seen it yet). Then my oldest son (10) read PC, then went on a tear and read all the rest.

He and I are taking a trip with our church this weekend, so I challenged him several weeks ago to read "The Hobbit" by the trip and I would read all the Chronicles of Narnia. I just finished my last one today. He finished up "The Hobbit" a few weeks ago, and recently wanted to start... LOTR! :) As of Sunday, he was in chapter 3, but today he's at the hill in The Old Forest - chapter 6! :) :)

[Varnafindë]

Godd for both of you! :)
So, do you both like what you've been reading?
I guess he must have liked The Hobbit, at least ...

[Valandil]

Yes - I DID forget to mention that, and YES - we have both liked what we're reading very much! :)

[Coffeehouse]

Father I have a confession to make.

Father have I sinned?
I have not read the Chronicles of Narnia.
Although I did watch some British dramatization of it
at the age of 7, I have, besides knowing that there is
a talking lion named Aslan or something in it, no clue what
the story is about. Wait, Father, there are beavers too. I think.
I know there's a movie made
recently, but I don't know if it's any good.
Although my twin sister read the books when we were
younger, from what I saw on the front cover, I judged
the books to look boring and uneventful.

In the name of Books, Reading and Holy Literature

Amen:p

[inked]

Then do thou make penance and write one hundred times, neatly,

I shall not pretend to know books from movies.

Preferably on the back of your hand with Umbridge's special quill.

Or you could read them in proper order. Op cit.

[Coffeehouse]

Umbridge's Special Quill.. Oh no, I will be marked for eternity:eek:

I could read the books though.. I will have to think it through.

[Varnafindë]

Father I have a confession to make.

Father have I sinned?
I have not read the Chronicles of Narnia.
Although I did watch some British dramatization of it
at the age of 7, I have, besides knowing that there is
a talking lion named Aslan or something in it, no clue what
the story is about. Wait, Father, there are beavers too. I think.
I know there's a movie made
recently, but I don't know if it's any good.
Although my twin sister read the books when we were
younger, from what I saw on the front cover, I judged
the books to look boring and uneventful.

In the name of Books, Reading and Holy Literature

Amen:p

Which front covers were those, Coffeehouse? They have had different covers in the different editions - I've saved lots of the graphics from internet bookshops ;)

It would be sad if the covers (or movies) kept you from reading good books. I hope you'll like them.

I would definitely read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe first. I've come to the conclusion that this is the best introduction to Narnia for someone who doesn't know it. The beginning of its history can come later.

As you've already been given your penance, I won't go into that :D

And when you've finished the books, you can become a member of "Vennskapsforeningen Norge-Narnia" (visit my homepage) :cool:

[Jonathan]

Never having read any of the books before, I got a whim in December and started reading The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. I finished it the same day. Now, not even a month later, I've also read (in order) The Magician's Nephew, The Horse and His Boy, Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Silver Chair, which I finished this morning.

Did I get hooked on Narnia or what? :p

[Midge]

In my personal opinion, it's nearly impossible not to get hooked. I read those books even more than I do Tolkien (is that blasphemous?). There are so many good little pieces within the stories, like how Aslan follows the rules he created when Lucy turns the duffers visible again, or how he has to "undress" Eustace before he can be "undragoned". They are SO very good.

[Varnafindë]

I had been hooked on LWW for years before I knew that it was indeed the beginning of a series (none of the others had been translated into Norwegian at the time - only into Swedish, but I wasn't anywhere near any Swedish bookshops).

When I finally found the series (in English, on my first visit to England), I doubted that they could all be as good as the first one, so I only bought one of them, and took it for my bedside reading that evening.

I finished it something like 2 a.m. and went back to the bookshop the next day and bought the rest of the series :)