Karl's Reading List

Published by Puffin Books: England, 1995. First published 1977. I saw the movie version of Bridge to Terabithia some years ago, so I knew the basic plot, but it isn't a book I've ever read before.  Jesse Oliver Aarons, Jr (nicknamed Jess), is a ten year old boy growing up in the post-Vietnam era United States. He is the middle child out of five, and the only boy in the family. His sisters' names are (in descending order): Ellie, Brenda, May Belle and Joyce Ann - names that give you a rough idea of the sort of area in America the family are based, as well as the stereotypical accent with which they speak! Jess befriends Leslie Burke, his new neighbour, and together the two children invent a made-up country called Terabithia, based largely on Leslie's recollections of the Narnia series by CS Lewis, in which they are kings and queens. Unlike Narnia, Terabithia is never portrayed as anything other than a product of Jess and Leslie's imagination, and also is often not th...

Published in an omnibus edition with the full Chronicles of Narnia series: " The Magician's Nephew "; " The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe "; " The Horse and His Boy "; " Prince Caspian ";  "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" ;  "The Silver Chair" ; "The Last Battle" , by Harper Collins Publishers: Hammersmith, London, 2010. Originally published 1956. The final book in the Narnia series, The Last Battle appropriates covers the events leading up to and surrounding the end of Narnia itself. The last king of Narnia, Tirian, and his close friend, the unicorn Jewel, enlist the help of Eustace and Jill to do battle against a "false Aslan" and an army of Calormenes. The book is different from the remainder of the Narnia series (aside from The Horse and His Boy ) in that it begins in Narnia, following Narnians, with no one from 'our' world arriving until quite a way in to the book. Even when they do ...

Published in an omnibus edition with the full Chronicles of Narnia series: " The Magician's Nephew "; " The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe "; " The Horse and His Boy "; " Prince Caspian ";  "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" ; "The Silver Chair" ;  "The Last Battle" , by Harper Collins Publishers: Hammersmith, London, 2010. Originally published 1953. This is my favourite of all the Narnia books, for a few reasons. Firstly, Puddleglum. The Marsh-wiggle character, with his dour outlook on life (while considering himself an optimist by Marsh-wiggle standards) is a great comic-relief character while also providing a moral compass for our two main protagonists. Second, the protagonists. Eustace Scrubb, introduced in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, returns, now accompanied by Jill Pole. This is the only 'main story-line' Narnia books to not include a Pevensie sibling, and in doing so Lewis allows Eustace ...

Published in an omnibus edition with the full Chronicles of Narnia series: " The Magician's Nephew "; " The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe "; " The Horse and His Boy "; " Prince Caspian "; "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" ; "The Silver Chair" ;  "The Last Battle" , by Harper Collins Publishers: Hammersmith, London, 2010. Originally published 1952. Out of the three books adapted into movies by Walden Media, Voyage of the Dawn Treader as a book is the most different from its film adaptation. It does hit the majority of the same beats, but the movie combines various parts of the adventure, streamlines some elements (as movies must do when adapting a book) and makes a few subtle changes to certain elements (the appearance of Aslan as a lamb is removed, for example). Elise and I enjoyed debating which parts we preferred from the  book or movie. Overall, I think I prefer the book, especially the opening sentence, wh...

Published in an omnibus edition with the full Chronicles of Narnia series: " The Magician's Nephew "; " The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe "; " The Horse and His Boy "; " Prince Caspian "; "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" ; "The Silver Chair" ;  "The Last Battle" , by Harper Collins Publishers: Hammersmith, London, 2010. Originally published 1954. The only real 'spin-off' in the Narnia series, The Horse and His Boy doesn't focus its attention on any children from our world, instead telling the story of Shasta, a foundling boy raised in Calormen (near Narnia), and the talking horse Bree (or more correctly, Breehy-hinny-brinny-hoohy-hah) who befriends him. The duo attempt to escape from Calormen to Archenland and Narnia, and on the way encounter a girl (Aravis) escaping an arranged marriage with her talking horse Hwin, are caught up in a prince and the pauper-like scenario, meet the Pevensies (reign...

Published in an omnibus edition with the full Chronicles of Narnia series: " The Magician's Nephew "; " The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe "; " The Horse and His Boy "; " Prince Caspian "; "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" ; "The Silver Chair" ;  "The Last Battle" , by Harper Collins Publishers: Hammersmith, London, 2010. Originally published 1955. The least "Narnian" of all the Narnia books, The Magician's Nephew is an odd book, but still enjoyable. Taking place a lot more in our world than the remainder of the series it follows the story of Digory and Polly, involves magic rings, travels between worlds, and the introduction of Jadis, who goes on to become the wicked witch of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe.  Despite being less about Narnia, the book is still an enjoyable entry, and being written as a prequel it is able to tie directly into the events of the second book, explaining the o...

Published in an omnibus edition with the full Chronicles of Narnia series: " The Magician's Nephew "; " The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe "; " The Horse and His Boy "; " Prince Caspian "; "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" ; "The Silver Chair" ;  "The Last Battle" , by Harper Collins Publishers: Hammersmith, London, 2010. Originally published 1950. The classic children's book in a lot of ways, The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe has been a source of joy for children - and an interesting discussion on the level of allegory for adults - since it was first published in 1950. The Pevensie children (Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy) find themselves journeying through the titular wardrobe into Narnia, a world full of talking animals, mythological creatures and "deities", ruled over by a witch and locked in an eternal winter. While there, they witness the return of Aslan - the Christ-equivalent of Narnia ...

Published in an omnibus edition with the full Chronicles of Narnia series: " The Magician's Nephew "; " The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe "; " The Horse and His Boy "; " Prince Caspian "; "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" ; "The Silver Chair" ;  "The Last Battle" , by Harper Collins Publishers: Hammersmith, London, 2010. Originally published 1951. Prince Caspian is probably my least-favourite book in the Narnia series. It does a lot of 'place-setting' by returning the Pevensies to Narnia, introducing Caspian and his line, setting up the next return to Narnia, showing us that each return will happen in a different manner and showing how time passes differently between Narnia and our world (in order of publication this is the first time we realise that!). And yet in the big scheme of things - and particularly in terms of the storyline for the Pevensies - not a lot actually happens in Prince Caspian : ...