Any Narnia experts around?

[lemonandhoney]

I'm reading The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe to dd (nearly 7). She's completely captivated by it - desperate for the next chapter, engrossed in the plot and loving the way it's written. She's twigged there are others in the series so is keen to move on to them. I loved the book when I was little but remember the others as very dull - is that fair or am I missing something? I think I only got about half way through The Voyage of the Dawn Treader before giving up all together so possibly that's not representative.

So, do we carry on with them or should I try and dissuade her? She's a good enough reader to manage the language on her own but I think would struggle with some of the ideas without someone to read it with her, so suspect that telling her to read them herself isn't the answer. I have no problem reading them to her if that's a good idea but don't want to spoil the magic of this one with something disappointing.

Oh dear, is The Horse and His Boy dodgy too? Can't remember that one much, except for the fact that I found it a bit boring compared to the others. I loved the Dawn Treader when I was younger, so glad that one is ok.

Will have to probe DH about Tash in case there's something he isn't telling me. at worshipping the playstation. How sinister!

DH refers to MN as my "cult".

OP -my DD is 12 and I still have to read to her! We've done all the Little Women, E Nesbitt, Secret Garden, Katy Dids - none of those school series, dont like them myself - Swallows and Amazons and Anne of Green Gables. They get 'older' as the series progresses culminating in WWI - you prob dont want to hit that before 11/12 so pace yourself

Some of the classics are an absolute bugger to read aloud without dissolving into tears, IME. We recently did David Copperfield and the scene where Jip expires (while Dora does likewise offstage) was almost impossible!

There seems to be huge misunderstanding about what is going on in The Last Battle - yes, Susan isn't in the train crash. She is still alive in our world. She is not therefore excluded from heaven because actually she hasn't died yet. She is not part of the group on the train because she no longer believes in Narnia, not because she wears nylons. Lewis said -

"The books don't tell us what happened to Susan. She is left alive in this world at the end, having by then turned into a rather silly, conceited young woman. But there's plenty of time for her to mend and perhaps she will get to Aslan's country in the end... in her own way."

My kids loved The Last Battle, though it is sad, so better for slightly older children anyway. I would recommend to anyone still uncertain about the way the story ends to read for starters Andrew Rilstone's excellent detailed essay on Susan - [[
www.andrewrilstone.com/2005/11/lipstick-on-my-scholar.html Lipstick on My Scholar]] and RJ Anderson's blog post here

As for the Calormenes, Lewis makes it clear that Emeth (in The Last Battle) is in heaven although he was a Calormene and "worshipped" Tash.

Re your children, I would read The Magician's Nephew next, and go on from there. The only Narnia book I never read aloud to my kids was The Horse and His Boy.

I read to dd1 LWAW first, then I read Magician's Nephew. She found Prince Caspian hard going, but she was only 4 or 5 at the time and the talk of battle bored her, so we moved on.
Horse and His Boy is lovely but does have a few references that can be taken as racist. I always wonder how it would read if the Narnians had been the darker skin and the Calamorines the paler. One of my favourite quotes comes from HHB. "Beware... the bolt of tash falls from above". "Does it ever get caught on a hook half way?"
Voyage and Silver chair are both great, and fun to read out loud.

Last Battle I'd leave until much later because it is quite dark and not really a children's book I think Lewis himself said it was there for completeness of the set but not really for children. (or something like that)

Susan does not go to the New Narnia because she stops believing and talks about Narnia as a funny game they used to play. There's a lovely scene in it where a Calamorine soldier gets to the New Narnia and is welcomed by them.

When I read LB as a Christian child, the bit about Emeth really worshipping Aslan because he worshipped Tash with a pure heart (or somesuch) screamed 'cop out' to me - the 'oh we're all worshipping the same god really' nice drivel.

Is it drivel to try and work out what one makes of other faith's gods in a series that whilst not an intentional Christian allegory, uses Christian symbolism extensively? I really appreciated this part of the book as a child. Surely better than saying anyone who doesn't acknowledge Aslan (because they grew up elsewhere,different culuture, never heard of Aslan etc) is going to fall short of heaven?

I imagined that there wasn't just Emeth in the Narnian heaven - the children only meet him, but the place is vast - "in my mansion, etc.... "

I'd forgotten the Tash/Aslan "true faith but in a differently labelled God" angle. Interesting, because it's what I actually believe

I loved all of them as a child - think the Dawn Treader and Horse & his Boy were my favourites.

I wouldn't worry about reading-to time running out, OP - I still read to my dd at bedtime & she's 9.5, don't see why we should stop just yet, she's not reached the point of being out partying past my bedtime (at least not that often )

Yes, its the intellectually dishonest drivel which arises when people try to allow for incompatible religions coexisting. IMHO

I loved all of them!

I'm with Colyngbourne's interpretation of the Last Battle. Susan can't go to Narnia anymore because she has stopped believing in it and thinks it's a fairytale the other children made up. I thought that was a really strong statement in support of children's imaginations, encouraging them to think that if only they have enough faith their stories have the value of truth. But then again we had a horse called Bree at the stables where I rode as a child and I had to go check if he talked, so I was that kind of child!

As for Tash, I thought that was one of the most wonderful bits in the book. If you do good acts in the name of an evil god they still count as good, if you do evil in the name of a good god they are still evil. Great stuff but clearly not to everyone's liking!

dd is 6 and has been reading them for a while, loves TLTWAW and Dawn Threader, I think she mostly reads it for the adventure and loves the animals talking and all the magic, also very big Harry Potter fan
as well as The Secret Garden, lots there she does not understand particularly in the early chapters
In Narnia some of the more philosophical aspects escape her, we are not religious and although to a grown up it is obvious not so at her age
and she likes the films

I've read them all to 4yo dd and she liked The Silver Chair best. I always preferred The Magician's Nephew. We read them chronologically here.

I am loving the fact that she's old enough to appreciate them. We did The Magic Faraway Tree earlier this year, My Naughty Little Sister, Naughty Amelia Jane and we are currently on Mr Pinkwhistle. Alice In Wonderland is next.

Oh and Roald Dahl. She loves Roald Dahl. It's brilliant being able to read my favourite childhood books to her.

Sorry but the Tash cop out is rather like Romans 2 v 14-15 "When Gentiles who do not possess the law, do instinctively what the law requires, these, though not having the law are a law to themselves. They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts...."
Actually it would be even easier for Muslims as the Bible is a holy book for them.
Susan is not dead, but alive in the real world. But I haven't read The Last Battle to my kids.
I found the books myself via "The Horse and his boy" but I was horse mad, so.....
With all the classics I think you need to be prepared to discuss and put the books in context. (How could I not have realised "Little Women" was during the American Civil War?)

Alice in Wonderland and Through the looking Glass are favourites here, she will often ask for specific chapters
It is fantastic to be able to share them

I loved Prince Caspian, Dawn Treader, Silver Chair and Magician's Nephew.

Though actually I read LWW first and thought the big plot climax was crap: I had to die because of the dark magic but actually there's this other Deeper Magic that we never mentioned until this point that means I'm alive after all. If I'd known the phrase 'deus ex machina' I'd have used it but in the circs aged 7 I had to settle for 'crap'... some years later the Christian resurrection was explained to me and I had the same reaction!

Put me off the others for quite a long time. But by age 10 I liked all of them except LWW. The Last Battle has lots about propaganda and how to win elections and similar, as well as the 'all good deeds are done unto me' bit, so I enjoyed re-reading it as a teenager.

Yes to Alice - DD also loves the verse (Hunting of the Snark etc). A lot of these really benefit from being read aloud.

No prizes for guessing another favourite 'book at bedtime' author in our house, when we want a break from 'classics' !

I'd say differently and read Prince Caspian (the 4th book) next. If you want Chronological Characters, it goes sort of (1), 2, (3), 4, 5, 6, 7.

I didn't like the last two nearly as much as the others. I can quote large chunks of the first few, but if you look at my copies (I have the illustrated ones, does anybody else? They're lovely aren't they?) you can tell I've only read the last two two or three times.

Not quite sure where those interesting capitals came from

Susan was Evil - not just nylons, lipstick too. Can't bear The Last Battle. Refused to read it to DS.

I loved The Horse and His boy. Exactly the right way round, I thought. But I loved the rest too - though found the Magician's Nephew a bit scary. The combination of Uncle Andrew and Jadis not good.