Is anyone an expert on The Chronicles of Narnia?

[Myfanwyprice]

So, after deciding that I'd like to encourage ds (9) to read a bit more, I ordered The lion, the witch and the wardrobe without really realising that it isn't the first book in the series - rookie error, I know

He loves it, and we are really enjoying reading it together. Will it be ok to just continue reading the series from here, or should we go back and read the magicians nephew before starting the horse and his boy?

Thank you!

Pippi Longstocking has gone down very well here - ds is terrified by most chapter books, but that worked. Have to admit I was in floods for weeks thanks to reading Charlotte's Web when I was 7 or so - would never read it to a child of mine!

I read MN after LWW as a child and enjoyed working out where things had come from - I think publication order is quite a good idea.

Charlotte's Web utterly traumatised me as a child. I finished reading it to myself and came in to my mum howling so badly she thought I'd seriously hurt myself - absolutely no way will I be reading that one!

My DD loved the Worst Witch stories at that age, when she was also delighted by My Naughty Little Sister.

Ottoline stories by Chris Riddell are great.

Try the My Best Fiend books, they're brilliant

I am wondering what I'm trying to do to my poor children, poor poor Aslan in last nights instalment of tltwatw and we're getting close to the sad bit with Charlotte - oh bugger! March 2016 is going to go down in the history of our family as the month of traumatic books!

Think we'll go for Mildred Hubble next, that should lighten the mood nicely!

And thank you for the other suggestions, lots of lovely books to keep us going there!

You can't stop at the end of the chapter where Aslan dies. You have to read the next one straight off. when DD was reading it to me and I planned for that chapter so that we had enough time for me to read the next chapter to her straight away rather than having to wait. It was the only chapter in the book she didn't read herself.

I always remember DS reading "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe " in bed one night. I put the light out, but he switched it back on after I went downstairs and carried on reading till he got to the Aslan death bit. Next thing,he burst into the living room, distraught and sobbing, saying "Aslan's dead!" Even though it was so late, I had to read the next bit to him to reassure him that Aslan came back! Shows the power of Lewis's writing.

Definitely start with Lion Witch and Wardrobe. If she likes Charlotte's web maybe Thirteen Clocks? Both written by Americans who worked for the New Yorker in the 1950s and wonderfully written. The language in Thirteen clocks is a lot harder (quotes here www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/2099329-the-13-clocks) but it's the kind of book that works wonderfully when it's still mysterious.

I mean, come on, how wonderful is this:

“Once upon a time, in a gloomy castle on a lonely hill, where there were thirteen clocks that wouldn't go, there lived a cold, aggressive Duke, and his niece, the Princess Saralinda. She was warm in every wind and weather, but he was always cold. His hands were as cold as his smile and almost as cold as his heart. He wore gloves when he was asleep, and he wore gloves when he was awake, which made if difficult for him to pick up pins or coins or the kernels of nuts, or to tear the wings from nightingales. He was six feet four, and forty-six, and even colder than he thought he was.”
― James Thurber, The 13 Clocks

If your dd likes Charlottes Web maybe try A Cricket in Times Square by the same author I believe and with wonderful illustrations, again by Garth Williams.
I adored the Narnia books as a child but went off them a bit when I realised the christian slant.

Well, we finished the lion the witch and the wardrobe and ds said it is his favourite book ever! I think it's amazing that a boy who is obsessed with football in 2016 was absolutely spellbound by a book written so long ago - I have ordered the others (actually was £10 for a second hand box set of all 7!) and while we're waiting for those to arrive we're reading a David Baddiel book, which we're enjoying.

Dd and I also finished Charlotte's web - there were tears mostly mine . We are now reading Mary Poppins, which we are enjoying, but is actually a bit of a slog. I did want to read the worst witch, but she chose Mary, so we'll stick with it now that we're so far in and go for something lighter next!

Thanks so much for all the comments!

I remember enjoying Stuart Little by EB White as a child but haven't read since. Your DD might like it, Myfanwy.

Our 6 year old is loving Witch Wars at the moment. Not sure of the literary merit, DH has been reading most of it so when I have a chapter it makes no sense at all to me but she wanted to be Tiga Wicabim for World Book Day so all good.

Worst Witch was a favourite of our eldest when she was that age, and Little House in the Big Woods and Little House in the Prairie. The Little House books get more challenging as Laura gets older so worth investing in the whole series (which you can get from The Book People very cheaply). Your son will probably enjoy them as well, we've spent ages with DD1 online finding out more about Laura and seeing the sites of the houses they lived in. And in the first two books every chapter is a life and death experience. And it's good for talking about race relations as well, it's not written in a black and white way which is great and is one of the reasons the books haven't dated.

Stuart little indeed.

Op, he might well like the little house books. They are not twee or girly even though the children are girls. And everything is described brilliantly so that you can make models of them ..