# Narnia "in the order in which C.S. Lewis meant for them to be read"? Is this true? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 22, 2005, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444 "2005-10-22T18:28:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/1 "2005-10-22T18:28:51Z")
All right, I was perusing Amazon.ca for a collection of the “Chronicles of Narnia” in the original order–with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe first. This has proved difficult, but that’s not my point. The site’s “Narnia store” makes the claim that I quoted in the subject, that [C.S. Lewis intended _The Magician’s Nephew_ to be read first.](http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/tg/browse/-/15746591/ref=amb_right-1_107335301_2/701-0548442-3565112) Is this true? If so, why are they making The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe the first movie? ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/2 "2005-10-22T18:45:12Z")
> [@Speaker for the Dead](#): > > All right, I was perusing Amazon.ca for a collection of the “Chronicles of Narnia” in the original order–with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe first. This has proved difficult, but that’s not my point. > > The site’s “Narnia store” makes the claim that I quoted in the subject, that [C.S. Lewis intended _The Magician’s Nephew_ to be read first.](http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/tg/browse/-/15746591/ref=amb_right-1_107335301_2/701-0548442-3565112) > > Is this true? If so, why are they making The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe the first movie? Well, I don’t know what Lewis “intended,” or if he “intended” anythiung at all. “The Lion, the Witch and The Wardrobe” was the first Narnia book Lewis wrote, and it’s the first Narnia book most people read. “The Magician’s Nephew” was the sixth book he wrote, but the story it tells takes place many years BEFORE “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” Personally, I think it’s best to read the Narnia Chronicles in order from 1 to 7 (Well… actually, “A Horse and his Boy” doesn’t have much to do with the rest of the series, so you can read that one on its own, in any order you like). “The Magician’s Nephew” makes more sense if you’ve already read “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” Not only that, it clears up a few mysteries readers may have been wondering about after reading “TLTWATW.” ---
**Author:** ![Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c77e96/32.png) [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/3 "2005-10-22T18:48:05Z")
I think that TLTWATW should be read first, too. I guess this debate comes up every time a prequel is created. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/4 "2005-10-22T18:48:22Z")
There is great controversey over the proper order for the books to be read. These days it seems that chronological order is more popular than publishing order. C.S. Lewis himself has [endorsed the chronological order](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronicles_of_Narnia#Numbering_the_books.2C_publication_order_and_internal_chronology). > [@C.S. Lewis](#): > > “I think I agree with your order (i.e. chronological) for reading the books more than with your mother’s. The series was not planned beforehand as she thinks. When I wrote The Lion I did not know I was going to write any more. Then I wrote P. Caspian as a sequel and still didn’t think there would be any more, and when I had done The Voyage I felt quite sure it would be the last. But I found as I was wrong. So perhaps it does not matter very much in which order anyone read them. I’m not even sure that all the others were written in the same order in which they were published.” ---
**Author:** ![Bob\_Loblaw\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@Bob\_Loblaw\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bob_Loblaw_1)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/5 "2005-10-22T19:03:30Z")
> [@Speaker for the Dead](#): > > All right, I was perusing Amazon.ca for a collection of the “Chronicles of Narnia” in the original order–with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe first. This has proved difficult, but that’s not my point. > > The site’s “Narnia store” makes the claim that I quoted in the subject, that [C.S. Lewis intended _The Magician’s Nephew_ to be read first.](http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/tg/browse/-/15746591/ref=amb_right-1_107335301_2/701-0548442-3565112) > > Is this true? If so, why are they making The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe the first movie? The stories have an internal chronological order which is different from the order in which they were written, which starts with LWW. Some people perfer to read them in interal chron order, which Lewis was not adverse to. My recommendation is to read them in order of publication. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/6 "2005-10-22T20:02:06Z")
Lewis didn’t really seem to care what order they were read in. I assume that was because the overall story arc wasn’t really planned out beforehand (he didn’t know he was going to write _The Last Battle_ when he was writing _tLtWatW_). However, I do think the “internal chronological order” proponency came about through a lack of imagination. Just because a book happened first doesn’t mean it’s best to read it first. The publication order seems more organic to me just because you’re discovering all these things about Narnia in the same way that Lewis did. Reading _tMN_ first, you’ll come across the lamppost and think, “Oh…a lamppost”. Reading _Lion_ first, then reading _Nephew_, you come across the lamppost and think, “OH! The Lamppost!” That’s the difference, to me. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/7 "2005-10-22T20:09:53Z")
I’ll say here what I’ve said many times before: If Lewis had wanted folks to read _The Magician’s Nephew_ first, he’d have written it first. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/8 "2005-10-22T21:22:48Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I’ll say here what I’ve said many times before: If Lewis had wanted folks to read _The Magician’s Nephew_ first, he’d have written it first. Totally ignoring the direct quote from the author in the post about three above you. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/9 "2005-10-22T23:43:59Z")
> [@DSYoungEsq](#): > > Totally ignoring the direct quote from the author in the post about three above you. 😉 The author was replying to a letter from a child! What else was he supposed to say? “That’s a pretty stupid idea, kid.” Published order. They must be read in the published order. Please. If I ever met up with the little bastard who wrote that letter, I’d wring his neck! :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/10 "2005-10-22T23:50:29Z")
There have been threads on this question before; I tried searching for them, but the hamsters keeled over in exhaustion. But a clear majority spoke up for reading them in the order they were originally published. ---
**Author:** ![Bob\_Loblaw\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@Bob\_Loblaw\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bob_Loblaw_1)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/11 "2005-10-22T23:51:04Z")
> [@Dung Beetle](#): > > If I ever met up with the little bastard who wrote that letter, I’d wring his neck! :mad: And people say that nobody really appreciates the point of Christian literature these days! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2005, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/12 "2005-10-22T23:54:21Z")
We’ve discussed this a dozen times. Do a search on “Lewis,” “Narnia,” “order,” and “chronological” in the SDMB archives. You should be able to find a lot of threads on this subject. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/13 "2005-10-23T00:13:44Z")
Read about Jesus in the published order, or I’ll kick your ass! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/14 "2005-10-23T00:22:53Z")
The thing is, _Lion_ explains Aslan and Narnia better than any of the other ones can, for someone who isn’t familiar with them. It was _intended_ to be a standalone book, so it doesn’t really have any hanging mysteries or undefined recalls of the other books. The others more or less assume that you’ve read _Lion_ (recurring characters, undefined terms). _Lion_ was written as an introduction to Narnia, regardless of whether Lewis’s intention was to write further books or not. Just because something’s “supposed” to happen first (_Nephew_), doesn’t mean it needs to be read first. ---
**Author:** ![thursday\_next](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8797f3/32.png) [@thursday\_next](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thursday_next)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/15 "2005-10-23T01:29:07Z")
I haven’t read any of the Narnia books (although I’ve been curious). When I worked at a bookstore, people often asked about the books and many were unhappy about the change in the series order. Generally people said that _The Magician’s Nephew_ is the most boring book of the series. I’ve always been curious if this is true. So, for those who’ve read it, what do you think? ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/16 "2005-10-23T03:28:39Z")
> [@thursday next](#): > > I haven’t read any of the Narnia books (although I’ve been curious). When I worked at a bookstore, people often asked about the books and many were unhappy about the change in the series order. Generally people said that _The Magician’s Nephew_ is the most boring book of the series. I’ve always been curious if this is true. So, for those who’ve read it, what do you think? As a child, I always thought _The Horse and His Boy_ was the dullest. Sometimes, reading through the series (which I did about once a year), I would skip it. As an adult, I appreciate _Horse_ much more (the same thing happened with _The Silver Chair_, too). But, now I do find _The Magician’s Nephew_ a lot less inspiring. It’s probably my least favorite, now. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/17 "2005-10-23T08:22:08Z")
There’s a lot of crap out there about what Lewis “intended”–especially from his stepsons and from Walter Hooper. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![thursday\_next](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8797f3/32.png) [@thursday\_next](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thursday_next)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 8:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/18 "2005-10-23T08:45:12Z")
(hijack) I’m partial to at least the title of _A Horse and His Boy_, as I know a horse who has his own personal person. A very, very jealous horse. 🙂 (/end hijack) ---
**Author:** ![Orual](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/779978/32.png) [@Orual](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orual)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/19 "2005-10-23T14:19:54Z")
> [@thursday next](#): > > Generally people said that _The Magician’s Nephew_ is the most boring book of the series. I’ve always been curious if this is true. So, for those who’ve read it, what do you think? I don’t know if I would call _The Magician’s Nephew_ the dullest, but I have always found it to be the least magical. It takes a bunch of mysterious things from the earlier books and de-mystifys them (the wardrobe, the lamp post, etc.). I love Narnia, but I’ve never really enjoyed _The Magician’s Nephew_ or _The Last Battle_. Always liked _A Horse and his Boy_ though. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2005, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444/20 "2005-10-23T18:55:55Z")
I think Dawn Treader is the best (after TLTWATW, of course)! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/narnia-in-the-order-in-which-c-s-lewis-meant-for-them-to-be-read-is-this-true/327444.md?page=2)