Yes!
For many kids, Narnia is kind of the first example of non-linear storytelling, written well enough to make sense.
–Cliffy
Exactly. If in media res worked for Homer, it can certainly work for Lewis.
What **Tengu ** said. Read it once in the order given, then read it in chronological order so you understand it better. Magician’s Nephew can be kind of boring.
Have you ever read it as an adult? As a boy, I didn’t think much of it, but on re-reading it a few years ago, I caught a lot more of the depth of it. Including one of the better passages in literature:
As for Lewis’ preferences, if he had wanted them read in some other order, he would have published them in that order. Always read (or watch, or listen to, as per the art form) any series in the order originally presented.
No, let’s get really chtronological:
The Magician’s Nephew
The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe UNTIL you get to the point where the Kings and Queens have forgotten that they were ever four child refugees from the Battle of Britain, then read
The Horse and His Boy
Then finish reading The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.
Prince Caspian
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Silver Chair
The Last Battle
Seriously, the published order is best. You want to be mystified the first time Lucy enters the wardrobe, and the first time she sees the lamppost. Reading The Magician’s Nephew first makes that impossible.
Wow, do I disagree. I think The Horse and His Boy is really excellent, and works very well as a stand-alone also.
As for the OP, definitely the originally published order. I find it horrifying that boxed sets are now being published in the chronological order.
Excellent suggestion for a re-read. As luck would have it (NNWW) I just decided this very day to read the CoN again, after a conversation with an applicant. I sit down to my computer at home, and lo and behold, this thread! I think I’ll do it your way, kaylasdad.
Well, I read them in “chronologic” order.
Maybe that’s why I really liked The Magician’s Nephew. I especially enjoyed reading the creation of Narnia. And I wasn’t confused about Jadis at all. I thought she was a big old bitch. Of course, when I read LWW, I knew she wasn’t to be trusted. And when Lucy et al. aren’t sure about their Uncle Diggory, I knew what kind of adventures he had already had.
I liked The Horse and His Boy but after that the series just seemed to go downhill. The Magician’s Nephew and LWW are the only 2 I reread, though they’re also the only 2 I own (I reread my books a lot). Maybe I should reread the others.
The Horse and His Boy is my favorite of the series.
Funny, one would think you’d be able to get the title right.
I am so confused.
Not that that’s unusual.
What’s wrong?
You *have * to start with The Magician’s Nephew. Any other way just doesn’t make sense.
That’s just crazy talk. If it doesn’t make sense, then how come Narnia became a classic with The Lion, The Witch, and the Warddrobe published as the first book in the series for years and years and years?
I think I need to reread the Narnia books. It has been years.
Ahhh… but where did the Wardrobe come from?
That’s part of the wonder and mystery and magic of the story, isn’t it? And besides, where the wardrobe came from doesn’t have any real bearing on the story.
(a) Publication order. Period.
(b) Is it just me, or does The Last Battle kind of suck?
I started a thread some months ago where I related the story of a friend and her young daughter (who read together at night) who had tried to start the series and failed twice. When I found that they were starting with The Magician’s Nephew (not knowing any better), I suggested they give it one more try starting with The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. When I spoke to them a couple days later, they were enjoing the heck out of it.
Although there are exceptions, far more people (espcially young children) will be drawn into the series by starting with TLTWATW. It’s simply the more engaging of the two going in cold (IMHO).
Satan wants you to read them in chronological order! :mad:
I have given this set as a gift in the past. If I ever do so again, I’m going to make sure the books are properly renumbered before I do. Lion is first.
Hey now!!! 