CAA: Christian Anime Alliance

Which Narnia book was the best? My favorite was The Magician's Nephew.

I'm half down The Last Battle and just haven't gotten time to finish it >_< So far it's been my favorite, because when I started (in the limited time I had to read the first bit) I was so hooked and wished there was more time to keep going! But, looks I'll have to come back and vote when I finish it^^ I find sometimes that good stories (whether books, movies, whatever) with bad endings, can almost ruin the whole thing. Not that I expect it, but just you know, if it was somethign I didn't care for. So I'll have to keep going and see how it all ends, and then come back and take the poll^^

The Silver Chair and The Magician's Nephew.

Probably The Magician's Nephew, though The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a close second.

VotDT.

Right now I like the Magician's Nephew the best...but I'm planning to read the Horse and His Boy and I have a feeling that it will replace the Magician's Nephew as my favorite. ^_^;

I l-o-v-e the Horse and His Boy, mostly because you get a peek at what life was like when Lucy, Ed, Susan, and Peter were ruling. I also like the first book (the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe) even more so after the movie has come out.

I'm kind of amazed that everyone likes the Magican's Nephew and Dawn Treader so much. What do you all like so much about them?

I liked the Magician's Nephew a lot because the Christian symbolism was really well done. I could clearly see that the book was basically the Narnian version of the creation story. Also, the themes of good vs. evil and atonement were effectively addressed. I would tell you specifically what I really enjoyed about the book...but I don't know how to use spoiler tags. ^_^;

MyrrhLynn wrote:I'm kind of amazed that everyone likes the Magican's Nephew and Dawn Treader so much. What do you all like so much about them?

The Magician's Nephew was good, but not amazing for me. The creation story was quite nice in it^^ I did quite enjoy Dawn Treader, because it's like all these chronicles at sea were amazing, and I didn't even reralize it until I was browsing through Wiki that [spoiler] the part where Aslan was turning Eustace back from a dragon, that the whole thing with the water was a symbolic thing of baptism and all... Not sure why I didn't pick that one up^^ Maybe too involved with the story? Yet I got the whole "shedding of skin with the help of Aslan" though. *shrugs*^^ [/spoiler]

Noticing the list was made in the chronological order that Lewis wrote them, and knowing the movies are being made in that order too, (to help with the timeline in reality with the aging children) would that mean they'll be skipping Magicians Nephew and Horse and His Boy, to make The Last Battle, so the actors who play Jill and Eustace will still be the same ageish? Hmmm...

To use spoiler tags, type spoiler in brackets. then type what you want, and type /spoiler in brackets. Whatever you type between spoiler and /spoiler will be put into a box which must be clicked on and dragged.

Thanks rocklobster! ^_^

The part which I really liked the most in The Magician's Nephew was:

[spoiler] When Digory chose to obey Aslan and return the fruit to him instead of buying into the Witch's trap and taking the apple for himself. I found that part so cool because Digory didn't succumb to his own desires but trusted in Aslan and put Narnia before himself. Aslan rewarded Digory for his obedience by giving him an apple from the tree to heal his mother. It reminded me of that verse in Proverbs where it says "Trust the the Lord your God and lean not on your own understanding". ^_^ Also, it kind of gave me an idea as to what might have happened if Adam and Eve didn't disobey God in the Garden of Eden. [/spoiler]

The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader because of the fact it was the first one I read and also because it's more of a typical swashbuckling adventure than anything else.

I enjoy The Magician's Nephew because the Wood Between Worlds, Creation of Narnia, Charn and everything inbetween are so fascinating!

Voyage of the Dawn Treader because of the temptation at the lake of gold leading to possible death, the book of spells and Eustace repentance and the symbolism involved.

They are just amazing books. They have strong Christian symbolism but are incredibly entertaining as well. And Lewis has the ability to let you use your imagination to make up your own idea of how things look.

Hmm... I'd have to say Last Battle, though it's almost a three-way tie with that, Magician's nephew, and Horse and His Boy... The three least likely to be turned into movies (MN and HaHB for timeline issues, LB because no one knows if the films will remain successfull long enough to finish the series)

Horse and His Boy is a good one because there is no connection with earth whatsoever... It's the only story that takes place entirely in Narnia, at least from what I remember...

Magician's Nephew is a great "just so you know" right before the end, though it hurts me to see it placed as book 1...

Hmm...

I've ranted about book orders many times... I've ranted about a lot... nevermind, I said enough for the topic...

Walden Media want to do all 7 Narnia books. If commercially viable there's a chance they will (and I hope they do).

Wild Eagle wrote:Thanks rocklobster! ^_^

The part which I really liked the most in The Magician's Nephew was:

[spoiler] When Digory chose to obey Aslan and return the fruit to him instead of buying into the Witch's trap and taking the apple for himself. I found that part so cool because Digory didn't succumb to his own desires but trusted in Aslan and put Narnia before himself. Aslan rewarded Digory for his obedience by giving him an apple from the tree to heal his mother. It reminded me of that verse in Proverbs where it says "Trust the the Lord your God and lean not on your own understanding". ^_^ Also, it kind of gave me an idea as to what might have happened if Adam and Eve didn't disobey God in the Garden of Eden. [/spoiler]

No problem. I love to help out. You should check out C.S. Lewis's Space Trilogy: Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, and That Hideous Strength . They're a tad deeper than Narnia, but still good. Perelandra also deals with Eden in a way.

I loved the imagery and the expanded settings of Dawn Treader.

It's been a while since I've read through them (I need to pick them up again!), but I remember liking Voyage of the Dawn Treader quite a bit. I think I liked the adventurous feel of it, and the different places they visited. Plus, I liked the wizard. XD

I love LWW as well, though. Edmund's transformation is great in that book, plus I love Mr. Tumnas.

Oh, gosh... I can't decide. They're all fantastic, although I must say I really enjoyed all the places they visited in Voyage of the Dawn Treader. The funny thing is, I was playing LoZ: Wind Waker at the time, so I couldn't help but picture Caspian as little, cartoony Link! XD!! I'm such a nerd.

The whole purpose of Aslan bringing the Pevensies and the other children into the world of Narnia is explained at the end of The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader.

Voyage of the Dawn Treader is my favorite w/o disput. such a cool adventure, but also a seriously deep life mediphor!! C.S. Lewis rocks!

My absolute favorite is VotDT, but HaHB and TLB are very close behind it. I think VotDT is my favorite because of the more swashbuckling feel to it, and the great range of imagery it has.

I'm going with The Last Battle for its' intensity and resolution. The ending is beautiful, a fitting ending to a wonderful series. Though I cannot believe that no one's voted for LWWD. It's the most well-known for a reason.

Well LWW is so overdone. And it's quite immature compared to the others (not the story, but the writing style and character development).

Warrior 4 Jesus wrote:Well LWW is so overdone. And it's quite immature compared to the others (not the story, but the writing style and character development).

Exactly... Which is why it deserved to be book one... The series matures as it goes along, and by Magician's Nephew, it's a real downgrade to go back to LWW...

Warrior 4 Jesus wrote:Well LWW is so overdone. And it's quite immature compared to the others (not the story, but the writing style and character development).

When you say "overdone," do you mean overdone as in overperformed (movies, plays, performances) or do you mean the book is overdone (as in melodramatic, overly allegorical, over-written)? Maybe Lewis as a fiction writer?

I'm not sure that I would consider the book immature, as it was written for children. There is a lot of character expressed in the persons of Narnia and the children - personality, maturity. I would say that a lot of it is plot driven and not character driven as much, and that it is probably the most allegorical of all. I dunno. I've always enjoyed each book in its' own way, and LWW just as much as most of the others. Just wanted to see a bit more of your thoughts on that.

Wow I am seriously in shock. Maybe I will have to reread them all again because I remember VotDT as being boring and not at all interesting to me. I can't believe everyone like it so much. I think part of my problem is I love Narnia (the country) and they spend the whole book away from Narnia. Either that or I'm being biased by the really old British movie versions of the books and I didn't like that movie very much.

I mean overdone as in overperformed (media-wise, plays etc and it's the only Narnia book read in schools! Grrr...). It's definetly not meodramatic, too allegorical (although it is VERY obvious and definetly not over-written). But I think the stories after are just more mature in their scope, their complexity of story (and characters with actual flaws!). The excuse that books have to be immature if they are aimed mainly at kids is rubbish. Kids are a lot more intelligent than most realise.

WOW.... I didnt know everyone else like Voyage of the Dawn treader the best to...

Warrior 4 Jesus wrote:I mean overdone as in overperformed (media-wise, plays etc and it's the only Narnia book read in schools! Grrr...). It's definetly not meodramatic, too allegorical (although it is VERY obvious and definetly not over-written). But I think the stories after are just more mature in their scope, their complexity of story (and characters with actual flaws!). The excuse that books have to be immature if they are aimed mainly at kids is rubbish. Kids are a lot more intelligent than most realise.

I'll definitely give you that.