The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe

This second book in the popular children's classic series has fantastical elements featuring a well-known magical locale, enchanted creatures, and Christian themes. I decided to read it for the first time in preparation to read Once Upon A Wardrobe by Patti Callahan which, I've been told, references this children's classic and the life of C.S Lewis.

This series is beloved by many, but it was just an okay read for me. Lovers of this series don't hate on me! I liked the idea of this magical place called Narnia and the fantastical creatures who inhabit it, but I expected more. Maybe my expectations were too high, or I've been spoiled by more recent children's Fantasy series which captivated me with their descriptions and character development. I felt like I kept waiting for more magic and better descriptions of Narnia and its inhabitants who were simplistic and often stereotypical - noble king, wicked witch and the rest are just ... there. The story is sparse on tension and heavy-handed with its Christian references (the addition of Father Christmas was just plain odd), but it was also a sweet story - and who wouldn't love to slip through a wardrobe into another world?

Michael York narrated this story well, giving the different characters their own feel. I realize I'm not the age group Lewis wrote this book for, and I believe it would probably be a more magical experience for the kids for whom the series was originally written.

My Rating: 3 stars

Author: C.S Lewis

Genre: Fantasy, Children, Classic

Type and Source: eAudiobook from public library

Narrator: Michael York

Run Time: 4 hours, 21 minutes

Series: #2 in The Chronicles of Narnia series

Publisher: HarperAudio

First Published in Print: October 16, 1950

Opening Lines: Once there were four children whose names were 

Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy. This story is about something 

that happened to them when they were sent away from 

London because of the air-raids.

Book Description from GoodReads: Open the door and enter a new world.

Narnia ... the land beyond the wardrobe door, a secret place frozen in eternal winter ... a magical country waiting to be set free.

Lucy is the first to find the secret of the wardrobe in the professor's mysterious old house. At first her brothers and sister don't believe her when she tells of her visit to the land of Narnia. But soon Edmund, then Peter and Susan step through the wardrobe themselves. In Narnia they find a country buried under the evil enchantment of the White Witch. When they meet the Lion Aslan, they realize they've been called to a great adventure and bravely join the battle to free Narnia from the Witch's sinister spell.