Edit: When I first posted The Chronicles of Narnia, I tried to space the books out to give people a chance to read them. This time around, I’m acknowledging that the series has been out for at least fifty years and more. (I’m also just trying to get some of these posts up again so that they are not lost for all time.) I just though to put this quick note here to explain the opener and maybe offer a sneak peek at another series that I’ll eventually be putting up as well. You know what? I am booking us a long overdue trip to Narnia. It’s been months since we went there. (Silence, Redwall. I know, I know.)
Eustace is back in school after his adventures with his cousins, Edmund and Lucy. Now he is trying to help a new friend, Jill Pole, after she has been picked on by the school bullies. He tells her about Narnia and how they might be able to wish themselves into that world. As it turns out, they don’t need some special wish or magic to enter Narnia. Aslan, himself, calls them into his special country beyond the World’s End. He has a task for the both of them to fulfill, but because of an accident, Jill is the only one to learn the basics of the story and receive the four signs that will guide them on their journey. Upon arriving in the country of Narnia and reuniting with Eustace, they discover that King Caspian the Tenth is setting out on a voyage one last time to speak with Aslan. Yet Eustace fails to recognize him because nearly a lifetime has now passed. Jill tells Eustace about Aslan’s mission for them to search for Caspian’s missing son, Prince Rilian. Never would they have dreamed of the dangers they were about to face, nor who their unexpected guide and traveling companion would be: a pessimist Marsh-wiggle by the name of Puddleglum. Can Jill remember all four of the signs that are to ultimately lead to Rilian? Will they survive the approaching winter as they travel across broad plains and difficult mountains? Who is the mysterious woman that they meet? And what is the use of a being who only ever sees the worst possible outcome? This is the last of the Narnia series that I grew up with on film before being introduced to the book. I always found it an enjoyable adventure. Although there were at least one or two points where I still tend to cringe away and hide my eyes from (if nothing else, out of habit). Although most of the characters are memorable, Puddleglum may always have a special place in the history of Narnia. Even though he could easily make Eoyore from Winnie the Pooh look happy, this honest Narnian ends up being invaluable in the quest of the lost prince. Sadly, I can’t say too much without giving things away.
The character of Puddleglum was actually inspired by Fred Paxford, an employee of C. S. Lewis around his home. As described in the prologue of Focus on the Family’s Radio Theater dramatization, he was “a cheerful pessimist.” I have to say that The Silver Chair would have been very different without this gloomy, but loveable, character. The book went through various name changes, at least a couple even hinting at the journey underground that the heroes were to embark on later in the book. It was written after The Horse and his Boy, but somehow beat that book into getting published first. With a sense of bittersweetness, The Silver Chair is actually the second to last book in The Chronicles of Narnia. Again, C. S. Lewis and Pauline Baynes crafted this story through roughly 100 pages with 16 chapters. I will forever bemoan the fact that I am basing these page numbers on a compilation book that decided it was a good idea to remove most of Ms. Baynes’s drawings. And in honor of a certain Marsh-wiggle who has unshakable faith despite his dour outlook, I give the story as a whole five gloomy, down-in-the-dumps dragons out of five. :-)
Hope you all manage to find a copy of this book or Focus on the Family’s dramatization. Highly recommended like all of these Narnia books.
Until next time. Bye.
Other stories in the series:
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