I feel like my family is burning through these books faster than we ever did The Little House on the Prairie series. I’m only reading them 1-2 chapters per night, but even at that slow rate, we can finish a book in less than 2 weeks. We’ll finish the series by Spring, and I bet you anything my kids will just want to read this series again, if I ask ’em!

Upon finishing this book the other night, I asked my kids (8, 9) which of the three so far they liked the best. They ranked the first three installments this way:

#1 The Voyage of the Dawn Treader,
#2 The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and
#3 Prince Caspian.

I can’t yet estimate what they’ll think of books 4-7 (after all, I’ve never read them myself!), so it will be interesting to see whether their preferences change or not.

This story follows Lucy, Edmond, and their whiny cousin Eustace as they sail with Prince Caspian and his crew in search of the seven Lords whom his father had send on an errand to the east about a decade prior (Narnia time). They experience a number of strange adventures on the various islands they pass, they learn to respect the talkative Reepicheep to a whole new level by the end, and even annoying Eustace learns to turn a new leaf. It’s a longer, slightly disjoined tale compared to the previous two, but it has elements of Lewis that make you want to stop and contemplate the meaning behind it all.

I read somewhere that C.S. Lewis had actually already written this third book before the first had even been published. I find this highly intriguing, for it shows that Lewis hadn’t yet written a word of this series to please anyone but himself (and perhaps his Inklings pals). These stories poured from his heart and had no outside influence that would sway the direction of his plots or the twisting of his characters. That’s a behind-the-scenes nugget that’s actually useful. I’m storing that one away.

This series targeted to children came about a decade after his Sci-fi trilogy for adults, yet as I read this book about the Dawn Treader and its excursions to a number of strange islands and even to the end of the world, I couldn’t help but picture the watery world of Perelandra and the strange things which took place there. The unnatural colors and strange creatures along with the moral undertones, it was easy to recognize the same mind standing behind both pens.

By far our favorite creatures in this book were the Duffledpuds, though my daughter especially wanted to hear more about the Merfolk living in the shallows a few days’ journey from the end of the world. Neither of my children enjoyed the Isle of Darkness, and let me be honest: neither did I.

If I had to target some teachable aspects of this book, I’d note first the selflessness that a few characters display: Lucy in the Dufflepuds’ Island and Reepicheep’s willingness to sacrifice himself for the rest. Next, I’d also note the persistence of the crew, through all the dangers and all the trials, still they pressed on through the seas of lilies to the end of the world which they had never yet anticipated. Finally, I’d note the change that takes place in Eustace following a period of life which required he wear VERY different shoes than normal and to see what life was like as an outsider.

My kids loved this book and I loved reading it to them. We’re excited to see what adventures await us in Book 4, The Silver Chair!

©2021 E.T.

See More by C.S. Lewis:

• Nonfiction:
  The Screwtape Letters (1942)
  Reflections on the Psalms (1958)
• Space Trilogy:
  Out of the Silent Planet (1938)
  Perelandra (1943)
  That Hideous Strength (1945)
• The Chronicles of Narnia: 
  The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (1950)
  Prince Caspian (1951)
  The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952)
  The Silver Chair (1953)
  The Horse and His Boy (1954)
  The Magician’s Nephew (1955)
  The Last Battle (1956)
• Other:
  Till We Have Faces (1956)