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The Magician's Nephew (The Chronicles of Narnia (Publication Order) #6)

by C.S. Lewis

4.01 · Rating Details · 302,298 Ratings · 8,634 Reviews

When Digory and Polly are tricked by Digory's peculiar Uncle Andrew into becoming part of an experiment, they set off on the adventure of a lifetime. What happens to the children when they touch Uncle Andrew's magic rings is far beyond anything even the old magician could have imagined.

Hurtled into the Wood between the Worlds, the children soon find that they can enter man

...more

Paperback, 221 pages

Published May 4th 2005 by HarperCollins Publishers (first published 1953)

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Community Reviews

(showing 1-30)

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Mar 16, 2010 J.G. Keely rated it it was ok

Shelves: fantasy, reviewed, uk-and-ireland

Suffers from the same problems as Lewis' other books, both his children's fantasy and his pokes at theology: Lewis' worldview is not sophisticated, and his sense of psychology has a large blind spot. However, it's not his faith that is the problem--it certainly wasn't a problem for Donne or Milton.

Lewis is simply unable to put himself in another's shoes, which is very problematic for a writer or a theologian. He cannot understand the reasons or motivations for why someone would do something he c ...more

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Nov 12, 2016 Justin rated it really liked it

It's mildly embarrassing that I've lived almost 32 years and I've only read one book from the Narnia series. Well, I guess I've read two now, but I feel like I should have read those a long time ago. As an adult, it's difficult to even rate this book fairly because the adult version of myself wants to be all critical and make comments about how this isn't Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter, but it's not supposed to be. And that's fine with me.

Is this the first book in the series! Is it the sixth It's mildly embarrassing that I've lived almost 32 years and I've only read one book from the Narnia series. Well, I guess I've read two now, but I feel like I should have read those a long time ago. As an adult, it's difficult to even rate this book fairly because the adult version of myself wants to be all critical and make comments about how this isn't Lord of the Rings or Harry Potter, but it's not supposed to be. And that's fine with me.

Is this the first book in the series! Is it the sixth? Does it even matter? I'm reading it first because I conducted a very thorough investigation into the series and determined that my plan to read them this way is the right way to read them. However, my very scientific thorough analysis also concluded that this book can be read later and no one really cares and it doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things. Just read the series is all I'm saying, although I haven't even read the series myself so that may be moderately premature on my part.

It was neat to read about the origins of Narnia. Whoa... did I just say "neat"? That was an accident. Lemme get back to words I actually use in real life.

It was awesome to read about the origins of Narnia. The lamp post and the witch and whatnot. Aslan. That was just autocorrected to Asian so that was funny. I don't have any reason to believe he is an Asian lion, but I again haven't read the entire series yet so that could be explored in future novels where Aslan spends his childhood as a small lion cub in Beijing before creating Narnia later in life. I don't think that's accurate though.

Lewis really writes an engaging fantasy tale that is surprising full of beautiful descriptions rather than nonstop action. I appreciate the world building in the book which I found pretty detailed for a children's book. I also like that I don't really know some of the characters well, but feel like the less important ones are gonna be showing up later on down the road.

I'm excited to continue this trek through Narnia. My kids don't give a flip about it so I'm gonna be on my own. Maybe when their older they will have a longer attention span and a better appreciation of great books. Dad's gonna keep rolling in the meantime.

...more

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May 18, 2015 P rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, classics

“No great wisdom can be reached without sacrifice.”

I loved the narration of The Magician's Nephew, it's clear, imaginative, and addicting. This book took me book to the time when I was sitting and listening to my grandma's tales. She always told me about folklores. I can still remember the story about there's a ghost hiding in the closet, it made me so scared and never ever wanted to open the closet alone again.

This book literally made me feel like that. I kept wondering why I did and figured ...more

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Dec 05, 2008 Manny rated it liked it

Shelves: science-fiction, children

My autistic-spectrum son Jonathan is fascinated by the White Witch in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. He wants to know what her motivation is. "Why is she always so angry?" he asks. "Why does she hate Aslan? Who is she like?" These are good questions. I have suggested that he should read The Magician's Nephew, but Jonathan only reads the books he wants to read and ignores recommendations. A pity, I would like to discuss it with him.

The White Witch is the best character in the series, and i ...more

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Jan 07, 2017 Dannii Elle rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fantastic-fabrications, adventurous-acuity

I have owned this beautiful set of illustrated hardback editions of these books since childhood and am only now getting around to reading them. After reading this spellbinding first installment I am so mad at myself that I have missed out on entering this world for so long.

I decided to begin reading this series in chronological rather than publication order (as per the numbers on my books) and I am so glad I did. This brilliantly sets up the rest of the series without giving any spoilers of what ...more

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Dec 04, 2007 Eyebright rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Anyone

Shelves: classics, 2008-books

Despite the fact that The Magicians Nephew is the first book in the Chronicles of Narnia, strangely, it is frequently overlooked. People skip straight ahead to The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, and then, at a later date come back to this book.

Personally, I like this book just as well as any others in the series. I love to see how everything got started, the lamp post, the wardrobe, the White Witch. Not to mention the beautiful allegory of Creation. The Magician's Nephew also has good morals ...more

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Oct 28, 2009 Ahmad Sharabiani rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classic, fantasy, childrens-young-readers, 20th-century

The Magician's Nephew (Chronicles of Narnia, #6), C.S. Lewis
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: ژانویه سال 2002 میلای
عنوان: ماجراهای نارنیا 6: خواهرزاده جادوگر؛ نویسنده: کلاویو استیپلز لوئیس 1898 - 1963 ؛ مترجم: امید اقتداری 1330 ؛ منوچهر کریم زاده 1328؛ کتابهای کیمیا، تهران خیابان ولی عصر، بالاتر از میدان ونک، شماره 133؛ چاپ نخست 1379، هفت جلد در 1368 ص؛ جلد ششم در شش و 172 ص؛ شابک: دوره هفت جلدی 9647100116؛ چاپ سوم 1386؛ شابک: 9647100108؛ موضوع: داستانهای کودکان برای کودکان از نویسندگان انگلیسی - قرن 20 م
مترج The Magician's Nephew (Chronicles of Narnia, #6), C.S. Lewis
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: ژانویه سال 2002 میلای
عنوان: ماجراهای نارنیا 6: خواهرزاده جادوگر؛ نویسنده: کلاویو استیپلز لوئیس 1898 - 1963 ؛ مترجم: امید اقتداری 1330 ؛ منوچهر کریم زاده 1328؛ کتابهای کیمیا، تهران خیابان ولی عصر، بالاتر از میدان ونک، شماره 133؛ چاپ نخست 1379، هفت جلد در 1368 ص؛ جلد ششم در شش و 172 ص؛ شابک: دوره هفت جلدی 9647100116؛ چاپ سوم 1386؛ شابک: 9647100108؛ موضوع: داستانهای کودکان برای کودکان از نویسندگان انگلیسی - قرن 20 م
مترجم: پیمان اسماعیلیان؛ تهران، قدیانی، بنفشه؛ 1387، در 256 ص؛ چاپ دوم 1388؛
مترجم: آرش حجازی؛ تهران، کاروان؛ 1376، در 199 ص؛ شابک: 96491607؛
کتاب اول: شیر، کمد، جادوگر؛ کتاب دوم: شاهزاده کاسپین؛ کتاب سوم: کشتی سپیده پیما؛ کتاب چهارم: صندلی نقره ای؛ کتاب پنجم: اس‍ب‌ و آدم‍ش‌؛ کتاب‌ ششم: خواهرزاده جادوگر؛ کتاب هفتم: آخرین نبرد؛
این جلد (ششم) از نظر زمان چاپ، ششمین کتاب است، اما از نظر زمان رخدادها و وقایع به پیش از زمان کتاب: شیر، کمد و جادوگر، برمیگردد؛ و در مورد آفرینش جهان نارنیا ست. در این داستان پالی به همراه دیگوری خواهر زاده ی دایی اندرو، وارد دنیایی جنگلی میشوند، که همانند یک تونل آنها را به دنیاهای دیگر میرساند. در دنیای نخست یک جادوگر همراه با آنها به دنیای خودشان راه مییابد. در سفر دوم، مرد درشکه چی و اسبش، دایی اندرو، دیگوری و پالی اشتباهاً وارد نارنیا که هنوز کاملاً بوجود نیامده میشوند، و شاهد ایجاد نارنیا هستند. درشکه چی و همسرش نخستین شاه و ملکه ی نارنیا هستند و نامهای آنها در نارنیا: فرانک و هنی ست. برگزیده از متن: نارنیا، نارنیا، نارنیا، بیدار شو، عشق بورز. اندیشه کن. سخن بگو. درختهای روان باش. جانوران سخنگو باش. آبهای ملکوتی باش. ص 107 از کتاب ا. شربیانی ...more

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Feb 29, 2008 Deborah rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: Everyone - of all ages

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The Magician's Nephew tells of how it all started. How Narnia was created. How the first Sons of Adam, and Daughters of Eve "traveled" to Narnia. And, how the wardrobe came to be. A wonderful read, full of magic, wit, adventure, and hope.

Next, Spoiler alert.

I noticed that CS Lewis seemed to point out similarites between Uncle Andrew and his nephew, Digory. That's not a good thing. Uncle Andrew was selfish, un-caring, and really, a blundering fool. While reading, I often found myself wondering if ...more

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Mar 09, 2015 Mario rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: own, own-read

I really enjoyed reading this one. Fun and fast read, and I also loved reading about how it all started. And even though I noticed a lot of connections with Christianity, I didn't pay a lot of attention to it. I just enjoyed the story in general.

I think this is probably my favorite, right after Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe.

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Jun 25, 2013 Bookwraiths rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, young_adult

Originally reviewed at Bookwraiths.

The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis is one of those books I read just because. Because I’d read The Lion, the Witch, and The Wardrobe when I was a kid. Because I always wondered what exactly Narnia was. Because I’d watched all the Narnia movies with my kids. Because it was sitting on my son’s shelf collecting dust and it had a number one written on it: i.e. first book of the series. So because of all those reasons, I wiped the dust off of it and read it.

This b Originally reviewed at Bookwraiths.

The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis is one of those books I read just because. Because I’d read The Lion, the Witch, and The Wardrobe when I was a kid. Because I always wondered what exactly Narnia was. Because I’d watched all the Narnia movies with my kids. Because it was sitting on my son’s shelf collecting dust and it had a number one written on it: i.e. first book of the series. So because of all those reasons, I wiped the dust off of it and read it.

This book isn’t about anyone I was familiar with from the other Narnia books/movies. Well, I guess Aslan is there toward the end, but honestly, the majority of the book is about Digory Kirke and Polly Plummer and that was okay, because their story was easy to grasp. You see, these two neighbors met, become friends then decide to explore the attic connecting their houses. Unfortunately, during their exploration, they accidentally go into the study of Digory’s Uncle Andrew, who is a magician. Hence the name of our book: The Magician’s Nephew.

Once in Andrew’s study, Polly is tricked by Digory’s almost evil uncle into touching a magic yellow ring which causes her to vanish. It seems Uncle Andrew has been dabbling in ancient magic that allows one to travel between worlds. In order to save Polly, Digory is blackmailed by his uncle into testing another magic ring so as to follow Polly; our young hero also takes two green ones just in case they can actually try to return home. When Digory touches his yellow ring it transports him to a wood between the worlds where he finds Polly alive and well. Also, there is a series of pools which the two discover leads to separate universes.

Of course, our two, young adventures decide not to immediately return home to England but to explore a different world and so jump into one of the nearby pools. Instantaneously, Digory and Polly find themselves in a desolate, abandoned city of some strange, ancient world, which they later learn is Charn. Inside an ancient building, which they surmise must have been a palace, they discover a huge room filled with statuesque figures of Charn's former kings and queens. These perfect statues are beautiful beyond compare but seem to degenerate from the fair and wise of the first to the unhappy and cruel of the later. Among these images from some long forgotten past, there is a bell and a hammer with these words written:

Make your choice, adventurous Stranger
Strike the bell and bide the danger
Or wonder, till it drives you mad
What would have followed if you had.

The story of Narnia start with that bell. Everything else spirals out from the fateful choice placed before Digory and Polly on whether to ring that bell. Sure, the rest of the book reveals to us the creation of Narnia and its talking animals,, the origins of the lamp-post, the wonders of its first human king and queen, the first evil deed of the White Witch, and of course Aslan’s role in all of it. We are even told how the wardrobe becomes “the wardrobe” which ever after will transport some lucky few to Narnia. But it begins at the decision before the bell.

All in all, this was a very entertaining story. If I was still a kid, I would have undoubtedly rated it much higher, but it was still well-worth my time, especially since it answered all the “how” questions about Narnia. For that reason alone, I recommend fans of the series give it a try. ...more

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May 18, 2017 Reynita Maharani ★ The Night Reader ★ rated it liked it · review of another edition

REVIEW TO COME! 😁😁

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Nov 21, 2015 Annie rated it liked it

Shelves: read-in-2015

Even though The Magician’s Nephew was written as the sixth book of the Narnia series, the story predates The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Seeing as this served as the prelude to the series, I chose to begin with this. Lewis himself is known to have shown a slight preference to this order of reading, rather than in the order of publication. And the reason to why I have chosen to start reading a children’s book now relates to the arrival of a very tiny human being in the Paul household, exactly a month before Christmas to ensure her stockings and bow wrapped packages hold the ‘popper’(proper) gifts! Also, with the festive season looming, it seemed like a good time to get this one off my BBC Big Read reading list (which I only sometimes remember I am supposed to be completing!)

Now, I am familiar with the story of Narnia and Aslan from the movies, but there is something to be said about reading one that strains beyond that knowledge to inspire the imagination. It is quite simple, and straightforward, but set in early 20th century England, it has a charm of its own. It bought back memories of books that I had read almost two decades ago, of secret passages and simple friendships, of the magic that waterfalls held, and talking animals! But even beyond all these, there is a power in the story, simple as it is, that it has remained ‘young’ and inspired so many years after it was published.

The story follows two children, Polly and Diggory, who get manipulated by Diggory’s uncle to make use of two magical rings that act as portals between worlds. Of the many incidents that result from this, the children meet Aslan and the witch. Here, Lewis explores the creation of Narnia itself. And some conflict between good and evil has been thrown in for good measure.

The book seemed to have been designed as a moral lesson to little children, in addition to being a fantasy story, and with some Biblical references thrown in, I suppose Lewis also wanted this to be a fun way to introduce them to religion. But what I loved best is that it answered many questions that seemed to have been overlooked in The Lion,... For example, why did the witch hate Aslan so much? How did the wardrobe end up being the portal to Narnia? What is the significance of the lamppost? The Magician’s Nephew answers these questions and many more, thus satisfying the vague forgotten questions I had had from the movies. The child in me is happy, and my niece has fallen asleep. It was a good read.

...more

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Nov 18, 2013 Nadine Brandes rated it it was amazing

Just finished reading this to hubby. He is now, officially, a Narnian.

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Feb 05, 2017 Alexander Ayala rated it really liked it · review of another edition

El sobrino del mago es un libro maravilloso, lleno de magia, de valores, de reflejos de una realidad actual, que me sorprende que se haya escrito hace años.

Es una saga especial y confió a los padres estos libros para que se los lean a sus hijos, porque es de suma importancia que entiendan el mensaje, y los símbolos que tiene, además que el estilo es muy fresco y sencillo de ser interpretado.

Nunca es tarde para leer las crónicas, siempre encuentras cosas diferentes, siempre te diviertes y nunca ...more

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Oct 03, 2007 AnnaMarie rated it it was amazing

I thought this book was so beautiful.

Favorite quotes/parts:
"He put on a very high, shiny, stiff collar of the sort that made you hold your chin up all the time. He put on a white waistcoat with a pattern on it and arranged his watch chain across the front . . . He took his eye-glass, with the thick black ribbon, and screwed it into his eye; then he looked at himself in the mirror.
Children have one kind of silliness, as you know, and grown-ups have another kind. At this moment Uncle Andrew was b I thought this book was so beautiful.

Favorite quotes/parts:
"He put on a very high, shiny, stiff collar of the sort that made you hold your chin up all the time. He put on a white waistcoat with a pattern on it and arranged his watch chain across the front . . . He took his eye-glass, with the thick black ribbon, and screwed it into his eye; then he looked at himself in the mirror.
Children have one kind of silliness, as you know, and grown-ups have another kind. At this moment Uncle Andrew was beginning to be silly in a very grown-up way. Now that the Witch was no longer in the same room with him he was quickly forgetting how she had frightened him and thinking more and more of her wonderful beauty."

"When the great moment came and the Beasts spoke, he missed the whole point; for a rather interesting reason. When the Lion had first begun singing , long ago when it was still quite dark, he had realized that the noise was a song. And he disliked the song very much. It made him think and feel things he did not want to think and feel. . . . And the longer and more beautiful the Lion sang, the harder Uncle Andrew tried to make himself believe that he could hear nothing but roaring. Now the trouble about trying to make yourself stupider than you really are is that you very often succeed. Uncle Andrew did."

"'But please, please - won't you - can't you give me something that will cure Mother?' Up till then he had been looking at the Lion's great feet and the huge claws on them; now, in his despair, he looked up at its face. What he saw surprised him as much as anything in his whole life. For the tawny face was bent down near his own and (wonder of wonders) great shining tears stood in the Lion's eyes. They were such big, bright tears compared with Digory's own that for a moment he felt sure as if the Lion must really be sorrier about his Mother than he was himself.
"'My son, my son," said Aslan. "I know. Grief is great. Only you and I in this land know that yet. Let us be good to one another."

"Do not fly too high," said Aslan. "Do not try to go over the tops of the great ice-mountains. . . . There will always be a way through. And now, be gone with my blessing."

"'Oh - Aslan, sir . . . I forgot to tell you. The Witch has already eaten one of those apples.' . . .
'Child,' he replied, 'that is why all the rest are now horror to her. That is what happens to those who pluck and eat fruits at the wrong time and in the wrong way. The fruit is good, but they loathe it ever after.' . . .
'I - I nearly ate one myself, Aslan," said Digory. 'Would I -'
'You would, child,' said Aslan. 'For the fruit always works - it must work - but it does not work happily for any who pluck it at their own will. . . . And the Witch tempted you to do another thing, my son, did she not?' . . .
'Yes, Aslan. She wanted me to take an apple home to Mother.'
'Understand, then, that it would have healed her; but not to your joy or hers. The day would have come when both of you would have looked back and said it would have been better to die in that illness.'
And Digory could say nothing, for tears had choked him and he gave up all hopes of saving his Mother's life; but at the same time he knew that the Lion knew what would have happened, and that there might be things more terrible even then losing someone you love by death. But now Aslan was speaking again, almost in a whisper:
'That is what would have happened, child, with a stolen apple. It is not what will happen now. What I give you now will bring joy. It will not, in your world, give endless life, but it will heal. Go. Pluck her an apple from the Tree.'" ...more

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Jan 18, 2016 Danny Phanton rated it really liked it · review of another edition

¡Narnia, Narnia, Narnia, despierta, ama, piensa, habla!

Me gustó mucho, el libro se me hizo super rápido de leer y la historia de cómo se formó Narnia es simplemente maravillosa.

Polly y Digory son geniales, los ame muchísimo juntos, tan chicos y lindos descubriendo juntos sus aventuras y sus peleas debes en cuando, me encantaron.(view spoiler)

Muy entretenido, fácil de leer y que te va ade ...more

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Sep 30, 2013 Kimberley doruyter rated it it was amazing

this one should really be read before the others.
it's a wonderful book to read to your children and give them a love for books for life.

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Feb 21, 2016 Luke Taylor rated it it was amazing

Shelves: young-adult, hall-of-fame, fantasy, i-own-a-copy, special-hardcover, magic

So what is The Magician’s Nephew?

description

What is the sunrise? What is the miracle of spring surviving winter? What is the shape-shifting of the moon or the sound of fresh snow fallen upon the earth?

You might just say it's Creation.

Or you might say it’s magic.

So I say, as a writer and a man who will forever be bound to the incessant need to communicate what I see (imaginary or otherwise) through the use of written words, that it is the magic of creation; that beautiful moment of spontaneous freedom so cl ...more

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Nov 02, 2010 K.D. Absolutely rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommended to K.D. by: Filipinos group

Shelves: childrens, series

I really liked how C. S. Lewis imagined how those things that he earlier introduced in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe came into existence: the kingdom of Narnia, the professor, the witch, the wardrobe and the lamp-post. Wiki says that Lewis wrote this right after publishing that first book (in order of publication) but it took him 6 years to finish it. That's probably the reason why this became Book 6 (again in order of publication).

I am glad that I've read this as my third book and not th I really liked how C. S. Lewis imagined how those things that he earlier introduced in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe came into existence: the kingdom of Narnia, the professor, the witch, the wardrobe and the lamp-post. Wiki says that Lewis wrote this right after publishing that first book (in order of publication) but it took him 6 years to finish it. That's probably the reason why this became Book 6 (again in order of publication).

I am glad that I've read this as my third book and not the first. It gave me the chance to imagine and admire the efforts Lewis carefully put in coming up with a prequel to sufficiently explain to the readers who liked The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe on how things came into being. I mean Book 1 must have been a great success and I would imagine the pressure from his fans who clamor for answers to their questions like what kind of world is Narnia? how come there is that wardrobe inside Professor Kirke's England house that is the gateway to Narnia? who is Professor Kirke? who is that evil witch? what is the significance of the lamp-post? among all the other questions. Reading the books in chronological order would have taken away the suspense of already knowing how those things came into existence in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

The book's allusions to the Book of Genesis are subtle yet endearing in my opinion. Wiki says that Lewis did not intend to put parallelisms between his Narnia series and the Holy Bible. These just came out subconsciously. However, I think this Christian ingredients to the series nicely sets this apart from his friend J. R. R. Tolkien's LOTR since some of the elements in their stories could easily invite comparisons from their readers. Examples of this is the use of the rings to transport their characters to another world and Lewis' Wood Between Two Wolds is distinctly similar to Tolkien's Middle Earth.

After The Horse and His Boy got 2 stars from me, I thought it would be hard for me to finish the series. Now, this The Magician's Nephew has just given me enough interest to read Prince Caspian. Some of my friends say that it is the best book in the series because it has more action, i.e., fight scenes. ...more

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Jul 11, 2016 Marie rated it really liked it

Shelves: london, middle-grade, narnia, christianity, series

I loved the Chronicles of Narnia as a child and was excited to read this with my 8 year old son. As a child, I thought it was so magical and amazing that these children got to escape to different worlds. As an adult, I now see the parallels to the bible, and the messages it is intending to teach. The end of the book becomes a retelling of sorts of the story of the creation story from the bible. I must say my remembrance of the book was that of a 5 star read, but in re-reading it, I can only give ...more

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Apr 12, 2017 Annabeth rated it it was amazing

Wow this was a really great reread! I noticed so many things I didn't when reading this as a kid, mainly the religious symbolisms of Aslan, the Witch, uncle Andrew etc.
A short but very enjoyable story :)

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Nov 22, 2016 Erin Clemence rated it it was amazing

“The Magician’s Nephew” is by all accounts, the sixth book in “The Chronicles of Narnia” series. However, the anthology I am lucky enough to own of the Great Lewis’ works, has this novel as the first story, with a description that it is “the order the author would want the books to be in.” It makes sense too really, as “Nephew” tells the story of how Narnia originated, and how it was first discovered.
I picked up this novel and re-read it after having a challenging (to say the least) few weeks. “The Magician’s Nephew” is by all accounts, the sixth book in “The Chronicles of Narnia” series. However, the anthology I am lucky enough to own of the Great Lewis’ works, has this novel as the first story, with a description that it is “the order the author would want the books to be in.” It makes sense too really, as “Nephew” tells the story of how Narnia originated, and how it was first discovered.
I picked up this novel and re-read it after having a challenging (to say the least) few weeks. Lewis and his works always bring me back to the happy places in my childhood that brought joy (usually with a book or two) and this novel certainly did that. A cute little story (merely 106 pages), “Nephew” tells the story of Digory and Polly, two children who wind up in Narnia as the result of manipulative magic used by Andrew, Digory’s Uncle,
Anyone who knows of CS Lewis (known to his friends as “Jack”) knows that his faith played a strong role in his life, and was the foundation for which all of his books are based. This novel in particular, had a lot of parallels with well-known, religious texts of today. For example- Aslan gathers to him groups of animals, two at a time, blessing certain ones with the gift of Speech. The “tree that bears tempting fruit” is present as well, and the “Queen” (who we know as the “White Witch”) falls prey to its sweet fruit and is banished out of Narnia forever. Although I was aware of the religious contexts in “Wardrobe”, the similarities are far more striking after reading this prequel novel.
All that aside, this story is delightful, as all of Lewis’ works are. Magical, absorbing, enchanting- this story draws readers of all ages in to a Magical Land with Magical Creatures. It brings back memories of childhood and the imaginings of youth, and for nostalgia alone, it earns bonus points. This story definitely did the job of cheering up my week! Thanks C.S Lewis for the continued enjoyment your novels bring us, at any age.
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Dec 13, 2010 Jamie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult

I originally read this many years ago as a child.

This is one of my favorites in the entire series. It is the creation and beginning of Narnia. It ties so much of the story together and really lets you know who and what the queen is. And just how powerful Aslan is.

Meet Diggory and Polly as the journey to other worlds. The forest of pools is amazing and I wish we got to see some of the other worlds!I love these two characters. From their attic explorations, to naive child-like mistakes. And the u ...more

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Aug 26, 2011 Apokripos rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recommends it for: C. S. Lewis and Kid's Fiction

Recommended to Apokripos by: the "Voice"

Shelves: classics, fantasy, inspirational, fiction-contemporary, award-winning-books, religion-books, adventure, dark-chest-of-wonders, 2011-reads, childrens-or-middle-grade-books

The Creation of Narnia
(A Book Review of The Magician’s Nephew by C. S. Lewis)

For readers who have started their journey in the magical land of Narnia by means of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (and subsequent books in the series following the original order by publication), one can’t help but wonder how had this fantastical realm ruled by a majestic lion and inhabited by talking animals, fauns, dryads and naiads, along with equally ghastly creatures, came to be.

Previous instalments would ...more

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Jan 10, 2012 Micheline rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, magic-witches-wizards, creature-characters, fantasy, high-fantasy, parallel-worlds

Well isn't this a pleasant surprise! I should explain:I have been struggling for quite awhile with this series. Having not gone to an English speaking school, I never read The Chronicles of Narnia growing up. I have to admit I discovered the film versions first. Then,I attempted to read it right after 'The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe' came out, but at that time, I had a hard time with C.S.Lewis' style. He tends to constantly insert the author’s voice, and I found it broke the fantasy bubb Well isn't this a pleasant surprise! I should explain:I have been struggling for quite awhile with this series. Having not gone to an English speaking school, I never read The Chronicles of Narnia growing up. I have to admit I discovered the film versions first. Then,I attempted to read it right after 'The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe' came out, but at that time, I had a hard time with C.S.Lewis' style. He tends to constantly insert the author’s voice, and I found it broke the fantasy bubble for me and kept taking me out of the story. This time around, I begun with 'The Magician's Nephew', reading the story chronologically instead of by order of release. Maybe it's because I don't have the film version to taint my opinion, but I very much enjoyed this book.

The Magician's Nephew is the tale of how Narnia came into being. It takes place many hundreds of years before the events of 'The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe'. I found it really fascinating, since one of the main characters is the old Professor who takes in the Pevensie children in TLTW&TW (the one who owns the infamous wardrobe). You get to see the creation of Narnia, meet Aslan, and see how the evil White Witch came to Narnia. The idea of witnessing a world just beginning.... hardly any people, few animals... seeing places with no names; all of this was really fascinating to me.

The magic aspect of Narnia; it's a different kind of magic then I'm accustomed to, and I'm not sure how to explain it...kind of like it's the world itself that is magic; the magic exists in the very nature of Naria: in it's water, in it's trees, in it's animals. So it's fun to read about magic in different form than I'm accustomed to. All things considered, I really enjoyed this story. I've read up on The Chronicles of Narnia quite a bit, and I was looking out for the hints of sexism and christian subtext, and while both were there; maybe they weren't at their worst in this particular book...or maybe because I was ready for them it didn't bother me as much...we'll see how the next books hold up :) ...more

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Jan 02, 2015 Joana Cotidiana rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: reino-unido

Um dos meus objetivos para 2015 era ler "As Crónicas de Nárnia" e comecei o ano logo super entusiasmada para o fazer, especialmente porque a Cata (Páginas Encadernadas), a Jojo (Os Devaneios da Jojo) e a Mary (Mary Red Hair) me estão a acompanhar!

Sempre adorei todos as adaptações destas histórias para cinema e estava bem curiosa para saber como seriam as originais.

Decidimos ler por ordem cronológica, por isso a primeira história foi "O Sobrinho do Mágico". Surpreendi-me desde logo pela escrita d ...more

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Aug 06, 2013 David Sarkies rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Everybody

Recommended to David by: My Dad

Shelves: fantasy

Narnia's Creation Myth
8 August 2013

I simply love the writings of C.S. Lewis. Okay, I may not necessarily agree with everything he writes (and I would be an idiot if I did) but I have always found his works, whether they are children's books (such as this one) or deep theological tracts (such as The Weight of Glory) to be incredibly well written, almost as if he were a master of the English language. In fact as I read this particular work it simply struck me how well he was able to use the Engli Narnia's Creation Myth
8 August 2013

I simply love the writings of C.S. Lewis. Okay, I may not necessarily agree with everything he writes (and I would be an idiot if I did) but I have always found his works, whether they are children's books (such as this one) or deep theological tracts (such as The Weight of Glory) to be incredibly well written, almost as if he were a master of the English language. In fact as I read this particular work it simply struck me how well he was able to use the English language to be able to create a world, and a story, that simply enchanted me as a reader.

This is technically the first of the Narnia books, simply because it is set back in Victorian England, during the time of Sherlock Holmes (as he rather elegantly puts at the beginning of the story). We are suddenly introduced to two new people, a little girl named Polly, and a boy named Digory, who lives with his uncle and aunt. After exploring some tunnels that connect the terrace houses in Victorian London they stumble upon his Uncle's study and through trickery his Uncle sends Polly off to a magical land, and then Digory is blackmailed to follow her. In their first journey they stumble upon a devastated world and accidentally release the witch that becomes the antagonist of not only this story, but also of the Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. After a rather interesting 'battle' on the streets of London, they managed to remove her from Earth and end up taking her (as well as a cabbie, his horse, and the magician) to a dark world prior to its creation.

This story pretty much deals with the creation myth, namely a retelling of the story that appears in the first few chapters of Genesis, however it is told in a rather different way, no doubt to outline the poetic nature of Genesis. The thing here is that the children are able to watch creation as it happens, where as we are restricted to a poetical second hand account and are simply required to guess. Now, interestingly, there is no evolution, and no big bang theory, just music and a song. In fact, it appears that it is the hymn that is sung by Polly and Digory, and led by the cabbie, that starts the whole creation process.

The use of song in creation is a very interesting, and Lewis is not the only one that speculates on this, because in Tolkien's creation novel the world of Middle Earth is also created through song. However, the Bible does not necessarily say that this was how it happened because all that we are told is that 'God spoke and so it happened'. Also, Lewis' creation occurs in what seems to be a couple of hours, which I suspect is another way that Lewis is indicating that the creation myth is more figurative than actual. Okay, at the time of the writing we did not have the vicious fights that occur between the creationists and evolutionists that we have today, but it seems that he may be presaging it in suggesting that the Bible does not tell us how it was done, just that it was done.

There is also a reflection on the end of the world, as the children travel to the devastated world of Charn. Lewis does not dwell on the end as much as he dwells on the beginning in this book, but he does have some interesting points to make. Here the end came because of a struggle for power, and this is no doubt something that came out of World War II. Lewis had witnessed (though not first hand) the devastating power of the atomic bomb, and was now living in an era where one wrong push of a button could bring an end to life as we know it. To the children at the time, there was probably some blissful ignorance, but I suspect, at least in the United States, and no doubt in the United Kingdom as well, there was an element of 'Duck and Cover'.

The idea of evil entering the world is also explored, even though it was brought in innocently. As Aslan says 'it has not been seven minutes (which suggests that the world was created even faster than what I speculated) and evil has already entered the world'. Granted, the witch was pulled into the world, and Digory had no idea that she was being pulled into Narnia, rather he believed that she was being pulled back into Charn.

Lewis also explores the nature of theft in this book, something that children are prone to become involved in (and I know I would steal things from my parents and sister when I was young). His speculation is that while it may seem to be a pleasure at first because we get what we want sooner rather than later, there is an equal and opposite effect as well, and that is that we do not enjoy it as much. For instance, I wanted a book, so took it from the library without going through the regular method of borrowing it, and ended up never reading it. I wanted the book, but when I got it I was never able to enjoy the book because it ended up being shoved to the bottom of the pile.

I guess that goes with all forms of materialism, and not necessarily the illegal forms as well. I know a person (who is on a pension and cannot handle his money) who took out a $700.00 loan to get an entertainment system. Within a week he has sold the system to a second-hand dealer for half what he paid for it for cigarettes and food, and has now been left with a debt and nothing to show for it. In a way he believed that his life would be better with it, got it on credit, and discovered that he did not like it, and was left with a debt hangover.

I am not sure about the people who suggest that Lewis does not have a real grasp of evil and that his characters are shallow. Granted, this is a fantasy novel, but it is not what one would consider to be young adult fiction. The series was written for children, and the language is written in such a way that children would understand. There is no sex, profanity, or gratuitous violence, not because Lewis is a Christian, but because he is writing a story for children. I read this book not for the fantasy, or for what I would expect from modern fantasy novel, but for the theological allegory, and for the beauty of Lewis' writing. ...more

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Jan 01, 2015 Xime García rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: reseñados

ASLAN TE AMO, SÉ MI MASCOTA, TE DARÉ TODAS LAS MANZANAS PLATEADAS QUE QUIERAS ok, no.

description

Fue una relectura preciosa. No puedo creer que hace ocho años este libro no me gustaba, incluso no logré terminarlo. ¿Cómo es que no pude gustar de esta historia? La forma de narrar de Lewis es sencilla y a la vez poética. Describe las situaciones más mágicas de manera que uno pueda sentirlas a flor de piel. Fue fácil sumergirme en estos mundos fantásticos que Polly y Digory visitaban, fue más sencillo que imag ...more

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May 12, 2013 Ferdy rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Really DULL - the writing, the story, the main characters were all utterly boring. It was a struggle to get through so short a book - I honestly thought it would never end.

The protagonists, Polly and Digory, had very little personality — they've got to be two of the blandest characters I've ever read. Them talking like adults instead of like kids didn't help matters… Maybe all kids back in the day sounded like that? Their adventures and discoveries in other worlds should have been at least somew ...more

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Nov 16, 2015 Ziba rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Imagine Alice jumping in and out of her rabbit hole, with the Ring of Mordor at her disposal where she could transport herself between space and time interspersed with the formation of Noha's Ark -on land - that's pretty much the Magicians Nephew for you. I loved it. And knowing where that magical wardrobe from The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe comes from was amazing.

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About C.S. Lewis

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CLIVE STAPLES LEWIS (1898–1963) was one of the intellectual giants of the twentieth century and arguably one of the most influential writers of his day. He was a Fellow and Tutor in English Literature at Oxford University until 1954. He was unanimously elected to the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance Literature ...more

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The Chronicles of Narnia (Publication Order) (7 books)

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The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia, #1)

The Chronicles of Narnia (Chronicles of Narnia, #1-7)

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Chronicles of Narnia, #3)

Prince Caspian (Chronicles of Narnia, #2)

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