I have a vague remembrance of not liking this book as a child as much as I liked the other Narnia books. It may have been because it was the first story without any of the four Pevensies or because Jill and Eustace don't really get along that well and have attitudes.

I liked it much better this go round. The "gentle giants" storyline had me cringing because it was so obvious to me that they wanted to eat the adventurers. There were many things I didn't remember from when I was younger. In terms of favorites in the series, I would put this in third place with Prince Caspian. (First place is Voyage of the Dawn Treader, second place is The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. The others haven't been placed yet as I haven't reread them yet.) ( )

Of the seven Narnia books, my relationship with most is clear. I adore "Nephew", "Lion" and "Horse", am indifferent about "Caspian" and "Voyage", and despise "Battle. But "The Silver Chair" and I have admired and resented each other, equally, since I first read it as a kid.

On the one hand... this is perhaps the most justifiably dark book in the series, as Jill and Eustace (replacing, thankfully, those tiresome Pevensie children) find their own belief in Aslan and themselves fading fast, and their uncertainty as to what to do is quite palpable. Lewis passionately makes us believe that the world of Narnia is falling apart, and references to the past stories actually are quite terrifying, in the same way that most series have to wait for their non-canonical installments (e.g. "Return to Oz") to do. It's the most literate of the seven books, also.

Opposing this, of course, is the fact that all of this passion stems from Lewis making each Narnia book more and more of an aggressively Christian allegory. For "belief in Aslan" read "belief in Jesus". For "the world of Narnia is falling apart" read "the world of white, Christian living". This doesn't inherently render the book a failure - after all, Dante was of the same passion, and the Divine Comedy is a masterwork! But it does sadden me a little that my childhood nostalgia is now tainted by the knowledge that Lewis' books are pushing a strong agenda that goes beyond mere children's literature moral fables and into religious propaganda.

Is that unfair? Perhaps. I'm literate enough to be able to enjoy this as a story, and be intrigued by the moral dilemmas of the characters, without hating it just because of the author's beliefs. But at the same time, I don't think kids should be going into this without an adult to guide them through the maze. It's great that Lewis was writing intelligent fiction that would make children ask questions. It's just a pity that he's already decided which answer they should arrive at. ( )

Another great book from C.S.Lewis..I know I'm a bit too old for them but I love them..they're simple and have happy endings.but this time I really missed the Pevensies.I felt disappointed when the story became predictive.But,I'm happy that I finished reading it. one more to go..I thought the book was a bit more fun with Peter,Susan,Edmund and Lucy..and Reepicheep,and the young Caspian,Mr.Tumnus.I really miss them.As the series comes to an end the author is not focusing much on the mysterious creatures of Narnia.He is doing more traveling stuff.Jill and Eustace are not bad either but I'm not a big fan.The story went too fast and the they killed the witch just like that and rescued the prince..it seemed kinda boring because they went through all these places just to find the Prince and the author also says that many people went searching for him before the kids..and how could this happen that kids found him just like that?That is where my most favorite character comes in,Aslan..I love him more than any other character in any of the movies or books.The ending was pretty nice..with Caspian X turning into a young man again (mhm..) and Aslan sending them back to their school.
Now time for some fun,

Miss the Pevensies..so much!





Caspian X is now more than 90 years old :(



He married the Star lady from Ramandu's island (Ramandu's daughter)



She died and her Rilian is out searching for the snake..alone!



The trio kill the witch after they save prince Rilian



They return to Narnia where King Caspian dies with peace after seeing his son's face







( )

My least favorite Narnia book, though I do love Puddleglum. ( )

51026