tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-745748859173296736.post48708132753927141..comments2023-04-11T09:34:03.031-04:00Comments on Polybloggimous: I Always Get My Great Ideas Just A Wee Bit Too Late.Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00648438549121320566noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-745748859173296736.post-55436209465199317512008-05-21T08:14:00.000-04:002008-05-21T08:14:00.000-04:00Eric,I'm actually reading them in the compilation ...Eric,<BR/><BR/>I'm actually reading them in the compilation order...with Lion,Witch and Wardrobe in second position.<BR/><BR/>I didn't really have any problem getting through The Magician's Nephew, so I'm looking forward to the rest of it. And yeah, the Christian themes are fairly blatant.Nathanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00648438549121320566noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-745748859173296736.post-9382563280630898772008-05-21T01:31:00.000-04:002008-05-21T01:31:00.000-04:00I just spotted an inconsistency in my post and a d...I just spotted an inconsistency in my post and a dangling question--here's the answer:<BR/><BR/><I>The Horse And His Boy</I> is the best book in the series. Chronologically, it takes place between <I>Lion</I> and <I>Prince Caspian</I>. Publication-wise, it's <I>supposed</I> to be book 5, between <I>The Silver Chair</I> and <I>The Magician's Nephew</I>.Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18275812152895151542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-745748859173296736.post-52909068163327574252008-05-21T01:28:00.000-04:002008-05-21T01:28:00.000-04:00I hope you're reading them in the right order--whe...I hope you're reading them in the <I>right</I> order--when the Narnia books were recently republished, some asshat decided to reprint the books in chronological order instead of the original publication order: consequently, <I>The Magician's Nephew</I> (the second-worst book in the series) now appears as "volume 1" while <I>The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe</I> (the second-best book) appears as "volume 2." I've long considered this a form of child abuse. Any kid who gave up on the series midway through <I>Nephew</I> would be totally excused.<BR/><BR/>Like Tania, when I was knee-high to a grasshopper, I missed the Christian symbolism (it obviously had an effect--I've been an atheist more than 2/3 of my life now). Several of the books--the best ones, if you ask me--work perfectly well as fantasy (<I>Lion</I>, <I>The Horse And His Boy</I>, <I>Prince Caspian</I> and <I>Voyage Of The Dawn Treader</I>, in more-or-less descending order). The books where the allegory gets thickest (<I>Nephew</I> and <I>The Last Battle</I>) are nearly unreadable, even when I was a kid.<BR/><BR/>What's interesting, too, is that the Christian allegory is pretty terrible while the fantasy elements are pretty good. (For a special laugh, note the way Lewis slips his silly "Lunatic, Liar or Lord" argument into <I>Lion</I>, accidentally forcing the contemporary reader to wonder how desperate London families really were during the Blitz, if they were sending their kids to stay with people like the Professor--"If this is the first time your sister has acted crazy and the first time you thought she was lying, shouldn't you logically conclude I have a magic closet? Now come sit in my lap....")<BR/><BR/>I've long thought that Tolkien's comment that he "detested allegory in all it's forms" was a none-too-subtle dig at Lewis, which I think is funny.<BR/><BR/>Anyway, I hope you enjoy them. As much as I knock Lewis, my love of fantasy (and possibly my love of snow) goes directly back to Narnia--<I>Lion</I> is the first non-comic-book book I can remember reading, and I'll always adore those books even when they annoy the hell out of me. After all, how can you stay mad at Reepicheep? You can't.<BR/><BR/>Related note: you may appreciate yesterday's entry at <A HREF="http://www.mcsweeneys.net/2008/5/19ness.html" REL="nofollow">McSweeney's--A Letter To His Imperial Majesty, Aslan</A>, in which Aslan's subjects express certain... reservations... about His management style....Erichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18275812152895151542noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-745748859173296736.post-61659791803928405242008-05-20T21:20:00.000-04:002008-05-20T21:20:00.000-04:00I like the Narnia books. Totally missed the Xtian ...I like the Narnia books. Totally missed the Xtian symbolism when I read them as a kid. As an adult, I felt like I was being beat over the head with it.<BR/><BR/>But that aside, darned fun stories.Taniahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18142380580388373496noreply@blogger.com