I have been reading a couple of articles on this subject recently. The first, by Brenton Dickieson, argues that “the best way to read Narnia is to re-read Narnia.” It’s hard to argue with that (and though I’ve taken a quote from the last paragraph in order to summarize the article, the whole thing is well worth reading). But he also argues that the “Published Order” is best when reading the Chronicles for the first time.
The second article, by Stephen Greydanus, argues that the Published Order is the only way to read Narnia, and goes so far as to say that the “Chronological Order” promoted by the publishers is a “travesty.” But I think Greydanus, too, is thinking mainly of first-time readers. Perhaps an unsuspecting parent will pick up The Magician’s Nephew and give it to his children, or even read it aloud to them! I’m not sure I would call that a “travesty” but it would certainly destroy the sense of wonder that one has upon reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe for the first time, and discovering the world of Narnia along with the Pevensie children.
Unfortunately, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe was not my own introduction to the world of Narnia, but neither was The Magician’s Nephew (I had an unusual teacher for fourth grade, and we read The Voyage of the Dawn Treader in class – as well as The Hobbit), so I remember how odd Professor Kirke sounded when he counselled the older Pevensies, even though I only understood his words much later in life. And I do, of course, remember my older children’s wide eyes upon reading Lion to them.
That said, although I prefer the Published Order to the Chronological, I don’t quite agree with Greydanus’ assertion that “there is a natural break between the first four stories and the last three stories.” One could just as well argue that there is a natural progression between The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and The Last Battle, with The Horse and His Boy and The Magician’s Nephew as standalone stories. The Silver Chair isn’t the last of Eustace Scrubb’s adventures in Narnia, and it is also a “break” from the first three (published) books in that the Pevensie children aren’t in it.
As I’ve mentioned above, if the choice is between the Published Order and the Chronological Order, I’ll choose the former every time, at least for first-time readers. (When you’ve read the books as many times as I have, you can pretty much pick up any volume and start from there.) That said, I don’t think we need to be as rigid as that. In my opinion:
- The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe should be read first. This is non-negotiable.
- Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, and The Last Battle should be read in order.
- The Horse and His Boy and The Magician’s Nephew can be read at any point after The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and before The Last Battle.
So one “valid” reading order might be the following:
- The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
- The Magician’s Nephew
- Prince Caspian
- The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
- The Horse and His Boy
- The Silver Chair
- The Last Battle
All the above is, of course, just my opinion, and Your Mileage May Vary. But I hope it will be helpful if you’re a first-time reader of the “Chronicles” or thinking of introducing your children to them.