Few books have been blessed with such strong levels of affection from readers encompassing different generations than the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. Released by Disney and Walden Media, the film of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe was seen by millions of people in the Christmas of 2005, and now Prince Caspian has made its way to the big screen. 

PLUS FILM REVIEW! 

By Meghan Masterson (Calgary Correspondent - Canada)  

Few books have been blessed with such strong levels of affection from readers encompassing different generations than the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. Most people have read at least one of the books in the series, and those who haven't probably know someone who has. When the subject of the Narnia books comes up, people tend to express happy reminiscences of their favourite memories and impressions from reading the books, and images from the stories, such as of the regal and golden Aslan, the faun Mr.Tumnus walking near the lamp post, or of friendly talking badgers, that are fondly perpetuated in literary conversations.  

First published in 1950, the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe was popular enough to lead to six more books wrote about the adventures in the world of Narnia. While continuing the stories, Lewis included a story about the creation of Narnia, told in The Magician's Nephew. Although this book is first in the chronological order of the events of the stories, this book was actually the second-last written, in 1955. (Apparently there is some debate among zealous fans whether it is proper to have a set that is in the chronological order, or the order of publishing date.)

It is a testament to the quality of Lewis' writing and the creativity of his stories and characters that the Chronicles of Narnia has remained immensely popular since the books were first published. Indeed, their popularity is, if not stronger than ever, at least undimmed through the creation of movies based on the books. Released by Disney and Walden Media, the film of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe was seen by millions of people in the Christmas of 2005. The next film, Prince Caspian, will be in theatres May 16.  

Published in 1951, following The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe in order of publishing date, Prince Caspian is also a sequel to the story of the four children, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy. In this story, they are called back to Narnia in order to help Prince Caspian gain his rightful place on the throne of Narnia, currently under the rule of his evil (or at least tyrannical and close-minded) uncle Miraz. If one wants to follow the chronological order of events in Narnia, the films actually skipped over The Horse and His Boy, which takes place during the reign of the adult King Peter and his royal siblings, but was published in 1954. This is a fairly sensible choice-besides following the (proper?) order of publishing date, it also allows the filmmakers to use the same actors to play the main characters, as they are approximately the same age as in The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe.

Many people have seen evidence of religious symbolism in Lewis' tales of Narnia, and some may even call the stories somewhat allegorical. Interestingly, Lewis did not intend for the Chronicles of Narnia to come off as religious-he was simply a spiritual person himself, and therefore, his stories came out with that slant. This is part of the magic of the tales of Narnia. Though it is possible to read religious symbolism into events and characters of the stories, the books never come across as preachy; Narnia is just a place where miracles do happen.  

As well as religion, myth is a theme that can often be found within the Chronicles of Narnia. As an avid storyteller, Lewis had studied myths and other stories. He was part of a group with J.R.R. Tolkien and Charles Williams, called "the Inklings," where the members would sit in a pub and have friendly discussions about literature, myths, and stories. The name "the Inklings" is a rather playful pun-besides that all the members were writers, and therefore involved with ink, the members also tried to discuss new ideas and find "inklings" of creative thoughts in their discussions.

Unfortunately, the fictional works of Lewis, Tolkien, and Williams were often overlooked by scholars of their time, and even of today. It seems that the importance of creative fiction can be undermined, even though these kinds of stories are more widely read than scholarly journals, and are extremely telling in terms of culture and values. At least Lewis and Tolkien had the consolation of immense popularity among readers, and now their families can enjoy the financial gain of the movies as well. Two points for fiction.  

Lewis' writing has been instrumental in the world of fiction books, particularly in terms of the fantasy genre. Along with his friend Tolkien, he forged a path that made it acceptable and exciting for authors to create new worlds in their stories, magical lands with quirks, wonders, and good and bad characters. Both The Chronicles of Narnia and the Lord of the Rings trilogy have enjoyed huge success as books, and their popularity was furthered into the realm of non-readers through the movies and the stories were able to entertain and inspire even more people. Hopefully the books by Charles Williams will also see a surge in popularity, for they also fit nicely into the genre that Lewis played a part in building.

For people who are interested in reading more about Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia, there are a few non-fiction books published that provide insights and interesting facts about the stories and Lewis as a storyteller. Try The Magical Worlds of Narnia: A Treasury of Myths, Legends, and Fascinating Facts by David Colbert, Into the Wardrobe: C.S. Lewis and the Narnia Chronicles by David C. Downing, or Revisiting Narnia: Fantasy, Myth, and Religion in C.S. Lewis' Chronicles by Shanna Caughey. All of these books came out in 2005, the same year as the movie of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. That was a good year for the Narnia series!  

For fans of The Chronicles of Narnia, the release of the Prince Caspian film will be an exciting one to start off the array of summer movies. Just a bit of advice: it will probably be beneficial to be familiar with the events of The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe before watching the next Narnia instalment. Brush up by rereading the book (in fact, read the entire series-it's worth it), watching the movie, or even glancing over an online synopsis.

READ THE A 'n' E VIBE REVIEW OF THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: PRINCE CASPIAN