I’ve been a little bit of a reading slump since 2021 started so I thought I’d do something I don’t often do, I’d try a re-read of an old classic I haven’t read since I was young. I have this gorgeous old set from my childhood which I had to read with care.
My thoughts reading as an adult is that these were written with real care to be mindful that the readers were young impressionable minds. I appreciate that, middle grade reads these days often deal with heavy topics and have children thinking and acting well beyond their years. The Pevensie children are, of course, thrust into rather otherworldly situations but they deal with them as children of their age. There are harsh lessons meted out but with kid gloves.
I was amazed at how descriptive Lewis was with the world. In a very short novel you are quickly immersed in the beauty of Narnia. There isn’t a ton of description about the magic or how it came to be in the first book that makes it easier to read. Although I wonder why some of the cast got proper names and yet He-Beaver and She-Beaver were not.
The main action doesn’t really start until the final quarter and then it goes quite quickly. I wished for more detail there rather than a fairy tale glazing.
Still a lovely story with positive messages and still wish I could throttle Edmund. We all have one of *those* siblings, don’t we? Giving this one ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 as an adult reviewer.
Have you ever gone back to do a re-read of a childhood favorite as an adult?
~ Dana
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