Customer Reviews

A Field Guide to Narnia

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Colin Duriez is one of the world's leading experts on both Lewis and Tolkien - people who have watched the extended DVDs of Lord of the Rings will recognise his Hobbit style features instantly. Now he has written THE essential field guide to Narnia, CS Lewis's wonderful Christian allegory and novel for children, and in plenty of time for the Disney film coming out in December. This makes it both reliable and essential reading for any Lewis buff, and also the ideal gift for anyone you know who becomes interested in Lewis after seeing the movie this Christmas (2005) and beyond. Make sure your church bookstall has 20 copies, and make sure too that you give this essential reading to your friends and family at Christmas. You will not get a better guide, both in terms of spiritual content and literary knowledge, than this splendid book by Colin Duriez. He has pulled off yet another amazing book to add to the many other definitive works on Tolkien and Lewis that he has written already. Christopher Catherwood (author of CHURCHILL'S FOLLY: HOW WINSTON CHURCHILL CREATED MODERN IRAQ), son of one of CS Lewis's pupils at Oxford and great-nephew of an Oxford friend and contemporary of Lewis.

In A Field Guide to Narnia, Colin Duriez digs into the worldviews, myths, and people who played important roles in C. S. Lewis' creation of Narnia. This scholarly work is written for adults, but the explanations don't remove the magic of the Chronicles of Narnia.

Beginning with a short biography of Lewis' life, Duriez continues with the books from various periods that influenced Narnia's unique attributes. He points out the parallels between the Chronicles and Christianity, followed by concepts borrowed from other worldviews. The chapter titled "Literary Features of the Chronicles" discusses genre, perception, and the books' sometimes visible but never intruding narrator. The first section of the book ends by further expounding on the themes, concepts, and images found in Lewis' books.

Part Two is an encyclopedia for the Chronicles, giving a brief overview of each book, a history of Narnia (complete with a timeline), and a chapter on its geography. Then Duriez shows Lewis' other writings in the context of Narnia, and the people who influenced Lewis' life and works. Part Three, a dictionary, covers Narnia from Adam to Zardeenah. Extensive notes, a chronology of Lewis, and a detailed bibliography end the book.

Though repetitive in places, A Field Guide to Narnia adds depth to the Chronicles without reducing them to theological tomes or classics merely to be analyzed. Without a hint of overt suggestion, Duriez makes you long to read the Chronicles once more. -- Katie Hart, Christian Book Previews.com

*** Millions of people of all ages have read and loved the Chronicles of Narnia. For the most part, they comprehended the message- but there are spots that leave most of us guessing as to what the intent was. It is clear that the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe allegorizes the Gospels; the Last Battle retells Revelation, and the Magician's Nephew refer to the beginning of Genesis. However, one is left scratching one's head when trying to pin down what events the Silver Chair lines up with or the Voyage of the Dawn Treader. In short, you need a guidebook, and this fills the bill. Illuminating what the books refer to and how they fit not only into Christian theology, but also how they relate to Lewis' own life, the author helps readers appreciate the depth and scope of one of the great classics in fantasy literature. ***

Colin Duriez' compact and portable "Field Guide to Narnia" fully lives up to its title. In three well-defined sections, it offers the reader insights into the Chronicles of Narnia which go far beyond simply cataloging C.S. Lewis' references and meanings.

The first section comprises a thoroughly detailed history of the influences, both personal and literary, from which C.S. Lewis drew both inspiration and understanding leading up to the Chronicles. In the second section we are given a grand overview of Narnia, both its history and geography, which is very helpful in understanding the relationships between the stories and the characters. Section two also relates the Chronicles to Lewis' other works. Finally, in section three every unique term, location, and character is concisely described, including its significance to the overall arc of the Narnian stories.

This book is a joy to read, well organized and clearly written for both casual and scholarly reading. Extensive notes and a full bibliography are included at the end of the book, while photographs and illustrations aid the reader, particularly in the biographical section -- one can almost sense the golden age and Cair Paravel in the photograph of Lewis' beloved County Down in Northern Ireland (p. 24). The typography is clear, the binding is suited for both the backpack and the bookshelf, and the covers are attractive. I recommend this book highly.

I enjoyed this book because it went beyond the ordinary. It made me want to reread the Narnia tales, and to share the tales with children. This book isn't for them, however. Kenneth McIntosh's Following Aslan would be a good choice for the younger readers.

This book is great for the grown-up Narnia afficiado, the reader who wants to think long, deep thoughts that go way beyond the simplicity of Lewis's books. For younger readers who simply want to enjoy the story, while growing spiritually, I'd recommend Kenneth McIntosh's FOLLOWING ASLAN as a better choice.