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The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

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I have put off reviewing "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" for a long time. There is no other book I have so longed to recommend to others, but I have felt (and still feel) totally inadequate when it comes to expressing what a wonderful story this is. I could go on for days about all the wonderful things contained here. That said, I will try and focus on only a few aspects of this book and then plead with you to read it.

First, I must note that I feel this story should be read in the context of the entire Narnian series. It stands on its own nicely enough, but the deep background of the previous tales adds richness and texture to the tale.

Secondly, I must note that this book is highly enjoyable because it works on two levels. The tale as a whole is the story of a journey into unknown lands. With each new place they visit, the whole is broken into wonderful episodes. My favorite episode (with the exception of the ending) is the island where dreams come true...its not what one would expect.

The character of Eustace is my favorite of all the humans in the Narnian books. This story is partly a tale of his transformation. This seems to be a universal human desire; but Eustace, like all who truly seek transformation must, finds impossible to reform himself. This is an especially timely lesson for our "self-help" culture at the beginning of the twenty-first century.

This brings me to what I like best of "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader." Let me preface what I say here by making it clear that no one hates heavy-handed use of allegory as much as I do. However, the allegory that is "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" is one of the greatest things of beauty I have ever encountered.

In one form or another we are all questing after an unseen kingdom. Be it the kingdom of God, Materialism, or simply of the Self--we are all, like Caspian and his pals, on a quest. I don't wish to give away any endings, but let me just say that the greatest truth Lewis expresses in his book is that no one can reach the True Kingdom on their own.

I urge you to read this book. If I could only have a handful of books, this one would definitely be among them. I give "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" my highest recommendation.

The second volume of the Narnia Chronicles closed with the possibility of Lucy and Edmund -- though not their older siblings -- returning to Narnia. "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" makes good on that story, with the intrepid pair (plus a whiny cousin) returning on a strange sea voyage.

After the events of "Prince Caspian," Lucy and Edmund are sent off to stay with their obnoxious cousin Eustace. But when they admire a picture of a strange ship, suddenly all three kids are sucked in -- and land in a Narnian sea. On board the ship is King Caspian, now fully grown, who is determined to find a bunch of knights exiled by his murderous uncle, even if he has to go to the edge of the world (literally).

Lucy and Edmund are thrilled to be back in Narnia again, but Eustance proceeds to make trouble any way he can, complaining and causing trouble among the crew. But there are problems more horrifying than any of them can guess, from dragons to sinister "gold water" to a region filled with their worst nightmares.

"The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" is one of Lewis's most original and tightly-written Narnian adventures. It's also a bit of a break from form. After two books of battles against evil tyrants, "Voyage" simply goes where no man/woman/mouse has gone before, and gives us a view of the Narnian world as more than one isolated little region.

And in some ways, it's also the darkest Chronicle. Lewis explores the theme of greed here -- greed for power, beauty, money and magic -- and has some scenes both chilling and majestic. But his archly humorous style peeks through in several places, whether it's pompous mouse Reepicheep or tea with a reclusive old wizard.

Edmund and Lucy are their usual plucky selves, albeit a bit more mature than before. But "Voyage" also introduces one of Lewis' most interesting characters in Eustace Clarence Scrubb. Like Edmund, Eustace is initially a peevish, lying boy who generally makes trouble, but slowly learns his errors. But unlike Edmund, Eustace doesn't have to ally himself to the baddie to learn that.

"Voyage of the Dawn Treader" was a turning point for the Narnia Chronicles, as well as the one that began venturing into darker territory. Engaging and tightly written.

Our old friends Lucy and Edmund Pevensie join their nerdy cousin Eustace, in this book, in a journey through a portrait of a ship, to the seas off the coast of Narnia. There, they meet their old friend Prince Caspian, who is adventuring across the seas to explore the far reaches of his world. He is also searching for a group of lost nobility from Narnia, who apparently had been marooned on various Narnian islands years before. They all travel from island to island, and have many challenging adventures.

Of all the Narnia books, this is probably the one where C.S. Lewis gave himself the most freedom to just tell a story, without being "in-your-face" about the allegorical meanings of everything. There IS a lot of allegory, but he makes it part of a story here, rather then constructing a story just as an excuse to make up a context for an allegory. It's a terrific tale for children or adults. Absolutely two thumbs up.

I just want to recommend a few books, for anyone who may be curious about what sources C.S. Lewis drew upon for this story. I'll let you discover them for yourself, but the titles are: "Phantom Islands of the Atlantic," by Donald S. Johnson, and "New Worlds, Ancient Texts" by Anthony Grafton. Also -- if anyone's interested in learning about the cultural context of C.S. Lewis' personal problems with science education, which are pretty obvious in the way he talks about Eustace, then I recommend looking at "The Two Cultures" by C.P. Snow. You'll see what I mean.

I'd like to see an edition with both versions of Chapter Twelve, "The Dark Island". C.S. Lewis found himself dissatisfied with the ending of that chapter; he thought that having the island simply vanish denigrated children's feelings, implying as it does that children _should_ feel like "pretty good fools" for being afraid of things that don't frighten grownups.

So for the American edition, he revised that chapter to show the island growing "smaller and smaller astern" as the ship sailed away. And instead of having Lord Rhoop beg never to be sent back there, he had a strong bit of business in which Lord Rhoop's boon that he begs of King Caspian is "Never to ask me, or to let any other ask me, what I have seen during my years on the Dark Island."

Lewis thought, and I think, that this was more respectful of his child-readers: acknowledging that even if the fear-object is imaginary, the fear is real. The original edition _dismissed_ children's fears, tantamount to laughing at a child who's awakened in shuddering terror and telling him, "It was all just a dream! Now don't you feel silly?"

Lewis's revision -- the "Never to ask me" version of the text -- was featured in all American editions prior to 1994. At that time, the US publishers made the decision to return to the earlier text simply because it was the "original", ignoring Lewis's own preference for the revised text.

I'd like to see an edition of this book that includes both versions of Chapter 12, perhaps adding the revised text as an appendix at the book's end.

After reading the very first line, "There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it," I realized that I had made a huge mistake beginning "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" half an hour before bedtime. More exciting and adventure-packed than the two preceeding books (in the original ordering, of course), "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and "Prince Caspian", it is hard to put down.

The main characters that readers will recognize are King Caspian, Edmund, Lucy, and Reepicheep. Sadly, Peter and Susan have since become too old to reenter Narnia; but the story does amazingly well even without them. Here, Eustace, who will reappear in "The Silver Chair", is introduced for the first time. They are an interesting bunch, all providing something essential to the story, especially Reepicheep (whose character and personal history are developed further) and Eustace (who experiences a wonderful kind of redemption).

The Dawn Treader is a ship King Caspian built in order to fulfil an oath made on his coronation day to find the seven lords and friends of his father that his uncle Miraz had sent to explore the Eastern Seas. Every two chapters or so, the Dawn Treader stops at an island, where its crew and passengers have a small adventure-within-the-larger-adventure, discover the fate of each of the seven lords, and learn good moral lessons. For instance, one island, called the Dark Island, is a place where dreams come true. It may sound wonderful, until you realize that the dreams that come true are not the pleasant daydreams, but the nightmares. After the last island, the passengers even reach, or very nearly reach, the End of the World.

Though I compared this book to Homer's "Odyssey" in the title of this review, I must add that it can also be likened to John Bunyan's "The Pilgrim's Progress". This voyage is not guided by fate and devoid of reason, but is blessed by Aslan (who symbolizes Jesus) and is full of meaning and purpose. It does not merely represent the passage through life, but the passage through life _as a Christian_. That may be why one reviewer complained that this novel is overly preachy. Yet we readers are human, after all, and in need of being preached to now and then. Another thing that may surprise readers is the chivalry with which Lucy, the only girl on the ship, is treated by the men. Though it not "politically correct," as Eustace himself points out at the beginning, it has a certain rightness to it.

Remembering how the March girls in Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women" played at being good in imitation of the character Christian in "The Pilgrim's Progress", only to realize that their game was really a way of life, I can say that it would be wonderful if children today could apply the allegories in "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" in the same way. Parents, take note: it is easier to ask a child, "What would Edmund tell you about forgiving someone who has done wrong, like Eustace?" than to launch into a weary sermon about forgiveness that they may not remember anyway. There are more archetypes in this book, and in all stories about Narnia, than C.S. Lewis himself must have realized: and children can only benefit from knowing them as they grow up.

Lucy and Edmund return to Narnia and find themselves on the Dawn Treader, a true sailing vessel for a magical children's story, traveling with Prince Caspian on a quest to find the end of the world. However, when the children are returned to their favorite land, they bring along their cousin, the sour and demanding Eustace Scrubb.

Through many adventures at sea and during ports of call, Eustace makes the rather predictable transformation into an alright chap, but don't mistake the predictability of this end for cheap or sloppy story telling on Lewis's part. Eustace's transformation can be interpreted as the transformation of the unbeliever to a Christian, and the symbolism of his physical change is rich and compelling for adults and engaging and magical for children.

Our dear, brave friend Reepacheep is back, too, and shows his continuing bravery in a heartwarming ending that causes readers to feel great admiration for the little mouse with big courage.

The richest part of the novel is the well described climax in which the story takes on a mythical nature and our friends come close to the line between heaven and earth.

It's a lovely book, and as usual for the series, can be enjoyed on theological levels, but it loses nothing if the reader picks it up as pure fantasy for someone looking for a great tale!

This is the best of the Narnia series. C.S. Lewis allows the plot to get away occasionally from his strict form of Christian allegory. Moreover, the book is funny and episodic and exciting. And it's about getting to know yourself and changing what you don't like.

Unexplored waters and unknown lands create a magic of their own in which Lucy and Edmund and, especially, Eustace -- having magically found themselves on board the Dawn Treader --can come to terms with their weakness and strength. The Dark Island, where all dreams (not just good ones!) come true, Deathwater Island -- the place of greed, Dragon Island, where Eustace turns into a dragon (which, of course, he was on the inside all along), Ramandu's island, the sea people's land, the house of the Retired Star, and more, reveal what stuff these children are made on. What their mettle is may not always exemplary, but in this book at least, characters can change. Eustace can be un-dragoned and become a changed child (having dragon skin a foot deep ripped off by a lion would, I think, inevitably result in change). This is a book of deep, miraculous possibility. As a child, I read *The Voyage of the Dawn Treader* until it fell apart, and I've gone through another copy since.

My only criticism is this: C. S. Lewis, having loosened his strangle-hold on his constricting Christian allegory, occasionally seems to feel obliged to bring in something really ham-handed. It's most annoying. The most egregious intrusion occurs when the children encounter, in the middle of nowhere, a milky white lamb frying fish on the open grass. How the heck does a lamb fry fish? Where does he get fish? Where does he get the frying pan? Why do we *need* this for the plot? The Lamb of God (Christ), communion, fish. Cringe. It's all tossed into the pot and left somehow to be digested. There are fabulous Christian allegories; this is not one of them. I would to say that this is the only place in the entire series where C.S. Lewis' allegory truly and absolutely and utterly crashes and burns. But one Lamb doesn't stop this from being a great book. *The Voyage of the Dawn Treader* provides delight, wonder, and best of all, a promise of a second chance for every one of us.

C.S. Lewis' "Voyage of the Dawn Treader" was the third Narnian chronicle to be written and the fifth chronologically. Along with "The Last Battle", it's probably my favorite in the series.

Lucy and Edmund have to stay with their cousin Eustace Scrubb and his trendy parents Harold and Albert. Eustace is very serious, a bit of a know-all, cynical and just a little bit mean, . He keeps making fun of Lucy and Edmund's tales of Narnia, the world they have not only visited twice, but been kings and queens in. His mockery soons stops though when the three of them get sucked into a painting in an attic. They find themselves on board the Dawn Treader, King Caspian's exploration vessel, on the beginning of a voyage. The King and his men seek to discover new islands, to find his father's friends who were banished seven years ago, and to see Aslan's Country, rumoured to be at the most eastern end of the world, beyond the sun and the ocean. What a voyage it turns out to be!

When I first read the chronicles of Narnia (in fifth grade), this was the one that captured my imagination the most. It's a book that is constantly exciting, each destination reached more incredible than the last. Such amazing creatures and concepts. There scary places, funny places, places where friends are made and lessons are learned. The descriptions are truly inspired. The ending, even now, leaves me spellbound every time. I can picture it so clearly. Wow!

As with all the Narnian Chronicles, "Voyage of the Dawn Treader" has illustrations by Pauline Baynes, and these are just as evocative as Lewis' descriptions, enhancing them, making them more vivid. I particularly like the picture near the start of chapter ten, of the magician's hallway where Lucy is walking so timidly.

The characters are all great too. It's nice to see Caspian and Reepicheep again, as well as Edmund and Lucy. The chatacter Eustace is a fine invention. He's something of a brat and yet we like him, feel sorry for him when he gets in trouble, and like him better when he changes for the better later on.

C.S. Lewis was a devoted Christian, and all of his work relate back to his beliefs to some extent. Although there is a great deal more emphasis on adventure and fantasy here, there are still allegory and parallels to be drawn if you're looking for them. Eustace's adventures are particularly interesting. He finds fault in everything except himself, who has more obvious faults in his character. He means to be helpful, but he can't really be helpful until he gets rid of his own flaws first. This is rather reminiscent of Jesus' saying "take the plank out of your own eye so you can see clearly to see the speck in your brother's eye". There is a part where he's transformed into a dragon, and he realises the ugliness of his actions. Aslan the Lion helps him by showing him to a well in which to bathe (rather similar to baptism). Before he can bathe, Eustace must shed his ugly skin (his rotten ways), something that he can't do, no matter how he tries. It is only with Aslan's help that he becomes free of them. In christianity, it is through Christ that believers shed their old worldly ways, similar to this. A lot of the allegory, I noticed, had to do with the nature of God, the nature of Christ and being a believer rather than any particular specific event.

Although "Voyage of the Dawn Treader" is number 5 in the "official reading order", rather late in the series, the only books that are really essential to read are "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and "Prince Caspian". "Prince Caspian" in particular, as several of the characters (Caspian, Reepicheep) and plot threads (the king's lost men) are in this.

Highly recommended for fantasy fans and lovers of the work of C.S. Lewis.

C.S. Lewis wrote the Chronicles of Narnia as a series for children, but it is clearly as imaginative and planned as any popular adult fiction. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is the fifth book of the series and tells the story of Lucy, Edmund, Prince Caspian and the irritable Eustace. These old friends sail on a rickety boat named the Dawn Treader. As they travel in search of the lost land of Aslan, they encounter many unforgettable situations. Aslan is a magical lion that helps the creatures of Narnia keep peace with the other wicked creatures. Lucy learns when to use her magical healing water, and Eustace learns tobe forgiving and generous. Eustace claims he was kidnapped because while journeying to the Narnian world, Edmund and Lucy brought him along by mistake. Throughout the trip Eustace keeps a journal that C.S. Lewis shares with the reader occaisonally. While keeping the journal Eustace realizes that he has been quite a bother along the voyage. From the beginning of the story, Caspian has been searching for distant relatives of his Father. As he finds them, he uncovers mysteries and facts of his past.
I really enjoyed The Voyage of the Dawn Treader because C.S. Lewis portrayed characters that I can relate to. The adventure in the story keeps you reading and thje humor makes you laugh.

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a stand out among the books in Lewis' excellent series. There are several elements in this book that distinguish it from the books that chronologically precede it. Old characters are put away and new characters (some humans, no less) emerge in importance, there is an absence of a monolithic evil antagonist, and no part of this story actually occurs in "Narnia." Lewis demonstrates a mastery for tension and suspense in this book that is not so apparent in the others, and when reading this one I noticed more moments when my kids' eyes were wide-open with anticipation (e.g., what will happen to Lucy at the end of that strange hallway, what are those threatening invisible thumpers, and will the Dawn Treader ever sail out of the nightmarish blackness?). At bottom, this is a classic and well-done journey story, in which pilgrims put their lives in a fragile boat and sail into the unknown, first to rescue seven loyal heroes and, eventually, to find the Thing greater than them all (that's Jesus, for the honest reader). Aslan makes his many usual appearances, with a strengthening of the concept that he is always present and always in control, no matter whether our human characters know it or take comfort in the knowledge. I don't think it's a spoiler to say that the reader gets to see the Lion revealed as the Lamb in a candid moment. If you tried The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and you are considering trying one more Narnia volume - try this one.