Voyage of the Dawn Treader [Hardcover]

C.S. Lewis (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: HARPERCOLLINS (2005)
• ASIN: B001F3JG1U
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (193 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,330,766 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Clive Staples Lewis (1898-1963), known as Jack to his friends, was one of the intellectual giants of the twentieth century and arguably the most influential Christian writer of his day. He was a Fellow and Tutor in English literature at Oxford University until 1954, when he was unanimously elected to the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance English at Cambridge University, a position he held until his retirement. His major contributions in literary criticism, children's literature, fantasy literature, and popular theology brought him international renown and acclaim. Lewis and his good friend J. R. R. Tolkien, the author of the The Lord of the Rings, were part of the Inklings, an informal writers' club that met at a local pub to discuss story ideas. Lewis's fascination with fairy tales, myths, and ancient legends, coupled with inspiration drawn from his childhood, led him to write The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, one of the best-loved books of all time. Six further books followed to become the immensely popular The Chronicles of Narnia. The final title in the series, The Last Battle, won the Carnegie Medal, one of the highest marks of excellence in children's literature. His other distinguished and popular accomplishments include Out of the Silent Planet, The Four Loves, The Screwtape Letters, and Mere Christianity.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars questing after the Kingdom, November 8, 2001

By 

NotATameLion (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Narnia) (Hardcover)

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.

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Voyaging, May 26, 2005

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Narnia) (Paperback)

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.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best of the series, February 21, 2001

By 

absent_minded_prof (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Voyage of the "Dawn Treader"(The Chronicls of Narnia, Book 5) (Mass Market Paperback)

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.