| $@%&! level: None “Bedroom” level: None Violence level: Medium Back Cover: “Narnia... where animals talk... where trees walk... here a battle is about to begin. A prince denied his rightful throne gathers an army in a desperate attempt to rid his land of a false king. But in the end, it is a battle of honor between two men alone that will decide the fate of an entire world.” |
As a writer, I'm impressed with how much Lewis does with indirect narrative. Instead of starting with Prince Caspian and telling his story, and then eventually bringing the Pevensie children into it, he starts with the children (as he should, since they're the main characters) and then has someone catch them up on what's been happening while they were away. And then that intense duel I just mentioned is more or less narrated by Edmund as though he was doing a sports commentary. Not all of it, but it's definitely told from the point of view of the spectators rather than anyone who's actually involved in the fighting. And somehow it all works, possibly because Lewis always wrote the Chronicles of Narnia as if relating a story told to him by the people who were actually there.
As with the first book, this one spends a lot of time getting Lucy, Edmund, Susan, and Peter to where they need to be (which oddly enough is exactly the same spot they were trying to reach last time). The difference is that, although Aslan is still obviously a Christ figure, you don't get quite the same level of religious symbolism from the story itself. Also, as Aslan himself says, nothing ever happens the same way twice. They don't have an evil witch to defeat (unless you count the hag, who was hardly a challenge). Instead, they have to overcome several centuries worth of bigotry and hatred and unbelief (from both sides, I'm sorry to say), and a way of life that's been shaping a whole society. That requires a much different sort of battle. You'd think it'd be propaganda, wouldn't you? But it's not. What it is, is a sort of running parade of pure joy and exuberant happiness, which is contagious for anyone who's susceptible (and bad news for anyone who's not). Yes, there is fighting, but it gets sort of swept away and taken over by the parade.
Also, I just have to mention that this book introduces Reepicheep, the Talking Mouse. One of the best characters ever.