Book Review - The Silver Chair

I finished the sixth book of the Chronicles of Narnia called The Silver Chair. I found it outstanding like the rest of the books in the chronicles. The story introduces us to Eustace Scrubb who in his desire to escape his terrible school returns to Narnia for a new adventure. His classmate Jill Pole comes along and is introduced to Narnia and becomes one of the key heroes in the story. The two find out that King Caspian's son Prince Rilian has been missing a number of years. Aslan gives them four signs to watch out for and assigns them the task of finding the missing prince. Along the way, the two will meet a marsh-wiggle named Puddleglum who will join them on their quest. They'll discover bad giants eat humans and narrowly escape the giants whose clutches they unwittingly walked into. The meet a people called Gnomes who are under the spell of a witch. And finally, they meet Prince Rilian though they don't know it initially. At first, they think the knight who is in fact Prince Rilian is a total prick but, it turns out the prince is worthy of his great father King Caspian (the same Caspian we meet in Prince Caspian and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader). It is here that they are confronted with the fourth sign that Aslan told them to watch for. The three adventurers messed up on the previous three signs. They are determined no matter what, they won't mess up on the fourth. Unknowingly, they help free the prince of the witch's spell and end up doing battle with her. Ultimately they triumph and foil the witch's plans to takeover Narnia. Sadly, Prince Rilian returns in time to say a few last words to his dying father. Eustace and Jill depart with Aslan to Aslan's mountains where they see the dead King Caspian. It is there that we get to see references to Jesus Christ. Aslan tells Eustace to pick a thorn from a bush nearby. Those who remember Christ, remember he was crowned with a crown of thorns. Aslan has Eustace pierce one of his paws with the thorn and then allows a single drop of his blood to touch the dead King Caspian. Caspian comes back to life and is made young again. This is another reference to Christ as it is through his blood that we can be given eternal life like Caspian if we believe in Christ. Caspian will now remain forever young in Aslan's land. Eustace and Jill expect to stay there too but Aslan says now is not the time. Caspian asks Aslan if he may visit Eustace and Jill's world and Aslan permits him too for 5 earth minutes. Here, there is another reference to Christianity for Aslan tells Caspian he can't think anything evil anymore. Christian doctrine teaches that once we who believe in Christ die, we are freed forever from our sin nature and will sin no more. The entire group summarily returns to Eustace and Jill's school where Aslan and Caspian help them defeat the school bullies. Aslan and Caspian return to Aslan's realm but the adventures of Eustace and Jill in Narnia aren't over. They'll be called back one last time in the last book in the chronicles called The Last Battle.

Overall, the book is excellent with plenty of ups and downs. I think this book will make a great movie too and I hope the Disney folks will turn it into one. My only regret with the book is there is only one more book in the Chronicles series. I wish C. S. Lewis had written more of them. Stay tuned for my book review on The Last Battle.