Book Review: The Magician's Nephew

After completing a re-read of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, I headed to the library hoping to find the second book in the series. The librarian (with obvious pride in knowing these details) explained that the order actually (although "actually" is a subjective word here) starts with The Magician's Nephew. I think I had heard this whole dilemma before, but had forgotten. In my humble opinion, I'm glad I read LWW first. It was a more striking entrance into the idea of Narnia. I preferred that book to this prequel. I may not even continue with re-reading the series.

In The Magician's Nephew, we meet Digory and Polly, two bored children in London. The kids, with the help of Uncle Andrew's magic rings, go on adventures to other worlds. By the end, they land in Narnia and meet Aslan. This book holds the clue to how the evil witch entered Narnia. It bears some similarity to Biblical stories of the first sin. While it was entertaining, I don't feel compelled to stick with this. I need something that grabs my attention with more force. Besides, I had already reviewed the entire series when I read a few of them with my younger sons (and then completed the series on my own) back in 2011. 

I would be interested, however, in seeing the upcoming movie of The Magician's Nephew, slated for the end of 2026. It will star Carey Mulligan as Digory's ailing mother. It is due to be released in IMAX theaters on November 26, 2026. If you want to know more, here's a You Tube video about the movie.