Favorite Books: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

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I realized today that it's been a while since I wrote one of these favorite book blogs. So, today I want to tell you about The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is one of the books in The Chronicles of Narnia series, technically, it's the third book in the series (in publication order), but it makes the most sense to read it as the fourth book. It frustrates me that, when people think of The Chronicles of Narnia, they automatically think of The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. Not to say that it's not a great book, but the Narnia books are so much more interesting, so much more complex that.

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is so monumental in scope. They made a movie version of it, but it didn't really capture what the book was all about. They tried to make it an adventure story, which it is, but it's so much more than that. In The Voyage of the Dawn Treader we see so much more of Narnia than ever before. It really begins to take form, as a physical and philosophical space, which is what makes it such a beautiful story. I love the scenes at the end where the sea starts to turn sweet. I love the idea that the water is so clear that they can see the merpeople in the water below them. It's such a lovely image.

But I think the scene at the end where they reach the Sea of Lilies is one of my favorite in literature. I love the idea that don't have to eat anymore because the water is all they need. It has a subtle sort of magic and I think it's the perfect sort of image for the edge of the world. It is implied that they've reached Aslan's country, which, of course, is a nod to the philosophical undertones in Lewis' books. In some ways, its reminiscent of of The Last Battle, the last Narnia book, but it is distinctly more subtle.

But, of course, it's also a great story. Eustace Scrubb is a hilarious character. I love how he keeps a little journal where he makes snide remarks about everything Lucy and Edmund do. He's sort of like Dwight from The Office, he takes everything so seriously and it's just perfect. The fact that he gets turned into a dragon is also fittingly just to his character and simply precious. It's a situation that only Eustace could get himself into. I also loved the scene on the Duffer's Island. They're so cute! One of the great things about this book is all the stories within the stories. The Duffers are these little mono pod creatures that are a little slow on the uptake and they're just so funny and wonderful.

I think that if all you've read of The Chronicles of Narnia is  The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, you're really selling yourself short.

Just readin'

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