Book Review: The Silver Chair by C.S. Lewis

The Silver Chair (The Chronicles of Narnia #4). C. S. Lewis. Harpercollins (2008) (First published 1953). 243 pages. Genre: Classic.

First Line: "It was a dull autumn day and Jill Pole was crying behind the gym."

Summary:  Jill Pole and Eustace Scrubb are called to Narnia to find the lost prince. 

My thoughts:  I find myself liking Eustace more and more.  He really has become a much better person.  This story starts with him coming alongside Jill after she has been bullied.  He treats her with respect and kindness.  

Jill is also a very likeable person.  She notices that Eustace is different than he used to be.  When she asks him about it, he tells her about Narnia.  Rather than making fun of him she is interested.  After the two of them are called into Narnia, Jill makes a mistake.  This mistake causes possible harm to Eustace.  She immediately sees her mistake for what it was and is sorry.  She eventually does get the chance to apologize, but not for a while.  I respected her for admitting her mistake plainly without trying to make excuses.  And accepting the consequences. 

Aslan gives Jill four signs to guide their quest to find the lost prince.  I really liked how this played out in their journey.  The most important thing she had to do was remember them.  This turned out to be much harder than it seemed. 

Some of the memorable characters from this story are Glimfeather, the owl, Puddleglum, the Marshwiggle, The Lady of the Green Kirtle and Prince Rilian.  

Puddleglum is a Narnian Marshwiggle who accompanies Jill and Eustace on their journey.  He is an Eeyore-like character, always expecting the worst to happen.  But, underneath all that, he is a wise follower of Aslan.  

I really enjoyed The Silver Chair.  I think aside from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, this is my favorite in the series.