Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis

Prince Caspian is a part of the series of Narnia, a magical land visited only by a special few. While it isn't necessary to read any of the other books before this one, I highly recommend reading at least The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe. For those not familiar with the story, Narnia is a world that the Pevensie children have stumbled into, and with the help of Aslan (a mighty lion), became Kings and Queens of the land before eventually returning to their own home and time.

In this book, the children have returned after Prince Caspian has blown Susan's enchanted horn. Their return is just in time; Caspian's uncle, who has taken over the throne, is aiming to kill Caspian and so destroy the last true heir of Narnia. Under his Uncle's rule, the original beings of Narnia (talking animals, mythical creatures, etc.) have been outcast and live in fear. Caspian and the Pevensie's will need to do all that they can to restore everything to its rightful balance, and take his Uncle off of the throne.

The characters are not nearly as well developed in this book. We seem some spark of the former characters of the children, but they are really an aside to this story as compared to Caspian. But even Caspian is only half developed and for being a main character, I couldn't really connect with him. There are several minor characters that I did like. These being the badger, some of the dwarves and of course Aslan.

The writing is aimed towards children and as such an adult might find it rushed and desire more detail. There isn't really anything offensive in it (aside from one minor curse word) and it is highly appropriate for anyone to read. It has a special narrator, who talks to the reader, and this makes the reading more personal, which is nice.

I do like the series and while this isn't the best of them, it is still important to read it as it continues the story of Narnia and sets up some history for the next few books.

Prince Caspian
Copyright 1951
238 pages