Ok. I am SOOOO confused. I’m about to begin this series for the first time ever, and I have seen the controversy over what order to read the books in.
There’s the order in which they were written:
1. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
2. Prince Caspian
3. The Voyage of the “Dawn Treader”
4. The Horse and His Boy
5. The Silver Chair
6. The Last Battle
7. The Magician’s Nephew
There’s the supposed chronological order:
1. The Magician’s Nephew
2. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
3. The Horse and His Boy
4. Prince Caspian
5. The Voyage of the “Dawn Treader”
6. The Silver Chair
7. The Last Battle
And there’s the publication order:
1. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (1950)
2. Prince Caspian (1951)
3. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952)
4. The Silver Chair (1953)
5. The Horse and His Boy (1954)
6. The Magician’s Nephew (1955)
7. The Last Battle (1956)
What on Earth am I supposed to do? This is worse than the Star Wars movies. I’ve read compelling arguments for all three orders… but I still have no idea! I mean, I’m kind of leaning most towards the publication order, but I don’t know if it’s the best!! Plus, the Barnes and Noble leatherbound classic (from Kimberly!!) has them in chronological order. Ahhh!
I figured I’d go to the experts: you. How did you read the Narnia books? Have you read them in multiple orders? I need to know the best order for a Narnia newbie.
