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“Adventures are never fun while you’re having them.”

Author: C.S. Lewis

Lucy and Edmund are stuck with their cousin, Eustace, enduring his haughtiness, when suddenly they are all three sucked into a beautiful picture of a daring ship. They are back again, at last, in their beloved Narnia, and this time the adventure will take them across oceans to the very edge of the world where Aslan’s land is said to begin.

The ship, the aptly named Dawn Treader, is captained by King Caspian who, along with his crew and Reepicheep (the brave mouse), are looking for seven lords banished by evil King Miraz. Now that Narnia is quiet and peace restored, Caspian wants to rescue these lords and to make amends for his uncle’s misdeeds. Along the way, the group will meet wizards and dragons, discover a land of utter darkness where dreams come true, explore a deadly lake that turns everything into gold, find a land peopled with invisible denizens, and sit down to a banquet fit for kings. They will be tested in heart and in spirit, and as the horizon dances with the light of Aslan, they will discover the meaning of adventure and what they are made of.

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is by far my favorite Narnia story so far. Indeed, I would say that it is one of my favorite books so far. Lewis gets the measure between magical adventure (with all the good, seafaring discovery elements children and adults love) and deep, allegorical meaning about the world and God’s will for us. It’s both masterful and fun, and readers cannot help but laugh and turn sober, alternately, as the brave children are beset by both terrors and treasures.

Eustace is the new character here, and he is introduced with one of my favorite Lewis quotes of all time: “There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it.” Eustace is unpleasant and self-absorbed to the point of being hilarious, but his type, despite the comedic twist, is easily recognizable. We know people just like this. And, Lord help us, we’ve been just like this before. His bad actions aren’t nearly as terrible as Edmund’s original betrayal, but his lesson is still a dramatic (and fun!) one. Eustace’s own laziness and his greed literally turn him into a dragon, and it is in this new scaley skin that he finds repentance and eventually delivery by Aslan himself. It is a meaningful and moving transformation, and his bits as a dragon are easily one of my favorite imaginings of Lewis, who combines the fearsomeness and the majesty of the creature nicely while also evoking the terror of a little boy, unable to talk, trapped within the hide of a fearsome monster.

Image by Selline Selline from Pixabay

Another favorite moment comes with the Dufflepuds, a silly civilization who continually seek to thwart their wise and caring master, disobeying orders that would bring them happiness and an easy life. The spiritual metaphor here is more than clear. Lucy’s encounter with the wizard’s spell book is also the stuff of legends. Indeed, this entire adventure harkens back to the stories of yore, and Lewis has a great way of telling a tale that just makes it fun and calls to the inner child in us all, when we still believed in adventure and discovering new things.

As the narrative continues, Reepicheep, who first appeared in Prince Caspian, steals the show. He is easily one of Lewis’ best characters, and his storyline here is both engaging and ultimately poignant. Reepicheep teaches us the meaning of being called, just as Caspain teaches us the necessity of obedience and being contented with the destiny we have been given.

And there is so much more. We have undersea merfolk who tend herds of fish (yes, you heard that right!), and a dreadful island where dreams (not daydreams, mind you, but dreams) come true. We have rescues and near misses, bureaucrats and saviors, and behind it all, Aslan watches and whispers to each of us “Have courage, dear heart.”

– Frances Carden

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Frances Carden
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