Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Read!!
Review: The first book in the series of The Chronicles of Narnia, The Magician's Nephew is an excellent fantasy that pulls the reader in from the first word! Lewis weaves a fantastic tale that weaves fantasy and reality splendidly. The reader is drawn into Lewis' world of fiction with an amazing ease. Part of the seven book series, The Magician's Nephew is an excellent beginning to what will certainly become a fascinating, enthralling series. Digory is a young boy who is upset because his mother is dying. When he meets Polly (his next door neighbor), he tells her about his mother and that he is staying next door with his spinster aunt and his bachelor Uncle Andrew so that they can take care of his mother. Polly and Digory soon become good friends and they discover a secret passageway that connects all of the attics in the houses on their row (in London). They stumble into the attic of Digory's Uncle Andrew and he tricks Polly into becoming part of an experiment for him. She puts on a yellow ring and travels to another world. Digory has no choice but to follow her when his Uncle Andrew tells him the secret of how to come back. Digory and Polly end up in the "Wood Between the Worlds," a type of portal to other places and times. Although Polly immediately wants to turn back, Digory convinces her to visit one of the other places first. They choose a pool of water that takes them to the deserted city of Charn, where they awaken Queen Jadis, an evil queen that is bent on leaving her own dead kingdom and conquering London. She attaches herself to Digory while they are trying to escape and they accidentally bring her back to London. Once there, she wreaks havoc on everyone and everything even though her magic powers are not as strong in this new world. Polly and Digory decide that they must return her to her world, so they travel back to the "Woods between the Worlds." Thinking that they have chosen the pool that leads to the city of Charn, they jump in only to find that they are in a new land and they experience the birth of the Land of Narnia. They experience everything to the birth of the sun and stars to the blessing of the first king and queen of Narnia. Digory is sent on a mission to retrieve the fruit of a special tree so that it may be planted in the center of Narnia to protect it from the Witch of Charn, who has hidden herself in the recesses of this new land. After being tempted to eat or [take] the fruit for himself, Digory brings the fruit to Aslan, the creator of Narnia, and he casts out the fruit so that it can grow into a tree. Aslan thanks Digory and tells him to take an apple from the tree and give it to his sick mother so that she might be saved. Polly and Andrew leave Narnia and Digory gives the fruit to his mother, who is healed. ...
Rating:
Summary: best in the series
Review: The Lion the witch and the wardrobe was one of those books that I loved at the beginning, but got bogged down as it progressed, leaving me with a unsatisfactory end. The magician's nephew does not suffer from this problem at all. At a young age I was spellbound by this story, written both simply and beautifuly. I never tire of this book, and I have read it, without exaggerating, at least 20 times. The story is captivating, and there is a sense of interconnectedness and backstory that makes for a rich world presented in the book. If you read one book from the narnia series, read this one, you won't reget it.
Rating: 
Summary: The Magician's Nephew
Review: The Magician's Nephew is a great start for Chronicles of Narnia. Two children, Digory and Polly, get rings from Digory's uncle. He gives them rings which give them the power to travel to different worlds and travel home again. They travel to lots of different worlds and have many different adventures. In one of the worlds they find an evil queen called Jadis who follows them back home. Polly and Digory take the queen to a different world where they meet a lion called Aslan and many different talking animals. Digory and Polly then have to go and get an apple to protect Narnia from the queen. Digory takes one apple back home to his dying mother. When Digory gives the apple to his mother she is cured. Digory buried the apple core and magic rings in his backyard. You will have to read the book to find out what happens. This book is one of the best books I have ever read. It makes you feel like you are in the adventures with the characters. I would recommend this book to anybody that can read. This adventure-fantasy is for people of all ages. I like the way it leads into the next book.
Rating: 
Summary: O.k at times but goes noware
Review: This book goes noware but down.The begging is good and then in the middle goes down ward.It's o.k. at times but fore die hard fantasy fans like Harry Potter stay away.
Rating:
Summary: In the beginning....
Review: Whether you read these books chronologically (Narnian time):
The Magicians Nephew
The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Horse and His Boy
Prince Caspian
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Silver Chair
The Last Battle
or in the order they were published:
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (1950)
Prince Caspian (1951)
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (1952)
The Silver Chair (1953)
The Horse and His Boy (1954)
The Magicians Nephew (1955)
The Last Battle (1956)
is entirely up to you.
Beginning at the beginning has always sounded like a good approach to me, hence this first review of the Narnia series.
Though written in simple style to be appreciated by young scholars, this book seems to echo with subtle and not so subtle references to the bible. A background check on the late great C. S. Lewis will reveal that he became a theist in 1929, a Christian in 1931, and later was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity by the University of St. Andrews in 1946.
His belief in the existence of one God, viewed as the creative source of man and the world, who transcends yet is immanent in the world, provides the foundation for the series, especially in this book and the magnificent classic "The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe." (Note: definition courtesy of Merriam-Webster)
"The Magician's Nephew" tells of the creation of Narnia by the great and powerful Aslan, and the temptation of a son of Adam, by a deceiver, with an apple from a forbidden tree.
This is the story of Digory and Polly, two friends who, upon an accidental meeting with Magician wanna-be Uncle Andrew, find themselves in a head spinning adventure involving other worlds, magical rings, an evil sorceress, a cabby and his horse, talking animals, and a collection of fauns, satyrs, dwarves and naiads.
We learn about the first King and Queen of Narnia, a heroic quest, a miraculous cure, and the planting of a tree and a lamp post, both of which we will need to move on with the series.
Even though a slim volume, The Magician's Nephew is deceptively deep and compelling.
WARNING: Reading this book leads to the compulsive reading of at least six other books.
Amanda Richards August 1, 2004
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