Book Review: The Horse & His Boy

Yes, The Horse and His Boy is a children's novel, part of the Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis. This is the third book in the series, after The Magician's Nephew and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. I read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe for the first time in college, as part of one of my favorite classes, Christianity & Literature. I loved the book, and as Carter owns the whole series, I've been reading the others as the mood strikes me. So, that's how this book ended up on my reading list, random though it may seem.

Summary: 

The Horse and His Boy follows Shasta, an orphaned boy in the southern land of Calormen, who has been raised by a hard and somewhat unloving fisherman. One night a local royal (called a Tarkhaan) comes to visit the fisherman, and eventually offers to buy Shasta. While he sleeps however, Shasta escapes with Bree, the Tarkhaan's Talking Horse. (Talking Horses are all from Narnia, not from Calormen. Bree is a slave to the Tarkhaan.) Adventure ensues as Shasta and Bree try to make their way to Narnia and the North. Unexpected twists and turns happen along the way, leaving readers (young and old alike) holding their breath, cheering on the main characters, and breathing sighs of relief at all the right times.

Even though this is a children's book, The Horse and His Boy was a fun & easy summer read. As with all the books in The Chronicles of Narnia, Aslan appears as the Messiah figure, and the one who orchestrates and understands why things happen in the lives of the characters. This was a quick read and very entertaining! I'm a big CS Lewis fan anyway, and this series is certainly a classic: one I'll hope to encourage my children to read...once I have kids and they are old enough to read, of course!

Overall Rating:

New on my bookshelf: Resurrection in May by Lisa Sampson.