Review for The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C. S. Lewis

Genre – Middle-grade, Christian fiction, fantasy

Series – 3rd in The Chronicles of Narnia series

Rating – PG for fantasy violence and mild language

Synopsis –

Edmund and Lucy are sent to stay with their aunt and uncle for the summer. They are both dreading it as their cousin Eustace is a brat. Surprisingly, during their stay there, they are transported to Narnia. Edmund and Lucy are rejoiced to meet up with King Caspian, who they met on their previous trip to Narnia. Caspian is out searching for the 7 lost lords who were banished in Miraz’s reign. Will the Pevensie’s be able to help Caspian find the missing lords?

My thoughts –

This is one of my favorite books in this series. Its filled with adventure, fantastical creatures, and redemption. In my opinion this book has faster pace compared to the previous two books. It is packed with a lot of adventures in a short book. Prince Caspian, on the other hand, is focused more on developing the characters.

There is a myriad of different characters. More so then in Prince Caspian. I remember when my mom read this years ago, loving the Dufflepuds. I still thought the Dufflepuds were hilarious during this reread!! I also remember loving Eustace’s character arc. Eustace is one of my favorite characters. For some reason I really like him as a character more so then the Pevensies. Plus there are dragons!! Who doesn’t love dragons!!

The plot is quite a bit different from the movie. I do like the movie, but is cuts some of the best scenes and messes with the timeline of events. Yet, I think they cast Eustace perfectly. Will Poulter nailed the complaining, whining, and selfish cousin. The way the movie pulled off his development was great. Especially the end! 😉

I loved how Eustace’s redemption showed that we cannot save ourselves, no matter how hard we try. He needed Aslan to do the hard work of cleansing him. Very reminiscent of a believer accepting Christ and the transformation that follows. Despite being cleansed by Aslan, Eustace would still sometimes revert back to his old self. This is just like a Christian’s walk. We are eventually going to mess up. We are not perfect. Anyway, I just thought this was a good reminder.

Violence –

Very little, a slave trader captures some characters and endeavors to sell them. (He treats them well). There are a couple sword fights, no real injuries. A character gets sea sick. 3 characters are put to sleep after trying hurt one another. A sea monster attacks the ship. One character falls overboard.

Language – Roughly 5 uses of mild language. Same word used.

Innuendo – None, a mention of a character getting married.

Conclusion –

It has been so much fun to go back and reread these books!! It makes me want to go back and re-watch the movies. I love the characters in this book and the whole adventure on the high seas feel to it. Adventures are funny things. You never know where it will take you or where you will end up. I highly recommend The Chronicles of Narnia to anyone!

Have you read these books? If so, which one is your favorite? Do you like Eustace?

Anna

4 thoughts on “Review for The Voyage of the Dawn Treader”

  1. Ack, I ADORE The Voyage of the Dawn Treader! All of the Narnia books, really. But Eustace has always been one of my favorite characters in the series, and I love his character arc in this book in particular. He is SUCH a brat, but an extremely entertaining brat (I used to just read the section of the book that is his journal when I wanted to laugh), and then his redemption is so well done. I love him.
    I agree that Will Poulter was a FANTASTIC choice for Eustace and he did a phenomenal job in the role, but I was extremely disappointed by the movie in general. I thought they diverged from the book too much without very good reason, and the story suffered considerably.
    Oh, the Duffiepuds are so funny! I love reading about them.
    This is a great review! It reminds me how much I love these books. 🙂

    1. He is such a good character! I love character who actually change and grow throughout a book series and Lewis knows how exactly how to do that! LOL! That is such a great idea! Sometimes you just a book that is humorous. So many books these days are so dark that it makes you appreciate a book that is light and funny.
      Yes, the movie was no where near as good as the previous two. It is sad when movie companies decide to deviate from a book.
      Thank you!!

  2. Ah, I love the Narnia books! This one is so much fun! It contains my favorite quote from the whole series: “Courage, dear heart.”

    I love Eustace! His character arc is one of the best in the series. Even though I saw the movie first and naturally picture him as Will Poulter, the casting is spot on!

    Great review!

    1. Yes, that is such a wonderful quote!!

      Yes, he learns so much through his visits to Narnia!! That is neat that you got to see the movie first! Did you enjoy the movie?
      Thanks!!

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