The Magician's Nephew

Oh mannn. Or should I say, oh son of Adam! Oh daughter of Eve!

So I listened to the audiobook of this because it was Kenneth Branagh and I love Kenneth Branagh. I never read the Narnia books as a kid, though I do have memories of some old 1980s TV movie version, and I saw the mid-2000s movies too. Turkish delights!

Anyway, I didn't think I would like this as much as I did, but I ~~~LOVED~~~ it. I thought I'd huff about C.S. Lewis's uber-Christian themes, but instead I BASKED IN THE FLOWING GOLDEN GLOW of Aslan and the kids and the maaagic. It was absolutely charming. And enchanting! And, oh jeez, I surprised myself by LOLing at some of the jokes and sobbing uncontrollably when Aslan asks the London cabbie and his wife to become the first king and queen of Narnia. Just like Tolkien's Samwise Gamgee, that cabbie is a good, stolid West Country bloke - AND HIS ACCENT COMES BACK WHEN HE IS CALLED UPON TO RULE THIS GREEN AND PLEASANT LAND! I cried and cried, I don't know why.

The plot is also masterfully told - and there was such affection in the characterizations (I especially loved the kids fighting, heh). The portrayal of magic was VERY English magic, and I now see Lewis's work(s) as a direct ancestor to lots of other stuff: Jonathan Strange & Mr Norell, Lev Grossman's books, Philip Pullman's. Mystical woods. Women in ponds as systems of government. Fairies and the name “Fey” and strong Druidy vibes of a pre-industrial rustic Albion.

Another great thing about the audiobook is, of course, Kenneth Branagh's masterful performance. If I had to describe peak Kenneth Branagh, it would be VERY C.S. Lewis-y: he's a real master of his craft, and his performances are always so clear, humanizing, affectionate, resonant and FLOWING WITH GOLDEN GLOW. Branagh doing this audiobook was likewise touched by, ahem, HIS GENIUS with voices and characters and performance. Every character was distinct, none were caricatures (well, maybe Uncle Andrew the crappy magician, but that guy was kind of a joke anyway). He also did something I appreciated: he DIDN'T modulate his voice in the “typical male narrator reading a female character” way - now that I listen to audiobooks so much, I've noticed a trend where the way male narrators portray women's speech is by going wispy and breathy, and the way female narrators portray men's speech is by going croaky. It's so weird! Thank God, Branagh doesn't do that - he just reads the evil queen like some badass evil queen. And Aslan like God, of course, HAAAA. And the kids as kids! He's so good. Here's one moment of peak Branagh: “Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars, and say ‘These wounds I had on Crispin's day.'“

And SPEAKING of English-Magick fantasies from 1950s authors, this reminds me of how wonderful T.H. White's The Once and Future King was, and SUCH GOOD VALUES. It merits a re-read. Anyway, this was wonderful.

in booming Aslan voice GO FORTH, SON OF ADAM, DAUGHTER OF EVE, AND DOWNLOAD IT FROM YOUR LIBRARY APP.