10/10 ( )

In The Narnia Code, Michael Ward takes the reader through each of the seven Narnia books and reveals how each story embodies and expresses the characteristics of one of the seven planets of medieval cosmology—Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Luna, Mercury, Venus and Saturn—planets which Lewis described as “spiritual symbols of permanent value.”
How does medieval cosmology relate to the Christian underpinnings of the series? How did it impact Lewis’s depiction of Aslan, the Christlike character at the heart of the books? And why did Lewis keep this planetary inspiration a secret? Originally a ground-breaking scholarly work called Planet Narnia, this more accessible adaptation will answer all the questions.

Michael Ward takes the reader through each of the seven Narnia books and reveals how each story embodies and expresses the characteristics of one of the seven planets of medieval cosmology—Jupiter, Mars, Sol, Luna, Mercury, Venus and Saturn—planets which Lewis described as “spiritual symbols of permanent value.”
How does medieval cosmology relate to the Christian underpinnings of the series? How did it impact Lewis’s depiction of Aslan, the Christlike character at the heart of the books? And why did Lewis keep this planetary inspiration a secret? Originally a ground-breaking scholarly work called Planet Narnia, this more accessible adaptation will answer all the questions.

Picked this up at the Hershey library while kind of just snorting and browsing around, more or less on a whim. I have always loved CS Lewis's work (even from a non-theological perspective) and I am currently in the midst of reading the Chronicles [of Narnia] to my daughters (currently working on The Horse and His Boy), so this piqued my interest enough to pick up and read.

While it is interesting, and gives a new perspective on the novels..... I'm not sure it wholly "changed" my viewing of the novels/and his works. It is all very interesting his idea and views and takes on how and (MAYBE why) CS Lewis constructed the Chronicles the way he did, and why he left things in like Father Christmas/Bacchus/Father Time, etc. I...... just don't 100% percent buy into the idea of it all. I take a look at stuff of this sort (the inclusion of all kinds of tropes and mythologies, even modern culturalisms like Father Christmas/Santa) in the same vein that Tolkien did when reading his friends works -- CS Lewis wanted to lean/borrow as heavily as he could from all genres, mythologies, and cultures -- a) because he loved all of these aspects of these various groups, and b) to be as inclusive as he can be. To reach as far of a 'market' (for lack of better term) as he could to try and spread the word of Jesus/Christ and the Bible.

This thesis definitely gives an interesting addendum to ways of looking at Narnia, and as I read The Horse and His Boy to my daughters tonight I will be looking for/at the ways mentioned in this thesis.... I just don't think I fully buy into it all.

(Apparently, at looking at the overall Goodreads reviews on this, it's very heavily loved, and Ward is very loved, especially by the religious and those who really love CS Lewis. So perhaps he is really onto something and I just don't see it, or perhaps I don't have the theological aspect/bent that the rest do. I will say the thesis is written well, though the connections at times are a bit loose, and with CS Lewis dead, and there never being a REAL way of knowing for sure if this is true or not, it has that 'conspiracy' theory it was kind of aiming at - especially after The Da Vinci Code, which I think this was hoping to piggyback on with the title a bit.) ( )

Interesting look at the meaning of each of the books in the Narnia series. Fans of Lewis will enjoy the authors interpretations. ( )