Shannon's Library

LET’S GET EXCITED ABOUT THIS BOOK!

Megs Devonshire’s little brother, George, is obsessed with C.S. Lewis’ new book, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” George is very sick and desires more than anything to know where Narnia came from. Megs starts meeting with Mr. Lewis and as stories of his earlier years are told, the meaning of Narnia becomes clear. This is a beautiful story of the love between a sister and a brother and the faith that sustains us all! Keep reading below for my full review of this sweet book!

Shannon’s Rating — PG

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LET’S TALK ABOUT THIS BOOK!

“Once upon a wardrobe, not very long ago and not very far away…”

“Once Upon a Wardrobe” is the first book I’ve read by Patti Callahan, but I assure you it won’t be my last! This novel is all about the love between a sister and her little brother and it could not be sweeter.

Megs Devonshire is a lover of numbers, equations and all things math.  Her younger brother, George, loves words…especially the words written by C.S. Lewis in his new book, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” Unfortunately, George is very sick and won’t live long enough to read any of the next books that C.S. Lewis will write.  George can’t stop thinking about Narnia and asks Megs to track C.S. Lewis down and ask him where Narnia came from.  Is it all imaginary? Does such a place really exist? Megs attends the university where Mr. Lewis is a professor, so she agrees to this last request from her beloved little brother. As Megs begins meeting with Mr. Lewis, or Jack, as he prefers to be called, they become friends.  Jack slowly introduces Megs to a world of imagination, far beyond her numbers and facts. He tells her stories of his childhood, school years, and his life during the two World Wars.  After each meeting with Jack, Megs writes down these stories and takes them home to George. George becomes convinced that he can find the meaning of Narnia in these stories.

Throughout the course of this novel, we watch as Megs’ heart opens up and she learns to love storytelling. At first, it seems like a chore to her but as time goes on it becomes part of her soul. George tells her…

“I know you think the whole world is held together by some math formula. But I’ve thought about this a lot, and I think the world is held together by stories, not all those equations you stare at.”

I would say this novel has two overriding themes. The first is love. The relationship between Megs and George is at the very core of this book. They love each other deeply and it’s heartbreaking to know that their time together is limited. As Megs once contemplates, “Maybe when we know we will lose someone, we love fiercer and wilder.”

There is also a cute romance in the book as Meg’s heart continues to soften. While this is not a main part of the story, it was a sweet added touch.

The second theme of this novel is God and faith. I loved this aspect of the book.  It wasn’t obtrusive at all, but rather just a lovely part woven into the story. As all lovers of “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” know, Aslan can represent God or Jesus Christ.

Megs eventually realizes that the reason George is fixated on C.S. Lewis’s novel, is because he’s searching for answers. Answers to whether or not there is life after death. He’s wondering what will happen to him when he dies.

“He wants to know if it’s true that there’s something more when this something ends.  Not whether there is a doorway in the back of his wardrobe; he knows that is just a way to tell a story about something more. But maybe in the back of his life there IS a place he will go, a place they will ALL go.”

After reading “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” George becomes obsessed with Aslan. He starts drawing pictures of Jack and the stories that Megs tells him. In each drawing, the lion is there, watching over Jack.

Megs, naturally, wants her brother to be healed and be able to live a full life. She says…

“I want a miracle for George.  I want something or someone like Aslan to prowl through the door and save us, save us from the sorrow and the pain and the absolute loneliness of it all.”

One of the harsh realities of life we all have to face is that sometimes the miracles we desperately want to happen…don’t. But that doesn’t mean that we aren’t being loved and watched over. George learns this lesson when he tells Megs…“the lion is everywhere…the lion follows all of us around. We just have to look for him.”

“Once Upon a Wardrobe” is very popular in the book world right now. And to be honest, I usually don’t get onboard with the “popular” books that everyone is reading. But this, dear reading friends, is an exception to my usual rule. This novel is worth all the hype. It’s sweet. It’s heartwarming. It’s quite simply, wonderful.  A word of advice, read it with a highlighter nearby. There are so many quotable quotes you’ll want to remember!