These Evergreen Library hardcover versions of The Chronicles came out in 1965. All seven books had been released by this point, but for this series, only these five were published. The cover artist was Giorgio de Gaspari. I’d never seen this artwork before and was struck by how different it was from post-1970s depictions. For …
Tag: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
The Bees and the Beekeeper
… the spells began straight away, and at first there was nothing very important in them. They were cures for warts (by washing your hands in moonlight in a silver basin) and toothache and cramp, and a spell for taking a swarm of bees. The picture of the man with toothache was so lifelike that …
Drakenschip?
This Dutch language edition of The Voyage of the Dawn Treader does away with the ship’s poetic name, calling it simply “drakenschip.” Which means … dragon ship … which calls to mind … Vikings! Not sure what the problem with translation was. This book is interesting as well for the illustration, which is one I …
Worldbuilding Wednesday 8/11/21: Narnian Islands (Narnia XXVI)
If you are like me, you probably wish The Voyage of the Dawn Treader had gone and on, with Caspian and crew exploring ever more exotic places. That book remains unwritten, but here’s some randomly generated islands they might have explored, if they’d had time. Other Islands of Narnia Ashvows: Several Star People live …
The Great Sea Serpent
Suddenly, only about the length of a cricket pitch from their port side, an appalling head reared itself out of the sea. It was all greens and vermilions with purple blotches—except where shell fish clung to it—and shaped rather like a horse’s, though without ears. It had enormous eyes, eyes made for staring through the …
Worldbuilding Wednesday 7/21/21: Coriakin’s Magic Book (Narnia XXIII)
It was written, not printed; written in a clear, even hand, with thick downstrokes and thin upstrokes, very large, easier than print, and so beautiful that Lucy stared at it for a whole minute and forgot about reading it. The paper was crisp and smooth and a nice smell came from it; and in …
Worldbuilding Wednesday 7/15/20: Narnia VII
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is my second favorite Narnia book. It’s sheer delight with its depiction of an Odyssey-like island journey with many stops and many opportunities for adventure. Not to mention the trippy last chapters with the sun becoming larger and larger, the water sweeter and more shallow, until it blooms full …