What is the first published book in C.S. Lewis’s Narnia series?

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is the first published book in C.S. Lewis’s Narnia series.

Published in 1950, the novel introduces the Pevensie children—Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy—who enter Narnia through a wardrobe. They find a land trapped in an endless winter under the rule of the White Witch.

The story establishes major Narnia figures and ideas, including Aslan, the talking lion; the White Witch; and the prophecy that four human children will help restore Narnia. Its central plot follows Edmund’s betrayal, Aslan’s sacrifice, and the defeat of the Witch.

The Magician’s Nephew is earlier in Narnia’s internal chronology, describing the world’s creation, but it was published later, in 1955. That difference explains why publication order and chronological reading order can produce different answers.