Which book opens C.S. Lewis’s original publication sequence for The Chronicles of Narnia?
Answer
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe opens C.S. Lewis’s original publication sequence for The Chronicles of Narnia.
Published in 1950, it introduces the Pevensie children and their first journey into Narnia through a wardrobe. The story presents the land under the rule of the White Witch and establishes recurring elements of the series, including Aslan and the conflict between winter and renewal.
The Magician’s Nephew is first in the series’s internal chronological timeline, because it describes Narnia’s creation. However, it was published sixth, in 1955. This difference between publication order and story chronology is the main reason readers sometimes give a different answer.
Lewis wrote seven Narnia books between 1950 and 1956. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was the first to reach readers and remains the best-known entry point to the series.