Which C.S. Lewis book first introduced readers to Narnia in 1950?

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe first introduced readers to Narnia in 1950.

Published by Geoffrey Bles, the novel follows the Pevensie siblings—Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy—after Lucy discovers a passage into another world through a wardrobe. In Narnia, the children encounter the lion Aslan and a land held in winter by the White Witch.

The book is the first published volume of The Chronicles of Narnia, although Lewis’s internal chronology later places The Magician’s Nephew earlier in Narnian history. This difference between publication order and story chronology is a frequent source of confusion. Many readers begin with the 1950 book because it establishes the central setting, characters, and conflict.

The novel became Lewis’s most widely recognized work of fiction and has been adapted for stage, radio, television, and film. Its title’s punctuation is commonly written with commas after “Lion” and “Witch.”