The Chronicles of Narnia books, ranked worst to best
By Ashley Hurst
2. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
Not only is The Voyage of the Dawn Treader easily the best adventure story in The Chronicles of Narnia, but I’d go as far as to say it’s up there with the greatest fantasy adventure stories of all time.
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader doesn’t have a villain, nor are there any huge battles. It’s a pure adventure story through and through, chronicling the various mishaps that occur on the way to finding the seven lost lords of Narnia.
The story begins with Edmund and Lucy, who are staying with their irritating cousin Eustace. At this point in the story, both Peter and Susan are too old to enter Narnia again. After literally falling through a painting of a boat hanging on a wall, the three kids find themselves on board a ship: the Dawn Treader, where Prince Caspian is captain.
Caspian is sailing east in search of the seven lost lords of Narnia: Argoz, Bern, Mavramorn, Octesian, Restimar, Revilian and Rhoop. Accompanying him on the journey is the loveable sword-wielding leader of the mice, Reepicheep. He wants to locate Aslan’s Country, the home of Aslan on the eastern edge of the world.
With no central villain, the book has an episodic feel as we visit various intriguing places. Over the course of the journey, our crew is captured by a slave trader, Eustace is turned into a dragon, and they find a pool that turns everything into gold. It all adds up to intrigue and adventure in enchanted lands. By the end, Eustace, who was apprehensive of Narnia at first, changes for the better.
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader was the last of the Narnia books to be adapted as a movie, releasing in 2010:
There is a decent argument to be made that this is the best book in the series, though I feel it falls just short of the number one spot.