The Horse and His Boy

Rating:
Summary: a talking horse!
Review: In my opinon this book was sort of plain. There isn't any magic of humor in it at all. If there isn't anything to read you should read this, but if you have another book to read i suggust you read the other book first. The only reson that I read this bok was because it was because it was an assingment for school. Don't waset your time on this book, it sinks.

Rating:
Summary: Warning: Least Narnian of All Seven Chronicles
Review: "The Horse and His Boy" would definitely be the odd one out among the seven Chronicles of Narnia. For one thing, it is not set in Narnia at all and relates mostly Archenland history. For another, the heroes of the story are natives of that magical world, not children from our own. Finally, it has a strange effect on readers, who end up either loving it or hating it.

In the very first chapter, Shasta, a boy who is obviously one of the story's heroes, finds out that the man he has always called father merely found him in a basket by the seashore. There's nothing like mystery to open an adventure story--and the plot thickens when Shasta meets an enslaved talking horse named Breehy-hinny-brinny-hoohy-hah (called Bree, for short). Bree and Shasta make a deal: if Shasta helps Bree to escape, then Bree will take him to Narnia, where they will both be free.

Of course, C.S. Lewis managed to throw a few obstacles in their way, some of them involving lions, to make the plot more interesting. As this story is set during the reign of Peter the High King, he even included some fascinating political intrigue, courtly chivalry, _and_ a lovely bloody battle. I particularly liked his descriptions of Calormen and its people, which really brought out their culture (though Archenland was allowed to remain a reasonable facsimile of Narnia).

However, these vivid and opulent descriptions are one reason why "The Horse and His Boy" rubs some readers the wrong way. Young people love to return to Narnia again and again because they each have their own Narnia: ultimately, Narnia springs from the imaginations of all readers, not Lewis' alone. The details about Calormen may stir those who have practiced visualizing with "A Thousand and One Nights", but they will do nothing for children raised on a diet of Western fairytales.

Moreover, a great deal of the writing is satirical and satire is humor for adults. Those who know a bit about Arab culture will appreciate the characterization of the Calormenes (or else be terribly offended by it), but only the more sophisticated readers will know exactly what Lewis is poking fun at when he creates proverbs such as, "As a costly jewel retains its value even when hidden in a dunghill, so old age and discretion are to be respected even in the vile persons of our subjects."

Yet I can assure all readers and Narnia lovers that, despite the contrary elements of this novel, Aslan will not disappoint.

Rating:
Summary: A Great Sequeal
Review: The Horse and his Boy is a great sequal to the Lion the witch and the Wardrobe. It's exciting and a great book to inspire you to reach your dreams. It's a great action and wonderful suspense book making you never want to put it down. I would reccomend this book for anyone who has a dream but doesn't think it's possible. Though I believe you should read the first two in this series before you go onto this.

Rating:
Summary: The Horse and His Boy is ment for a Horse
Review: The horse and is boy is a pretty good book, if you're a person that likes watching a jar of mayonaise and infomercials all day. There were but a few good parts in this book, leaving about 3/4 of the book left to be boring. I mean, a little boy who runs around on a talking horse and being found a prince? That doesn't appeal to me. If I could summarize this book in one scentence it would be, "Do NOT read this book!

Rating:
Summary: An Unexpected Hero
Review: There are people who seem noble, and people who seem common. But when the chips are on the line, character is what really counts. This book is the story of a young boy without a history, who rises to the occasion.

Besides being great "adult" reading, this is a great book to read to children (ages 4-5 and up). It gives them a picture of a hero to whom they can relate. Shasta is a young boy in a very bad situation who is given an extaordinary opportunity. This book is the story of what he does with the opportunity, and what he becomes in the process.

If you plan to buy this, get the whole Chronicles of Narnia pack. You'll want to know the whole Narnia story.

Rating:
Summary: Jake for Cass. period 6
Review: Having read the full Chronicles of Narnia series I found the 3rd installation, The Horse and His Boy, to be my favorite of all. The book contains most of the classic characters of the series as well as many new and interesting ones. The setting of this story is primarily in places outside of the traditional Narnia, but this makes the story more enjoyable and gives the reader a better sense of the world it takes place in. While in other books the allegory of Christianity is more apparent, it is a major part of this book as well. I would not doubt if the excitement of this book were due to the fact that it is a retelling of an age-old story.
While it is a book in a series meant for children, The Horse and His Boy can be read on a higher level if you understand the references to Christianity. Even if you do not, the book is still quite enjoyable. An exhilarating plot, in addition to magical characters, makes you want to never put it down. The Horse and His Boy is in my mind the finest of the Narnia books, even if it is not a major part of the overall chronicle. You will not find a better book about talking horses and a runaway slave/prince.

Rating:
Summary: Sarah Atkinson's Reveiw of "The Horse and His Boy"
Review: The Horse and His Boy is a very good book.A young boy named Shasta lives with a Calormen fisherman.Shasts thinks the fisherman is his father, but after Shasta overhears his father talking Shasta finds out the truth.Shasta meets a talking horse who tells him about a place called Narnia.Shasta and the horse run away.They meet many adventures on their way to this magical land.
This book was very appealing to me from the beginning.The Horse ana His Boy is one Book of a series.I advise you to read these books first.

Rating:
Summary: When is a children's story not a children's story?
Review: People frequently make the mistake of considering any book that is about children, is written in a style accessible to children, or in a narrative voice that is speaking as to children to be a "children's story" and dismissing it as irrelevant to adults. When they do so, they miss out on some of the most enjoyable reading experiences available. This book falls into this category, as have the other books in this series, just as do "The Hobbit", by J.R.R. Tolkein, "Peter Pan" by James Barrie, and "Alice In Wonderland" and "Through The Looking Glass" by Lewis Carrol, among others.

There seems to be a great deal of debate as to the order in which this series should be read; traditionalists insist that it is criminal to number the books in an order other than that in which they were written, especially since the author is dead and can't "defend" his creation from such "tampering". Others, notably the current publisher, have renumbered the books in something resembling an internal chronological order. So far, I've read books 1-3 by the latter ordering, which is to say, books 1, 5, and 6 by the order in which they were originally published, and my considered opinion on the subject is that it really makes very little difference in WHAT order you read them. Unlike many "series" stories, the Narnia books are really each self-contained stories, with no need to read any of the others in order to know what's going on. At least, that's been true so far. Surely, there are more important things to argue about than the numbering of the books in a series in which each volume can stand alone.

This is a delightful story, with a touch of "Thousand and One Nights" and a touch of "The Prince And The Pauper" in its basic concept. If you have kids, read it to them. But even if you don't, don't miss out on one of the most enjoyable stories available.

Rating:
Summary: Not to Be Casually Overlooked - The Best of Narnia!
Review: I read this book quite awhile ago, but remeber is fondly and vividly. It isn't hard to see why - it being my favorite Narnia book. A plot sypnosis first, and then a quick review will send you clammoring for more horses!

A young orphan named Shasta hears of the free lands of the North. He espcapes with a 'retired' war stallion, Bree, and his accompanied by Calmoreen royalty. Together they face off with lions, narrowly escape armies, and hide through crowded stree markets.

When his companion Aravis is interestingly delayed by lions, it's up to Shasta to stop an army ready to attack the king of the Free North! Will he warn the king in time? As an added bonus, Shasta, the boy hero, finds a remarkable secret about his past - and about himself.

Unlike the other Narnia books, we stray away from Lucy and the others. The book is set repectivly in the Golden Age of Narnia, when Peter is High King. Everything is perfect fantasy, with a touch of humor and fun, filled with some very unsuspecting twists. A captivating and original plot, C.S Lewis portrays his characters amazingly.

It's quite obvisous that Lewis scrapes together an amazing amount of Arab and 'desertness' in this wonderful, classic fantasty. The best part - everyday people of Narnia and this 'magic land' and clearly devoloped, adding greatly to the richness of the land created by Lewis.

Rating:
Summary: Exciting story
Review: The Horse and His Boy, by CS Lewis, is most definitely one of the most exciting books in the Chronicles of Narnia series. It is an amazing story that took place during the medieval ages about a young boy named Shasta who was raised by an abusive dad and he decides that he wants to run away from home to a place called Narnia. And when he meets a talking horse named Bree, who is from Narnia but was stolen and also has an abusive master, they decide to run away together and go to this land of Narnia. The author does a great job of telling the reader about the adventures that the horse and the boy went through and makes the reader feel like they are actually there. The greatest part of the story is the author's great imagination. He does well in telling the details of the different creatures they encounter on their way to Narnia and the ones they meet in Narnia. Another aspect that is interesting in the novel is how all the loose ends are tied together so well. All the little problems that Shasta and Bree run into are always worked out to the last detail. And believe me, they run into many problems. The majority of the book focuses on their journey to Narnia and the many adventures that occur on their journey. The most exciting adventures they have on their journey consisted of huge and fierce lions that attacked them many times. In the end, it turned out that there was really only one lion that followed them through their journey. In order to understand whom this beast was, you would have to read the story yourself. The book is very religiously symbolic, which keeps you interested and always yearning to read the next chapter.