Reviews with content warning for Racism - The Horse and His Boy

I loved a glimpse into the pevensies’ lives as rulers, but the overall story wasn’t that compelling to me. It also seemed to be drawn along lines of race and religion that I didn’t exactly love. Lewis also has a tendency of creating complex and interesting female characters then shoving them to the side in favor of his male characters. Truly a missed opportunity in my opinion.

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cubbykay's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted fast-paced

3.0

This book hasn't aged very well. Lewis's racism unfortunately pours over into a fantasy world that should be free of such things. I didn't finish this book as a kid because I found it rather boring, but I found it a bit more entertaining as an adult. Good horses.

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ida0810's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

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bestienicoley's review

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adventurous lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

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emmonsannae's review

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adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was my favorite Narnia book growing up, and I’m thrilled that it’s held up! The characters are so multidimensional and charming, and the setting lets Lewis explore different facets of Aslan’s character. (One note: I think that to modern readers this book does feel dated at best, real-life-racism-squeezing-its-way-into-fantasy-worlds at worst. It wouldn’t prohibit me from recommending it to someone because I do think it’s mild and not ill intended, but I would recommend it with some comments beforehand.)

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bectothebooks's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.25

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oceanwriter's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I'm not sure why I didn't review this the first time I read it. I'm not going to do a proper review since I haven't with the rest of the series, but I'll at least put a note or two.

This is definitely my least favorite book from the Narnia series. I don't dislike it, but it is quite slow and often boring. There are parts I love, which is why I'm going with four stars (though initially I had rated it five stars... I'm not sure why). I do adore this universe and it's the first fantasy series that I've wanted to get lost in, this one just drags so much.

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