Books

London: Geoffrey Bles, 1951. First edition of the second book in Lewis' beloved Narnia series. Octavo, original cloth, cartographic endpapers, illustrated by Pauline Baynes. Near fine in a very good dust jacket, ownership inscription to the inside jacket flap. Lewis’ beloved Chronicles of Narnia “must be judged the most sustained achievement in fantasy for children by a 20th-century author” (Carpenter & Prichard, 370). The second published of seven novels in the series, Prince Caspian follows the four Pevensie children as they return to Narnia a year following their initial visit to help Narnia’s rightful ruler reclaim his throne. The Narnia tales rank “among the great classics of the [twentieth] century. Adored by children and academics alike, these books are extremely collectable, sought-after, scarce” (Connolly, 186).

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is a fantasy novel for children by C. S. Lewis, published by Geoffrey Bles in 1950. It is the first published and best known of seven novels in The Chronicles of Narnia (1950–1956). Among all the author's books, it is also the most widely held in libraries. Although it was written as well as published first in the series, it is volume two in recent editions, which are sequenced by the stories' chronology (the events of The Magician's Nephew take precedence).