A Family Guide to Prince Caspian

The Christian allegorical elements of the first book in the Chronicles of Narnia, THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE, were rather straightforward and easy to understand even for young children (as long as they've had some Biblical education). Lewis was adamant that the Chronicles are not allegories and he was quite right. The stories are not allegories. They are enchanting stories full of Christian themes and morals that though not full-fledged allegories, do contain allegorical elements. PRINCE CASPIAN is a darker book than its predecessor and many of the Christian elements and themes are not as apparent to readers as they were in THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE. For a parent or educator this can sometimes be quite frustrating because though the novel is darker, it is also deeper and richer. The frustration comes in trying to explain some of these themes to children or get them to extrapolate the ideas from the text themselves. A FAMLY GUIDE TO PRINCE CASPIAN does a wonderful job in assisting parents and educators with this. The book is basically divided into three sections. The first section is the exposition. This section of the book includes an introduction to A FAMILY GUIDE TO PRINCE CASPIAN and how it was written, a synopsis of the life of C.S. Lewis, a cast of characters, an introduction to PRINCE CASPIAN, and a map of Narnia. The second section of the book examines each of the chapters in PRINCE CASPIAN. Ditchfield does an excellent job of parsing Biblical truths from the novel and giving practical life applications using those truths. Each chapter includes passages from the Bible that connect to what has happened in that chapter of the story as well as questions. After every two or three chapters, there is a section that ties together the main messages of what took place in the previous chapters. The last section of the book is a collection of activities based upon what has been read. Included are a recipe for making fried apples and ice cream or applesauce; how to make a mosaic or mural like those in Aslan's How; ideas of how to start writing your own story; as well as the explanation of why there are different ways The Chronicles of Narnia are now being published. Overall, A FAMILY GUIDE TO PRINCE CASPIAN is a great resource for anyone who has or works with children and wants to explore the rich and deep themes of PRINCE CASPIAN with them.

With Disney's adaptation of Prince Caspian just weeks away from release, we are seeing a flood of Narnia-related books hitting the store shelves. Readers who searched for books to coincide with the release of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe will be familiar with many of the authors and their books. Devin Brown's Inside Prince Caspain is written in the same style and format as Inside Narnia. Leland Ryken's and Marjorie Mead's A Reader's Guide To Caspian is the sequel to A Reader's Guide Through the Wardrobe. And Christin Ditchfield's A Family Guide to Prince Caspian is a follow-up to A Family Guide to the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. A Family Guide to Prince Caspian is a guide to discovering the story within the story. Where the other titles tend to focus on the books and movies as literature, analyzing the literary elements, Ditchfield's books seek to highlight the biblical truths underlying the stories. Each chapter of the book, which is parallel to the chapters in the original, offers "Biblical Parallels and Principles" and some applicable Scriptures. Throughout the book you'll also find devotional readings, trivia, reflective questions, a few projects that will continue the adventure with children, and a map of Narnia that features all of Prince Caspian's most significant sites. As a guide to the film and the book that is applicable to the family and that will help children see the significance behind the story, this book is a success. In fact, read in conjunction with one or more of the other titles, this book will enhance your enjoyment of the series and show you both the literary and theological depths contained even in such a simple story.

If your family is has seen the movie or read the book The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, I'm sure you will be wanting to see the upcoming Disney movie Prince Caspian that is due out in May. I recommend you get this book to be your guide. Children and parents alike will find deep, Biblical truths come a live in the Prince Caspian and Ditchfield's book will help you as you search for these nuggets. It would be helpful to read the book before the movie so you will be able to see the sometimes subtle truths that author C.S. Lewis weaves throughout the entire Chronicles of Narnia series. I breezed through this little volume in no time and in that small amount of time I learned so much about the Prince Caspian story as well as the author himself. It was easy and enjoyable reading. I recommend you get a copy and share it with your kids.