The movie may have rivaled King Kong as Hollywood’s Christmas blockbuster but the novel will stay with you for life.
That, in a nutshell, is the verdict of Britain’s librarians who have voted The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, the most important book a child can read.
C.S. Lewis’ story of four children who walk through the back of a wardrobe into the realm of Narnia claimed more than twice as many votes in a poll as the next-placed book, Winnie the Pooh.
And despite the Potter mania which gripped much of the country during the screening of Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire, J.K. Rowling’s novels attracted relatively few votes.
So, unlikely as it may sound, Narnia’s popularity may outlast that of Hollywood’s £120mil version which opened in cinemas worldwide during the yuletide season.
No doubt, the novel’s position at the top of a chart of recommended books 55 years after it was first published speaks volumes of its timeless appeal.
Narnia was the runaway winner, according to Louise de Winter of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council which conducted the survey.
To all intents and purposes, the librarians’ must-read choice indicated that it is one of those magical novels that stay on your consciousness all your life.
In the survey, more than 200 librarians were asked to recommend one book every child should be given as a Christmas gift.
They came up with 123 titles, which were subsequently whittled down to produce a top 30 that included Enid Blyton’s The Magic Faraway Tree (third spot) and Lewis Carrol’s Alice In Wonderland (fourth).
Authors such as Kenneth Grahame (The Wind In The Willows), J.R.R. Tolkien (The Hobbit) and Roald Dahl’s Charlie And The Chocolate Factory also featured in the list.
But surprise, surprise, the Harry Potter series only managed a poor 28th position – a far cry from the latest movie series which smashed four records in British box office history in November.
One might be forgiven for being shocked by the low ranking but it could only point to one direction – let’s not forget that there are other books out there.
Most tellingly, from the librarians’ perspective, it is also their way of saying to “go out and read the book and don’t just see the film version.”
Not surprisingly, generations of kids and adults alike have been attracted to C.S. Lewis’ novels from young and have continued to read the series till today.
Indeed, many have bought all The Chronicles of Narnia as their personal collection or as special gifts to their relatives and friends.