“Narnia” Store Faces Lawsuit

Kelly Kyle, the owner of a bookshop named “Narnia Children’s Books” is facing a lawsuit for having the word “Narnia” in their store name, according to TimesDispatch.com. This comes as a surprise because the store opened in 1984, and they have not received any prior requests to change the name.

According to Narnia’s official website “‘The Chronicles of Narnia,’ ‘Narnia’ and all book titles, characters and locales original to ‘The Chronicles of Narnia,’ are trademarks of CS Lewis Pte Ltd. Use without permission is strictly prohibited.”

Walden Media LCC, who maintains the website and holds the ‘Narnia’ film rights, said the dispute has nothing to do with them. Times Dispatch could not contact Disney Enterprises Inc., who also holds the film rights, and HarperCollins, who has held the Narnia book rights.

Outside entities, including the Memphis-based C.S. Lewis Society, the Australian C.S. Lewis Today, and even Narniafans.com, have permission to used words coined by Lewis.

Kyle has stated that she hopes there is room for negotiations and she can keep the name.