Tumnus’ Bookshelf: The NarniaFans Book Reviews: Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew Picture Book illustrated by Thai My Phuong

Hey, everybody! Welcome back to Tumnus’ Bookshelf, where we review any and all books written by, about, and inspired by CS Lewis, The Land of Narnia, and The Inklings. For this special edition review we will be looking at the brand new illustrated picture book by Thai My Phuong, Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew!

TITLE: Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew.

BASED ON THE NOVEL BY: CS Lewis.

ILLUSTRATOR: Thai My Phuong

PUBLISHER: ‎ HarperCollins

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0063490560

ISBN-13: ‎ 978-0063490567

Summary:

With beautiful illustrations from Thai My Phuong, CS Lewis beloved classic The Magicians nephew comes to life in an exquisite, enchanting picture book for children. Follow Polly and Digory as they travel form one world to another and witness the creation of Narnia, and encounter the Great Lion, Aslan.

Review:

When it comes to magical stories one of the surest signs of their longevity is when they are adapted into beautifully illustrated picture books that allow younger readers to experience the wonder of a great story at a pace more to their liking. From fairy tales like the Snow Queen, The Little Mermaid, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and Snow White, to classic novels like Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol, these books take that which is familiar and through the use of illustrations translate the story in a way that helps augment the imagination and tell the story to readers just starting their own literary journeys. The World of Narnia is no stranger to the trend, with such beloved picture books as Debroah Maze’s The World of Narnia series, to the beautifully illustrated picture books The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and The Return to Narnia: The Rescue of Prince Caspian. Now at last another tale form the Chronicles of Narnia receives this treatment through a brand new picture book, Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew.

Despite press release materials referencing Greta Gerwig’s upcoming Narnia movie, there is nothing about this book that ties directly to it aside from its release being timed close to the original date for the Netflix produced movie.  There are some race swaps for a few minor characters and some of the figures in the hall of statues on Charn appear to have every imaginable skin tone, but this is more part and parcel for a children’s book published in 2026 and less of trying to make it fit with a movie. This is an adaptation of the original novel The Magician’s Nephew by CS Lewis is reimagined into a delightful, timeless, picture book suitable for readers young and old alike.

While the old adage says “you can’t judge a book by its cover” in the case of Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew, the cover art is delightfully enchanting and will captivate a young reader instantly. We see Polly and Digory investigating one of the many Pools in the Wood Between the World, with Polly daintily dipping her toe in the water as magic swirls around her and Digory while we see shadowy images of Aslan and Fledge in the water hinting at the magic that awaits them. The back cover depicts the iconic moment of Fledge inf light with Digory and Polly flying off on their quest, telling readers just sorts of incredible adventures are in store for them.

Thai My Phuong’s art work is perfect for this story. Infused with a  magical otherworldly aesthetic akin to that of a film from Studio Ghibi, she allows the 19^th century feel of the original novel to leap of the page of the book immersing the reader in  a world that feels truly “once upon a time”. Polly looks charming and elegant in her pinafore dress while Digory  looks restless and eager as if he’s about ready to rip off his Eaton collar and go on an adventure. By retaining the world of the novel, Phoung roots the story of the origins of Narnia in the sort of 19^th century’s stories that inspired the setting for Magician’s Nephew in the first place. Here,  Digory and Polly’s meeting has all the charm and warmth of Mary and Dickon in the Secret Garden, while Uncle Andrew feels like a cross between Ebenezer Scrooge and Herr Droslemeyer.

But when the magic hits, we feel the impact. Polly fades away to Digory’s horror, while their voyage into Charn feels appropriately surreal and mind-bending. But the pages dedicated to the creation of Narnia are nothing short of a feast for the eyes and the imagination. Aslan’s song feels less like say a Gustave Dore illustration from the Bible or even the Darren Aaronovsky’s Noah movie and more like Genesis by way of Miyazaki with brilliant and vivid warm colors. I personally haven’t experienced a Creation sequence this captivating to a young mind since the original Superbook anime series.

This serves as a direct contrast to Jadis. While we don’t see the full post-apocalyptic landscape of the ruined world, the Hall of statues is bathed in deep blues and purples, giving it a chilling ambiance. When Digory strikes the bell, kenetic magic seems to come from the hammer strike, and when Jadis is awoken and we learn of her Deplorable word, she’s is bathed in the hellish red of her world’s dying star, making her appear truly demonic.

A special mention needs to be made for Jadis character design. Given she is best known in pop-culture as the White Witch, it would be easy for her to be rendered all in furs, with pale white skin. But this is not the Jadis of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.   As she has yet to eat the apple, she is not the White Witch yet but rather is the queen of Charn. To that end, Phuong depicts Jadis less like Andersen’s the Snow Queen and more akin to Carabosse the black fairy from Sleeping Beauty to excellent effect. After all, if Carabosse would curse a girl to prick her finger on a spinning wheel just because she didn’t get invited to a christening, it’s not much of a stretch to see such a figure using the Deplorable Word to destroy all life on her planet just to avoid losing a war.

As this is a picture book we don’t have the luxury of expository dialogue or narration to tell the story, and thus the pictures to the rest. Thus, in Uncle Andrews study we see a portrait of Old Mrs. LeFaye,  various tools and instruments related to alchemy, while a poor guinea pig sits in a cage on a shelf. We literally leap from the awakened Jadis bathed by her red sun to her grabbing hold of Polly by the hair as she escapes with Digory to their arrival in Uncle Andrews study in a glorious two pages splash. When the travelers arrive in Narnia we see on the faces the wonder and awe that Digory, Polly and Frank the cabby feel in seeing Aslan as Uncle Andrew cowers in fear and Jadis attempts to project a false image of pride and defiance.

And for good reason. Thai follows the artists adage of “Fill the page” and thus The Great Lion Lion of Narnia Who is described as being as big as an elephant, literally fills up the whole page when we first meet him. He isn’t just bathed in light, but light radiates directly from him, we see his power and majesty during creation as his Deeper Magic pours forth from his words. But more then this power we see the kindness warmth and compassion in his eyes that lead the Sons of Adam and Daughters of Eve to love Him. I haven’t felt a sense of love and warmth, and compassion in the eyes of a children’s picture book character in a long time, and considering the Other Name by which Aslan is known in Our world, there is no better Character to feature such eyes.

Already Friends of Narnia have been delighted by the children’s pictures books of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by Tudor Humphries and The Return to Narnia: The Rescue of Prince Caspian by Matthew S. Armstrong. Each artist brought a unique visual style to those stories that perfectly captured not only the story in question but the beauty of Narnia and the adventure therein, from the Andersenian fairy tale feel of Lion, to the medieval epic of Prince Caspian. Yes, each artist captures a different feel, but in so many ways, it helps each story feel as fresh and unique as the original novels. Thus, Thai’s Narnia: The Magicians Nephew deserves a spot right alongside them as it boldly retells the story of the for comings and goings between our world and Narnia with all the magic and adventure of a Miyazaki anime. Friends of Narnia, save a place for this on your bookshelf!