[quote="Monica"][/quote]
"There's a school of thought that advises reading
The Chronicles of Narnia in the order that Lewis wrote them so that one can follow the unfolding of his thought.
If you want a scholarly approach to his works, you could read them in the order he wrote them -- and watch the maturing of his art and his Christian vision. (You can find a bibliography of publishing order on the web.)"
I must confess that my interest is neither a correct 'school of thought' nor very scholarly. I am coming back to The Seven Chronicles after a number of years and I am still quite confused by their new numbering. Which was introduced in 1994 and which is said to be a considerable improvement since it is based on a fictional 2555-year-old Narnian Calendar.
So for the time being I am just keeping at hand a list of their real and actual publication dates:
2. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe 1950 October 16
4. Prince Caspian 1951 October 15
5. The Voyage of the "Dawn Treader" 1952 September 15
6. The Silver Chair 1953 September 7
3. The Horse and His Boy 1954 September 6
1. The Magician's Nephew 1955 May 2
7. The Last Battle 1956 March 19[/i]