Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan Review

 Hello Friends :)

I pray today finds you all doing well, and I want to thank you all for joining me for another book review here on The Preppy Book Princess.

I'm not sure how much I've mentioned this before, but for as long as I can remember, Narnia has always been one of my favorite reads, and one of my absolute favorite fictional worlds.

I think C.S. Lewis was an amazing man, and an even more amazing storyteller. 

When I happened to stumble upon an amazing sounding book that fictionalizes C.S. Lewis' journey with writing Narnia, I knew it was something I needed to read.

Keep reading below for my full review.

Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan:

Source: Libby App

Publisher: Harper Muse

Publication Date: October 19th, 2021

Genre: Historical Fiction/Clean Fiction

Synopsis:

From Patti Callahan, the bestselling author of Becoming Mrs. Lewis, comes another enchanting story that pulls back the curtain on the early life of C. S. Lewis.

“Where did Narnia come from?”

The answer will change everything.

Megs Devonshire is brilliant with numbers and equations, on a scholarship at Oxford, and dreams of solving the greatest mysteries of physics.

She prefers the dependability of facts—except for one: the younger brother she loves with all her heart doesn’t have long to live. When George becomes captivated by a copy of a brand-new book called The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and begs her to find out where Narnia came from, there’s no way she can refuse.

Despite her timidity about approaching the famous author, Megs soon finds herself taking tea with the Oxford don and his own brother, imploring them for answers. What she receives instead are more stories . . . stories of Jack Lewis’s life, which she takes home to George.

Why won’t Mr. Lewis just tell her plainly what George wants to know? The answer will reveal to Meg many truths that science and math cannot, and the gift she thought she was giving to her brother—the story behind Narnia—turns out to be his gift to her, instead: hope.

Praise for Once Upon a Wardrobe:

“I advise you to read this book, then wait for a while and then read it again, for while it may not be Narnia, there is magic in it.” —Douglas Gresham, C. S. Lewis’s stepson



New York Times bestselling author
Also by Patti Callahan: Becoming Mrs. Lewis and Surviving Savannah

Includes discussion questions for book clubs as well as a note from Douglas Gresham, C. S. Lewis’s stepson

(synopsis from goodreads)

My Review:

"I think the lion follows all of us around. We just have to look for him."

After finishing the brilliance that is Patti Callahan's Once Upon a Wardrobe, I was basically left stunned. While I felt in many ways I could barely form a coherent thought, I knew two things for sure. First, this beautiful story was unlike anything I'd ever read before. And secondly, it many have been one of the first books I finished this year, but it's also going to end up being one of the very best books I read this year.

I've been a fan of C.S Lewis' works since I was a young child, and that's only become more so in adulthood. He's an amazing storyteller, and I really couldn't wait to dive into this fictionalized tale of a young seventeen old girl who begins a sort of friendship with C.S Lewis (or Jack as he prefers to go by) and his older brother Warnie, in order to provide the answer of "where Narnia came from" to her little brother who is dying. 

Megs has always been of the opinion that everything can be solved, if only the right equation is provided to do so, and isn't really a fan of anything that requires her to use her imagination. She's at first frustrated when it seems that Jack and Warnie are providing her with more questions than answers, and nothing seems to fit into the perfect little box she can check off on her list.

However, as she opens her heart to the possibilities of what stories can unfold, she begins to discover a whole new world that she'd always been too hesitant to embrace, and her journey is heartbreaking, breath taking and mesmerizing all at the same time. 

Once Upon a Wardrobe is my first experience with a novel by Patti Callahan, and I can guarantee it won't be my last. I loved this story that's magical, whimsical and idyllic, but also heartbreaking in a sense and definitely made me ugly cry. I already can't wait to reread it, and I can't possibly recommend it enough.

Final Rating: 5/5.

Thanks so much for reading guys! Have a great rest of your day :)

This is not a sponsored post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. The photo does not belong to me, and all rights to the respective owners.