The Horse and His Boy
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First edition dustjacket
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| Author | C. S. Lewis |
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| Illustrator | Pauline Baynes |
| Cover artist | Pauline Baynes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Series | The Chronicles of Narnia |
| Genre | Children's fantasy novel, Christian literature |
| Publisher | Geoffrey Bles |
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Publication date
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6 September 1954 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover) |
| Pages | 199 pp (first edition) 48,029 words (US) |
| ISBN | (Collins, 1998; full colour) |
| OCLC | 2801054 |
| LC Class | PZ7.L58474 Ho |
| Preceded by | The Silver Chair |
| Followed by | The Magician's Nephew |
The Horse and His Boy is a novel for children by C. S. Lewis, published by Geoffrey Bles in 1954. It was the fifth published of seven novels in The Chronicles of Narnia (1950–1956) and one of four that Lewis finished writing before the first book was out. It is volume three in recent editions, which are sequenced according to Narnia history. Like the others it was illustrated by Pauline Baynes and her work has been retained in many later editions.
The Horse and His Boy is the only book of the Narnia series that features native rather than English children as the main characters, and the only one set entirely in the Narnian world. It is set in the period covered by the last chapter of the inaugural book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, during the reign of the four Pevensie children as Kings and Queens of Narnia. Though the Pevensies appear as minor characters, the main characters are two children and two talking horses who escape from Calormen north into Narnia. En route they pass through Calormen's capital city, where they learn of Calormen's plan to invade Archenland, Narnia's southern neighbor. When they reach Archenland, they warn the king of the impending invasion.
Macmillan US published an American edition within the calendar year.
A boy by the name of Shasta is found as a baby and raised by Arsheesh, a Calormene fisherman. As the story begins, Shasta overhears Arsheesh agreeing to sell him to a powerful Calormene feudal nobleman, Anradin. He is relieved to discover that Arsheesh is not his real father, since there was little love between them. While Shasta awaits his new master in the stable, Bree, the nobleman's stallion, astounds Shasta by speaking to him. He is a talking horse from Narnia who was captured by the Calormenes as a foal. He tells Shasta that Anradin will treat him cruelly, and Shasta resolves to escape. The horse suggests that they escape a life of servitude by riding north together to Narnia. They meet another pair of escaping travellers, Aravis, a young Calormene aristocrat, and her talking horse, Hwin. Aravis is fleeing a forced marriage with Ahoshta, the Tisroc's grand vizier.
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