“Maybe we are each and every one of us born with our own stories, and we must decide how to tell those stories with our own life, or in a book . . . Or could it be that all our stories come from one larger story?”

It’s December of 1950 in Worcestershire, England, and eight-year-old George Henry Devonshire knows that “the heart he was born with isn’t strong enough, and they’ve done all they can.” But during his solitary days spent reading in his room, George has become captivated by a beautiful new myth called The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. Now his fragile life has one focus: to discover where Narnia comes from.

His college-age sister Megs, who adores him and would do anything for him, realizes this is a matter of life and death for George. So she seeks out a friendship with C. S. Lewis to discover the answer. Lewis answers her questions with stories, which she then brings home to George. Each storytelling session beginning with, “Once upon a wardrobe . . .”

As Megs and George work through the personal history C. S. Lewis shares with them in story-form, they discover truths about the world and themselves and where their own stories begin.

Author Patti Callahan shares much of C. S. Lewis’s life, personality, and beliefs through these interactions with the fictional Megs. Both those who are “meeting” Jack for the first time and longtime Lewis fans are sure to find themselves enchanted as they read.

I savored this heartwarming tale. It made me smile and brought me to tears.

A must-read for fans of Narnia, C. S. Lewis & author Patti Callahan (Becoming Mrs. Lewis, Surviving Savannah). Don’t miss it!

Thank you to Patti Callahan, Harper Muse, and NetGalley for my opportunity to read & review.

Some favorite quotes:

“George takes something of this world and travels to another as if the story world and the real world run right alongside each other. Or maybe they are inside each other.”

“For a breath or two, I wonder about this magical world we live in. It’s a mystery we can never understand. For a moment, a small and breath-holding moment, I know it to be true: there is more, something more I can’t see, a vivid truth that can’t be described by logic or words alone, a truth that delights the heart.”

“He longs to climb inside the wardrobe and watch the story come together just as it happened. He doesn’t want to change the author’s life; he wants to watch it turn into something else new, something with snow, a white witch, and a lion that calls to George even in his sleep, its roar far off and deep, both comforting and terrifying.”

“I once believed they battled each other—imagination and reason—that they stood in sharp contrast one to the other.” . . . “Reason is how we get to the truth, but imagination is how we find meaning.”

“Stars are made of dust and nitrogen; they are balls of gas and hydrogen. But that isn’t what a star is; it’s only what it is made of.”

Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan is an amazing work of literature. It is one of those special stories that is as unforgettable as the Lion, Witch and Wardrobe. It brings the world of C.S. Lewis to life in a way that reminds us why we love Narnia Series. If you do love the series you will want to read this book.

Best book I have read in a very long time.

An ARC of the book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley which I voluntarily chose to read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

MOVING AND MAGICAL
🦁 A poignant and magical story, in which young terminally ill George asks his older sister Megs to find out how C.S. Lewis created Narnia. Megs will do anything for her beloved brother, and goes to the Oxford don’s house to ask. She has tea with Lewis and his brother Warnie, who over a series of sessions relate tales from their childhood. As Callahan writes, “The way the stories change us can’t be explained ... It can only be felt. Like love.”

🦁 This luminous and beautifully written book reveals love to George, Megs and its readers. The characters felt so authentic, especially young George, and I sensed a holy presence as I read, filling me with joy. A transformative experience, certainly, and Callahan’s best yet!

Pub Date 19 Oct 2021
#OnceUponaWardrobe #NetGalley

Thanks to Patti Callahan Henry, @Harper Muse Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

#pattichenry #harpermuse #netgalley #onceuponawardrobe #fictiononcslewis #narniafiction #CSLewisbooks #warnielewisfiction #booknerdigans #bookstagramcommunity #generalfictionforadults

A sweet and sad story filled with charm. A cast of characters that are larger than life. And a setting so real you feel like you could be there. All of this makes a fantastic book.

Absolutely anyone who loves C.S.Lewis, maybe even anyone who has read the Chronicles of Narnia, should read this book. It is delightful, moving, imaginative, and extremely well researched. It’s a cliché, but I truly could not put it down. Each time I did, I couldn’t wait to get back to it. The main character, Megs, is a 17 year old Oxford freshman, asked by her 8 year old dying brother to find out where Narnia came from. Megs, an aspiring mathematician, is changed by seeking the answer directly from C.S. Lewis himself. Instead of a direct answer, she receives stories. But wonderful stories. Patti Callahan is a master storyteller herself. Her descriptions are rich with evocative imagery. I recommend this book to men and women of all ages.

“You can take what hurts and aches and perform magic with it so it becomes something else, something that never would have been, except you make it so with your spells and stories and with your life...” -Patti Callahan, Once Upon A Wardrobe

I’m sitting in a puddle of my own tears. So. That’s something to start with. This is the novel that Patti Callahan was born to write. It’s truly what she was meant to publish, I can tell you that. You can feel it on every single line of every single page how deeply personal and emotional this book is for her, and how much she feels for and respects C. S. Lewis and the legacy he has. All of this which you would know if you read her previous work of historical fiction, Becoming Mrs. Lewis which chronicles the love affair between Lewis and his wife Joy Davidman.

This book though, is set mostly before that story, and tells the tale of a young 8 year old boy who is ill and knows he most likely will not see 9, who has read the story about four children and a magical wardrobe and a talking lion and a wicked white witch....in a land named Narnia....and the only thing he wants....is to know where it came from and how C. S. Lewis created the world....so he tasks his sister, a student where Lewis was a professor at Oxford to meet him and get some answers. I don’t want to say anything else because you must read it for yourself and find out how special it is.

My ARC provided by NetGalley is obviously an extremely early galley and does not yet have Patti Callahan’s authors note attached to it, and I’m just dying to learn more about the research she put into this novel and where she developed some of these stories from C. S. Lewis...it’s absolutely fascinating. I loved it, beyond more than my wildest dreams and I now want to go back and read the Narnia books again!

“The way stories change us can’t be explained....It can only be felt...Like love.” -Patti Callahan, Once Upon A Wardrobe

All the Stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Once Upon A Wardrobe will leave readers on the verge of tears if not actually crying at the beauty and the insight of what should be a sad story, but is instead so uplifting. Meg undertakes a mission for her young extremely ill brother that will change both their lives. George wants to know how C. S. Lewis came up with Narnia, but instead of a direct answer Jack, as he was known, and his brother Warnie tell her stories about their lives. The retelling of the stories to George result in more questions, more stories, and finally an understanding of how imagination and reality are intertwined. It’s a book that begs to be read in one sitting and then read again. Beautifully written imagery and intriguing characterizations draw readers into the settings as well as the plot. This is a book no serious reader should miss. I voluntarily reviewed an advance copy of this book from NetGalley. Most highly recommend.

This was a touching story about a brother and sister, George and Megs. Eight year old George is very sick with a heart condition and loves "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe". He asks Megs to seek out C.S. Lewis and to find out where Narnia came from. Megs does finally meet with C.S. Lewis and his brother and they do share stories about their lives, in turn she shares these stories with George.

I am a huge fan of Patti Callahan. Her writing is exquisite. This story was beautifully written and I may have shed a few tears. I highly recommend this heartwarming story.

Once Upon a Wardrobe is a story about a brother and sister who are brought closer together through the magical stories of C.S. Lewis. George is a young boy battling a terminal illness who is obsessed with 'The lion, the witch, and the wardrobe.' His older sister Megs, seeks to bring comfort and hope to her brother as his illness progresses. She strikes up a friendship with C.S. Lewis and his brother, trying to understand if Narnia is real, to satisfy George's questions. C.S. Lewis and his brother reminisce about their childhood helping Meg and George understand that stories begin in the dark, where imagination and wonder illuminate truths, myths, and love that can only be felt and seen when we stop asking questions and start acknowledging the beauty of life.

This was a touching story that shone a bright light on the power of stories, family, and heart.