Welcome to another edition of Fine Wine Fridays, where we feature rich, full-bodied read-alikes. Today we’re focusing on books like The Chronicles of Narnia.

Did you love disappearing into a wood robe and entering into a magical land with Lucy, Edmond, Peter and Susan Pevensie? How about Aslan, Jadis, Eustace and the heroic Reepicheep?

If you enjoy top-flight stories brimming with enchantment, intrigue, and allegorical undertones like C.S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia, here are six more titles with similar themes and styles. All offer strong stories. Epic battles between good and evil. Fantastic creatures. Heroes and villains. Friendships won and lost. And wonderfully magic reads. In no particular order:

1. Green, by Ted Dekker

As foretold by ancient prophets, an apocalypse destroyed Earth during the twenty-first century. But two thousand years later Elyon set upon the earth a new Adam. This time, however, he gave humanity an advantage. What was once unseen became seen. It was good and it was called…”Green.” But the evil Teeleh bided his time in a Black Forest. Then, when least expected, a twenty-four year old named Thomas Hunter fell asleep in our world and woke up in that future Black Forest. A gateway was opened for Teeleh to ravage the land, and… Oh, wait. You’re on your own for the rest.

2. 2. The Magic Bicycle Series, by John Bibee

“Once there was a magic bicycle that found a boy,” begins this tale of adventure and suspense. When John Kramer comes across an old, rusty Spirit Flyer bicycle, he finds it far from ordinary. First, the bike helps him save a neighbor’s barn from burning. Then it brings him into conflict with the boys in the Cobra Club, a representative of Goliath Toys and other forces that not only want John’s bike, but want it destroyed. While John learns about the Magic in the bicycle, every reader will be delighted as they join him for this fantastic ride.

This was one of our boys’ favorite read-alouds when they were young. Excellent!

3. 3. Out of the Silent Planet, by C.S. Lewis

A Cambridge academic is abducted and taken on a spaceship to the red planet of Malacandra, which he knows as Mars. Dr. Ransom’s captors are plotting to plunder the planet’s treasures and plan to offer Ransom as a sacrifice to the creatures who live there…

The first book in Lewis’s classic science fiction trilogy.

4. The Shack, by Wm. Paul Young

I absolutely loved this book. One of the most compelling/absorbing works of fiction/allegory I’ve ever read.

5. This Present Darkness, by Frank Peretti

Ashton is just a typical small town. But when a skeptical reporter and a pastor begin to compare notes, they suddenly find themselves fighting a hideous plot to subjugate the townspeople―and eventually the entire human race. A riveting thriller, This Present Darkness offers a fascinating glimpse into the unseen world of spiritual warfare.

6. Epic, by John Eldredge

For most of us, life feels like a movie we’ve arrived at 40 minutes late.

Good things happen. But so do tragic things. What does it mean?

We find ourselves in the middle of a story that’s sometimes wonderful. Sometimes awful. Usually a confusing mix of both. And we haven’t a clue how to make sense of it. No wonder we keep losing heart.

We need to know the rest of the story…

Epic isn’t an allegory in the classic. But it’s an excellent take on The Great Story. The full story. And where you fit in it. Insightful and incisive. Beautifully written. Five stars.

 

What would you add to this list?