Now Playing: Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Perfect Picture Book Friday will return in September.
Until then,

Welcome to the Bookish Ambition 

Summer Drive-In

The Circle Drive-In from my childhood. Still open and now with double features on two screens!

Now Playing: 
The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
Written by C. S. Lewis
Illustrated by Pauline Baynes
HarperCollins, 1952
Ages 8-12, Lexile 720L

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader,
Walden Media, 2010

My favorite version of Dawn Treader
Cover by Leo and Diane Dillon

 

Highlights from the book? 

• C. S. Lewis's unique storytelling style
• Very personal narrative
• Caspian's romance
• Multiple adventures
• Spiritual aspects
• Less violent

Highlights from the movie?

• Outstanding casting
• Reepicheep!
• Dazzling special effects
• Focused cinematic storyline
• Eustace in both forms
• Exciting action scenes

Opening:

There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it. His parents called him Eustace Clarence and masters called him Scrubb. I can't tell you how his friends spoke to him, because he had none.


Movie Trailer:


I am a fan of the Narnia books, though they can be old-fashioned and slow-moving at times. I loved the first movie, but had my doubts when the film rights for the successive books were sold to another company. The novel The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is full of interesting segments and new characters, but it is a quest tale with shallow heroes. I can think of more than a few disappointing movies adapted too faithfully from quest novels. This movie takes the best segments of the book and condenses them into a more focused journey with an over-arching threat. It is a true sequel, too. It works hard to keep continuity by bringing back old characters and deepening their character arcs. I like the added backstory and the setting. And the new characters are some of my favorites from the films. The action is intensified for the big screen and historical background downplayed. I don't think you could have the movie without the book, but I think it is a great extension of a classic book series.

What did you think?

Reminisce with intermission commercials

from Captain Bijou on You Tube.

Visit Our Snackbar!

What would the drive-in be like without the snack bar?

What's your favorite movie candy? In my top three is a box of Nestle Sno-Caps. There's something magical about that rattling, scraping sound as the Sno-caps slide toward the tiny perforated opening in the box (and my mouth!) They are kinda noisy, which made them better suited to the drive-in than the theater.

Want a quieter version with the same chocolate taste? Nestle offers a recipe for Sno-Cap cocoa cookies with Sno-Caps baked right in, or The Rowdy Baker invented an amazing recipe for a cookie version of a Sno-Cap, a chocolate cookie covered in nonpareils. Yum!


Nostalgic for a drive-in movie? There are over 5,000 drive-in theaters across the U.S. mapped for you on Cinema Treasures.

Drive-In movie projectors, photo The Top Shelf

Update your backyard movie tech with tips from Popular Science, and turn your old projector into an object d'art instead. Shop upcycled projector/lamps from Light and Time Art on Etsy or find plenty of DIY versions like the film reel table on Pinterest. 

Have you seen any screen adaptations of The Chronicles of Narnia? Of the Dawn Treader? What's your opinion?
Have you reviewed the book? Please leave the link in the comments below. Thanks!

View all the Summer Drive-In reviews for 2017.
Check out the Marvelous Middle Grade Monday review coming August 7, 2017.