TW: xenophobia, racism against southwest asians, misogyny, descriptions of physical abuse (including child abuse), slavery, and fatphobia

first and foremost, as a disclaimer, yes I realize that Lewis' works are a product of his time and he is very highly acclaimed as a christian author. however, that does not refute the fact that his biases were wrong then and are wrong now.

this book is practically unreadable; on every page there is a new depiction to stomach, whether it be his disparaging descriptions of southwest asians as savages, uncouth, uncivilized, and ugly (specifically because they are brown), or his unrepentant commitment to the misogynist assumption that there are two kinds of women: those who are feminine and silly and giggly and only like feminine things, and those who are strong and brave and are "as good as a man, or at any rate as good as a boy."

i read this book many times as a kid, and it was one of my favorites because i really liked shasta and aravis. however, now I can see the pitfalls of Lewis' writing, and the way he elevates his chosen characters at the expense of everyone else. it's cheap writing at best and harmful at worst. and yes, it is harmful. i cannot imagine the scope of shame and confusion this has brought to kids who saw themselves in the depictions of the calormenes, and it angers me that C.S. Lewis' flagrant racism is still dismissed in discussions around his works today.