The Horse and His Boy



The Horse and His Boy takes place in Calormen and Archenland, neighboring countries south of Narnia, during the reign of High King Peter, Queen Susan, King Edmund, and Queen Lucy Pevensie. It is the only one of the seven books that focuses on main characters from the Narnian world.

Plot
A young boy named Shasta lives in Calormen with a poor fisherman, Arsheesh. One day a noble Tarkaan comes to the fisherman's hut, and Shasta, overhearing them, finds out that Arsheesh isn't his real father and is planning to sell him into slavery. Outside in the stable, he is very surprised when the Tarkaan's horse speaks to him, saying he is a talking horse of Narnia, named Bree. Together the horse and the boy decide to escape north to Narnia. One night as they are travelling, a lion roars and spooks Bree. The two run from the lion, and meet Aravis, a high-born Tarkheena who is running away from a forced marriage, with her talking horse Hwin. They decide to travel together.

However, in the capitol city Tashbaan, Shasta is mistaken temporarily for young Prince Corin of Archenland, who was visiting Calormen under the care of a Narnian delegation headed by Queen Susan and King Edmund. Shasta is afraid tell them who he really is, and the Narnians take him to their lodging. But before he can escape, he overhears a conversation between Susan, Edmund, and Mr. Tumnus, their advisor, that they are planning to leave by night in their ship the Splendor Hyaline to escape Prince Rabadash, who wishes to marry Queen Susan but is a tyrannic man who Susan does not want as her husband. When night came, Shasta is awakened by Prince Corin sneaking in his window. The boys immediately become friends and Corin helps Shasta escape the city to the Tombs of the Ancient Kings where he is to meet Aravis and the horses. Meanwhile, Aravis has snuck into the Tisroc's palace to get help from her best friend Lasaraleen. The two accidentally stumble on a secret conversation between Prince Rabadash and his father, the Tisroc. Furious that Queen Susan has escaped him, Rabadash receives permission to invade Archenland, so that he can conquer Narnia and capture Susan. The two girls almost get caught by Aravis's prospective husband, Ahoshta, who is Grand Vizier of the Tisroc.

Reunited at the Tombs, the four travelers decide to ride to Anvard in Archenland to warn Archenland's King Lune about the invasion. After a harrowing three day journey across the desert just ahead of Rabadash's invasion force, when they are about to give up, a lion attacks them, forcing them on and hurting Aravis during the escape. They meet the Hermit of the Southern March who urges Shasta on alone while Aravis recovers from her wounds. He gets lost in the mountains, but Aslan, the Great Lion, guides him through safely. Then he meets up with King Lune in a hunting party, and warns him of the invasion. They return to Anvard in time to defend it from Rabadash's force, and Shasta fights in the battle. Aided by the arrival of a defending force from Narnia under King Edmund and Queen Lucy, they are victorious. The unrepentant Rabadash is captured, and turned into a donkey by Aslan as punishment for his aggression. Afterward, the resemblance between Shasta and Corin is discovered. It turns out that Shasta is really Corin's twin brother Prince Cor, who was lost at sea as a baby after being kidnapped and found by Arsheesh, and King Lune is his father. All the lions which they encountered during their adventures were actually Aslan, helping them. Shasta (now called Cor) returns for Aravis, who has stayed at the hermit's house with the horses, and invites her to stay with him at Anvard. She does, and they eventually get married. Shasta eventually becomes King after his father's death, and their son becomes King Ram the Great.



Characters

 * Ahoshta
 * Aravis
 * Arsheesh
 * Aslan
 * Bree
 * Cor
 * Corin
 * Hwin
 * King Lune
 * Lasaraleen
 * Prince Rabadash
 * Shasta
 * Peter Pevensie (mentioned only)
 * Susan Pevensie
 * Edmund Pevensie
 * Lucy Pevensie

Trivia

 * This is the only book with main characters exclusively from the world of Narnia.
 * The story of the Horse and His Boy was told by a blind poet in the court of Caspian X after a feast that was attended by Jill Pole and Eustace Scrubb during their adventure in The Silver Chair.