Once Upon a Wardrobe

Step through the wardrobe—not into Narnia, but into the heart of the story behind it.

In the hush of a winter Oxford evening, where lamplight softens stone and snow drifts like whispered memory, a sister follows the faint trail of a story that has already captured her brother’s fragile heart. What begins as a simple question—Where did Narnia come from?—unfolds into a journey stitched with wonder, grief, and the quiet courage of imagination.

Once Upon a Wardrobe is a doorway disguised as a novel: a tender pilgrimage into the origins of myth, the healing power of stories, and the way a single book can warm the coldest corners of our lives. Patti Callahan writes with the gentleness of falling snow and the depth of a tale told by firelight—inviting us to remember the books that shaped us, saved us, and stayed.

For readers who believe stories are living things, this is a novel to hold close, to reread, to gift. A reminder that behind every beloved world lies a heartbeat.

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