The Horse and His Boy / YMMV

Angst? What Angst?: Lampshaded — Shasta learns in a single evening that the old fisherman who raised him is not his father and that the same man plans to sell him as a slave to a visiting Tarkaan. Since he never loved the man and his life is basically slavery already, he's not too distressed. But when the visitor's horse speaks up and tells him to run away, they run.
Broken Base: The use of Calormen as a Fantasy Counterpart Culture to the Middle East. It easily comes off as xenophobic,^note as the lone unambiguously good Calormene character (Aravis) still starts off as rather haughty and eventually becomes a northern princess. Others are more sympathetic, pointing out that only a few minor changes would have to be done in an adaptation to make the setting more palatable to modern audiences. Or that there is nothing unfortunate in portraying a Middle Eastern culture as the villains, as there have been plenty of warlike and slave-owning Middle East Empires in real life.
Catharsis Factor: Given what a Royal Brat Rabadash was, his complete and utter Humiliation Conga at the end of the book, that continues for the rest of his life and even serves as his legacy, is as satisfying as it is hilarious.
Cult Classic: The Horse and His Boy is definitely the odd book out in the Narnia series, as it's not part of the primary plot line (instead serving as a side-story taking place during The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe's late Time Skip), does not star any Earth children traveling to Narnia, and can be removed entirely from the series without leaving any holes. And yet, it has a very loyal following who like it because it's the Oddball in the Series. In fact, this is the book many Narnia fans are most excited to see get a film adaptation.
Fair for Its Day: This book is slightly more feminist in terms of the women fighting than The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe's infamous "battles are ugly when women fight". Aravis is at least familiar with weapons and it's illustrated that she could fight in battle if needed — not to mention keeping her head at a difficult situation in Tashbaan. And Queen Lucy, whom Corin calls "as good as a man, or at least as good as a boy" is in the Battle of Anvard.
Fanfic Fuel: As the only book in the series to take place entirely in another land — and we're given plenty of details of Calormene culture — it results in plenty of plots that explore more of what happens in Calormen.
Fanon: Given that the books never explain where Lord Peridan and the other human Narnians came from, a popular idea is that they're descendants of Narnian exiles who fled to Archenland during Jadis' reign.
Hard-to-Adapt Work: Among all the many adaptations of The Chronicles of Narnia, this is the volume that’s been attempted the least. No doubt that has a lot to do with the fact that two of the main protagonists are talking horses, which tend to look like Mister Ed at very best on stage and screen. (It has been done as an audio play, which eliminates the need for Special Effect Failure.)
Paranoia Fuel: What nearly happens to Susan is quite alarming. Imagine going on a visit that you assume is going to be diplomatic...and you realise that the prince who wants to marry you won't take no for an answer, and that you are now stranded in a country that may turn hostile with your friends and family, surrounded by his troops. Although she escapes safely, a war nearly gets started over Rabadash's obsession.
Signature Scene: Shasta sleeping beside the huge, gloomy shapes of the Tombs of the Old Emperors. While not supremely important to the plot, it's almost always on the cover of the book, and makes a big visual impression.
Values Dissonance:
- Calormen does call on some Middle Eastern stereotypes — as it's a Fantasy Counterpart Culture of "Arabian Nights" Days. While there are good characters like Aravis and Lasaraleen to balance it out, it's clear the book is from a time when such stereotypes were common.
Values Resonance: King Lune's words of wisdom on the character of a good ruler are ones that most readers will probably still approve of today, stressing responsibility, humility and The Men First:
For this is what it means to be a king: to be first in every desperate attack and last in every desperate retreat, and when there's hunger in the land (as must be now and then in bad years) to wear finer clothes and laugh louder over a scantier meal than any man in your land.

YMMV / The Horse and His Boy

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