Customer Reviews
POISON - By: Easily Me, 14 Aug 2008 
Rubbish, Christian propaganda. Can't believe - well, yes, I can - I didn't pick it up as a wee one.
Avoid at all costs or pick up your subscription to the Daily Mail now!!!
Having read the Narnia books when I was about eight - By: Jason Tramaine, 29 Nov 2007 
I am now re-reading them with my seven year old, who is an ardent Harry Potter fan. He is just as thrilled with the stories as I was & enjoys the themes common to the Potter books of magic, boarding schools & goblins. We also enjoy spotting the biblical references & discussing the finer points of time travel!
Each book individually & all of them collectively are very well constructed & plot lines continue throughout. Again, for a younger reader it is stimulating to try to anticipate where the story may be going as it interweaves references from other booksin the series & other pointsin the history of Narnia. Like any good book or series of its kind, the Narnia Chronicles completely immerse the readerin a parallel universe & this alone is as fine a recommendation for switching off the television & picking up a book as any!!! Also, if you missed reading Tino Georgiou's masterful novel--The Fates, I'd highly recommend reading it. Truly an enjoyable read.
Boring... - By: Willem, 03 Mar 2007 I had strangely never heard of Narnia (probably given I grew upin France an it isn't very big there) until recently when the movie was coming out. Being pretty much of a Fantasy fan I was shocked I didn't know about it & all my friands were raving about it, so I went to buy the whole big book.
I only read the prelude & the first story (they made into the movie) & contrary to most people's opinions I think it's appalling... I think it's poorly written, the plot & pace of the book go too fast & don't make sense: one sentence they'rein a place & a totally different placein the next sentence without going over how they got there, the action skips events & the stories should be longerin my opinion. There's also so many Christian references that it gets a bit boringin that aspect as well.
There are many, many children books that are far better, whether contemporary to CS Lewis or written nowadays so forget about CS Lewis. Frankly he's not worth it. I'm usually an easy reader & I like everything I read but this is one of the rare times I feel I wasted my money.
Chronicling "Narnia" - By: E. A Solinas, 22 Jan 2006 Many decades ago, two drinking buddies wrote vastly different fantasy series, which set the groundwork for the fantasy genre. One was J.R.R. Tolkien, author of the classic "Lord of the Rings" & "The Hobbit." And the other was C.S. Lewis, the author of the philosophical "Space Trilogy." Before these two, fantasy was only a few books by a small number of obscure authors.
Many years later, C.S. Lewis is still a classic, much-read author, & his books are about to hit the big screen -- "The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe" will debutin December, following the footsteps of Tolkien's movie adaptations. So, dust off the Narnia Chronicles & reacquaint yourself with these fantasy stories.
"The Lion, The Witch & the Wardrobe" opens as four children (Lucy, Edmund, Susan & Peter) are being shipped to a country mansion to avoid German bombings. While exploring the house, Lucy accidently ventures into a winter-locked world called Narnia, ruled over by the evil White Witch. The god-king Aslan is about to return to destroy the Witch -- but she has a hold on Edmund....
"Prince Caspian" takes place long after the events of the first book. Young Prince Caspian escapes his uncle's castle when his life is threatened, & he finds refuge with the hidden races of Narnia -- dwarves, talking animals, dryads, centaurs & many others. And to help Caspian regain the throne, the two kings & two queens of Narnia are called back...
"Voyage of the Dawn Treader" begins when Edmund, Lucy & their obnoxious cousin Eustace are sucked through a painting into Narnia, where their pal Caspian is now king of Narnia (not to mention fully grown). Caspian is heading toward the end of the world to find several knights who were banished, & vanished into the perilous islands along the sea. But the Dawn Treader's voyage will literally take them where no one has gone before... & returned to tell about it.
"The Silver Chair" heads into slightly darker territory when Eustace returns to boarding school. He & outcast girl Jill Pole are drawn into Narnia, where Jill must perform a task to redeem herself for a stupid stunt. She must find Caspian's missing son Rilian. This search will send the two children across Narnia with the pessimistic Puddleglum, where they will encounter carnivorous Giants, creepy underground creatures, & an enemy worse than they could have imagined...
"Horse & His Boy" shoots backin time to the middle of the first book. Shasta lives with the man he thinks to be his fatherin a hovel by the sea, but when he learns that he was a foundling, he escapes with a talking horse, Bree. During his escape, he meets the escaping noblewoman Aravis (who also has a talking horse). The two plan to escape to Narnia. Butin the capital city, there is a conspiracy brewing against the visiting Narnian kings & queens, & Shasta & Aravis are drawn into it.
"Magician's Nephew" clears up many of the questions about Narnia, Aslan & the White Witch. Digory & Polly end upin very serious trouble when they encounter Digory's weird, slightly nutty uncle, a magician who has created magical rings that send the user to other worlds. They accidently set loose the evil Queen Jadis, who goes on a rampage through London -- until they pull her out of our world, & into the newborn world of Narnia.
"The Last Battle" is definitely the end of the series, where Narnia has decayed into violence & hatred, as a prelude to the final battle between good & evil. Humans are destroying the trees & killing the dryads, & a false Aslan is appearing to mislead the fearful inhabitants of Narnia. Old & new friends -- some from other worlds -- will band together as the true Aslan prepares to lead them to a new land.
Anyone who dislikes allegory -- religious or otherwise -- should steer clear of the Chronicles. While Lewis' beliefs are presentedin a more complex & subtle mannerin his other books, like the Space Trilogy, the parallels to Christian belief are very obvious here. Even Tolkien, who was Lewis' longtime friend, found that annoying.
But as a fantasy, this series is a fantastic read, & was also the first of the kids-get-swept-into-other-worlds novels. Lewis reshapes typical mythical elements like dwarves, nymphs, talking animals, centaurs & wicked witches into shapein his invented world. Moreover, his land of Narnia is a complex & very inviting place. It's not always fun, but Lewis always leaves you with the feeling that the good guys will come out on top.
Like many other British authors writing for kids, Lewis' writing can get a bit precious. But he includes loads of detail, mystery & cultural intrigurein his stories -- & not just for Narnia either. For example, Calormene is a sort of generic Middle-Eastern land, very Arabian Nights. It's full of culture & beauty, but also with good guys & bad guys.
What's more, readers can appreciate the mysteries & questions that Lewis sprinkles through the book, & which are explained as the story goes on. Where did the lamppost come from, for example? Why are there humansin Narnia? Where did Reepicheep go? Most of these are answered at one point or another.
The Chronicles of Narnia are a longstanding classic, fun & dramatic & action-packed. For a bit more insight into the forthcoming movie -- & the history of fantasy -- check out "The Chronicles of Narnia."
Once upon a time... - By: Kurt Messick, 18 Dec 2005 C.S. Lewis was many things - a popular theologian (almost a contradictionin terms today), an engaging academic (see above qualification, as it applies here, too), & an expert storyteller, the craft of which came from his careful blending & imaginative use of the previous two. The Chronicles of Narnia stand up favourable to the work of Lewis' longtime friend & contemporary academic & storyteller, Tolkien (of Lord of the Rings fame). Narnia, however, does not go off into the same fantastic realms of Tolkien, but rather charts a different path,in that while Tolkien strives to use fantasy & mythic elements to tell more general philosophy, Lewisin the Narnia tales deliberately crafts the imagery to fit a Christian framework, & a fairly Anglo-catholic one at that.
Narnia is series of adventures for children, but like the best of such stories, continues to hold power for adults who read them as well. Resurgencein popularity of late has occurred because of the film, 'The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe', secondin the series (depending upon which chronology one follows), but the whole series is a charmer. In 'The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe', the story focuses upon Peter, Susan, Edmund, & Lucy, four exiles from war-time Londonin the English countryside who discover the portal to Narniain the back of a mysterious wardrobe. The king of Narnia, Aslan the lion (whose imagery fits both Christian & English mythic lore) is battling the icy witch, who styles herself as Queen of Narnia. Through a classic struggle of good & evilin epic battle format, the pure-hearted children & the graceful king Aslan win the day, but eventually the children must return to their own world, even after such adventures.
'Prince Caspian' takes place long after (in Narnia time - one discovers the passage of time from one world to the next is variable), as Caspian befriends many of the creatures of Narnia, both natural & fantastic. The four children, enthroned as kings & queens of Narnia at the end of the first adventure, must return to help Caspian, whose main desire is to livein old Narnia, forbidden tales of which he has heard.
'Voyage of the Dawn' sees Edmund & Lucy drawn back into Narnia through a painting, together with their horrid cousin Eustace Scrubb. Caspian is now king, on a knightly quest to discover lost knights of old, & also to seek the end of the world (in a literal sense). Sea voyages & other journeys take them far & wide, until Aslan again appears to return the children home. Eustace becomes a better person for his Narnia adventures, much as Edmund had transformed during his first major Narnia experience.
Eustace returnsin the 'The Silver Chair', this time from his school, with fellow student Jill, who is also less than popular. Jill, like the earlier Edmund, must find redemption, & seeks to save Rilian (son of the now-dying Caspian). Here we encounter the Parliament of Owls as well as the bottom of the world - once again, Aslan helps to save the day, despite the nay-saying of Puddleglum.
Shasta is the boy & Bree is the horsein 'The Horse & His Boy'. Shasta is about to be sold into slavery when he escapes with Bree, & they meet Aravis & Hwin, another escaping duo, on their way to Narnia. They uncover a plot against Narnia, & must work to save the kingdom of their dreams.
'The Magician's Nephew' is often considered the first of the series, with events that preceed 'The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe'. It gives background & insight into the overall workings of Narnia. Polly & Digory discover the portal to the Woods between the Worlds, & there is a greater mix of worlds here thanin any other story. However, this is also the beginning of the other stories, with Aslan providing the same kind of guidance he would throughout the series.
'The Last Battle' is, as the title suggests, the last of the series. Narnia falls into the final conflict of good & evil, with a false Aslan (a false messiah figure) appearing & humans destroying all things around, particularly the natural environment. Old Narnia must pass away, but a new Narnia is heldin promise as the real Aslan returns to lead the faithful.
While many of Lewis' original readers were occasionally disturbed by the Christian overall (and indeed, at Lewis' interpretation of Christian lore),in fact the state of biblical illiteracy is such today that most will miss much of the Christian allegory unless it is specially spelled out. Narnia can stand on its own merits as a story independent of its underpinnings, but just as most mythological & even biblical stories can achieve, this one becomes stronger the deeper one explores the symbolic meanings.
Lewis is very much a creature of his culture - this is very post-Victorian (read, more Victorian than the Victorians)in style & morals, evenin the 1950s (a time so manyin our present culture look back to as a high pointin moral culture) he was looking back to a better time - perhaps it is no surprise that instead of finding itin the past, he found itin Narnia?
This is a series that is wonderful for children of all ages, & for adults - the tales bear repeating over & over, & many editions of these texts come with wonderful artwork. This particular one has illustrations by Pauline Baynes, the original illustrator for the series, & they are wonderful indeed.
