Goodreads | The Chronicles of Narnia

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Great read as an all-in-one story	2	10	08/08/2008 07:45AM

SCIENCEFICTION SQRL rated it:

(review of isbn 0007658753)

03/21/08

bookshelves: allfred, f-is-for-fantasy, fiction

Read in March, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

I read some of these books when I was a child, but I'm not sure I've read all of them. The Horse and His Boy is one of my favourite books. I hated The Last Battle. I'm planning to reread them, but I'm not sure I want to read Last Battle ever again. I remember vowing that I wouldn't the first time!

The Magician's Nephew

For the first half of this book, I was convinced I'd never read it before, but halfway through I began finding some aspects familiar--notably the Cabby, and Straw...more

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Lindsay rated it:

(review of isbn 0060598247)

08/20/08

Read in July, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

Fair Warning:
I am reading (in some cases, rereading) this as an adult, one who is most decidedly Not Christian, and somewhat against religious children's books. If that doesn't describe you, your mileage will obviously vary. The following is very very long, as I sum up each book. Spoilers aplenty.

After seeing the new Prince Caspian movie this summer, I decided that, as a fan of both classic children’s literature and fantasy literature, I should really take another look at The Chroni...more

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Paula rated it:

05/29/08

Read in May, 2008

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

I'll admit that, since I started reading this collection a few years ago, I don't remember the finer details of The Magician's Nephew or The Horse and His Boy (except that the latter one reminded me of the Footprints poem to a certain extent). I do still remember The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe because I did read that a long time ago (well, it was read to me when I was about nine), and I also watch the film from time to time. I have the most to say about The Last Battle, as I finished that...more I'll admit that, since I started reading this collection a few years ago, I don't remember the finer details of The Magician's Nephew or The Horse and His Boy (except that the latter one reminded me of the Footprints poem to a certain extent). I do still remember The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe because I did read that a long time ago (well, it was read to me when I was about nine), and I also watch the film from time to time. I have the most to say about The Last Battle, as I finished that in the wee hours of the morning, but I'll start with the more technical details that I want to cover.

First, the collaboration with Tolkien is obvious to this self-proclaimed Tolkien "scholar," as place names, creature names, and various artifacts and themes are shared in the LOTR and Narnia tales. Differences, of course, are that Tolkien used, as his primary sources of "inspiration," mainly Norse mythology with some other various, scattered British myths mixed in, while Lewis used both the OT and NT, British Romantic poetry, Arthurian tales, and other more literary works. In fact, while Tolkien seems to derive mainly names and facts (i.e., about what some creatures can do, how they act, etc.) from his sources, Lewis, at times, is basically rewriting (as in recasting rather than regurgitating) some of the stories from his set of sources (especially the Biblical ones).

Another thing shared between both of these writers is an almost colloquial tone (except that Tolkien's shifts to one that's more formal by the end of FOTR), which has the (anonymous) narrator conversing with the reader at times (not always my favorite style of storytelling). It makes sense for the Narnia stories, as they are moralistic ones intended for children who might enjoy that. (I honestly don't remember whether I liked it much in my library "class," but I know about half of the other kids were sleeping; I suspect that's the real reason why the librarian read to us: to shut up the mouthy kids.)

Lewis does make explicit references to other books and poems written by various authors (which Tolkien does not do; any references hinted to all are contained within the world he created, and one simply has to read The Silmarillion for that background information), and, unlike Middle-earth, the Pevensies' world is in the literary present but can sift itself within Narnia and the "present" it has (this is possible because time moves differently in Narnia than it does in early twentieth-century Britain). Also, in The Silver Chair we're given the idea that perhaps Narnia doesn't actually exist (even though Rilian and the children prefer it to the "real" world in which they're trapped), while Middle-earth is an actual entity with no portals or magic to whisk people away anywhere else. I don't necessarily agree with Pullman, who wrote on his website (after claiming that he hates Tolkien's flat characters and themes as well as Lewis's Christian pushings) that Lewis's stories are religious allegories, but I find the idea of disbelief interesting as it's presented in The Silver Chair (except that that point's moot; within the series Narnia does exist, and those who don't believe in it are cast into oblivion and not allowed into the "new" Narnia at the end of The Final Battle).

As the majority of what I read was completely new to me, I have to admit that I did fall in love with some of the characters: Puddleglum, Reepicheep, and, of course, Mr. Tumnus. They are dynamic, faulted, and just wonderful to read about. However, I was incredibly disappointed in the characterization of the female characters in pretty much all of the stories. Over and over the girls are limited to using bows (instead of swords) if they even have the opportunity to go to war at all, and over and over they are given stereotypically female characteristics that limit how they are "allowed" to act. (Even though Tolkien barely writes in any female characters, at least Eowyn slays the Witch-king.) I was also equally disappointed in Susan, who was one of my favorite characters (because she was so flawed) until the end of the last story. Hm, maybe she turned her back to Narnia because she was told she wasn't allowed back as she was "too old" for it? (Makes me want to pick up The Problems of Susan to see how another author resolves this.) Anyway.

Perhaps controversially, I'm glad that I read the stories in the order in which they are presented in the one-volume edition I have. Of course I already knew The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, so I guess my "introduction" to the series is typical to what most kids who read the series have had, but I felt like I had a better sense of what was going on by starting with The Magician's Nephew (despite the fact that I've forgotten many of the small details now). I think I prefer, out of all seven, the stories that include *all four* of the Pevensies, but The Silver Chair has grown on me simply because Puddleglum is so marvelous.

I do have some issues with The Final Battle, as well as with Aslan himself, though, and some of the ideas presented at the very end. I can get over the religious references and allusions, but I was seriously upset when I was explicitly told that the children all died in the train crash that they "imagined" they experienced. I mean, it answers many of the questions presented in that final story (like how the children were allowed to return to Narnia when in earlier stories they all were told that they would not), but I was very sad because of this. I mean, I understand that Aslan is not a tame lion (as is repeated ad nauseum in The Final Battle) and that he only brings the children to Narnia when they're needed, but they were only children when they all died! To have them "save" Narnia by killing them in the "real" world is a horrible, horrifying idea to me! And I don't really care that they're all very happy to live in the "new" Narnia they're brought to at then end, or that time passes differently so that they can meet up with their parents, their dead friends, etc., again. Plus, that almost makes me feel like Narnia conceivably could have been "imagined" rather than truly experienced by the eight outsiders who find their ways there, since it's so exclusive to the Pevensies, Eustace, Jill, Digory, and Polly. And what about Susan? She didn't die in the crash, but, sadly, we never find out what happens to her (soul?) when all is said and done. Bad man, Lewis, bad man. (No feminist puns intended, not exactly.)

Anyway, back to the stories themselves. Short, tight, full of dialog and random bits of humor, taken away from the context of stereotyping and moralizing, they begin and end nicely, draw readers in quickly with a combination of unusual circumstances and crossing between worlds, and clearly push Lewis's morals and views, er, I mean ideas, across to an open, young audience. Characterization is complex (if the narratives themselves are somewhat didactic), and bravery does not come easily but is rewarded by characters who are forced to mature quickly and accomplish things that seem highly unlikely. Good storytelling (despite the obvious flaws)....less

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Jaclyn rated it:

05/02/08

Read in May, 2008

recommends it for: absolutely EVERYONE!

I can't even begin to count how many times I've read "The Chronicles of Narnia." The truly amazing thing about these books is that each time you read them, they magically become more complex, more meaningful and more beautiful. I first read "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" when I was about seven or eight years old and I did not get it at all. Sure, I followed the story, but the deeper meaning was completely lost on me. Someone later told me that it was a Christian s...more I can't even begin to count how many times I've read "The Chronicles of Narnia." The truly amazing thing about these books is that each time you read them, they magically become more complex, more meaningful and more beautiful. I first read "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" when I was about seven or eight years old and I did not get it at all. Sure, I followed the story, but the deeper meaning was completely lost on me. Someone later told me that it was a Christian story and when I read the book again as a young teenager, I picked up on that element of it. In the many times I've read the books as an adult, I've come to find that the underlying meaning - not just of "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe," but of the other books as well - becomes gradually clearer until you can't believe you didn't see it all along. The books are like Narnia itself, unfolding like an onion, layer upon layer, Narnia upon Narnia, but each layer is bigger and better than the one above it.

In order of the events that unfold in the story (but not in the order that the books were published), the Chronicles of Narnia include:

"The Magician's Nephew" - the Narnian creation story. Two children living in London are magically transported to other worlds and witness the dawn of Narnia. The story incorporates such familiar elements as a Tree of Knowledge and the fall of man.

"The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" - Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy, four children living in England during World War II, stumble through a magic wardrobe and discover the land of Narnia, which has been ruled for hundreds of years by an evil White Witch who has cast a spell over the land so that it is always winter but never Christmas. With the help of Aslan, the great Lion, they seek to free Narnia. This is the most obvious Christian parable, as Aslan represents Jesus and the story parallels the Resurrection story.

"The Horse and His Boy" - Takes place during the Golden Age of Narnia, although most of the events unfold elsewhere, in the southern lands of Calormen and Archenland. Shasta, a Calormene fisherman's son, runs away when he hears his father negotiating to sell him into slavery. Together with two talking horses and a noble Calormene girl running away from an arranged marriage, he tries to get to Narnia. The book is a meditation on faith and the concept that God helps those who help themselves. It's also my favorite of the seven books.

"Prince Caspian" - Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy return to Narnia to help young Prince Caspian recapture the throne of Narnia from his evil uncle Miraz. Not the most overtly religious of the stories.

"The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" - Edmund, Lucy, and their obnoxious cousin Eustace, join Caspian, now King of Narnia, on a quest to find seven banished lords who had served his father. It doesn't seem all that religious until the end of the book, which encourages people to seek God in their own lives.

"The Silver Chair" - Eustace, whose personality has dramatically improved thanks to his time in Narnia, returns with his school friend Jill to search for Prince Rilian, Caspian's son who went missing ten (Narnian) years earlier.

"The Last Battle" - Eustace and Jill return again to Narnia to assist King Tirian, the last King of Narnia, in his final stand. The book is a parable of the End of Days, with chaos, confusion, war, unbelief and the worship of false gods. Tirian, Eustace, Jill and their friends can only hope that Aslan returns to Narnia to deliver them.

Read them, then read them again and again and again. You won't be sorry.
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Carl rated it:

07/05/07

recommends it for: Fans of Fantasy, Tolkien, and MacDonald

I read this entire series multiple times when I was younger, I think near the end of elementary school or during Jr Hi, and actually got sick of it after too many reads and had to wait to rediscover it later on-- several times, in fact. The books are nice and short, yet each is a quality fantasy story, loaded, of course, with Lewis' exploration-in-fiction of man's relationship to diety and the world. Tolkien was always my favorite, but Lewis has his own particular approach to the fantastic whi...more I read this entire series multiple times when I was younger, I think near the end of elementary school or during Jr Hi, and actually got sick of it after too many reads and had to wait to rediscover it later on-- several times, in fact. The books are nice and short, yet each is a quality fantasy story, loaded, of course, with Lewis' exploration-in-fiction of man's relationship to diety and the world. Tolkien was always my favorite, but Lewis has his own particular approach to the fantastic which is just a beautiful-- it's a shame that Tolkien didn't go for the Narnia books, though I can understand why he didn't. For two such close friends, and with such similar tastes in material, they ended up speaking very different fictional languages. Lewis, of course, was a big fan of Tolkien's Lord of the Rings and Silmarillion, but Tolkien was so much more militantly purist that it is no suprise that Lewis would find in Tolkien's work that "joy" which he found in the Norse myths. Lewis' Narnia, however, was more in the service of the fantastic as percieved by moderns, blending and borrowing to create a whole of the present moment, rather than pursuing the more reconstructionsist cohesion of Tolkien. Lewis, of course, remained more faithful to George MacDonald than Tolkien, and that shows: Narnia is a fantasy of the Victorians pulled into the Modern period. If I were to try to recover Tolkien's own perspective on the contrast, I would perhaps say that Narnia and MacDonald's creations were fantasies of a more effeminate, decadent age in which the "horns of Elfland" are a bit more shrill and prettified, in contrast to Middle Earth's masculine hardness and depth-- but typically my own perception of Narnia is much more positive, and I enjoyed these books very much. Maybe not really allegory, though I've heard them described as such (I think by Tolkien), but I can see how one would get that impression-- the world feels much more unabashedly fictional, in comparison to Middle Earth or most "gritty" fantasy that is out there today. This is not necessarily a bad thing, I think-- sometimes the more fictional the context, the brighter the human truths within that fiction.
Out of the series, I would have to say that my favorites are The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (how can you not love such a straightforward title! It spoils nothing, and yet is as pertinent as you can get), the Magician's nephew, and the Last Battle-- the last two because I like beginnings and ends, I think. The structure of the series itself is nice-- first you are pulled in by the plight and plot of children and world in the first book, then this is developed into a love affair with that world in the next few books, with the world itself becoming a character, then, having fallen in love, you behold the birth of your beloved in the Magician's Nephew, and finally, experience her death and redemption in the final book.

Okay, I had at least two or three other paragraphs, but apparently there is a 4000 character limit on these reviews-- which sucks! I'll try and spread out my CS Lewis comments over a few other reviews....less

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Katy rated it:

08/24/08

bookshelves: put-on-hold, re-reading

*READ FOR THIRD TIME*

The Magician's Nephew
As the first book of the Narnia series, I feel that "The Magician's Nephew" did it's job. It's job being to introduce Narnia and C.S. Lewis's writing style. We are led into the story very gradually, some might say, TOO gradually, like a teenager letting every inch of her body get used to a cold swimming pool rather than diving in all at once. Digory and Polly are flat characters at best -- we really don't learn to love them at all....more *READ FOR THIRD TIME*

The Magician's Nephew
As the first book of the Narnia series, I feel that "The Magician's Nephew" did it's job. It's job being to introduce Narnia and C.S. Lewis's writing style. We are led into the story very gradually, some might say, TOO gradually, like a teenager letting every inch of her body get used to a cold swimming pool rather than diving in all at once. Digory and Polly are flat characters at best -- we really don't learn to love them at all. To be brutally honest if this was a book on it's own, I would probably give it 2 out of five stars. Since it isn't, and it's the lukewarm introduction to an entire series of books, I think we can excuse it's dullness to a certain extent. (07/21/08)

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
This book is a classic. Everyone in my generation knows it, and everyone in my mother's generation knows it. Okay, two generations isn't exactly archaeic, but it's something. "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" is hugely popular! And I can see why. It's got all those key elements in it: The Hero, the Villian, the repentent traitor, the well-meaning but stupid animals...there we go. Maybe I'm angsty or maybe I've just become cynical. But something about this book I found unsettling when I re-read it. Something about that recurring theme of crime-and-punishment, admittedly dominant in fairy tales, but somehow with a darker shadowing in "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe". The stupidity of everyone that isn't Aslan. Even considering this odd vibe, I can't say that I didn't enjoy the book. I would give it four out of five stars, probably. It has an entertaining storyline, and it's hard not to love Lucy's childish love of the fantasy of Narnia. I also grew fond of Mr. Tumnus, her friend, who put his life on the line to spend time with a sweet little girl. There's something very poignant and pure about that concept. I suspect that "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" will remain a popular tale for years to come. (07/25/08)

The Horse and His Boy
I enjoyed "The Horse and His Boy" quite a bit, actually, but before we go into that, there's a HUGE issue within this installment that needs to be discussed. The RACISM is absolutely astonishing. I could cite at LEAST two dozen examples of blatent criticism and unnecessary remarks concerning Narnia's inferior neighboring country, Calormen. Calormen is unmistakably influenced by Middle Eastern countries -- among the aspects insulted are the clothing (including Turbans and robes), the architecture (heavy rugs), the way of speaking (every time a Calormen character speaks the name of the king, it is followed with "May he live forever"). Although, AGAIN we're excusing Lewis' political incorrectness (see my complaints against anti-feminism in previous books in the series) because of the time period in which the series was written. However, these books are read worldwide, which bothers me quite a bit.
Despite these grievances, I liked "The Horse and His Boy". The idea of talking horses delighted the child in me, and you actually grew to care about the characters. Once again, of course, the creepy worship of the lion was repeated, but it can't be helped, considering the irritating Christian metaphor. All in all, this one is four out of five stars for creativity and entertainment in general. (08/03/08)...less

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Julie rated it:

04/10/08

bookshelves: children-s, fantasy

Read in November, 2006

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

I finally got around to reading these all the way through. I'm pretty sure I read through book 4 when I was much younger, but really, it was a different experience reading them as a twenty-something. I vividly remember the moment several years ago when my mother and I were watching a televised version of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe... and suddenly made the connection that the whole thing was a giant allegory with Aslan as Jesus. We just looked at each other going, gee, this is sounding ...more I finally got around to reading these all the way through. I'm pretty sure I read through book 4 when I was much younger, but really, it was a different experience reading them as a twenty-something. I vividly remember the moment several years ago when my mother and I were watching a televised version of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe... and suddenly made the connection that the whole thing was a giant allegory with Aslan as Jesus. We just looked at each other going, gee, this is sounding very familiar all of a sudden. Well, if you think that particular book smacks you across the face with Christian metaphors (and obviously as a small child I didn't pick up on this at all), wait til you hit some of the later books (especially The Last Battle).

The end of the series completely shocked me. I understand the whole thing was a Christian allegory to begin with, but HOLY COW. I will try not to spoil it here, but... it's vaguely creepy to see how enthusiastic they are, and also horrible to think that Susan is now left behind. I did read that Susan's fate is meant to be an example, that rather than showing that she is now damned/unable to someday go to New Narnia, her fate is left open—if she repents and returns to believing in Aslan, and asks him for forgiveness, she will be able to join her family. Still creepy and shocking though.

You can also see in A Horse and His Boy how harshly Lewis contrasts the Calormenes with the Narnians. The Calormenes are repeatedly referred to as "dark," "smelling of garlic and onions," with "curved swords..." he even says their poetry is far inferior to the Narnians'. The picture he is trying to paint here is painfully obvious, as all the Calormenes' culture reflects that of the Middle East (whereas the Narnians are obviously very similar to medieval England). It's a seriously bigoted world view, one that I'm sure was more acceptable at the time the books were written, but now is rather jarring to read.

I did enjoy reading these books. I'd thought them awfully dry the first time through—stuffy English children in a fairly entertaining magical land, etc... The difference this time was, I watched the 2005 movie first. The movie completely blew me away, and while reading the first book (and even the succeeding books which involve the Pevensie children) I was able to imagine those warm, courageous and yet flawed children in place of the stuffy English ones, and it added a wonderful new dimension to the story. It was enough to carry me through the boks I didn't like as much, and made me enjoy my favorites even more (those would be The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and The Horse and His Boy).

Overall, I'd recommend them (they're a super-quick read too, you could probably finish one in a single day if you tried), but only after viewing the 2005 film first. :D Can't wait til movie #2!...less

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Brad rated it:

08/02/08

Read in January, 1975

The seven books included in the Chronicles of Narnia derive their classic status in the fantasy genre from Lewis’ ability to create a compelling alternate world both wondrous and familiar. However, the books contain serious flaws that must relegate them to second rate in comparison with The Lord of the Rings or Ursula LeGuin’s Earthsea series. The first flaw, one that irked me as a child reader, is Lewis’ propensity to issue condescending asides to the youthful reader. Rather than draw the...more The seven books included in the Chronicles of Narnia derive their classic status in the fantasy genre from Lewis’ ability to create a compelling alternate world both wondrous and familiar. However, the books contain serious flaws that must relegate them to second rate in comparison with The Lord of the Rings or Ursula LeGuin’s Earthsea series. The first flaw, one that irked me as a child reader, is Lewis’ propensity to issue condescending asides to the youthful reader. Rather than draw the reader in to the author’s confidence, these serve rather to distract. Further, they do not add to the story world but merely inform the reader of the reactionary prejudices of the author. The second flaw, which I did not notice as a child, is a strong dose of anti-Muslim propaganda, featured most strongly in A Horse and His Boy, and The Last Battle. The dark-skinned Calormenes embody a catalogue of evil characteristics—slave-trading, fanatic, aggressive, treacherous, cruel—and they are clearly marked as Muslim with turbans, scimitars, and minarets. The Last Battle (the weakest story in the series) is little more than an apocalyptic scenario of the clash of civilizations between Christianity and Islam. That Lewis uses a series of children’s books to pursue a crude project of orientalist crusade is inexcusable. The anti-Islamic theme however feeds into Lewis’ main project: Christian proselytizing. In The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Lewis presents a full-blown allegory of the crucifixion of Jesus. Aslan permits himself to be humiliated and sacrificed to pay for the sin of Edmund and is soon resurrected in greater glory. Susan and Lucy (paralleling the two Marys) wash his body and witness his resurrection. Thinly-veiled Christian symbols and arguments permeate the whole series and since this is nowhere openly acknowledged, The Chronicles of Narnia must be regarded as a deceitful tool of concealed proselytizing. Rather than make an open argument in favor of his convictions, Lewis cunningly creates a world of aesthetic and philosophic sensibilities intended to work at the subliminal level. Of course, all authors have agendas and children’s books frequently contain implicit behavioral and moral messages. However, Lewis has crossed the line, especially by mobilizing racial-religious antipathies to his project. If the series proselytized, for example, the ideology of Communism or a non-Christian religion in the same way, parents, teachers, and self-appointed guardians of children would never accept it. That said, these flaws detract from but do not negate the imaginative entertainment value of the Narnia books. In spite of my grave social concerns, I would let children read these books. But at an appropriate age I would initiate a discussion about racism, and religious and cultural chauvinism. Given the social conditions of the 21st century, I would ask children to try to imagine a fantasy world in which beings with different sensibilities and physical characteristics are able to tackle conflicts between them without demonizing or waging war on the other. Now THAT takes some imagination.

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Mer rated it:

(review of isbn 0060847131)

04/19/07

bookshelves: childhood

Read in January, 1985

http://findarticles.com/p/arti...

(Click the above link to read professor Carol Zaleski's interesting take of the seething religious/political furor surrounding these classics.)

I pined for Narnia in the most broken, sad way when I was a little girl.

Obviously, I had no knowledge of any Christian subtext when I first read "Da Chroni *WHUT* cles". I remember devouring them in much t...more

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Mansoor added it

05/04/07

Read in November, 2004

The Magician's Nephew is easily the best story of the Chronicles. First of all, it's the least overtly religious. There is a creation-of-the-world element, but it's not our world so it seems more fantastic than religious. Not only is there a veil over the religiosity, there's so much creativity in this story: the magical rings, the in-between place, the Deplorable Word, the founding of Narnia.

Starting with The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, the religiosity becomes notice...more

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Timothy rated it:

11/02/07

I went back and actually read the Chronicles of Narnia for the first time last year. (My parents read them to me when I was a kid). This is an amazing story, from one of the best English minds of the twentieth century. As a whole, this story was every bit as good as I had remembered.

That being said, however, I ran into some real problems reading this story as an adult in the 21st century. Starting with The Horse and His Boy, and culminating in The Last Battle, the issue of &quo...more I went back and actually read the Chronicles of Narnia for the first time last year. (My parents read them to me when I was a kid). This is an amazing story, from one of the best English minds of the twentieth century. As a whole, this story was every bit as good as I had remembered.

That being said, however, I ran into some real problems reading this story as an adult in the 21st century. Starting with The Horse and His Boy, and culminating in The Last Battle, the issue of "Calormen" as obviously modeled on the Arab world, and their belief in the vengeful god "Tosh" as obviously modeled on the Muslim faith, is very serious indeed. I've read defenses of this--for instance, the fact that C.S. Lewis was a scholar of Medieval literature, which steeped him in a time dominated by fear of the Ottoman Empire and the ever-present threat of its overrunning Europe. Frankly, this just doesn't do it for me. At the end of the day, this story has to be read as imperfect fiction, but still with an unparalelled scope of imagination.

The other issue, of course is gender. There's the word of Father Christmas to Lucy in the first novel--"Battles are nasty afffairs when women fight"--which was totally glossed over in the recent film. And then there's the issue of Susan not being deemed worthy of living in the New Narnia, in effect, because she has become enamored with the trappings of being a mature female. This is also problematic, and there's no way around it. C.S. Lewis, like many other celebrated authors of the 20th century (Take Hemingway, for crying out loud!) seems to have some issues with integrating feminine power into his worldview, let alone his fiction.

Again, however, I think that for children, Lewis' power of storytelling and imagination far outweighs his dated (even for his own time) perspective on NonWestern cultures and femininity. The important thing is not to "censor" his work for our children, or deprive them of this wonderful story, but rather to add it to their mental tapestry, knowing its flaws, and the need for fantasy springing from other worldviews to supplement it.

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DTM is currently reading it (review of isbn 0007241348)

06/12/08

bookshelves: currently-reading

Read in June, 2008

recommended to DTM by: Mark, probably.
recommends it for: Everyone!

I am in the process of reading through this series for the first time. I will update this review as I progress.

I am currently reading The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. I have to say, this book is really the first of the series that I have loved. I am reading them in the order they were written--which, if you are familiar with the series at all, there is a big debate about the "proper" order of reading. I enjoyed The Lion... more than the movie. It just seemed very innocent and r...more I am in the process of reading through this series for the first time. I will update this review as I progress.

I am currently reading The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. I have to say, this book is really the first of the series that I have loved. I am reading them in the order they were written--which, if you are familiar with the series at all, there is a big debate about the "proper" order of reading. I enjoyed The Lion... more than the movie. It just seemed very innocent and reminded me somehow of childhood. But it was a great story (albeit simple). Prince Caspian was also entertaining even though it feels like nothing much happened in that whole book. I can't imagine how they turned it into a movie. The best thing about Prince Caspian is the introduction of my favorite character, Reepicheep.

When I first saw that there was a character who was a giant talking mouse and was all gallant and noble I was actually a little irritated. The whole concept seemed so tired. But then I realized it is likely that the whole concept was started with this character, and it became more interesting to me. It also became more interesting in Voyage of the Dawn Treader, because in this book Reepicheep talks to anyone who wants to be cowardly like they are a little bitch.

Voyage of the Dawn Treader is definitely my favorite of the three I have read so far. Basically it is about setting sail in search of adventure. Reepicheep really makes the book for me--whenever they get into crazy situations he basically says to everyone, "I'm not sure what the issue is that you are concerned with. I'm just going to go fight them and possibly die because that is the noble and valiant thing to do. What question is there about that?"

Anyway, I've also begun to notice in this book that the land of Narnia is really the main character more than anything else. I feel sucked into it and believe pretty much everything that happens, because it is such a magical place (and so well written).

It also impresses me the way Lewis writes Aslan. He is very matter of fact and his mere gaze is enough to make each character realize whatever it is they need to realize.

We'll see how the rest of the series is. The one thing I am a bit nervous about is the fact that it seems likely that my favorite characters will disappear at some point. ...less

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Jarod rated it:

08/16/07

A mostly well-written, very imaginative, thoroughly enjoyable read. The narration is warm and witty, the protagonists are well developed and likable but not perfect (written perfectly, but with flaws that give the stories depth), and the settings are vivid and fantastic (remember those loony one-footed invisible things that hop around? and the ending, when the boat sails over that undersea city and then into the clouds at the edge of the world?).

I'm always annoyed when people confound the q...more

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