Customer Reviews

The Chronicles of Narnia Box Set

5 star:		(504)
4 star:		(42)
3 star:		(20)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

If you are new to this series, especially if you are going to read it to a child, DO NOT READ THEM IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER! A child will lose interest after a few chapters. Few great stories are told strictly in chronological order and the hook for Narnia is "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe".

Many of these other reviews done by people saying that they like reading these books in chronological order are adults who fell in love with the series years ago, and now see this new order as making better grown-up sense. Reading it this way for the first time will leave you with many details that shouldn't be discovered until after reading the first few books in the original order, and won't keep a child interested the way I and so many others were as kids.

So please, if you are an adult familiar and returning to this series, feel free to read it in any order you choose, (I certainly do) but if this is your first time, read it in the order below...cheers

1) The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, 2) Prince Caspian, 3)The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, 4) The Silver Chair, 5) The Horse and His Boy, 6) The Magician's Nephew, and 7) The Last Battle

There is a modern misconception concerning C.S. Lewis's great children's series, 'The Chronicles of Narnia.' Due to changes during reprinting, the orginal order of his seven-part series was disrupted to conform to the overall story-line. When the books were written, Mr. Lewis began his series with the classic Christian allegory, 'The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.' He then went on to write the remaining novels in a non-traditional, non-chronological order: part two of the 'Chronicles' was 'Prince Caspian'. Next came, 'The Voyage of the Dawn Treader', 'The Silver Chair', 'The Horse and His Boy', 'The Magician's Nephew', and finally, 'The Last Battle.' Lewis released his novels in this order for a reason and I urge every reader to follow the original, proper sequence. It transforms a mere fantasy series into some of the single best children's novels in print. The symbolism of Christian allegory and the honest and noble morals that rest among the pages will stay with you and your children for years to come. May Aslan be with you and your family as you take the delightful trip into the fantastic and amasing land of Narnia!

I bought the full colour limited addition as I had decided to read the set to my 5 year old. I love the books and the story - I'm not yet sure that the extra was worth it as there really aren't much illustrations but the pages are thicker and seem heavier so it may stand up to the test of time better. We are just through the Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe and she loves it so far!

C.S.Lewis had said that "No book is really worth reading at the age of ten which is not equally (and often far more) worth reading at the age of fifty." This is so true about Narnia. I wasn't lucky to get my hands on this series when I was a kid, but I can imagine how it would absolutely fascinate a child, and how that child would then re-discover the books as an adult, seeing them in a totally different light. I have heard many people say that they had such experience.

I highly recommend these books to everyone. It is never too late to fall in love with Narnia.

(please note that this review concerns only the new publications)
The Chronicles of Narnia are perfect books. They are wonderful for children and adults, and can be read again and again. C. S. Lewis was a brilliant author and theologian, and was competent in what he was doing. I have been reading these books since I was young enough to pick up a book, and I was horrified when I found out they were reprinting them in chronological order! Why have the publishers decided to tamper with the order? reading these books in chronological order spoils all of the surprise and magic out of the first visit to Narnia (in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe), because we already know what's going on. You're not supposed to know about the lightpole or who the professor is yet! Things don't always need to be put in chronological order. If you're going to read them, please read them in the correct order: 1) The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, 2) Prince Caspian, 3)The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, 4) The Silver Chair, 5) The Horse and His Boy, 6) The Magician's Nephew, and 7) The Last Battle

I first read "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" when I was a child. I loved the book, and soon read the others in the series. I also watched the BBC television series. I still adore this series of books. However, when I was a child I remember being more frightened by Aslan than by many of the bad or evil characters. I could not understand how he could be both "terrible and good", and many times he seemed to me to be harsh and fearsome. I know lots of children don't feel this way, but I think some of the more sensitive children may not quite understand Aslan's role as the Savior. Most children do not have the ability to reconcile perfect goodness with behavior that may seem terrifying or ambivalent - children's ideas about good and evil are very black and white. I also remember being somewhat traumatized by the sacrifice of Aslan upon the stone altar. I had nightmares about it. I really believe this is a wonderful series of books; but I also think they should be read by older kids (12-15) who have a more sophisticated understanding of the theological concepts involved.

CS Lewis has woven a masterpeice with this series. Re-reading this series has brung back memories of when i was in forth grade and addicted to these books, which take place during WWII. A must read.

This book was nice and entertaining. The Naria book was about the begining of Naria, and how it came to be. This book is rated 4 stars, compared to my favorite Naria book: The lion, the witch and the wardrobe. I thought the book was nice, so I rated it 4 stars. I would recomend htis book to anybody who just likes to read, which is not me!

The seven books which make up the Chronicles of Narnia (1.Magicians Newphew, 2.Lion Witch & Wardrobe, 3.The Horse and His Boy, 4.Prince Caspian, 5.Voyage of the Dawn Treader, 6.Silver Chair and finally 7.Last Battle) are packed with imagination, action, adventure and suspense. Each book can be read as an individual story, but to truly appreciate the whole picture I would read all seven Chronicles. There are seven children in total who find themselves going to Narnia in very different situations. But in all cases, it is a magical trip. In this series you will witness Narnia and its talking animals being created, fly on a winged horse, see a young boy get "un-dragoned", sail on a ship to far off destinations, and of course ride on the Lion's back. I would recommend these books to any child between the ages of 8 - 101. C.S. Lewis has a wonderful way of capturing the attention of adults even in his children's books. ><> ><> ><>

C.S. Lewis was many things - a popular theologian (almost a contradiction in terms today), an engaging academic (see above qualification, as it applies here, too), and an expert storyteller, the craft of which came from his careful blending and imaginative use of the previous two. The Chronicles of Narnia stand up favourable to the work of Lewis' longtime friend and contemporary academic and 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 and mythic elements to tell more general philosophy, Lewis in the Narnia tales deliberately crafts the imagery to fit a Christian framework, and 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. Resurgence in popularity of late has occurred because of the film, 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe', second in the series (depending upon which chronology one follows), but the whole series is a charmer. In 'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe', the story focuses upon Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy, four exiles from war-time London in the English countryside who discover the portal to Narnia in the back of a mysterious wardrobe. The king of Narnia, Aslan the lion (whose imagery fits both Christian and English mythic lore) is battling the icy witch, who styles herself as Queen of Narnia. Through a classic struggle of good and evil in epic battle format, the pure-hearted children and 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 and fantastic. The four children, enthroned as kings and queens of Narnia at the end of the first adventure, must return to help Caspian, whose main desire is to live in old Narnia, forbidden tales of which he has heard.

'Voyage of the Dawn' sees Edmund and 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, and also to seek the end of the world (in a literal sense). Sea voyages and other journeys take them far and 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 returns in 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, and 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 and Bree is the horse in 'The Horse and His Boy'. Shasta is about to be sold into slavery when he escapes with Bree, and they meet Aravis and Hwin, another escaping duo, on their way to Narnia. They uncover a plot against Narnia, and 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 and the Wardrobe'. It gives background and insight into the overall workings of Narnia. Polly and Digory discover the portal to the Woods between the Worlds, and there is a greater mix of worlds here than in 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 and evil, with a false Aslan (a false messiah figure) appearing and humans destroying all things around, particularly the natural environment. Old Narnia must pass away, but a new Narnia is held in 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 and 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 and morals, even in the 1950s (a time so many in our present culture look back to as a high point in moral culture) he was looking back to a better time - perhaps it is no surprise that instead of finding it in the past, he found it in Narnia?

This is a series that is wonderful for children of all ages, and for adults - the tales bear repeating over and over, and many editions of these texts come with wonderful artwork. This particular one has illustrations by Pauline Baynes, the original illustrator for the series, and they are wonderful indeed.