Customer Reviews: Read 16 more reviews...
 keep it simple September 23, 2008
It is a number of years ago since I picked these books up and find myself coming back to review them now following a request from a fellow friend and writer to review his own children's fantasy book.
Having grown up with the BBCs mechanical lion I was so very eager to know the beginning, (though yes Tolkien did do better his Silmarillion but then this is not a book most adults are going to give their children).
I found the chronicles easy going and very rewarding, right up to the penultimate. This delight was clearly born out of the Lewis' unquestionable talent. Unfortunately, this talent I later discovered to be the downfall by the final book of the chronicles, an anti-climax. For this truly, madly (madly?), deeply beliefs in the end would have been better read with more subtlety... it is simply a children's book, why spoil it! Therefore my final rating will not be a 5star.
 Childhood revisted. June 23, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
My father used to read me the chronicals of narnia when i was about 5. I'd put the stories, however to the back of my mind, like most of us do when we leave our childhood behind. Then a couple of years ago when the lion, the witch and the wardrobe film was released, it set off thinking about those times, years ago. This year, with prince caspian due to arrive in the next week or so, i happened to mention to my girlfriend, sort of 'jokingly' that it might be fun to re-read the books again. Anyway, i turned 28 last week and was quite suprised to open the complete chronicals of narnia box set, my girlfriend had bought from amazon. At first i was hessitant to pick up the magicians nephew. I had so loved the stories when i was a kid of 5 and the anticipation of what would happen each night when i was read another chapter before bedtime! Now, at the age of 28 i was worried that reading them again would in way 'sour' those memories as i would be reading them as an adult with an adult's point of view and perception and not in the same vein as a child. But pick it up, i did and started to read. I was hooked. And while parts my memory were predictably 'hazy' on the details of the book, i was suprised at how much came flooding back after all this time. It is an absolute pleasure to relieve the magic of Narnia. I finished the magician's nephew in 3 days and am about to start the lion, the witch and the wardrobe. I am as excited to continue with the books as i was when i was 5 and have learned something: it you truly loved something in your life, wether its music, films or books, you never really grow out of it no matter how old you are.
Having read the Narnia books when I was about eight November 29, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
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 and enjoys the themes common to the Potter books of magic, boarding schools and goblins. We also enjoy spotting the biblical references and discussing the finer points of time travel!
Each book individually and all of them collectively are very well constructed and 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 books in the series and other points in the history of Narnia. Like any good book or series of its kind, the Narnia Chronicles completely immerse the reader in a parallel universe and this alone is as fine a recommendation for switching off the television and 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.
A fantasy that you should pass along the family September 24, 2007
I read "the lion, the witch and the wardrobe" when I was little, I never knew there was a series of the stories thou, so when I found out I was very excited about it - however, some of the books are really dull (probably because I'm no longer a child)... My favourite being "Prince Caspian", "The Voyage of The Dawn Treader" and of coz "The lion, The witch and the wardrobe" - they are even good for adults. So read this, and read it to your children, and they should read to their children as well...
Read it! November 18, 2006
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
If you haven't read this serious, you don't know what you're missing. Its a great experience. A magical journey in C.S. Lewis incredible imagination. Haven't yet heard a dissapointed reader, and I don't think I ever will.
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