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Summary: Regarding the order of the books
Review: You can read the books chronologically by date of publication or by the timeline of the stories themselves. In "CS Lewis: Letters to Children" a letter is included in which a child asks Lewis what the proper order is in which to read the books. CS Lewis gives some explanation about how the books were not published in chronological order, but he recommends reading them in chronological order that being the order listed in the book description above. So it seems clear that reading them either way is just as good and will not decrease the pleasure in reading these amazing books.I originally read them in the order in which they were published, that is The Lion, the With, and the Wardrobe first and The Magician's Nephew 4th or so. I enjoyed the books just as much that way. I highly recommend that everyone read these books in either order. Also, if you can obtain a copy of "CS Lewis: Letters to Children" I highly recommend it. It gives a greater insight into the man who wrote these books.
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Summary: I love them even more now then when I was a child
Review: The first time I heard the Chronicles of Narnia, I was not even old enough to read - my mother read them to me. Since then, I have read these books about 25 times each, and so has every one else in my house. I, along with many other of the customer reviewers, feel that the best way to read the Chronicles in in the original order, not chronologically. I remember the first time I read the later books, and made the connection to the characters in the early books. The original order of these books adds a depth to the reading experience, and I continue to read them in that order. In the introduction to The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe Lewis makes a dedication to his niece Lucy and tells her that by the time she these books get printed she may be too old for fairy tales, but will one day be old enough for fairy tales again. I was never too old for the fairy tales written by Lewis, and have enjoyed them at all stages of my life. The chronicles tell an amazing story, while at the same time delivering a strong message. While this message reflects Lewis's emerging Christianity, you do not have to be Christian to appreciate the moral of these stories. If you are an adult, read the Chronicles for yourself, and if you have children, give them to your children to read. Trust me, they will appreciate it.
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Summary: Children only? Not likely.
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed re-reading this series at full-throttle again not too long ago. I was so caught up in the action that I read the ENTIRE seven-book saga in only 8 days! From The Magican's Nephew to The Last Battle, the mythical adventures of unsuspecting humans travelling to the magical land of Narnia will keep you longing for more after every book is finished. One things I was continually impressed with however, was the metaphorical way the books were written, and how most of the major events anbd themes relate to Christian beliefs, and biblical events. This was a superb read for me as a normal reader, and as a Christian. I won't give anything away to you, but I'd definately recommend this to anyone!
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Summary: Not Just For Children (A Must For All!)
Review: I first received a boxed edition like this for my seventh Christmas. By New Year's I had devoured all seven books, longing for more. By the next year I practically had them memorized, so I put them away, expecting them to fade into a distant memory. But they simply wouldn't let go of my mind. By the age of 10 I was reading them all again, and since then I've read them all at least 15 or 20 times...and they only get better with age. These books did far more than entertain, I know that I'm simply a much better person because of them. Lewis was not afraid to use some larger words than other children's authors, expanding my vocabulary. Much more importantly, his characters always triumph by being good, honest, helpful, kind, intelligent, aware of their surroundings, trusting, courageous, and believing in the eternal power of good over evil. What more can one want to impart to their children? Now, as an adult, I have had the pleasure of passing on these books to adults and children alike, and the result is always the same. The adults wonder why they were so unfortunate as to have missed out on them as children, and the children are simply in a state of wonder - wishing Aslan would call them up out of this world. My old edition of the complete collection started off with "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" and I think that, particularly for children, that was the wise place to start. Chronological order seems to lack some of the thematic order of the old edition, they seemed to whisk you back and forth through time without being at all confusing and allowing time for sufficient explanations. And there's simply something lovely about finding out what happened BEFORE the stories you've already read. It's like putting together a puzzle, intellectually stimulating without confusion. But order hardly matters in the end, for every book is a masterpiece unto itself. And there is no way to only read one or several. I've even been known to take a whole day out of my life to read the entire series cover to cover, the best vacation from this world I've ever known! If you've never read them, don't consider them children's books, just take them at face value. This is true literature at it's best. In fact, I'm getting ready to buy the whole collection in hardcover, as my old paperbacks are starting to come to pieces. I went to a store and checked out the Pauline Baynes illustrations in their new color, and they are truly splendid. If shopping for a gift for a child, one can certainly do no better.
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Summary: Great stories entertain independant of religous allegory.
Review: I first read these books as a child and loved them, re-reading them several times. It was not until I was in high school that I noticed the (rather obvious) allegorical themes. This says more about my naive approach to reading at the time (and now, for that matter) than it does for the subtlety of the allegory. I'm not a fan of allegory, but the stories here are strong enough to stand on their own, and the moral issues raised are well-handled and pertinent in or out of a Christian context. These are definitely books I want to share with my children. Regarding this new 50th anniversary edition, my first copies of these books included the full set of the beautiful illustrations by Pauline Baynes. It was a hand-me-down from my grandmother and unfortunately was missing one volume. The replacement I bought and all other editions I have seen since discarded most of the illustrations, keeping only one at the beginning of each chapter. I was pleased to see that this addition restores the missing illustrations as well as returning to the original, far superior, covers (also done by Baynes). That is why I am buying this edition. I did not look closely enough to make a judgment on the coloration of the drawings, usually I am not in favor of this kind of "improvement" (and I love pen-and-ink anyway). However apparently they went back to the original illustrator for the work, and judging by her magnificent covers I trust her to do it well. Realistically, color pictures are probably essential to sell childrens books in the video-game era. NOTE: A previous reviewer recommends reading the books in the order published. This may be good advice if you are more interested in the allegorical content. If you are more focused on the stories, I recommend reading them in chronological order.
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Summary: kids read it for the first time, adults return to it
Review: Long before there was a Harry Potter, there were the works of JRR Tolkein and CS Lewis. And while the sensation they created may not have been nearly so frantic nor universal in those blessed premedia days, the fanaticism that they engendered was no less powerful. Our neighbor Mark Farris used to just start one series and read it, then start the other and read it and then start all over again. I wasn't quite that bad, but I do recall that one of the proudest accomplishments of my young life was actually completing both series, a feat that involved reading several thousand pages. Now, I'm certain that most of the metaphorical and allegorical nuances of these books completely escaped most of us at these early readings. But these books, along with comic books and pulp novels like Doc Savage and The Avenger, served one vital function, they demonstrated with incontrovertible certitude that there were such things as good and evil and that it was better to be good. Such books are often termed escapist fantasy and, for me at least, that was precisely their attraction; the opportunity that they offered, to escape from the disturbing moral relativism of the 60's and 70's, and enter worlds where the truths, that I sensed to be eternal and absolute, actually obtained. As much as parents or religion, it was books like these that formed the template from which our inchoate sense of morality was forged. It must be true for most children that the arts and literature to which they are exposed when young, will have a decisive impact on their moral development. That is why the culture of video games, Goosebump books, politically correct twaddle like Billy has Two Mommies and the vast wasteland of Television are so pernicious and why the emergence of Harry Potter is such a hopeful sign. First for the bad, take as an example the first-person-shooter games like Doom. What precisely do such games teach children? There is no narrative line to these games. They are not pretending to be heroes; the only goal is to kill others and to survive yourself. For all you know, you may be the bad guy. Is it any surprise that a generation that is being raised on these games produces children with no sense of right and wrong, children capable of blowing away classmates as if they were extensions of the game? Harry Potter, on the other hand, offers a glimmer of hope. The astronomical sales and popularity of the series must surely be an indicator that kids still long to escape into a world where right and wrong and good and evil are clearly defined and easily comprehensible. Hopefully parents are exploiting this phenomena and turning their kids on to books in general and specifically this genre. This is a golden moment we've been handed, a once in a generation chance to pry kids out from in front of the TV and the PC and get them reading. Let's hope it's not wasted. Kids who like Harry Potter would certainly like the Chronicles of Narnia. But the secret charm of the Narnia books is that when you return to them as an older reader you begin to perceive a whole new layer of meaning in the texts. For Lewis, one of the great Christian apologists of the Century, essentially rendered Christian myth in the guise of children's fantasy. With a more mature eye, we realize what it means that the children enter a world where it is "always Winter, but Christmas never comes", that the great lion Aslan is Christ, the White Witch is Satan, her defeat of Aslan is a reenactment of the Crucifixion and, of course, when Aslan rises again to lead the humans and defeat the Witch, it symbolizes the risen Christ leading us in battle against evil. If not exactly subtle, these lessons are at least not heavy handed and should not deter anyone from reading the books. If you've got a kid who is devouring the Harry Potter books, don't let them stop there. Turn them towards this classic series and then to Tolkein. With any luck they'll discover the same sense of wonder and enjoyment that preceding generations have found and maybe even shut off the TV in order to read once in a while. GRADE: A+
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Summary: The Best Children's Books in Creation
Review: These books are so classic they fall into their own category of excellence. I am going to force my children to read them, just as my mother forced me to read the first one. After that, I was hooked. Let's respect children's intellects and allow them to fall into this magical world!
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Summary: MY MOST FAVORITE SERIES
Review: I credit this series with the start of a life long love affair with books. I read these as a child and reread them still. I would hope that everyone reads these books and I buy them for gifts for the children in my life. They have a religious touch that is not in your face, just a good will win in the end. Beautifully written and I will always cherish them.
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Summary: The best fantasy series ever!
Review: If I could I would give The Chronicles of Narnia 500 stars. The story is fresh and fascinating. The world of Narnia is how our world should be with humans and animals and other fantstical creatures joing together for the greater good. The series starts with "The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe." Very accurate title because these are the important magical objects in this book. The shell of the story is set during WWII when the children of London are evacuated to the countryside in order to protect them from the air raids. Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy are sent to a country manor where they discover a wardrobe that transports them to the Magical world of Narnia where it is always winter, never Christmas, and even time flows different. We meet Mr. Tumnus the fawn and a kindly beaver couple who help the children escape the dreaded White Witch. Finally there is the incredible Aslan, the lion ruler of Narnia. With seven books in the series it is impossible to sum up them all here, but they are all worth reading. My recommendation is to buy the series and read it to your children (that way you don't have to feel guilty that you are enjoying the books as much as they are). Or just buy it for the magical feeling of being young and full of imagnination.
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Summary: He wrote for children and the adults alike
Review: C S Lewis is a British gem along with Beatrix Potter and A A Milne. I have to tell you, that the Chronicles of Narnia moved me to tears.The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Prince Caspian The Silver Chair, The Magician's Nephew, the Horse and His Boy', and finally The Last Battle are pure works of wonder and genius. The Lion Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe is my favorite simply because it tells using a Greek mythology style which Lewis was keen on, the story of Christs death and resurrection. Using Aslan the Lion as the Christ character. YAHOO by the way has a chat room that was/is overseen by his step son (Joy's son) that is Narnia oriented. And I admit I adore Lucy as I see myself in her. C S Lewis was a genius as he wrote these in such a way as to appeal to both children and adults. It was as if he knew that the reader might often be an adult and as such would learn the more mature lessons within the story. One needs to remember that C S Lewis (Jack) wrote these at a time when there was no television, or computers and when parents and other adults read aloud to children. As such the books are a great theological tool. I would also highly recommend the BBC/PBS Wonderworks vidoes series which we have and which we have had to replace often having watched the series about once a month. Did you know he died the same day that JFK did? Lewis and his goodness and godliness lives on and will for generations. C S Lewis was someone most of us would have loved to have called friend.
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