The Chronicles of Narnia Boxed Set
by C. S. Lewis
|
List Price: Our Price: $22.08 You Save: $22.92 (51%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $4.75 (click here) Category: Book See more book details and other editions |
|---|
Book Reviews of The Chronicles of Narnia Boxed Set
Book Review: Another story altogether... Beautiful!
Summary: 5 Stars
The Chronicles of Narnia, beautiful! If you are looking for a tale of other worlds full of adventure, then this is for you. But if you are looking for that and more, than read deeper than just the stories. And then this is also for you. When it comes down to it, you could just say that it's simply about a few kids who discover a land call Narnia and hang out with the Creator of it all, Aslan. Yes, and what a wonderful illustration of it all. That can't be beat! I could go on and tell about each and every book, one by one, but I won't do that, because it defeats the purpose of writing a review for me on a whole box set. What I will do is tell my favorites, and the ones that meant the most to me. My favorites are "The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe" (naturally) and "Prince Caspian". But it goes way beyond that. The 2 that mean the most to me happen to be "The Voyage of The Dawn Treader" and "The Last Battle". Dawn Treader, to me is a story of change. When Eustace is turned into an ugly, hideous dragon, then Aslan comes into the night and he is once again Eustace, and we see a totally different Eustace, not the arrogant, self absorbing Eustace we see at the beginning. And of course, that's only part of the story, but my favorite part, an awesome illustration. The Last Battle is an incredible statement the whole way through. Now, yeah, it is about this stupid ape who sees a lion skin and tries to play Aslan, which does illustrate how we as Christians exercise our free will all too frequently and try to play God with our own lives. But, of course the monkey takes it a lot further, etc. Some might say that it is the end of the books. Yes and no. But wait! It is the end that hits me, and even Rick Warren uses it in his book, "The Purpose Driven Life", when he quotes Lewis at the end with this about the children who experienced Narnia with this quote. "For us this is the end of the stories....But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world had been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story, which no one on Earth has read, which goes on forever and in which every chapter is better than the one before." How true for each and every one of us. This life is only the beginning, and after that, it is indeed, altogether another story! Amazing!
Book Review: This boxed set is the BEST way to get this CLASSIC
Summary: 5 Stars
Over the last century, C.S. Lewis' Narnia Chronicles have become among the most beloved works of children's literature ever published, and with good reason. The seven volumes of this series offer stories that are absolutely timeless, fairy tales mixing adventurous journeys, marvelous characters, mythical creatures, terrible evils, and moral lessons. That they are well told only helps them stand the test of time.This boxed set is simply gorgeous, with attractive covers and nice layouts - plus you get the books individually, which is good for children who may not have the stamina to hold up that giant collected edition.
Each of the seven volumes can be read as an independent story, yet each are linked together by reoccurring themes and characters. Together the separate books form a unified whole, the grand and epic tale that is the Narnia Chronicles. Only "The Horse And His Boy" stands alone as a tale outside the core story arc, though there are cameos by core characters. Over the course of the six core volumes, the interwoven story of Narnia is told from that magical land's creation to its glorious end.
The books are not always of consistent quality, but a strong book always follows the weaker volumes. Such was the case when the Homeresque "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" followed the forgettable "Prince Caspian," for instance.
Of course, calling the seven-book series a single epic brings into mind a long-running debate. In what order should the books be read; chronologically or in published order? In truth, either order will work because the stories are strong enough to withstand any amount of juggling.
The Narnia Chronicles are classics because they offer rich and rewarding stories, glimpses of far off and magical lands, and present entertaining characters to the reader. They stand the test of time because they contain age-old moral lessons, are written in an eminently readable way that just begs to be read aloud, and are simple enough for kids while deep enough for adults. The cliché holds true here: the books are great for young and old alike.
No fan of young adult or juvenile literature should pass up on the Narnia Chronicles. Neither should any fan of fantasy, either. And probably nor should any reader at all, period. Recommended classics and near essential reading.
Book Review: Beautiful fantasy that could change your life
Summary: 5 Stars
I first read the Chronicles of Narnia as a child, and despite living in a church-going household was not conciously aware of the religious parallels and symbolism that everyone talks about these books having, though I could feel the spirituality in these stories. I think, looking back now, that the Chronicles of Narnia made me a more spiritual person, a deeper thinker than most children, with a sense of right and wrong. That's no bad thing to be brought out in a child.Religious-themed bashing of the Chronicles of Narnia is overboard and unwarranted. Anything that was overtly trying to shove religion down your throat would not have white witches and fauns. The most "religious" thing about the world of Narnia is its pervasive sense of spirituality.
With new talk of movie adaptations lately, I happened to seek out the books in my university library, and to my great surprise found them. I can't describe what it was like opening "The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe" after all those years... It was like opening a doorway to my own childhood. It all came flooding back -- Lucy's first steps into snow-covered Narnia, the White Witch, the Stone Table. For this student, reading these books in a university library at the age of 22 was a profoundly spiritual experience.
Without hesitating I ordered the books, but not these particular editions. It took me great pains to track down the same editions that I read as a child (pub. Fontana 1986), way back before this chronological ordering by publishers. "The Magician's Mephew" may be first in the chronology of Narnia but it is not the first book in the series. "The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe" reads like the beginning of a series and rightly makes a beautiful introduction for anybody into the world of Narnia. The books should be read in their proper order that has been detailed ad nauseam in other reviews. I don't want an edition like this that numbers the spines and tells me that "The Magician's Nephew" is book one. If you don't care quite that much, at least read them in the right order.
C.S. Lewis creates something so memorable and powerful, weaves such vivid images, out of the most simple language that could be read by a very young child. I think that whatever age you are, these spellbinding stories may stay with you forever.
Book Review: Good children's book, and... that's pretty much it
Summary: 3 Stars
I recommend Chronicles of Narnia to any child or pre-adolescent with interest in fantasy books. The book is too simplistic to be recommended to anyone older, and too religiously allegorical for those who find religious allegory in a fictional work tacky and forced.
While frequently compared to Lord of the Rings, the Narnia Chronicles is hardly a match. Comparing the two is largely impossible - their only similarities being the authors' mutual acquaintance, and the general genre of the works. Whereas Tolkien's books are painstakingly detailed, the average Narnia book is brisk - both in its attention to detail and flow of time. While Tolkien's works construct and reveal a near-impeccably built world - complete with fictitious histories, geography and languages, the world of Narnia is largely thrown-together (consider "The Magician's Nephew" as one proof - it contains a large number of ideas that are never again elaborated upon). The creatures of Middle Earth draw from several different cultures and myths, while those of Narnia are largely directly lifted from Greek mythology.
For the inquisitive reader, the religious allegory of C.S. Lewis is sometimes obvious (like Adam/Eve, Aslan's "crucifixion"), at times annoying, and at some points even bigoted. As an example, consider Calormen - an obvious reference to an Islamic nation. Unlike Narnia, Calormen is full of the rich and deceitful who worship all the wrong things - gold, large palaces, their own leader... The devil... (yes, you read that correctly). As a Christian, Lewis obviously chose to ignore some of the more infamous moments in Christianity (like the opulence of Baroque period churches, the Spanish Inquisition, the Crusades, etc...). Lewis also takes numerous stabs at contemporary schools that no longer teach religion, but science and other "less important" things. To top everything off, the ending is mind-bogglingly and foolishly cruel, at least for a children's book.
Contrary to what some readers have pointed out, this book reads on no more than 2 levels - it reads as a great series of children's books, or as veiled religious dogma that was the fifties' answer to today's Intelligent Design.
Book Review: Review: The Chronicles of Narnia
Summary: 5 Stars
The Chronicles of Narnia is a series of books that leads and causes the readers to think and use their imagination which expands the readers creativity. This series of books by C.S. Lewis consists of 7 entertaining books which are (in order) : The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Horse and his Boy, The Magicians Nephew, The Last Battle. The four main characters throughout these books are Peter, Edmund, Susan and Lucy. In this series of stories, there are two worlds. One, is the normal word, and one is Narnia. There is rarely any action or adventure when in the real word, all the tension and adventure seeking from these fiction books occur when they are in the land of Narnia, a land of magic full of surprises. The land of Narnia is an amusing yet dangerous land full of adventures waiting for the kids to discover. There lies a quest in each book and a foe in each book. It all starts when they first enter Narnia, by accident, in the first book The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. That is their first time in Narnia and they face upcoming situations brought by Aslam, the lion. In this book they have to defeat the white witch, an evil witch who tries to take over the land of Narnia. In this series of books there are plenty of upcoming events and surprises/conflicts which make us readers excited and the urge of reading on. These books are full of adventures and mysteries/quests waiting for the readers to discover. The Author C.S. Lewis has a huge sense of creativity. After reading this series of books, I realized it can be compared to the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. They both use magic in the stories, yet the plot and storyline are totally different. While reading this series of books by C.S. Lewist, my motivation to read on was incredible. I couldnt stop until the book was finished. This was special since I usually procrastinate while reading. This also shows how C.S. Lewis uses wonderful writing technique to lure the readers into desiring to know the results. Overall this is a great series of books, I strongly suggest or encourage ANY fiction fans/adventure lovers to read this series of books.