Scan barcode
laradahm's review against another edition
5.0
Here we meet Aslan for the first time & see the beginning of Narnia—a wise choice to read the 6th book first.
j_rowley's review against another edition
4.0
Digory and Polly are tricked into becoming part of Digory's Uncle Andrew's magical experiment. They are sent to the gateway of other worlds. From there they travel to a world which is ending and wind up bringing the evil back to their world. Trying to rid their world of the evil Jadis, they discover a world just beginning. Here they meet Aslan, and this is where the set up for Narnia begins.
thebaberuthless's review against another edition
2.0
Meh, definitely not liking this series so far. My kids are barely interested themselves. There's just not enough meat on the bones.
runekeon's review against another edition
3.0
I like the story and was happy this didn't have as much sexism as some of the others. A simple story but enjoyable.
biancachacamp's review against another edition
3.0
Very enjoyable. I liked the metaphor portrayed by the birth of Narnia. The human adults are horrible.
jamiedanger's review against another edition
4.0
I have very fond memories of The Chronicles of Narnia. When I was young, we would gather as a family and my dad would read these books as we all listened along. It's one of my fondest memories as a child and it helped solidify these books as a permanent part of my childhood.
As a young child, I was unable to really grasp the religious allegories within when I was first being read these books. Because of that, it's much more interesting to read through the story (with this particular one being essentially the 'creation story') and see what I get now.
Some of the allusions are extremely obvious, like, but others actually bring on more interesting questions. Most notably: was the impetus for Aslan's creating Narnia the appearance of the two children, their Uncle, the Caddy, and the witch queen? Would Narnia have been created at all if it weren't before their eyes? If the latter, and we take the Chronicles of Narnia as a direct retelling of Christian mythology, then who do Diggory and Polly represent? Indeed, would Narnia have been created at all if it weren't for their sudden arrival into that world, or was it just perfect timing; a deus ex machina of sorts? These types of questions are fun to think about, and I'm excited to be keeping them in mind as I compete the rest of the series.
The writing was light, the story was short, and there were plenty of nice illustrations within the text. All in all I really enjoyed it. The reason I didn't give this five stars is because, in some places, it moved too slowly and in others I thought it rushed along a bit too much.
As a young child, I was unable to really grasp the religious allegories within when I was first being read these books. Because of that, it's much more interesting to read through the story (with this particular one being essentially the 'creation story') and see what I get now.
Some of the allusions are extremely obvious, like
Spoiler
the garden of Eden and the tree of knowledgeThe writing was light, the story was short, and there were plenty of nice illustrations within the text. All in all I really enjoyed it. The reason I didn't give this five stars is because, in some places, it moved too slowly and in others I thought it rushed along a bit too much.
saraw22's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
shaynexb's review against another edition
4.0
Call us Johnny-come-latelys.
I never read this series as a kid, even during the long formative years when I was obsessed with fantasy novels. I'd heard the Christian imagery was a bit on-the-nose and prevalent inside, and I've never been much for the God-stuff. So I skipped it, and immersed myself in Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance books instead.
Well, for my daughter's most recent birthday, she received from that "cool aunt" a big ol' omnibus containing the entire series. So, when the opportunity presented itself to crack open this paper mammoth, we did.
This story is lovely. The narrative style was my favorite part, full of personal asides and anecdotes, as if the whole thing truly is just a tale being told orally from a storyteller to an audience. And the Christian references weren't too in-yo'-face, which was a relief.
I know there were written and published in a different order, but the collection we have presents this book first, so this is the one we started with. Knowing that the next one we're moving on to was actually the first one written, i'll be interested in seeing how the narrative style differs between the two.
Anywhoo, a great book, overlooked by myself for far too long. Just another splendid joy in a long list of them that my daughter has let me experience with her. :)
I never read this series as a kid, even during the long formative years when I was obsessed with fantasy novels. I'd heard the Christian imagery was a bit on-the-nose and prevalent inside, and I've never been much for the God-stuff. So I skipped it, and immersed myself in Forgotten Realms and Dragonlance books instead.
Well, for my daughter's most recent birthday, she received from that "cool aunt" a big ol' omnibus containing the entire series. So, when the opportunity presented itself to crack open this paper mammoth, we did.
This story is lovely. The narrative style was my favorite part, full of personal asides and anecdotes, as if the whole thing truly is just a tale being told orally from a storyteller to an audience. And the Christian references weren't too in-yo'-face, which was a relief.
I know there were written and published in a different order, but the collection we have presents this book first, so this is the one we started with. Knowing that the next one we're moving on to was actually the first one written, i'll be interested in seeing how the narrative style differs between the two.
Anywhoo, a great book, overlooked by myself for far too long. Just another splendid joy in a long list of them that my daughter has let me experience with her. :)