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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
Really good, but very intricate, easy to miss details
Beautifully written and contains my favorite opening line of all literature I'v read this far.
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The Chronicles of Narnia is one of those series that need to be read at a certain age, that is, in childhood with no extensive experience of reading; otherwise you'll find the Narnia stories terribly lacking in almost all creative aspects.
Keeping in mind all Christian references, it's safe to say Lewis was trying to tell children some of the core Christian stories (Genesis, Forbidden fruit, the Judgement Day etc) in a playful and engaging way. It resulted in a very schematic narrative with most characters being mere functions with no particular personality whatsoever. The best attempt at character building was taken in the The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe with each of the four Pevensie children having distinctive traits. Unfortunately, even those start merging into one blurry mass as the story goes on.
All seven installments are extremely repetitive: there're outsiders in Narnia, who need to be taught its lore and then they fight a very important battle. It's one and the same plot recycled over and over again. The only time the story finally takes another turn is in the final book The Last Battle, yet even there similar plot twists can be found. The lore building is fragmentary and is present there solely to justify the story development rather than to create a living and breathing world worth existing beyond the main characters' adventures.
There's also one rather irritating Lewis's habit, that is to constantly break the immersion and directly reference the previous installments ('Here are the Pevensie children. Who are they? Why, read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe to find out!'). It's not the worst thing that can happen, yet it's unbelievably annoying when the story itself is not that exciting to begin with.
Keeping in mind all Christian references, it's safe to say Lewis was trying to tell children some of the core Christian stories (Genesis, Forbidden fruit, the Judgement Day etc) in a playful and engaging way. It resulted in a very schematic narrative with most characters being mere functions with no particular personality whatsoever. The best attempt at character building was taken in the The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe with each of the four Pevensie children having distinctive traits. Unfortunately, even those start merging into one blurry mass as the story goes on.
All seven installments are extremely repetitive: there're outsiders in Narnia, who need to be taught its lore and then they fight a very important battle. It's one and the same plot recycled over and over again. The only time the story finally takes another turn is in the final book The Last Battle, yet even there similar plot twists can be found. The lore building is fragmentary and is present there solely to justify the story development rather than to create a living and breathing world worth existing beyond the main characters' adventures.
There's also one rather irritating Lewis's habit, that is to constantly break the immersion and directly reference the previous installments ('Here are the Pevensie children. Who are they? Why, read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe to find out!'). It's not the worst thing that can happen, yet it's unbelievably annoying when the story itself is not that exciting to begin with.
I read these as a kid, in fact the first two were read to me by my mother. I remember "The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe" best, although "The Horse and His Boy" taught me to respect other religions and those of other faiths.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Another one where after much time and thought I have concluded it didn't age well for me personally, half the books didn't sit right with me and the very last one should never have existed for so many reasons. That one is to me a dumpster fire. Sorry.
It gets 3 combined because there is 2 or 3 of the books I do still enjoy enough to say I like them and call them more than just ok and it's the first ones you read in the series.
It gets 3 combined because there is 2 or 3 of the books I do still enjoy enough to say I like them and call them more than just ok and it's the first ones you read in the series.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes