Friday, February 22, 2008

The Last Battle

Whereas The Magician's Nephew tells the Narnian creation story, The Last Battle tells the story of how Narnia ends. The last king of Narnia, Tirian, is under attack from the Calormenes and calls for help in the name of Aslan. Tirian knows that throughout Narnia's history, the children have come from another world to assist Narnia in times of trouble. This time is no exception. Jill and Eustace appear ready and willing to help the King fight the evil forces at work in Narnia. Instead of a wardrobe or a pool, this time there is a stable that serves as a passage into another world.

However, things don't seem to be working out the same way this time as they have in the past. In fact, it looks as if Narnia will be destroyed. The stars are falling out of the sky. The waters are rising up and flooding the earth. Could this really be the end for Narnia? Will Aslan intervene or is it simply time for this world to end?

I don't normally read fantasy, but I really enjoyed these books. As I said earlier, I'm sure part of it is the fact that I had a great deal of background information on Lewis and his beliefs, which helped in understanding it. However, even without that, I think I would have liked these stories. Lewis is a really good writer. He tells a good story, and his characters are well-rounded.

We are on to some of Lewis' adult fiction now -- Perelandra. I've just started it, so I don't really know what to expect from it, yet. But, if the Narnia books are any gauge, I'm sure I'm going to love it.

2 comments:

Andi said...

I'm really enjoying reading your reviews of The Chronicles of Narnia. I have a copy here, but I've only read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. I really should read the rest!

Lisa said...

andi, I've only read the three that I've reviewed here. I really want to read the other four. I'm glad that I took this class because I don't think I would have ever picked these up otherwise. If you read any of them, I'll look forward to seeing what you think.