The Chronicles of Narnia
Well, with many long but happy
interruptions from the holidays, I finally got through my Narnia books this
week. Of course, you don't need me to
tell you that they're works of genius.
They move right up there in my favorite series with Lewis' Space Trilogy
and I expect to wear out this set as I've worn out the other. Lewis' writing is so easy to read, and not
just because this is a "children's" series. The interesting thing
about the series is that The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe was my least
favorite of the set! Not because it was
bad, but because it was first. They just
kept getting better and better as he went along. I suspect he hadn't intended to make sequels
when he first wrote it as well... you can always tell by the way a book seems
to stand oddly alone in the series.
The Magician's Nephew was, in fact, my
favorite. It was actually the last one
written (well, written along side the last one) and was a prequel before prequels were cool! The concept was the most beautiful, the
creative writing was very original, and the description of Charn was especially
chilling, I loved all the characters, and it's always nice to get the
background. How did the White Witch
become the White Witch? I love it.
I remembered a lot of things from The Lion,
The Witch and The Wardrobe, but of course, it makes much more sense now that
I'm older. If he'd planned things out a
little better, I bet it would've been the coolest one. I've not seen the recent movie made of this
one, because I'm sure I'll be disappointed given the nature of the material
being covered.
The Horse and His Boy was a close second for
my favorite. I can understand why it was
left out when they began making the movies, but I don't approve. If they should continue the movies to the
last book (which I don't think they will) this book is necessary background.
Prince Caspian was wonderful. I enjoyed it very much. It was at this point that I decided that the
four Pevensies were my least favorite characters of the whole series. I don't know why, I just didn't connect to
any of them. Well, perhaps Edmund and
Lucy, but mostly I think four main characters is too many and they were all the
"main" characters in the two books they appeared in no matter what
other characters were introduced. Apart
from that it was a great adventure. I
have seen parts of this movie, and while I understand that sometimes, in
classics, tension needs to be created when the all the characters are noble,
they overdid it. Scene splicing I can
deal with; adding things in the name of dramatic license irks me.
The Voyage of The Dawn Treader was my third
favorite. I loved this book! I found
Eustace much more believable than Peter and Susan. That first paragraph is so funny!! It's a great hook! The vignettes on the different islands were
so imaginative! The Caspian character
was even more enjoyable, if that's possible.
I think they're adapting this one into a movie as well. I guess I'm going to have to sit down and
watch all of these sometime. But, the
books are still infinitely better!
The Silver Chair is next in line as a
favorite. I liked Jill in this one. I think I can identify with her the
most. Lewis did a good job at making she
and Eustace such strong characters, that you don't really need the other
children for it to be satisfying. I realize
I'm saying that after admitting that the others weren't my favorites, but I
think even someone who liked the others would agree on this. Puddleglum was a great addition as well. I wished he'd have created him sooner. I sort of wished he'd have elaborated more on
the Lady of the Green Kirtle, but that probably would've sent the series off in
an entirely different direction.
The Last Battle was not the ending I expected,
but I guess I should have. It hearkens
back to concepts originated in The Horse and His Boy which are the concepts
that should've been referred to more frequently and elaborated on throughout
the set. Yes... I definitely think the movies will not go this far. If they left out the Magician's Nephew
they're sure to leave this one out. No
spine. No core beliefs. Our society proclaims Tashlan already. Once Edmund and Lucy are discontinued in Dawn
Treader, I think they'll stop.*
Look, if religious references make you shy
away from these books, there's actually something else to consider. I think
C.S. Lewis was the most intuitive man alive. The psychological, sociological, and
political undertones are so spot-on it's just creepy!!! From people like Eustace Scrubb, to the
Experiment House, to Tashlan... either the man had second sight, or there is
truly nothing new under the sun. They
are just as much for adults as children.
But, perhaps these undertones will make you uncomfortable as well...
especially after you read them. The set
as a whole is sold very cheap, considering that it's seven books in total,
short as they are. I recommend it highly
for everyone of every age.
*(3/1/17 - I understand they are making The Silver Chair. But I still think they'll not do The Last Battle)
Harry Potter series (all 7 in
this review)
I read the 3rd book first. My Aunt received it free in a book club and
gave it to me because, she said, it wasn't her type of book. And it
wasn't. She's into westerns, biographies
and such. I took one look at the cover
and decided that the cover art was so awful that I'd never consider looking at
it. (haha.. effectively judging a book by it's cover...lol) Well, it was the
ugliest drawings of children I'd ever seen.
I flipped it opened and read the first few paragraphs and my first
impression was that of those stupid cartoon shows along the lines of Captain
Planet, and my first thought was, 'Oh right.. someone thinks they're going to
make kids want to do their homework cuz the main character is a
magician..' So, I shelved it for a
while.
As what is normally the case, my
instincts were wrong. I picked it up out
of boredom and ended up loving it. The movies have been marketed as action,
kid-flicks, but the books have appeal to both kids and adults. I was blown over by the strong character and
plot development. Every character in the
book is someone that a person has known in their real life growing up. And, because I read Prisoner Of Azkaban
first, it will always be my favorite of the series.
The first two books can almost
stand alone, apart from the rest of the series. The meat of the base storyline
doesn't become entrenched until the third book.
But, there are key elements and characters created in the first two that
are referred back to in later volumes, so naturally, you can't do without them.
After the third book, the fourth
book is my second favorite. It could've
been a stand alone mystery book! Excellent,
excellent writing.
A lot of people didn't like the
5th book, saying that it was too dark, but those people obviously don't
remember what it was like to be a brooding teenager. When viewed in perspective
of the rest of the series, it fits in just fine.
Also, a lot of people didn't like
the 6th book, calling it sloppy fan-fiction.
I've always been of the opinion that books 6 and 7 are two parts of the
same book. There were too many loose
ends left deliberately untied in book 6 which went completely against Rowling's
style up to that point and I knew that anything that might be considered a
"let down" had to have been done on purpose. And I think I was right.
What I was most impressed with
was the fact that the series had a clear and definite ending in the 7th
book. Rowling said years ago that she'd
broken it into 7 parts and she stuck to it. I don't think it would have been
nearly as good to have left room for more sequels or had some ridiculous
unsolved cliffhanger like the Sopranos.
In short, I think the Harry
Potter series is some of the most fresh, original fiction produced in the last
15 years and it's a brilliant exercise in creative writing.
The City Of Ember four book set:
The City Of Ember
I loved this book! It was excellent. It hooked me right at the beginning and left
me wanting more. The concept is a little
flawed, like most science fiction, but it's a very simple and straightforward
premise about a city that was built underground so that the human race would
survive an unnamed global disaster of some sort. Realistic complications of this plan ensue
and the way out is discovered by the main characters - two kids.
I'm afraid that the sequels may
flow into an environmentalist or anti-war rant, but the pull of the story is
too great. I must read all three
sequels. At least at this point, that's
what I think.
The People of Sparks
It lacks the originality of City
of Ember, but it's post apocalyptic tale is still very enjoyable and not as
whiny as I thought it would be. I'm more
disappointed to know that the next book in the series will be a prequel. My imagination was sparked for further
development of the colony and complications from the likes of Tick and Torren
as they got older. I have a feeling the
prequel will be a predictable libtard fest.
I hope I'm wrong.
The Prophet of Yonwood
So, in the middle of a decent
series with likeable characters, the author throws in a prequel which seems to
have no other purpose than to attack all religion as foolish and, Christians in
particular (naturally), as stupid, crackpot bullies. So intent was the author on her philosophical
rant, that she forgot to make the characters interesting and give the story any
more significance in the main plot.
Poorly written. Greatly timed
- if she'd made it the second book I
doubt if anyone would want to finish the series. I don't know yet if anything in this book has
any bearing on anything that will happen in the last book of the series, but if
all this was was an explanation of the letter at the end of the first book, this
entire story could've been scrapped and retooled as a brief prologue for the
4th book. I only stuck with it cuz I
paid money for it so it seemed like a commitment.
The Diamond Of Darkhold
This book returned to the strong
characters and gripping story of the other three books and was nearly as
enjoyable and enticing as the first book, though tainted with the author's
liberal ideology, which wasn't hard to guess anyway, coming to the forefront in
the closing. I definitely recommend books one, two, and four. The third book is
really for atheist liberals only and I'm not saying it out of meanness. I don't
see anyone else getting enjoyment out of it. I only stuck with it cuz I paid
money for it, so it was a commitment.
No comments:
Post a Comment