Product Description

"To my side, all true Narnians! Would you wait till your new masters have killed you one by one?" A false Aslan is commanding all Narnians to work for the cruel Calormenes and striking terror into every heart. Jill and Eustace find themselves called into Narnia once more, this time to aid King Tirian in the mightiest of all battles This is the seventh adventure in the exciting Chronicles of Narnia.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #82814 in Books
• Published on: 2001-05-08
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 172 pages

Review
"The magic of C. S. Lewis's parallel universe never fades." The Times

From the Back Cover
THE LAST BATTLE IS THE GREATEST OF ALL BATTLES.

Narnia... where lies breed fear... where loyalty is tested... where all hope seems lost.

During the last days of Narnia, the land faces its fiercest challenge - not an invader from without but an enemy from within. Lies and treachery have taken root and only the king and a small band of loyal followers can prevent the destruction of all they hold dear in this, the magnificent ending to The Chronicles of Narnia.

About the Author
Clive Staples Lewis, born in 1898, wrote many books for adults but the Narnia stories were his only works for children. The final title, The Last Battle, published in 1956, won the Carnegie Award, the highest mark of excellence in children's literature.

Customer Reviews

Aptly named - listen to the other stories first.
The final in the series of "Narnia" stories, The Last Battle works on the same two levels as the other stories. On the one hand, we have a an adventure story about children in a strange and magical world, and on the other we have a treatise on ethics and religion.

Lewis' world of adventure and magic is charming, vividly described and exhilarating. As with the other books in the series, this is fundamentally a human story of drama and pathos, where children are finding adventure and heroism. As a child, I was as enthalled with this story as with any of his others - real favourites. Even so, I found this to be the darkest and in many ways the most challenging of his works. Now, as an adult, I see this very much as a work to be a passionate statement of religious belief, which is skillfully articulated though uncompromising in the position it takes.

The work is really in two parts. The longer, first part, has an interesting opening in which a rather selfish and thoughtless creature sets in motion a chain of events that culminates in the destruction of a sacred forest and ultimately in a breakdown of social order. There follows revolt and warfare wrapped up with fragmentation and subversion of the previously unassailable cult of Aslan. The second part involves the transportation of the children and their friends to the land of Aslan and much discussion of their love of Aslan and much discussion of the wonder and beauty of Aslan's kingdom.

Clearly, Aslan represents God. The narrative part of the story has much to do with the nature of good and evil, and the difference between doing wrong innocently and doing wrong maliciously. Interestingly, it follows a strong thread through the nature of propaganda, the subversion of a worthy cause, and the uncontrollable chaos of politics. Slightly worrying are the casting of an apparently Middle-Eastern kingdom as devil-worshippers, the general feeling that the British class system is alive and well in Narnia, and the slightly mysogenistic criticism of Susan who as a young woman "has reached the silliest time of her life and wants to stay there for as long as possible". I think we can forgive this slight transgressions of political correctness in view of the time in which the novel were written; the "green" views concerning the cutting down of woodland and (horrors!) the march of civilisation would find, though, some resonance today.

The Christian element of the book is very firmly stated, especially in the second part, which is more or less a description of the Second Coming and the End of the World! Heavy stuff for a children's book! However, it works surprisingly well and a child will enjoy the story and probably find the sub-text at least posing some questions for them.

Technically the production is excellent, as might be expected from the BBC. It is the right length, seems to be unabridged (though I have not checked) and the voices and sound effects fit together nicely without being overdone.

I would recommend this, but not before you have read (or listened to) The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe plus a couple of the other works in the series.

A fitting finale to the Narnia series
This book is a fine ending to the Narnia series: and far better when read after the preceding six, in my opinion. It has a rather different atmosphere to the others, I think- a bit less gung-ho adventure, a touch more symbolism. I think kids reading it will enjoy it a little less, as it isn't exactly clear what's going on.
It is difficult to discuss the book without giving away plot elements. But, as with the first book in the series, in wrapping things up The Last Battle is more overtly based on a Christian worldview than the other books in the series. This is no problem, in my opinion, as it gives the seven books a certain coherence and continuity; and the last paragraph is one of my favourite from any book. But this probably reflects the fact that I am a Christian.
This is one book where your own beliefs may affect your enjoyment of it. Still, if you want closure to the rest of the series- this is the one to read, even if it makes you uncomfortable.

Audio version - Superbe
The narration of this book by Patrick Stewart is extraordiarily good. He has a wonderful speaking voice, of course, but more than that, the different characters are portrayed with such a range of tones and accents that one can almost picture them. I dont know if Patrick Stewart has recorded any more Audiobooks, but I certainly hope he will do more in the future.