The Complete Chronicles of Narnia Hardcover – September 23, 1998

These books are timeless, thoughtful and entertaining. I would recommend for kids and adults alike. A nice little package with all the volumes in. Well done.

In my new book, PASSPORT TO NARNIA: A NEWCOMER'S GUIDE, I try to put to rest the controversy about the order in which the books should be read, and for good reason: Lewis himself did not write these books as an interlocking whole, as did Tolkien (THE LORD OF THE RINGS) and J.K. Rowling (the Harry Potter novels). Lewis wrote that he wrote the books as they occurred to him, which is why he himself had no preference in which the books SHOULD be read. My contention is that the important thing is to READ these novels, not worry about the reading order. Besides, HarperCollins, his publisher, has made a decision to publish the books with THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW first, followed by THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE because, as is stated on the copyright page of the one volume hardback & paperback editions, "Although THE MAGICIAN'S NEPHEW was written several years after C.S. Lewis first began THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA, he wanted it to be read as the first book in the series. HarperCollins is happy to present these books in the order in which Professor Lewis preferred.Regarding the seven novels themselves and their readability: Great books come from great writers who can not only are outstanding storytellers but also offer more than mere diversion: Lewis, a celebrated scholar, teacher, writer, and popularizer of the Christian faith, was a literary giant; and when we read the Chronicles of Narnia, we see the world filtered through his worldview. The books and the writer are in this case inseparable; the books come from the writer and are deep expressions of his humanity, his views on courage and sacrifice and honor, which are at the heart of these seven novels. Having sold 85 million copies since 1950 (when the first book in the series was published), you can rest assured that the books have stood the test of time, entertaining and illuminating five generations of readers.The only complaint I have about this boxed set is that the production values are mismatched: the covers are gorgeously printed, but the interiors use very cheap pulp paper, with blotty ink printing that obscures not only the text but the wonderful Pauline Baynes artwork. Since mass market paperbacks are routinely printed on pulp paper, the problem here seems to be the presswork: The over-inking of these pages obscures the printing of the text and obliterates the artwork. Since the one volume editions are issued from the same publisher, with readable text and no glaring deficiencies in the presswork, I hope that the publisher takes the time to correct what is otherwise a handsome, affordable, boxed edition.A few comments about the forthcoming movie: the trailer looks wonderful and captures the sense of wonder that is Narnia. Early reviews are positive and, from all indications, Disney Pictures has a winner of a film and the beginnings of a major, new franchise. To my mind, the best thing about the movie is that it will prompt a certain number of people to go into the bookstores and look for the principal texts; I came to the Narnia books late in life, but reading them did what good fiction is supposed to do: Those books took me out of this world and into C.S. Lewis's wonderful and enchanting world of Narnia, and isn't THAT what superb storytelling is all about?Bottom line: Despite my reservations about the printing of the interiors of these books, this is the edition of choice because of its price and portability. If you haven't read these books, now is the time to start: After December 9, when the film is released, everyone will be rushing to the bookstore to see what is next.I look forward to the film release and also look forward to re-reading the Chronicles of Narnia again, just as soon as I finish re-reading Tolkien's THE LORD OF THE RINGS from cover to cover (including the appendices).

I was five years old the first time I read C.S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. My first experience of it was in audio format -- my mother read it to my sister and me. My sister remembers that I told them, "This is about Jesus. Aslan is Jesus." They were skeptical, but they eventually realized I was right. Given that all three of us loved it, I think this shows that you can appreciate LWW regardless of your feelings about the religious message. (In this it is distinct from Lewis's Christian fantasies for adults, e.g. the Space Trilogy, which I found unbearably heavy-handed.)I later went on to own and read (by myself, in ink on paper format) the entire Chronicles of Narnia. I can remember being distinctly annoyed at the illustrator for LWW, who, despite the clear statement "it was all three-legged stools in the Beavers’ house except for Mrs. Beaver’s own special rocking chair beside the fire" drew Mrs Beaver sitting in an ordinary four-legged chair.These seven novels are, of course, classic speculative fiction for children, and LWW is one of the best of the seven. For the record, I think I would choose The Silver Chair as the best and The Horse and His Boy as the least impressive. But you should just read them all -- they're short enough.I doubt that the Chronicles of Narnia were the first portal fiction, but by now I feel confident in saying that they are the earliest example to survive and still be widely read in 2023.

There are books and then there are these books by C.S. Lewis. Our family has read hundreds of books over the years. No other series comes even close. The Chronicles of Narnia captures the heart and imagination of young and old. The rich language, the depth of the story, the truth brought so beautifully. A masterpiece.As for the specific version in paperback, I would go for hardcover if you can afford it. You want to hold on to these and read them again and again and hopefully one day to your grandchildren too.

Very enjoyable to read

La calidad de los libros es buena e ideal para un niño que está tomando el hábito de la lectura

O livro tem um acabamento impecável. E ainda vem com ilustrações ao longo da história.A capa é belíssima e as folhas são de boa qualidade.Vale muito a pena pra quem é fã ou quer colecionar.

Beautiful set my daughter was delighted.

Very nice and big book! Gorgeous illustrations. The font is good size.