It’s a good series, broadly speaking. You’ll find a lot of the story beats repeated in subsequent fantasy novels and isekai manga (Terry Brooks, in particular, loves CA Lewis tropes, Terry Pratchett isn’t shy about cribbing from them either, and Brian Jacques’s Redwall plays heavily with Lewis’s style).
The earlier material is definitely better. Lion, Witch, Wardrobe has been reproduced a zillion times for a reason. Prince Caspian is good. The Silver Chair is good. A Horse and his Boy is good, in large part because it heightens the drama of that last chapter of LW&W so well.
And the books are fairly short. Perfect for younger readers. We pick at the bad parts because they spoil what is largely recognized as a genre setting masterpiece. But don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. There’s a lot of good material and some incredible worldbuilding in these stories.
If I’m going to read juvenile high fantasy from a controversial figure of the fifties, I think I’ll stick to Monteiro Lobato. But thanks for providing nuance and perspective.
Hard disagree, it is not a good series. I just finished reading it to my kid. We saw it through in large part through discussing what was weird and why as we went.
The only redeeming factor of the series is Reepicheep.
It’s a good series, broadly speaking. You’ll find a lot of the story beats repeated in subsequent fantasy novels and isekai manga (Terry Brooks, in particular, loves CA Lewis tropes, Terry Pratchett isn’t shy about cribbing from them either, and Brian Jacques’s Redwall plays heavily with Lewis’s style).
The earlier material is definitely better. Lion, Witch, Wardrobe has been reproduced a zillion times for a reason. Prince Caspian is good. The Silver Chair is good. A Horse and his Boy is good, in large part because it heightens the drama of that last chapter of LW&W so well.
And the books are fairly short. Perfect for younger readers. We pick at the bad parts because they spoil what is largely recognized as a genre setting masterpiece. But don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. There’s a lot of good material and some incredible worldbuilding in these stories.
If I’m going to read juvenile high fantasy from a controversial figure of the fifties, I think I’ll stick to Monteiro Lobato. But thanks for providing nuance and perspective.
It’s the 2020s, every figure older than 3 months ago is controversial.
Big sad.
Hard disagree, it is not a good series. I just finished reading it to my kid. We saw it through in large part through discussing what was weird and why as we went.
The only redeeming factor of the series is Reepicheep.
I feel bad for your kids.