Product Description

The Chronicles of Narnia Audio Collection brings all seven of C.S. Lewis's beloved Narnia tales to life as they are read by some of the world's most celebrated and renowned performers. Read by a professional reader.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #142543 in Books
• Published on: 2000-11-01
• Released on: 2000-10-24
• Formats: Abridged, Audiobook
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Audio Cassette

Review
"Superlative" -- The Horn Book

From the Back Cover
Listeners young and old will fall under the spell of the mystical land of Narnia, where good and evil battle, children are transformed into kings and queens, beasts and creatures can talk, and magic reigns.

In superb performances, Ian Richardson, Claire Bloom, Sir Anthony Quayle, and Michael York narrate the adventures of Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy as they encounter enchanting, mythical characters and learn the lessons of faith and hope.

The complete collection includes: The Magician's Nephew The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe The Horse and His Boy Prince Caspian The Voyage of the Dawn Treader The Silver Chair The Last Battle

About the Author
C. S. Lewis (1898-1963) was one of the intellectual giants of the twentieth century and arguably the most influential Christian writer of his day. He was a Fellow and Tutor in English literature at Oxford University until 1954 when he was unanimously elected to the Chair of Medieval and Renaissance English at Cambridge University, a position he held until his retirement. His major contributions in literary criticism, children’s literature, fantasy literature, and popular theology brought him international renown and acclaim. He wrote more than thirty books, allowing him to reach a vast audience, and his works continue to attract thousands of new readers every year. His most distinguished and popular accomplishments include The Chronicles of Narnia, Out of the Silent Planet, The Four Loves, The Screwtape Letters, and Mere Christianity.

Customer Reviews

Info on the "adult" editions of these great books . . . .
Let me start by saying that I loved these stories as a child. I read "The Lion, the With and the Wardrobe" in fourth grade as a part of class. I was reluctant to read it and had no interest (school kids are like that) but I was sucked into the story very quickly. I had my parents buy me the boxed set and I believe I ended up reading 5 of the 7 books. I absolutely love this story.
After at least 40 minutes of Googling, I finally found out what the difference between the "adult" version and the regular version is. Apparently the "adult" version includes some essay material about the literature and each book contains a synopsis of information you'd need to know from the other books to read the one you're holding. Other than that, only the packaging is different. The stories all remain the same. I only wish Amazon.com would have provided me this information and saved me the time.

Finally, A set I can put in the right order!
I have waited for years to replace my well worn set of Narnia books. Even though Lewis may have mentioned in passing that he'd prefer the books to be read chronologically, I still preferred to read them in the order they were written. Every boxed set I have found in the last 15 years has the books numbered, with Magician's nephew as the first (he wrote The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe first).

Apparently I'm not alone in wishing to be able to have these wonderful boks on my shelf in the order the author wrote them. This set has NO numbering on the spines of the books!

Ok, not a big deal to many, and this isn't a review of the books themselves (there are plenty of those around!), but I'm just excited about being able to purchase a new set finally!

a most excellent collection
I purchased this set about 2 months ago and before that time I could find no reviews of the actual performances on the CDs. Now "Barb (WV)" has done a nice review of the performances, so I won't go into that amount of detail, although my opinion differs slightly from hers (?) in some places.

Before I get to that, if you are wondering whether to listen to/purchase this collection, my answer is an unwavering YES. I have a 30-minute drive to work and I was enthralled by these recordings. It took me 5 or 6 weeks to listen to all 31 unabridged hours, but sometimes I could hardly wait to get back in the car so I could hear the next part of the story. I have read and re-read these books for many years and have parts memorized from sheer repetition, but it was a joy to listen to them read by these terrific performers. I prefer these narrated books instead of a theatrical version because the relatively narrow range in volume makes them easier to listen to in the car, without loud fluctuations to make you leap for the volume knob.


I will say that I thought Michael York's narrative voice in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe rather condescending and I found it mildly annoying after a while, although still worth listening to. I thought that Lynn Redgrave's task in Prince Caspian was particularly daunting, given the many male characters she had to perform, whereas all the other books are read by men and have fewer female characters. I thought her rendition of most of the male voices was quite believable and enjoyable, and better than some of the men's attempts at female voices. Her only voice I didn't care for was Aslan. There were a couple of characters in other books for whom I didn't like the reader's rendition, for example, the Eagle in The Last Battle (sorry, Patrick Stewart). But all of the books were exceedingly well done; my two favorites were The Horse and His Boy and The Silver Chair.


One editorial issue that did bother me was the text in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader; I wonder why the story was changed? [if you are not familiar with the book, *note* that this will reveal a small bit of plot] Just as Lord Rhoop is introduced to Caspian after his rescue from the Dark Island, he begs "a boon" from Caspian. Here, straight from the text:
"What is it?" asked Caspian.
"Never to ask me, nor to let any other ask me, what I have seen during my years on the Dark Island."
"An easy boon, my Lord," answered Caspian, and added with a shudder. "_Ask_ you: I should think not. I would give all my treasure _not_ to hear it."
[end of quote, p. 161, Collier Books paperback edition 1970]

Yet I was really confused when, instead of the expected lines, Derek Jacobi said, [here is my transcription]
"What is it?" asked Caspian.
"Never to bring me back there," he said. He pointed astern. They all looked, but they saw only bright blue sea, and bright blue sky. The Dark Island and the darkness had vanished forever.

"Why!" cried Lord Rhoop. "You have destroyed it!"

"I don't think it was us," said Lucy.
[end of transcription]

Where did that come from? If anyone has heard this version of the story, please let me know. It's not in any copy we own and I didn't understand why it was changed.

But as for the CD collection overall, this is a terrific addition to anyone's audio library. I have to admit it is the first audio book (set) I have ever listened to, or purchased. It is well worth the price.