Most Helpful Customer Reviews
|
|
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A remembered pleasure, 12 Dec 2003
By A Customer
We discovered the Narnia books on tape 12 years ago when living in France and we drove hundreds of miles around Europe, two small children listening intently in the back seat, all of us captivated by the magic. Michael Hordern does full justice to the beautiful English prose, the complex characters, the extraordinary world where good struggles with evil -- the creation of a remarkable British writer. The music, composed specially for the series, complements it perfectly. Our tapes self destructed years ago and we are ordering the CDs now, looking forward to recapturing our remembered pleasure.
|
|
|
16 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Caspian - king of Narnia, 13 Jan 2008
At the start of the book, we are with the four Pevensie children, Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy, who are waiting for connecting trains at a railway station in the course of their journey back to their respective boarding schools when they feel the pull of the magic and are drawn into Narnia and find that more than a thousand years have passed since they reigned there as kings and queens. In this book there are some new characters: Prince Caspian is the true king of Narnia, whose evil uncle, King Miraz, has snatched the throne. Caspian gathers an army of the Old Narnians and fights for his crown. Miraz is also a Telmarine like Caspian but is cruel and harsh. He tolerates Caspian as the next king but when his wife gives birth to a son, he wants to kill Caspian so his son can be the future ruler. Doctor Cornelius is Caspian's tutor. He tells Caspian in secret that the stories of old Narnia are true and that he is half-Dwarf. He helps Caspian to escape the castle and later returns to his aid in the forest to help the creatures of Narnia defeat Miraz. Trumpkin is a red-Dwarf who helps Caspian defeat Miraz. When he is captured by Miraz's soldiers and taken to Cair Paravel in exile, he meets the Pevensie children and leads them to Caspian. Nikabrik is a black-Dwarf in Caspian's army. He wants to fight Miraz by calling up the White Witch, with the black magic of a hag and a werewolf. However, he, the hag and the werewolf are killed. Trufflehunter is a badger who aids Caspian in his struggle. He helps Caspian and saves him from the storm in the forest by taking him in to his den.
|
|
|
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
THERE ARE OLD NARNIANS, AND BOLD NARNIANS, BUT NO OLD BOLD NARNIANS, 30 May 2007
It is a bleak time for the Narnians of old. The talking animals are all in hiding and men who call themselves Telmarines are ruling the land. The men of Telmar are afraid of and hostile to talking animals, the dryads and hamadryads, the naiads, centaurs, dwarves, and satyrs. They fear them and have tried to destroy them. The woods are silent and the dryads sleep, dreaming of a free Narnia and better times. But the memories of old, free Narnia are alive and are passed on in secret. The nurse of Prince Caspian is just one who knows the exciting secrets of old, and there are many others. And so it happens that the young prince comes to love the old that is hidden more than the new that he will rule. But although the stories of old may feed the soul, they are dangerous to know. And that is the start of the prince's dangers and adventures. He may call on those free creatures who are in hiding, they may rally to his call, but will they be strong enough to overthrow their oppressors? He has one more magical link with the past, and he will use it at the moment of greatest need - the magical horn of Queen Susan bringing unknown help to those who use it, which has been preserved as a relic by the faithful.
The Chronicles of Narnia begin, as everyone knows, with `The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe'. This story, `Prince Caspian', is probably best read second in the sequence as it is a continuation of the original four's adventures. The High King Peter, King Edmund, Queen Susan, and Queen Lucy are summoned by magic back to Narnia to aid Prince Caspian in time of crisis. The story of `The Magician's Nephew' goes back to the beginning of Narnian time and a little earlier in our world's time to tell how Narnia was created in the first place, and it is probably best read about fifth or sixth in the sequence, but at any rate before `The Last Battle' which tells how Narnia ends and is more frightening than the rest. The best loved of all the stories is probably `The Voyage of the Dawn Treader', partly because it is the longest and richest story in the series and is supremely well written. It is very easy to read but full of interweaving plots, and thrills on land and sea, and full of hard realities like how people behave while thirsty on short water rations and no land in sight. It is the jewel of the set, and fits perfectly in the middle. Reading about prince Caspian will help set the jewel in your mind.
`Prince Caspian' is also an interesting story because it explains so much of the magic of Narnia, and gives those who wish to see an insight into politics, history (ours and Narnia's), battles, and human psychology. It is particularly revealing to see what a prince's education involves: some literature, some mathematics, some social graces, some skills in entertainment and music, some politics. Some people do not like this story because it is about a war, but it really is about what leads up to war, what happens after, and how the individuals involved all react and cope. The actual fighting is a small part of the whole, unlike a modern action film which is heavy on the fighting and light on the people. Having said that, the storyline is one of the simplest in the set as we stay almost all the time with the four children together, who quickly resume their adult roles once in Narnia. When things threaten to overwhelm the brave few, Aslan is at hand but to their surprise he is not always easy to see.
|
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
by C. S. Lewis
by C. S. Lewis
by C. S. Lewis
by C. S. Lewis
See all Product Description
![The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2 Disc Special Edition) [DVD] [2008]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61yhKh3D5SL._SL75_SS50_.jpg)
With an Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificate, you can get them what they want (even if you don't know what that is). 
Amazon Home