Tigerpetal Press : Book Review: The Last Battle

The Chronicles of Narnia Book 7: The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis

I liked it; it was good

The last book of the series! Since I was going on a week-long road trip to Edmonton for my cousin’s wedding, I decided to bring the entire series, including this one, to read as we were driving. It really paid off!

Read: June 28, 2024

Genre: Classic, Fairy Tale
Audience: Children
Book contains: manipulation, lying, good vs evil, false prophets, slavery, implied character death, war

Purchase a copy from Amazon.ca

Great Way to End the Series!

Eustace and Jill are once again called back to Narnia to free it from tyranny. An ape named Shift has claimed himself the mouthpiece of Aslan, and he demonstrates the danger of false prophets and blind faith.

This book immediately introduces the reader to the villain, Shift, who gets the ball rolling on the darkness that spreads throughout Narnia. It dives into the nitty-gritty dangers of manipulation while still being an accessible, entertaining, and valuable book for young readers.

C.S. Lewis makes great use of the third person omniscient perspective, guiding us through this story, which follows many different characters, from Shift the ape to King Tirian to Eustace and Jill and the rest of the friends of Narnia.

This last book was also read/listened to in my hotel room in Edmonton while I was there for my cousin’s wedding. It was great for re-charging my batteries between all the social interaction.

Everyone returns for this final installment in the Narnia series, though it is up to Eustace and Jill to make all the difference by somehow convincing the animals that they have been tricked. Allegiances are divided and all seems hopeless for them and King Tirian.

I think the biggest relationship in this book is the one between Aslan and the animals of Narnia. He is their creator and deity, but that means he is not always there to solve their problems. Some of the animals don’t believe in him at all, while others believe in him far too much that they leave themselves open to manipulation. Aslan works in mysterious ways, not always directly interfering, and is extremely coded to be God from Christian belief—like how many aspects of the world of Narnia are based in religion without it being explicitly stated.

Lewis’s writing style is great for children, which allows him to tell a deep story and teach important lessons to young readers. Don’t believe everything you hear. Don’t blindly trust others; think for yourself. The whole problem of this story could’ve been avoided if the animals had thought for themselves and done what they thought was right, not what they thought Aslan wanted. It touches on the importance of avoiding false prophets, but also the suffering of a lack of faith. There are so many levels to Lewis’s writing for more experienced readers to pick apart, while remaining simple enough for young readers to enjoy and learn life lessons through osmosis.

This story begins differently from the others, in that it almost as a prologue at the beginning for the villain to come up with his plan. The second chapter has a three-week time-skip, in which King Tirian discovers what’s going on and calls upon the friends of Narnia (through Aslan) for aid. The pacing was pretty good—the characters followed an order of operations that kept the plot moving. It didn’t seem rushed or overly slow, and the final battle at the end was descriptive and entertaining.

What an excellent way to end the series as a whole and officially close the book on The Chronicles of Narnia. Highly recommended series!

The Chronicles of Narnia Book 7: The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis

Great Way to End the Series!

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