Customer Reviews

The Giant Surprise: A Narnia Story

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Narnia without CS Lewis? A Narnain story without the complex themes Lewis wove in the Chronicles. Rubbish!

One reviewer wrote this:
"I suppose that what would bother Lewis (and what should bother us) is not that the book isn't "Christian," but that it isn't any good. It's flat, predictable, and utterly undistinguished. It is hard to imagine that a story this lifeless would have been published had there been no Narnia hook."

Let this be the last attempt to exploit the Lewis legacy.

Nothing Narnia here, nothing C.S. Lewis here, nothing worth buying here.
Beware the onslaught of Narnia "branding". C.S. Lewis would be appalled at this trite, giggly desecration.

I was surprised to come across this title - although I was aware that the estate of CS Lewis had opened up the possibility of other Narnia tales that utilized characters from the series to spin off other adventures. Here is one of these new adventures! Whimsical illustrations sure to entrance any child combined with an adventure involving large giants with not so large brains will be a hit with some. In my case, I give this title two stars - because it is *NOT* written by CS Lewis. Inspired by, yes, but authored, heavens no. Concerning Hiawyn Oram, of her I've never heard. But people have heard of Narnia. At least this site lists her as the author, unlike Zondervan.

Someone's making money on Lewis's genius.

A similar situation would be if titles started to hit the 4-10 kids market featuring Bilbo Baggins in other kid friendly adventures. Maybe even Choose Your Own Adventure books for the 11-14 year olds taking place in Middle Earth. Just think, the market is ripe for these items! I type sarcastically.

I'm a Narnia purist; this title adds to the Narnia cannon something that, as far as I'm concerned ended with "Further Up and Further In" and "Farewell to the Shadowlands" (see The Last Battle, last 2 chapters).

I bought this book in the hopes that it was as well written as the author's other book The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. I was disappointed in it as were my grandchildren.

The story was okay for this book. Nothing special. However, Humphries' artwork is beautiful. His watercolor is amazing. A big fan of his. I recommend this book for art lovers. But if you want a great story, then I wouldn't suggest it.

I can't believe the Lewis estate authorised this expoitation.

What next: The Bible II?

I, too, have to agree with the consensus that the book is nothing special, and only receives attention because it cashes in on the Narnia franchise at a time when Narnia is coming once again to the public's attention. At best, it's cute and the illustrations are pretty. At worst, the story is rather silly and nothing special.

My children are young -- ages 2, 4 and 6 -- and they're big on hearing the stories they love read to them over and over again. They've heard this book once, and have never given it a second glance since.

C.S.Lewis's name is prominently mentioned on the cover, but this "Narnia Story" has noting to do with Lewis, or Narnia (apart from stealing the names of some characters!).

It is bad enough to publish a "Narnia" story with Aslan deleted and all Christian resonances eliminated, but this story is also boring, bland and shallow.

One to avoid.

I don't agree with the negative reviews posted here. Yes, it's not Narnia. Yes, it's not written by C.S. Lewis. I've never read any of the C.S. Lewis books, so I don't have any preconceptions. All I know is that my 4 year old son asks for this book quite often. He definitely likes it; It's maybe not one of his *top* favorites (we've lots of books to choose from), but it's one he regularly requests (several times a week). The illustrations are great. The story is not predictable (as another post suggested). And frankly I enjoy reading it to my son.

"I like it" = 4 stars.

My seven year old is obsessed with Narnia and she loves this book. Great illustrations, simple to read and easy to follow story which, while not exactly very complex in terms of structure, makes it easy for young children to follow. I would recommend this book for a young reader.