November Book Report

C.S. Lewis (1956) The Last Battle. [Audible]. Narrated by Patrick Stewart. HarperAudio (2005)

I’ve worked my way through the Audio versions of the Chronicles of Narnia this year. Patrick Stewart is an exceptional narrator to wrap up the series with The Last Battle. Narnia began with The Magician’s Nephew, and ends with this story of a final war with the Calormenes and their god, Tash. Aslan doesn’t appear again in Narnia, but his presence gives King Tirian confidence to lead the charge against an enemy determined to rule Narnia. The title of the book gives away the outcome of the battle, but it does not mean the tale has a sad ending. In fact, the ending is the happiest ending any one of us could hope for. No spoilers, but IYKYK.

There are countless spiritual references and lines designed to make the reader/hearer think beyond the story into the eternal. It was this book that described a place as having an inside “bigger than its outside.” (Sorry Doctor Who fans — Lewis published the line in 1956; Doctor Who premiered November 23, 1963, one day after Lewis died.)

Beyond the TARDIS, there’s a whole chapter on how people often see only what they choose to see, rather than what is true. There…