The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis
Published by HarperCollins
Publication Date January 2, 2008
Source: Gift
Genres: Fantasy
Goodreads
The conclusion of the saga that began with The Magician's Nephew.
NARNIA...where you must say good-bye...and where the adventure begins again.
The Unicorn says that humans are brought to Narnia when Narnia is stirred and upset. And Narnia is in trouble now: A false Aslan roams the land. Narnia's only hope is that Eustace and Jill, old friends to Narnia, will be able to find the true Aslan and restore peace to the land. Their task is a difficult one because, as the Centaur says, "The stars never lie, but Men and Beasts do." Who is the real Aslan and who is the imposter?
Well, not all of the Daughters of Eve return, Susan is conspicuously absent with the explanation given by past companions:
Peter says that she is “no longer a friend of Narnia”
Jill Pole — “she’s interested in nothing now-a-days except nylons and lipstick and invitations.”
Eustace Scrubb — “What wonderful memories you have! Fancy you still thinking about all those funny games we used to play when we were children,”
Polly Plummer — “She wasted all her school time wanting to be the age she is now, and she’ll waste all the rest of her life trying to stay that age. Her whole idea is to race on to the silliest time of one’s life as quick as she can and then stop there as long as she can.”
Is this suppose to signify anything? That girls are vain and conceited creatures, but then we have valiant and kind Lucy so it can be perceived as unclear what role they play. Personally, out of all the characters and mysteries of Narnia I think Susan is one of the greatest of them all, as all the other Kings and Queens of Narnia have a completed story.
The Last Battle, while it gives closure to a magical world with a solid ending was very bittersweet as I would have loved for it to go on and on and to step through the Wardrobe myself. One could wish this all they like but eventually Turkish Delight must come to an end. C.S. Lewis has done this and more throughout all his chronicles with a tear-dropping, spectacular ending.
I am a GIANT fan of The Last Battle, not least of all because C.S. Lewis puts the young Calorman in heaven because he was seeking after the right thing.
The issue with Susan was jarring. I think he wanted at least one of the four to get caught up in transient concerns and lose touch. It probably wasn't going to be Peter; Lucy had that connection to Narnia from the beginning, and Edmund had already been lost/found, so it basically had to be Susan. 🙁