After five months and seven books, my 11-year-old and I have finally finished our read-aloud of the Narnia books. I have to admit, this last book was a bit of a letdown for both of us. Such an odd book. The first several chapters are just dismal, as the world of Narnia is torn apart by trickery and our hero-figure is quickly disarmed and disgraced. Things perk up a bit when familiar faces from our world arrive, but still, the entire plot is rather a downer. Finally, the end brings some happiness... but it's bittersweet in many ways, and was completely confusing to my son until I explained the religious subtext of it all (which I'd mostly managed to avoid up to this point, preferring to read the Narnia books as pure fantasy). I'd never read the Narnia books as a child, so I very much enjoyed this introduction to C. S. Lewis's incredibly imaginative world -- but I do think the series deserves a better ending.