As a parent and grandparent I like to read what our youngest is reading. It is good to share and discuss stories. Often we engage in weird conversations based on what we are reading. Terry Pratchett comes to mind. Personally I am not a fan but I do find his books humorous. Even if I don’t care for a particular book, I like to know what Junior is reading so that I can engage with his interests at home and with our children at Church -Kids like to swap books or follow a particular author.
There are many excellent books and some pretty questionable ones from a Christian perspective. Often parents ask me what should their children be reading. I am in no way some official censor, but I can recommend what I find edifying and important to developing a sound Christian upbringing -and what is good writing from my point of view as an author.
Let us begin with authors. Here are some I would definitely recommend.
The list…..
The classics by C.S. Lewis and Tolkien immediately come to mind.
Authors I would recommend are:
Stephen Lawhead
Bryan Davis
Bill Myers
Brian Jacques
Rich Wallace
Rosemary Sutcliffe
Robert Elmer
Robert Liparulo
Ted Dekker
Andrew Klavan
Paul Mccusker
......more to follow when I have read them...
Reading and enjoying fantasy literature while avoiding the dark side
The fantasy market gets bigger every year. Online gaming is a billion dollar industry. Fantasy books are selling by the millions, appearing regularly on the New York Times bestseller list.
Names like Pullman, Riordan, Sage, Stroud and Cooper are very popular.
Books by these authors are well written, exciting but full of negative messages. The underlying current of these writings is nihilism. Pullman for example boasts openly (tongue in cheek) that his books are written to destroy God. A zealous atheist and humanist Pullman regularly gives talks at schools.
Angie Sage encourages her young readers to: Believe in the magick.
Surely this just harmless fun? But what if the mind of the young reader has no belief system to counteract her message to seek magical powers to model your life on successful wizards and witches? What do you do when you meet a witch in real life?
In the world of fantasy the reader or the player of fantasy games becomes a mini-god, all-powerful, a hero or heroine without the need to do anything real in their lives. No effort required. No moral obligations or restrictions – do what you like. You too can become a god without leaving the house!
Fantasy is important, especially in early childhood. It enables the young child to cope with stress and the pressure of life, especially if the child lives in a dysfunctional home.
However like any good thing, too much fantasy can be detrimental and in some cases psychologically and spiritually harmful leading to
