I know many of my current subscribers are teens or young adults. You probably love writing, or at least reading, given that you put up with the highly-specific material I publish. Maybe you too grew up reading ravenously and can point to the books that marked your childhood -- the Chronicles of Narnia, 100 Cupboards,... Continue Reading →
Every child who's grown up on fairytales or Disney has heard the refrain, 'and they lived happily ever after.' It's a theme of every fairytale -- not counting the Grimms', naturally. Why? Why were stories finished with this line or something like it? Because it was convenient? Perhaps. But why are stories that don't end... Continue Reading →
This summer, my youth pastor preached a series on worldview. His lecture on animism was particularly interesting, as he pointed out just how deeply it's infiltrated the entertainment of today. In what ways? Let's start by defining animism. It was certainly a term I had never heard before. My pastor defined animism as the over-emphasis... Continue Reading →
Hey there, just popping in because this was so well-done I needed to share about it. The Gospel Coalition published this fantastic article by Brett McCracken today. I highly recommend reading through it -- it mentions some of the issues I've been discussing recently and really explains the decay of storytelling in our culture well.... Continue Reading →
Arthurian myths. What fun. Easily-offended knights, loose ladies, and bizarre situations. Lovely. *ahem* No, mocking them is not all I am going to do. But there will certainly be a fair share of that, because, why not? As I've already quite clearly demonstrated, I enjoy being sarcastic. So then. 😜 Before we begin, I'd like... Continue Reading →
Well, last summer, I decided to get a head start on my British literature homework and hey, why pass up an excuse to read more, am I right? So, without further ado, I plunged into everything I could find written by British authors or about Britain. From Lawhead’s Song of Albion to Dark Rising... Continue Reading →
I'm going to be honest with you -- this post originally began as a rant on the material I'd been forced to read for school. But then I got a book for Christmas, called The Christian Imagination, a collection of essays on literature. The one by Leland Ryken -- mind you, not the Christian Science... Continue Reading →
Recently, I read Mollie E. Reeder's debut novel and when I finished it, had discovered a new favorite. I went into it expecting something classic steampunk, perhaps with flashing circus lights and Greatest Showman-like drama. And I got that... with so much more. I was instantly drawn to the style of the writing and to... Continue Reading →
Homeschooling parents and the leaders of any educational program always desire edifying curriculum for their students, and often choose literature material based on awards and popularity. Parents reading aloud to their kids or letting their little bookworms wander through the library to pick out books on their own assume anything that managed to get awarded... Continue Reading →
I come before you to make the case that we need more platonic relationships in fiction, especially YA. *Ehem.* Practically every mainstream YA book out there has some sort of romantic relationship. Why? Because the teen years are when romance and sex are common -- at least in this day and age. However, I was... Continue Reading →
