Customer Reviews

The Christian Imagination: The Practice of Faith in Literature and Writing (Writers' Palette Book)

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Ryken's rich and at times overwhelming collection of essays, musings, and pithy apologetic pieces on beauty, imagination, Christian thought, narrative, and poetry is richly diverse and thought provoking.

In this 100,000 word+ tome we get glimpses of what led C. S. Lewis to write the Narnia chronicles, what Annie Dillard thinks of literature as an art object, and Tolkein's view of the important of a happy ending--as well as dozens of other forays into thought on literature, reading, and life.

I found the views varied and, for the most part, refreshingly insightful. I will admit though, that I skipped some of the chapters that were excruciatingly dense and didactic. They'd quite clearly been written not by narrative artists but by academics, and despite my best intentions, I just wasn't able to plow through them.

As long as you're willing to skip the parts that aren't of interest to you, this book is well-worth buying, reading, and savoring. Just don't expect every mouthful to be as tasty as the rest.

Art is a hard subject for Christian evangelicals to deal with. It seems to be outside the boundaries of our primary mission, to proclaim the gospel in the world and display and expand the kingdom of God. However, this book helpfully shows the important contributions Christian art can make to that mission.

In a series of essays, various professors contribute thouhtfully to our understanding of the role of art's various forms from a Christian perspective. These thoughtful meditations are important, because they force us to reexamine our preconceptions about the role of art and beauty.

Yes, the format can be hard to follow, as it seems a bit disjointed. My recommendation to you is this; Read each major essay slowly, taking time to pause and digest its implications. Think carefully about how the essay touches your experiences. Do NOT read two major chapters in a single reading or even a single day. Instead, approach it more as a devotional- each thought/essay is its own autonomous unit.

By this approach, I believe you will be able to more deeply enter into the meditations of the authors, which are all extremely helpful and very gospel-centered.

Take the time to read this excellent book, and allow it to shape your thoughts about using beauty and art to display the gospel to a sick and dying world.

Beginning with a Christian philosophy of literature, this book takes you through numerous, luminous ways in which poets and writers have united truth, beauty, and the imagination to produce great works of literary art. Editor Leland Ryken selected a remarkable range of viewpoints on such topics as realism, myth, fantasy, poetry, and narratives in diverse chapters by Annie Dillard, Denise Levertov, Robert Siegel, J.R.R. Tolkien, John Ciardi, George MacDonald, C.S. Lewis, and others. Although I highly recommend this book for teachers and avid readers of literature, I consider it much more - a primary text, perhaps - for Christian poets, Christian writers, and Christian editors who want their work to be effective now but also for generations yet to come.

This isn't a book your gonna read nonstop for days but it is very good and perfect for the christian student besides, you won't find it for this price in new condition anywhere else! :)

If you want to learn about the impact and legacy of Christian writers (good and bad, but mostly good), this is the place to start. Featuring writings from many of the famous authors themselves on writing, plus essays from other onlookers. A must read for all literature students and readers.