Children as Possessions Winter/Spring 1998

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I recently had to plan a reading course, and have thus been pondering what it is that would keep my attention for a semester. Perusing my shelves and recalling the contents of several (very large) boxes of books, I found my answer. The most influential reading in my life has been fantasy and science fiction. This may sound hyperbolic, but in fact I read little nonfiction until just a few years ago (I had no taste for it, and even today I prefer to learn through fiction). And now that my reading has expanded somewhat (both by choice and the compulsion of my studies), I still find that speculative fiction best holds my interest and inspires my imagination. It is not a genre that has been covered in these pages before, so let me share with you the best from my shelves, both classic and modern, both Christian and secular writers.

Christians reading speculative fiction should begin with the Inklings—C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, and Charles Williams—and their writings in and about the genre. Modern fantasy is indebted to the very Catholic Tolkien for its themes. Most of you will be familiar with his benchmark Lord of the Rings trilogy, but I also encourage you to read his essay, "On Fairy-Stories" (found in The Tolkien Reader and elsewhere), where he makes a compelling case for fantasy. Tolkien and Lewis were themselves inspired by the works of George MacDonald, whose fairy tales and fantasies (such as The Princess and the Goblin) are masterful in evoking a sense of the wonder that underlies creation. MacDonald's fantasy works can now be found online at http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/plaza/ev90481/md_etext.htm (look in particular for his essay "The Fantastic Imagination.")

Contemporary writers worthy of note are Guy Gavriel Kay ...

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