It's hard to find appropriate stories for children that don't contain objectionable ingredients. Even in small doses, spices set the character for a whole dish. How impactful then for character to be infused by the holy ingredients of biblical truth, love, and hope. Each month, we recommend a story work of art that is both creative and faithful to the Creator and the lover of our souls. May God add to these authors and their works. February Pick - The Purloined Boy by C.R. WileyABOUT THE AUTHOR: C.R. Wiley is a pastor, non-fiction writer, and has previously been a college professor, a building contractor, and real estate investor. He has lived in rural Connecticut and Washington state. The Purloined Boy is his first fiction book. Read an interview C.R. Wiley gave about the role of fiction in the Christian life and his influences for fiction writing. If you love Tolkien, you'll also want to check out his non-fiction book about one of the most puzzling characters in Middle-Earth: Tom Bombadil. Tolkien claimed that Tom Bombadil had a function in the story and represented something important. Wiley sets out to tackle some of the long-standing questions about this mysterious character. ABOUT THE BOOK: The Purloined Boy is fitting for the middle-grade age group of 8 to 12 year olds though it is also billed as a young adult book for younger teens. This book was surprisingly refreshing. The story pace was good and the writing relatively economical so kids and parents can find out quickly whether or not this book is to their liking. Also, C.R. Wiley moves the action not through annoyingly oblivious or stubborn characters but through intelligent characters faced with changing dilemmas. After getting kidnapped by monsters as a toddler on page one, the author doesn't keep us waiting and soon Trevor, who is 10 years old now and has grown up in a monster world, is plunged into a deadly situation with no way out. That's when a creature of hope and light appears, embodied as a tiny mouse rescuer. Children of the church will hear echoes of our savior in the small voice that beckons Trevor to freedom and older "children" will recall Aslan in the manner of Trevor's rescue. The author infuses the mouse character with wonderful boldness of speech to challenge Trevor and his expectations, and ours as well. Good dialogue that pushes our minds to higher truths is rare even in Christian fiction and was a gem in this book. After that rescue, we follow Trevor into a secret ancient society of people who work to save children from the monsters. Often, Christian writers spend so much effort building a world of trials and hardship, they don't seem to have anything left to craft a vision of beauty. Thankfully, through C.R. Wiley, we witness a beautiful society of imperfect but lovable people in a fun setting. There is warmth and something worth fighting for in this story after the initial horrors. Now, this is where it should be stated that the tone of the book is light. The monster society kidnaps children to raise them and then eat them. Yes, you read that right. However, this is a book actually written for children; monsters eating little children is simply a fact as it might be in some children's minds and in many of our fairy tales. And again, there is a challenge in this book as the monster pantry is an obvious simile for hell and the good people of the story "fish" for new children to save. The book is a great discussion point about what we or anyone in our lives are being saved from. There is also a battle at the end where many of the good are slain. The tone is reminiscent of the description of any of the battles that took place in Narnia. The beginning of the story is confusing - it's not clear what kind of monster world we are in. However, isn't life sometimes like that? Also, C.R. Wiley seems to personally despise bullies and he makes the unfortunate decision to call one bully a "pimple" repeatedly in the first three chapters. This is hugely inappropriate and parents reading this book out loud should simply insert another word. If you are willing to get through the confusion and poor choice of words at the start, you will find an interesting journey full of characters you will want to see again in the sequel which has not yet been published. CHRISTIAN BOOK REVIEW SITES: If you wish to find more Christian children's fiction, the Christian sites below are great resources. Lorehaven Redeemed Reader Big Books Little Ears Reformed Perspective - Children's Fiction Reviews Bonus Oldie but Goodie (not necessarily Christian fiction) - A Cricket in Times Square
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