Warning: This Book May Contain Some Christianity; TTFN

[rj_anderson]

I was interested to see Betsy Bird's comments on her Fuse #8 blog today about a new graphic novel called Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword (warning: autoplay video at source). Among other things, the novel includes lots of information about Orthodox Judaism, which caused Betsy to comment:

Think about children’s fantasy novels and religion for a moment. Religion in fantasies for kids tends to skew one of three ways. You can incorporate it and make it the entire point of the novel (Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials, the Narnia books of C.S. Lewis, or Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time series which is technically science fiction anyway). You can make up an entirely new religion of your own (as in the novels of Frances Hardinge, Tamora Pierce, Megan Whalen Turner, etc.). Or you just sorta forget about it...

And then she goes on to talk about Hereville as something different, where the religion is very much an integral part of the book's atmosphere and sensibility but it's not the whole focus of the plot, which is more of a hero's quest story.

Which had the desired effect of really making me want to read Hereville, but also made me wonder: for those of you who've read Wayfarer, do you think it falls into the first category (religion is the entire point), or the fourth (it's part of the worldbuilding, but not the main story)? Either one is fine, I'm just curious. Since it's definitely not the second or the third...

And can you think of any other books you've read where religion is handled in a way similar to Hereville, as an integral part of the MC's background and culture but not necessarily the obvious point of the story?

***

That being said, it may take me a while to respond to your (doubtless very interesting) comments on the subject of how religion does or can fit into children's books. After my two appearances in Guelph and Waterloo this weekend, I'm heading off to the Fortress of Solitude to overcome my SHERLOCK obsession work on Arrow revisions, and won't be back online until Friday.

Don't burn down the Internet while I'm away, kids!

Comments

[rj-anderson.livejournal.com]

Thanks for that rec! It sounds like an interesting book.

So that raises another question in my mind: where would you say the dividing line is between representing a religion as part of the characters' lives and thinking in a non-preachy way, and coming across as preachy? Do you think the dividing line is different for different people, or is there an objective measurement for this kind of thing?

[dichroic.livejournal.com]

It's absolutely different for different people. Learning that the Narnia books were intended as allegory didn't really change my reaction to the books: for some people it does (which way generally depends on their own views and their tolerance for stories with a moral).

For me it has to do with the naturalness of it all. Even in real life I have a lot more tolerance for people who just seem to live their faith than for those who talk about it all the time (I'm not talking about LJ introspection or respectful discussion of people's views on religion, I'm talking about telling your coworkers "I'll pray for you" whether they want you to or not.) In a book about kids growing up in a religious family there has to be some discussion of religion, just as I'm sure you talk to your boys about it. But there's a difference between a character going to her mother with a question and having it answered in a way that fits the family's beliefs and a diatribe that seems to be aimed at the reader rather than the character.

Some of this is just good writing too. Having good things happen to religious people and bad things happen to ones with bad morals is bad writing as well as annoyingly preachy; having bad things happen to religious characters who use their faith to get through it seems reasonable to me.

[jryson.livejournal.com]

It's where the preachy point is what determines the outcome of the story. He wins because he is a, frex, Baptist.

Or the antagonist loses because he doesn't obey the moral teachings of the writer.

Or one or more characters keep repeating a point over and over.

It gets interesting when the character actually struggles with the rightness of what she's doing.


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[kiwiria.livejournal.com]

I second the recommendation! It's a lovely, cozy book much in the style of "Little House"... Definitely a comfort book :)

I don't think the Mitford books fall into the trap of being preachy, but they definitely are more "in your face" about Christianity. I'm trying to think of others where it's as subtle as The Year of Plenty, and I know they're out there, but they've skipped my memory for now. Possibly Christy and Julie by Catherine Marshall? It's been too long since I've read those last.

Oh! The Sweetgum Ladies by Beth Pattillo. Can't believe I forgot that one.

Perhaps Leaning on a Spider's Web by Jennifer Rees-Lacombe? Again, it's been too long since I've read that last... which is a shame as it's an AMAZING book.