Jake Meador: To get his kids to safety, and yet its still there. Janner has this wanderlust, a yearning to see the world beyond his tiny backward village. They cannot see a way to conquer the bad guy. Really fantastic interview. But for me, I would say that I wasnt reading the classics, I didnt have anything close to a classical education, but the Bible was always there. Andrew Peterson: And thats what the gospel tells us, of course: We cant pull ourselves up by our bootstraps; there has to be some outside grace that invades us, that changes things, and so thats what I was going for, was to show that yes, the world is evil, but also these characters have some deep problems that theyre going to have to work out, over the course of the story. And in the reflection of that world, this world becomes brighter, not duller; our eyes become clearer, not dimmer. Peterson, the award-winning author-songwriter and I have one thing in common: we both grew up reading Dragonlances outsider Tanis Half-Elven, Forgotten Realms loner Drizzt Dourden, Belgariads orphaned Garion and many more tales of lonely boys in fantasy adventures. Theres a lot of well silliness, especially in the early parts the sort of stuff that makes little boys cackle (which worked out, as all I had were little boys). Avengers and Superman are god-like men. But beware of the toothy cows. Many Christians are suspicious of fantasy literature despite the progenitors of modern fantasy genre, J.R.R. But its really bad if youre susceptible to voices, the voice of the enemy. While I see traces of Pratchett-like humour, Peterson claims a more honourable lineage, the Princess Bride by William Goldman. Andrew Peterson: In his essay on fairy stories, he lays out his theology of storytelling, a particular kind of storytelling. Before I get to that reason, I need to address the dragon in the room. It should be considered Christian literature. MY NAME IS CHILD OF GOD AND I AM LOVED., I definitely picked up on that allegory as well, @inkling-for-christ. But then as I was reading the Wingfeather books, I thought back to that again, and I thought that they maybe werent getting your work quite right. when kal howled it should have been me I realized Petersons true meaning. And so Janner runs away with his brother Tink, the one who doesnt think, and his sister Leeli and her dog, and their mother, Nia and their grandfather, Podo. The books, not the movies. So it was hard for me to be like, Heres my character sheet, and even if I did try to write a story, I was very private about it. There you go. But then I realized, This is not the end of the story. It couldnt be the end of the story; there were too many practical considerations. We all have it in us by virtue of the choices that we make, whether we choose to partake of the fruit of the tree of life, or the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Limner. If this world was real, if I wanted the reader to feel like there were real consequences to characters decisions, then what do you do with a bunch of Fangs after their leader is gone? *quietly sneaks in* I love these books, I actually wrote a book review on them, its around here somewhere on the website, if you havent checked it out, please do. All truth is from God; and consequently, if wicked men have said anything that is true and just, we ought not to reject it; for it has come from God. Janners death is so moving but so, so, SO devastating. At small Ohio parish, evangelization starts with a candle, The Family of God in a World Without Families, REVIEW: The Children of Men, by P.D. Hebrews 13:2 says, Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it. We show hospitality to angels without knowing it. And the way that that gets expressed is a little bit different for the parents, because I mean you show it really beautifully I think with Podo at the end of North! Janner, Kalmar, and Leeli are ready and willing to fight alongside the Hollowsfolk. Andrew Peterson: Well, I think I could say this: I grew up watching the original Star Wars trilogy, and loving it. They live in a world called Aerwiar, which is exactly like our worldexcept they dont have electricity or gunpowder, and there are all sorts of creepy animals, like sea dragonsand toothy cows. But then I was listening to some of your music last night, as I was just getting ready for this, and you have a line in Dancing in the Minefields that says, when I forget my name, remind me. So it seems like its a very central concern, not just in Wingfeather, but with your art more generally. The whole movie felt like a cardboard cutout of a story that was an excuse for a whole bunch of cool special effects and concepts. Please? There is no Aslan. Because when I got to the death of Gnag Were giving all kinds of spoilers here, but. And to hear the rest of his note, visit www.wingfeathersaga.com. I think thats the difference between Narnia and Tolkien is that earthiness of The Lord of the Rings. But I never did Dungeons & Dragons. Peterson likes to mix things up in his stories and his career. But at no point did I care about the characters. Kudos: 3 Hits: 58 The restoring by Ellie_the_Throne_Warden That was when Derek was doing Mockingbird, and those kind of things, and I remember tracking with it at the time. So the easy way out is to make the parents oblivious. Hes just had to kind of compartmentalize that, almost. Wingfeather War On the day of the Dragon Day Festival in Glipwood, Nugget (Leeli's dog) ran away. But he cant. Tolkien argued that the incarnation of Jesus was the eucatastrophe of creations story, and that if you zoom in on the incarnation, on Jesuss life, the Resurrection is the eucatastrophe of Jesuss story. but honestly i was so starved for /some kind of romantic material between those two that i just/ ran away with it xDD, I AGREE ABOUT THE FORMER FANG AND KALMAR OH MY WORD, @zoe-wingfeather What is her name I cant remember it? He lives in Lincoln, NE with his wife Joie, their daughter Davy Joy, and sons Wendell, Austin, and Ambrose. Part I of his book is titled, A Theology of Books and Reading. Artham P. Wingfeather ( AR-thum [1]) is the Throne Warden, of the royal Wingfeather family of Anniera. Mere Orthodoxy | Christianity, Politics, and Culture. And today, I review the Wingfeather Saga, a four-book childrens fantasy series written by Peter Anderson, sorry, I meant, Andrew Peterson. If our kids came to us and said, I need to talk to you about something, we dont go, Oh, Im paying the bills right now. That feels like a cardboard thing to me. Coincidentally, 8000+ angel investors raised five million dollars to turn the story into a multi-season animation series. Just rest. Jake Meador:Right. Link further up on page. Hes Peet in the first two books, and hes Artham in the last two. No, because there was no Christ. It just felt like this world that was nurturing to me, because I was growing up in a, I wouldnt say fundamentalist, but pretty conservative evangelical situation, and my imagination was potent, and I didnt really like where I was. After watching it, some went to read the books. Below is the way I described it to another wingfeather friend of mine. Wonder Woman is the daughter of the Gods of Olympus. And what do you think his main-est theme in all the books is? Youre not straw-manning evil, but also even your darkest characters are not just dark. But thats not my experience as a parent. By the time I started working on The Wingfeather Saga, fantasy was only one section of my library. "The rain beat on the windows and sides of the house, but Peet had sealed the structure well. Jake Meador is the editor-in-chief of Mere Orthodoxy. Nia would bake maggotloaf for the Fangs of Dang. Do you want the next best thing after the Lord of the Rings and the Chronicles of Narnia? Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. But on one condition, Janner has to keep a watchful eye over his brother, Tink, and sister, Leeli. In fact, he and his family are at the center of a great mystery that will change their lives forever. Andrew Peterson: This is why we named our property too. Amazon. Coming back to our epic story, Janner goes to the Dragon Day Festival. All right, well, this has been fun, so thank you so much for-. But is Wingfeather a Christian book? You can watch the 15 minute animated short, just search Wingfeather in YouTube or watch it in the Wingfeather website. And so it kind of makes the parents look like knuckleheads. But then the other side of it is that Tolkien and Lewis were students of the classics. If you have not read the whole series, you may want to save this until you have finished it. But they should save it for the wedding. Youre beloved. Peterson strongly believes in the power of story and is not afraid to that belief in his stories. Suddenly it matters when a spaceship blows up. All of this ridiculousness. Since you still struggle to walk properly, Sara can help you." Sara went and stood by Janner. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me! I also noticed that name changes seem to be happening at really pivotal moments in a characters life. When Janner discovers who his father is and where he is from, his journey home is fraught with peril and loss and sadness. I think that thats something that America could learn from the UK. *bursts through the door* dID I HEAR THE WINGFEATHER SAGAAAAAAAAAAAAAA Whether its a commentary or a childrens story, from Christology to eschatology, the Reading and Readers Podcast has a book for you. Janner sighed and looked back at her with a heavy sadness. Required fields are marked *. James, What a Democracy Can Lose without Christianity | National Review. in the dark sea of darkness, when they find out who they are, he has to grapple with the fact that hes not the heir to the throne, his little brother is. So it was tricky, but part of the goal was to make it clear that this family works best when theyre together. Andrew Peterson: Lay scholar, I should say. i mean come on!! One job. I hear it to this day. I was so ready for Kalmar to sacrifice himself, I was ready to cry, we were right at the part where he tells everyone to sing, and then I realized something. Andrew Peterson: Yeah. Andrew Peterson: So I think that the deepest layer of dirt beneath the leaf-mold was the fact that Id grown up taking the Bible stories for granted. Below is a lightly edited transcription of our conversation. It was just two weeks after they had returned to Anniera. I cannot stress that enough. (We always call it Igiby, even after we found out it was really Wingfeather) Such as. The Wingfeathers crossed the Dark Sea of Darkness and arrived in Skree, where they lived for nine years under the surname Igiby, their maternal grandmother's -Wendolyn Igiby Helmer- last name. And just like the Discworld novels, the footnotes in Wingfeather resent being footnotes. An award-winning fantasy series written by Andrew Peterson. The Wingfeather Saga is a series of four books that follow the lives of Janner, Kalmar, and Leeli Wingfeather along with their mother, grandfather, uncle, and some friends they meet along the way. Im sure there are a lot of loose ends. Jake Meador: Oh, of course. Janner Igiby is a 12 year old boy who wants to sail the world. For more book reviews, go to www.readingandreaders.com. Some time afterwards, he re-reads the Chronicles of Narnia and something happens: The reintroduction of fairy tales to my redeemed imagination helped me to see the Maker, his Word, and the abounding human (but sometimes Spirit-commandeered) tales as interconnected. Can you talk a bit about names and about what made that such a central theme for you? Andrew Peterson:Yeah. I mean, he has to. Janner, the eldest, is about to discover that the ordinary little town where they live is anything but ordinary. Currently depressed because I can't stop listening to sad musicals. Its like the long defeat idea that the Elves talk about in Lord of the Rings; that okay, even if the bad guys win, that doesnt let me off the hook; I still fight for what is right. The Infinity Gems. The children set up an orphanage at an abandoned factory called Thimble Thumb's Threads. Or theyre removed from their parents in some way. And even if that means changing our lives, thats what were called to do. I remember feeling like the story found its legs, like something was really happening, because now Janner is isolated, hes got to make his own decisions. I tried, I really did, but nothing came. Frodos ring. Can you talk a bit about how you wanted to approach some really dark themes as youre writing these books? I didnt care about their spaceships when they blew up. I had no need for it, so I thought, because the world I was in pulsed with loveliness. The Harry Potter books do this sometimes. Artham P. Wingfeather, Throne Warden of Anniera--brother to Esben Wingfeather, High King of Anniera. Janner, you're hurt, so I want you in the middle. The solution to trouble is not to run away alone but to bring it to the family because nothing is stronger than family. The most important take away from Reinkes book is we need a Christian worldview to know what to read and not to read, and to flourish from our reading. To me, its like asking whether Abraham was a Christian. Andrew Peterson: There is also this hope that God is making me into something, Im being conformed to Christs likeness, and in the new creation, there is this sense in scripture that we will receive this new name, this completed identity, or something. Amazon.The Nonicles of Chrania by C.S. Janner and his family hope to find refuge in the last safe place in the world: the Green Hollowsa land of warriors feared even by Fangs of Dang. The first man was Dwayne and the first woman was Gladys. So Scripture was the epic that I was reading. And so, Gnag the Nameless was human, in the beginning. Jake Meador: Dickerson, Matthew Dickerson. Just like how Christians are to see ourselves in Gods bigger story. He is stuck in this backward village called Glipwood. But today that influence is just lost on us because people dont have that level of rootedness in shared texts. So you see the destructive nature of our sinful personal choices. "Janner." Sara looked at him, concerned. Thats a big part of The Warden and the Wolf King. Free shipping for many products! I found a wing-ibbythread! Have you read that book? She had passed through Glipwood sometime before the series. (with Davenant Press), and "Telling the Stories Right" (with the Front Porch Republic Press). But the Maker seems to be an absent God. That idea of inheriting this new name from Jesus is pretty powerful. For a longer conversation about this remarkable fantasy series, seethis exchangebetween Peterson and Jake []. Honestly, I loved the ending. The bedrock of what those guys were writing from was Norse mythology, and the classics; that was kind of the stuff that underlies what they were writing.