In an earlier post, I summarized a few events of my life that brought me to 2006 and the decision to write the historical novel that had long been fermenting in my mind. Around Labor Day in 2006, the time was right – I closed an online business and began to devote full time efforts to the novel.
Category Archives: Christian Fiction
Writing my novel: Part 2 (the research)
“Few born Angels” and Paul the Apostle
Paul will be a frequent guest/contributor/subject in this blog. Next to Yeshua of Nazareth, Paul is undoubtedly the most important person in the history of Christianity. And, apart from his importance, the apparent complexities and conflicts in his personality, as suggested by his writings, are fascinating subjects for speculation. I will indulge my own speculations in my forthcoming novel, A Wretched Man, which features Paul as the main character.
Writing my novel: What time and place would you visit?
What three historical persons would you invite to a dinner party? Here’s a variation on that theme. Is there a historical event or period you’ d like to visit?
Writing my novel: Part 1 (the impetus)
The Minnesota Twins first pennant, water-skiing, falling in love for the first time. That was the stuff of my seventeenth summer, 1965. And reading Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables, my first real novel.
Book Review: The Shack, by William P Young
Is it too early to label The Shack as an all-time classic, a top fifty Christian novel? Yes. Does the literary quality of The Shack merit classic status? No. Is the theology insightful, noteworthy, or provocative? Not really.
Book Review: The Robe, by Lloyd C Douglas
Published in 1942, The Robe soon achieved New York Times bestseller status. It remained number one on the list for a year, and it also became a popular movie released in 1953 starring Richard Burton.
Book Review: The Red Tent, by Anita Diamant
The Red Tent has achieved classic status even though it was first published barely a dozen years ago. It was recently reprinted in a 10th anniversary edition. It is a misnomer to call it Christian fiction, because it features characters and storyline from the Hebrew Scriptures (the Christian Old Testament), and the Jewish author’s earlier works were non-fiction treatments of contemporary Jewish life. This speaks to the commonality in the cultural and historical threads of Christianity and Judaism that should be emphasized, and the novel has been well-received in both traditions:
A richly imagined world … Paints a vivid picture of what women’s society might have resembled during Biblical times. Although it is a novel, it is also an extended midrash or exegesis – filling in gaps left by the Biblical text. Quoted from the Jewish Times.
Book Review: Ben Hur, by Lew Wallace
Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ was first published in 1880 and established a new literary genre, the Biblical novel, as a sub-genre of historical fiction. The essence of the genre is a story set in Biblical times with Biblical characters in greater or lesser roles. The novel was wildly successful, surpassing Uncle Tom’s Cabin as the best-selling American novel until 1936 when Gone With the Wind became number one. In 1912 alone, a million copies were printed and sold for thirty nine cents apiece. Wallace’s work changed the attitude of the clergy toward popular fiction, who encouraged their congregants to read the novel. The Pope blessed it.
Book Review: Barabbas, by Par Lagerkvist
We will start with a personal favorite, Barabbas by Par Lagerkvist. Lagerkvist was a Swede, and he won the Nobel prize for literature in 1951. The short novel was translated into English that same year. Of course, Barabbas was the criminal who was released by Pontius Pilate instead of Jesus of Nazareth. This Biblical character then becomes Lagerkvist’s protagonist, and the novel traces Barabbas’s wonderings and wanderings for the rest of his life.