I had never gotten around to reading the Percy Jackson books. I think I was turned off by the obvious comparisons to the Harry Potter series. A boy finds out he is actually part of a magical word and is sent to a school/camp to train in his powers. Well, it just felt a little too much like Riordan might be riding on Rowling's coattails.
But I finally decided it is a popular series with my students and should at least give the first book a try. It was engaging. And I appreciated the backstory of how it came to be written. The author created the story with his son who has dyslexia and ADHD and struggled in school. His son loved Greek myths and the two created the idea for this character with similar struggles that are actually a result of being a demigod.
I think one of the most compelling things about fantasy is that by its nature it deals with larger things. It is always a struggle between good and evil, and therefore, is always in someway philosophical. And I think a sensitive reader will pick up on philosophical ideas that the author may hold to, even if the author does not intend to place them in the story.
C.S. Lewis did this with George MacDonald. Phantasies is hardly a Christian allegory, but the morality of the book challenged Lewis's (then) atheistic view of the world. Lewis said, "What it actually did was convert, even baptize...my imagination."
And so, Tolkien's books are not Christian allegories. But many Christians find them deep and meaningful because Tolkien was a devout Catholic. His morality and understanding of the world was throughout. On the other hand, I read the Earthsea series in college. These books by Ursula Le Guin put me in a bit of a spiritual funk. I later read Le Guin is Buddhist. I think what I was picking up on is a morality that lacked a believe in absolute truth. There was no moral center to the books, and it left me feeling off-centered.
I'm not saying that as a Christian I must only read books by Christians. But when the author of a fantasy series lacks the believe in a true good, any good, it will pour over into their work. And that's what I walked away from after reading The Lightning Thief. Perhaps it's not Riordan. Perhaps it's the source material. Because the word "good" and "evil" are hardly descriptors of the Greek gods. They are "strong" or "beautiful" or "wise." They are never just "good."
So for now, i don't think I will continue in this particular series. I read one and can talk to students about it. But I guess what I'm saying is that if fantasy reveals philosophy, then Percy Jackson feels like relativism. And that hardly baptizes the imagination.
But I finally decided it is a popular series with my students and should at least give the first book a try. It was engaging. And I appreciated the backstory of how it came to be written. The author created the story with his son who has dyslexia and ADHD and struggled in school. His son loved Greek myths and the two created the idea for this character with similar struggles that are actually a result of being a demigod.
I think one of the most compelling things about fantasy is that by its nature it deals with larger things. It is always a struggle between good and evil, and therefore, is always in someway philosophical. And I think a sensitive reader will pick up on philosophical ideas that the author may hold to, even if the author does not intend to place them in the story.
C.S. Lewis did this with George MacDonald. Phantasies is hardly a Christian allegory, but the morality of the book challenged Lewis's (then) atheistic view of the world. Lewis said, "What it actually did was convert, even baptize...my imagination."
And so, Tolkien's books are not Christian allegories. But many Christians find them deep and meaningful because Tolkien was a devout Catholic. His morality and understanding of the world was throughout. On the other hand, I read the Earthsea series in college. These books by Ursula Le Guin put me in a bit of a spiritual funk. I later read Le Guin is Buddhist. I think what I was picking up on is a morality that lacked a believe in absolute truth. There was no moral center to the books, and it left me feeling off-centered.
I'm not saying that as a Christian I must only read books by Christians. But when the author of a fantasy series lacks the believe in a true good, any good, it will pour over into their work. And that's what I walked away from after reading The Lightning Thief. Perhaps it's not Riordan. Perhaps it's the source material. Because the word "good" and "evil" are hardly descriptors of the Greek gods. They are "strong" or "beautiful" or "wise." They are never just "good."
So for now, i don't think I will continue in this particular series. I read one and can talk to students about it. But I guess what I'm saying is that if fantasy reveals philosophy, then Percy Jackson feels like relativism. And that hardly baptizes the imagination.
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