Customer Reviews
Inaccurate in Homeric section, so perhaps elsewhere too 
2008-07-22
review written by the person I bought this book for.
I was excited to receive this book as a present, as I teach subjects on mythology and fairy tales, and enjoy the Harry Potter books. However, I was very disappointed when I got to the section on Homer, as it contains a large number of basic errors about the plots of the two epics, especially the Odyssey. These are mistakes that I would be annoyed to find in my students' essays, and would remark to them that it they seemed not to have actually read the epics, or at least not recently. I haven't finished the book yet, but my confidence in the statements made by these authors in other areas has been greatly shaken.
A Christian Focus 
2007-11-02
The authors evaluate fantasy from a Christian perspective. While they have interesting things to say, it is a rather narrow focus. For instance they judge Le Guin's The Wizard of Earthsea series to be morally ambivalent, whereas many readers would recognize her as presenting a Taoist point of view. Judging the worth of a work of fantasy this way, to me, does not shed much light on the relevance of the genre to our modern society as a whole. It also misses or misconstrues many works that can not be read favorably from their world view. The authors are not necessarily close minded toward other religions. But their focus generally detracts from this book's broader appeal.
Stories on the boundaries 
2007-10-27
I came across this book somewhat by accident and am very glad that I did. It is an absolute treasure trove of information. And, as I said to a friend when recommending it, the authors quote all the right people, especially Tolkien and C.S. Lewis.
I was in synch with the authors from the beginning, having long ago been converted, along with Lewis, to the concept of "true myth" and to an understanding of the Christian story as the one True Story. Unlike some of the other reviewers, I deeply appreciated the authors' Christian viewpoint, one which is becoming increasingly rare these days. Since I considered their discussion of works I know (e.g., Ursala LeGuin's "Earthsea Trilogy" and Stephen Donaldson's Thomas Covenant series) to be accurate and insightful, I am also willing to trust their judgment regarding Pullman's "His Dark Materials."
Although I am very well read in the genres under discussion, I still found some material that was new to me, e.g., the "Heliand" and the writings of Patricia McKillip. But what I found most beneficial was the application of several key concepts to the understanding of myth, fantasy, and fairy tale. These are borrowed from Tolkien: the great cauldron of story, the three faces of myth and faerie, and the fact that these stories take place on or near the boundary between worlds. The application of these concepts to the writings discussed was extremely helpful, along with the examination of the worldviews of the writers.
My only disappointment was with the last chapter on Harry Potter. I do not agree with John Granger (whom several reviewers cited) the Rowling is writing Christian fiction. I think Dickerson and O'Hara got too caught up in the magic issue instead of applying the same criteria to the Harry Potter books that they used for the other writings they discussed. To be fair, they had only the first five books to go on, but even by that point I was convinced that Rowling is a secular humanist.
Nevertheless, this is an extremely valuable book and I would recommend it (and have done so) to anyone with an interest in the genres under consideration.
Tacked-on HP 
2007-09-25
I've only read the last couple of chapters of this book, but my advice is, don't buy it for the Harry Potter part. There are a few pages on HP, and they say things everyone has said before by John Granger and others. John Granger's books are hard to follow at times, but he really engages with the HP books in a way this book doesn't.
I also read the His Dark Materials chapter which seemed biased against Pullman, but I need to read the rest of the book to rate it fairly.
Misleading, false and biased book - christian propoganda 2007-09-21
I was very excited about this book as an intellectual investigation into myth and fantasy used through out world literature.
How dissapointed I was. This book is initially very interesting but the more you read the more clear it becomes that these are Christian fundies writing this book and the only purpose they see for art is one that converts more people to Christianity. Ironically the Book rails against the author Bill Pullman for having an anti Christian "axe to grind" when they clearly have their own "Christian Axe to grind". This book pretends to be critical discourse. All it really is is christian propoganda that states anything that isn't "christian" is bad.
Incredible 2007-08-03
The allure of fantasy continues to grow with film adaptations of The Lord of the Rings and J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. But how should Christians approach modern works of fantasy, especially debated points such as magic and witches? From Homer to Harry Potter provides the historical background readers need to understand this timeless genre. It explores the influence of biblical narrative, Greek mythology, and Arthurian legend on modern fantasy and reveals how the fantastic offers profound insights into truth. The authors draw from a Christian viewpoint informed by C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien to assess modern authors such as Philip Pullman, Walter Wangerin, and J. K. Rowling. This accessible book guides undergraduate students, pastors, and lay readers to a more astute and rewarding reading of all fantasy literature.
Food for Thought 2007-01-02
Perhaps I am just new to this type of analytical writing, but I found this book absolutely fascinating. True, the first part was deep, but it was worth wading through. I picked it up because I am tired of Harry-bashing and wanted to see what these guys thought. I kept reading it because I liked what I read. I found I had to keep a piece of paper in the book to keep a list of other things they recommended, and have been reading their recommendations ever since and loving it all. I am now reading Lawhead's "Taliesin" because of "From Homer..." and have been fascinated by his (Lawhead's) quote of the "Mabinogion." Actually knowing how the two books are related makes it all that more interesting. I highly recommend this book for anyone seriously interested in any genre from Faerie to Myth and how Christians should intelligently approach these types of books. HIghly recommended too for homeschoolers at the high school level for English Lit credit.
Difficult to read 2006-12-30
This book is chock full of information about myth and fantasy; however, you have to wade through the Tolkeinese form of writing to decipher the meanings. It's not all it's cracked-up to be...beginning writers take note...it's not going to give you much insight or instruction on writing fantasy and myth. Actually, as I've long suspected, writing in these genres is mostly what's in your head. Sometimes other writers will inspire you in one direction or another, but I don't think this book will. It's full of description but not much else. Seems to be trying to pin-down the "real" meaning of myth and, as we all know, it's a slippery area with a myriad of meanings. (Like beauty's in the eye of the beholder.)
Excellent 2006-04-22
Excellent book from Matthew Dickerson and David O'Hara covering a wide variety of myth and fantasy. If you're looking for a thoughtful, engaging and well-written discussion of stories, or if you just plain like them, this is for you.
