The Tower of Geburah by John WhiteMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
It was great fun to revisit this childhood favorite by reading it aloud to my daughter.
You can almost think of this series as super-awesome Narnia fan-fiction, except that White's fantastic setting is completely his own. All the things I remembered loving - the perilous journey, the courtly characters, the courageous choices - they were all still there. And I appreciated the avuncular, first-person voice of the unnamed narrator a lot this time around.
There were awkward bits to the prose here and there that would have been edited out, I think, if this were published today, and there's certainly more telling (as opposed to showing) than is allowed by current literary fashion. But I'm glad those rules weren't around back when this came out, or the world would have missed these fun stories.
And the completely accessible spiritual meaning implicit in them. White isn't subtle about the Christian allegory, but that means it's perfect for young readers (or listeners). I enjoyed the delight in my daughter's voice as she'd shout out the real-world meaning of this character or that event - she loved figuring it out, and I think she (like I) will remember the stories and their lessons even decades later.
Which makes it sound like this book is just a thinly-veiled sermon. It's not. It's a fantasy and an adventure story first. While clearly an allegory, it's not dry at all. There are battles with trolls and quests for treasure and enchanted knights and spooky wizards and . . . and, and, and. Lots of fun. Old-fashioned fun? Yes. But sometimes that's the best kind. Looking forward to rereading the next one!
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Peace of Christ to you,
Jessica Snell
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