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faith too far?
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From: Maia Cheli-Colando <maia>
Date: Sat, 25 Jun 2005 18:04:47 -0700
Monica's question about religion is interesting. I would say that the ya books I most enjoy do deal with religion or spirit. But perhaps we need to clarify what we each mean by those terms? E.g. I would have offered L'Engle's /A Ring of Endless Light/ as one of most spirited books I have read; indeed all of her titles address spirit and themes of god and cosmos directly. Likewise, most indigenous-authored fiction I have read is spirited; Nye's /Habibi/ is spirited; Witi Ihimaera's
/Whale Rider/ is spirited; much of fantasy fiction is spirited. Of the more western-themed writers, Jane Yolen, Pamela Dean, Susan Cooper all have explored spirited themes. Of crossover authors, McKillip is profoundly spiritual, as is Le Guin.
So... Monica, do you mean certain kinds of religion? E.g. Christian fundamentalist, Jewish Orthodox, or Muslim? Or do you mean religion in
"realistic" fiction for young adults? I wonder... is it possible that spirited work often slips past the eyes of the religious critics because they see it as fantasy, /even if it is not meant so by the authors or read so by its audience/?
Maia
Received on Sat 25 Jun 2005 08:04:47 PM CDT
Date: Sat, 25 Jun 2005 18:04:47 -0700
Monica's question about religion is interesting. I would say that the ya books I most enjoy do deal with religion or spirit. But perhaps we need to clarify what we each mean by those terms? E.g. I would have offered L'Engle's /A Ring of Endless Light/ as one of most spirited books I have read; indeed all of her titles address spirit and themes of god and cosmos directly. Likewise, most indigenous-authored fiction I have read is spirited; Nye's /Habibi/ is spirited; Witi Ihimaera's
/Whale Rider/ is spirited; much of fantasy fiction is spirited. Of the more western-themed writers, Jane Yolen, Pamela Dean, Susan Cooper all have explored spirited themes. Of crossover authors, McKillip is profoundly spiritual, as is Le Guin.
So... Monica, do you mean certain kinds of religion? E.g. Christian fundamentalist, Jewish Orthodox, or Muslim? Or do you mean religion in
"realistic" fiction for young adults? I wonder... is it possible that spirited work often slips past the eyes of the religious critics because they see it as fantasy, /even if it is not meant so by the authors or read so by its audience/?
Maia
Received on Sat 25 Jun 2005 08:04:47 PM CDT
