Book Review: The Wonders of Creation

By Karlissa J.

One underappreciated reality about C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien is how much they loved nature.

That seems to be a common trait amongst Christian authors of classic fantasy. As I researched four authors for To Narnia and Beyond – Lewis, Tolkien, L’Engle, and George MacDonald – it occurred to me that a book could be written about their relationships with nature. And it seems I am not the only one who has contemplated such a book.

Kristen Page is a biologist who has traveled widely and loves the novels of Lewis and Tolkien. The Wonders of Creation: Learning Stewardship from Narnia and Middle-Earth combines her interest in nature, her ecological concerns, and her passion for reading into a reflection on how Lewis and Tolkien wrote about the natural world, and how their novels could be used to spark further discussions on – and activism for – creation care.

I was surprised and pleased to find that Page draws not only from Narnia and Middle-Earth but also from other works of C.S. Lewis (the Cosmic Trilogy) and J.R.R. Tolkien ("Leaf by Niggle"). I was also pleased to find a quote each from George MacDonald, Madeleine L'Engle, and G.K. Chesterton!

The Wonders of Creation is geared towards an audience who is already interested in creation care and already has some familiarity with various ecological concerns. Page gives quite a bit of time to facts and data about various problems, bringing in varied topics from plant blindness to climate change to light pollution.

I enjoyed her reflections on a scene from Perelandra that has stuck with me: a scene about the absence of greed on Perelandra that certainly has ecological aspects woven into it.

If you are interested in the topics of creation care and fantasy literature, this book could be a worthwhile read.

Adventurous Artists

The creatures and races in Tales of the Diversity are otherworldly. But with a little imagination, some brave artists have tackled the task of bringing them to life in pictures and models!

In my blog post “Looking Back: Art,” I shared some old concepts I drew for the creatures and characters; art I created before writing the books.

And in “Concept: Awareness,” I shared a sketch I created of Jakodi Jair.

I’ve held two art contests for Tales of the Diversity, and shared the amazing entries I received in “2020 Art Contest Winners” and “Art Contest 2 Winners.”