Reflections

The Long Truth of Short Stories

By Janie Cheaney | Sep 29, 2012

Non-writers, or writers who don’t do fiction, often have a misconception about fictional forms. Short stories are seen as an apprenticeship of sorts—you start out ...

Flannery O’Connor & The Terrible Speed of Mercy: A Book Review

By emily | Sep 28, 2012

Our book reviewer today is Autumn, one of our current interns here at Redeemedreader.com. She is a sophomore at a small liberal arts college here ...

What Flannery O’Connor Can Tell Us About Teaching Literature

By Janie Cheaney | Sep 26, 2012

Near the beginning of her essay, “The Teaching of Literature” (in Mystery and Manners), Flannery O’Connor writes that fiction has no dearth of critics, because ...

By emily | Sep 22, 2012

Sign up and find out more HERE. This is just a quick note to say, we're doing lots of behind the scenes work these days ...

Pilgrim’s Progress: Shepherding a Child’s Imagination, pt. 3

By emily | Sep 19, 2012

Today's post is the third part in a series based on my recent talk on shepherding children through their life-long literary journey. You can read ...

Pilgrim’s Progress: Shepherding a Child’s Imagination, pt.2

By emily | Sep 12, 2012

Last week, I introduced our new series based on Pilgrim's Progress. (Here's the original post.) In it, I mentioned our free family devotional guide to ...

Kids and 9/11

By Janie Cheaney | Sep 7, 2012

To our children it’s already history, but to us it seems like “only yesterday.” Too soon, really, to come to an informed conclusion about what ...

Dangerous Journey: Shepherding A Child’s Imagination

By emily | Sep 6, 2012

Pilgrim's Progress Party? Next week, I've been asked to lead a Pilgrim's Progress event at a church in South Carolina. One of our devoted readers ...

The Invasion of Fairyland

By Janie Cheaney | Aug 31, 2012

Tuesday’s post about “Twisting Mother Goose” was headed down an alley I didn’t have room to address. So today’s post springs off YA lit-blogger Georgia ...

By emily | Aug 16, 2012

We've already covered a lot of ground on the Fifty Shades trilogy by E. L. James. We interviewed Tim Challies on the theology of pornography, ...

By Janie Cheaney | Aug 14, 2012

In case you haven't noticed, it's back-to-school time. We will observe the season with curriculum-related posts this week and next. First, a look at the ...

By emily | Aug 13, 2012

Janie and I have spent a lot of time preparing for our Fifty Shades trilogy coverage here on the site. In case you missed it, ...

A Death Observed, Part Four

By emily | Aug 2, 2012

This is a short series on my mother's death. It's meant for folks who may be facing the death of their own loved one, with ...

Declare Your Independence!

By emily | Jul 4, 2012

Happy 4th everybody! We're wrapping up two very fun weeks at Redeemedreader, and I feel a little like a kid on Christmas morning. Happy it's ...

A Death Observed, Part Three

By emily | Jun 21, 2012

In case you missed them, here are Part One and Part Two of this series on my mother's death. One to Two Days Prior to ...

By emily | Jun 14, 2012

Over the past 16 months since launching this website, Janie and I have the opportunity to interview a number of authors and cultural critics who ...

“Do you believe in fairies?”

By Janie Cheaney | May 18, 2012

The Fairy Ring, or Elsie and Frances Fool the World, by Mary Losure. Candlewick, 2012, 168 pages. Age/interest level: 10-14 When Frances Griffith arrived in ...

American Girls: Meet Rebecca

By emily | May 17, 2012

Meet Rebecca (American Girls Collection: Rebecca 1914). by Jacqueline Green. American Girl, 2009. 96 pgs. Ages 8-up. Candlelight for Rebecca (American Girl) by Jacqueline Green. ...

A Death Observed, Part Two

By emily | May 10, 2012

In April, I began this series of reflections on my mother's death. A few weeks before she went to be with the Lord, I received ...

Bad Trips

By Janie Cheaney | May 1, 2012

Summer is the traditional time for road trips, and road-trip novels traditionally roll out in the spring. A title from this year and one from ...

To The Avengers…and Beyond!

By emily | Apr 30, 2012

COMICS: Guy Kryptonite? Why do guys like comics so much? Especially the super-hero variety? It's an enigma I spent quite a lot of energy trying ...

Not-So-Secret Gardens for Kids

By emily | Apr 23, 2012

This week kicks off a fun week here at Redeemedreader: Poetry Week. April is National Poetry Month, after all, and there are some great poetry ...

American Girls

By emily | Apr 12, 2012

The American Girls books are in some ways the premier girls' reading series for girls who are emerging readers. Among conservative families, at least, they ...

A Death Observed, Part One

By emily | Apr 6, 2012

Today is Good Friday, so in meditating on the passion and redemption of Christ, I thought it a suitable time to begin a series on ...

By Janie Cheaney | Mar 27, 2012

We’re wrapping up our conversation (begun here) with Morgan Lee and Caity Kullen on the effect of The Hunger Games on the audience it was ...

Real or Not Real? The Hunger Games Movie is Good For Teens….

By emily | Mar 23, 2012

***SPOILER ALERT: SOME PARTS OF THE END OF THE STORY REVEALED BELOW To read Janie's review of the book, see Hungry. Today, the much anticipated ...

Talking Over the Hunger Games, Part One

By Janie Cheaney | Mar 16, 2012

Since Susanne Collins’ Hunger Games trilogy (reviewed here) has sparked so much discussion in school cafeterias and dorm rooms (not to mention break rooms and ...

A Parent’s Guide to Environmentalism in Children’s Literature, Part Two

By Janie Cheaney | Mar 10, 2012

Wrapping up our two weeks of Lorax-inspired environmental emphasis, how do children’s books specifically reflect growing concern about our care of the earth? Because of ...

Parents’ Guide to Environmentalism in Kids’ Literature

By emily | Mar 1, 2012

What is Environmentalism? With the movie version of The Lorax hitting theaters this weekend, man's role in shaping and caring for the environment is back ...

Christ in Literature: The Anansi Stories

By emily | Feb 27, 2012

We started our February series on African folktales with an interview with a Christian from the Congo and a stack of books. We followed that ...

Interview with Author Jane Kurtz on African Stories

By emily | Feb 23, 2012

More African stories! Today, we hear from Jane Kurtz, who was raised by missionary parents in Ethiopia. Since then, she's come to live in the ...

Africa: A Literary Adventure and Podcast!

By emily | Feb 16, 2012

This month my local public library is offering a marionette show of African folktales starring Anansi the spider. It's a unique way to celebrate Black ...

By emily | Jan 30, 2012

I hope you guys have enjoyed learning a little more about Japanese literature with our guests Roger Lowther and Dr. Mike Sugimoto this month. As ...

By emily | Jan 26, 2012

In case you missed it, here is the Introduction post to our Japanese Literary Adventure. And here's a link to our interview with Roger Lowther, ...

By emily | Jan 10, 2012

Little One-Inch and Other Japanese Children's Favorite Stories. Compiled by Florence Sakade. Illustrated by Yoshisuke Kurosaki. Tuttle Publishing. Tokyo, 2008. 50 pgs. Ages 4-10. The ...

By Janie Cheaney | Jan 9, 2012

Last August saw the 50th anniversary of The Phantom Tollbooth—has it been that long already? We’re a little late but wanted to observe the occasion ...

Thoughts on A Christmas Carol: Reading and Watching

By Janie Cheaney | Dec 7, 2011

Charles Dickens, unlike other great authors like Herman Melville, had the good fortune of enjoying widespread fame and popularity during his lifetime. A Christmas Carol ...

By Janie Cheaney | Dec 5, 2011

On Friday we looked at some very popular picture books that you just might find under your tree. Some of them are better than others, ...

By Janie Cheaney | Nov 23, 2011

I'm sitting in an upstairs bedroom as the smell of pumpkin pie wafts up the stairwell. Tomorrow the family will arrive, starting around noon: not ...

By emily | Nov 7, 2011

This week, the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary will entertain a panel discussion on the historicity of Adam. I came across this tidbit of news recently ...

By emily | Oct 21, 2011

This post is part of our Pilgrim's Progress read along during our Reformation Month celebration. You can find an introduction and sign up for an ...

By emily | Oct 12, 2011

Welcome to our Pilgrim's Progress Read Along, part Redeemedreader.com's Reformation Month celebration! We'll be pursuing two tracks over the month of October, 2011--this one for ...

By Janie Cheaney | Oct 7, 2011

Marcelo in the Real World, by Francisco X Stork. Scholastic, 2009, 312 pages. Age/interest level: 14-up. Dancing With Max, by Emily Colson. Zondervan, 2010, 200 ...

By Janie Cheaney | Oct 4, 2011

Nobody knows yet exactly what causes it, or why it occurs more in certain income levels, or even quite what defines it, but autism becomes ...

Are You A ‘Book Whisperer’?

By emily | Oct 3, 2011

Our librarian is always reminding moms that it's not enough to read TO your children. To raise readers, you also need to read in front ...

The Use and Abuse of Youth Literature

By Janie Cheaney | Sep 26, 2011

Much of our coverage of “Banned Books Week” has centered on the territory known as YA, or Young Adult, which has for the last ten ...

By Janie Cheaney | Sep 23, 2011

In my post on Tuesday, I included a brief survey of the ALA’s “Top Ten Banned Books for 2010.” Let’s take a closer look at ...

The Lord Saves

By emily | Sep 22, 2011

The Lord Saves: A Reflection on "YA Saves" Francis Schaeffer's Insight Francis Schaeffer once wrote that in his generation, serious art required someone standing on ...

By Janie Cheaney | Sep 16, 2011

They had guessed before that this was an island: clambering among the pink rocks, with the sea on either side, and the crystal heights of ...

Ted Tripp’s Worship Principle

By emily | Aug 25, 2011

The basic premise of Shepherding a Child’s Heart by Ted Tripp is this: “Behavior is heart-driven, therefore, correction, discipline, and training—all parenting—must be addressed to ...

By emily | Aug 24, 2011

Back-to-school time means hitting the books and living more structured days. All the more reason to look forward to a good, family movie at the ...

By emily | Aug 18, 2011

For several years before I became a parent, I worked part-time in The Literacy Council of Sumner County (LCSC). Like most non-profit organizations, it was ...

By Janie Cheaney | Aug 16, 2011

Previous posts: Introduction, Part One: Setup, Part Two: Development. Climax? Isn’t it a little early for that? Most of us have the idea that the ...

By emily | Aug 11, 2011

In my last post of this series, I looked at two ways that the Lord wrote Christ in the Old Testament: historically and symbolically. As ...

By emily | Jul 20, 2011

Last week, Janie had the privilege of sharing radio waves with Chris Fabry on his national radio show. You can find out more about the ...

By emily | Jul 18, 2011

As we wrap up our half-birthday celebration, I thought it might be nice to give some attention to our readers. You've already met a few ...

By emily | Jul 14, 2011

Or for you parents, will your kids be going to see the final Harry Potter movie released to theaters this week? If so, for what ...

By emily | Jul 7, 2011

In my previous post, I tried to show that Sally Lloyd Jones uses two broad ways of finding Christ in the Old Testament: 1) historical ...

By Janie Cheaney | Jul 1, 2011

Short answer: no, but it's showing signs of dementia. Historical fiction has one of the longest roots of any literary form. You might say that ...

Reflection in a Dragon’s Eye

By Janie Cheaney | Jun 21, 2011

The main problem with Christian fantasy may be, what do you do with Christ? Honestly: can it be "Christian" without him? But it's not easy to ...

By Janie Cheaney | Jun 17, 2011

We're delighted to welcome Jonathan Rogers to our site today, as one of our "writing fathers." Jonathan is Georgia-born, with an undergraduate degree from Furman ...

By Janie Cheaney | Jun 14, 2011

The Return of the Prodigal Son, clinic by Pompeo Batoni, 1773 Of all the charges hurled against Christianity in the modern age, one of the ...

By emily | Jun 13, 2011

Today's interview is regarding Douglas Bond's devotional series for young men and their fathers, Fathers and Sons. I hope to eventually do another interview with ...

By Janie Cheaney | Jun 11, 2011

At least twice a year, it seems, there's a controversy blowing up in the Young-Adult book trade. The latest brouhaha began with an article in ...

By emily | Jun 8, 2011

"For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him ...

By emily | Jun 2, 2011

I have recommended The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd Jones in numerous posts on this blog. That doesn't mean I think it is perfect, ...

By Janie Cheaney | May 31, 2011

Just when you thought we'd done a pretty good job of knocking down stereotypes, a new study (those three words have to be among the ...

By emily | May 24, 2011

While we are awaiting a post by Dr. Gene Veith later in the week, I thought it would be fun to ask some of our ...

By Janie Cheaney | May 19, 2011

In anticipation of our interview with Dr. Veith next week (see Emily's anticipatory post), I intended to write some thoughts on life after homeschooling to ...

By emily | May 18, 2011

We don't usually do teasers on this blog. But we don't usually do interviews with scholars as distinguished as Gene Edward Veith, Jr. either. If ...

By emily | May 16, 2011

“They know bits and pieces of the Old Testament—how God created the heavens and the earth, what rules he wants us to follow, how he ...

By emily | May 6, 2011

“While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, ...

By emily | May 4, 2011

I know I'm in murky water here. Early in my daughter's infancy, my husband and I began the argument: is our daughter a princess? Now ...

By Janie Cheaney | Apr 28, 2011

Example of Clanker technology from the 1914-ish world of "Leviathan." According to Wikipedia, the term was probably coined by science-fiction writer K. W. Jeter as ...

By Janie Cheaney | Apr 26, 2011

As our readers probably know, this spring marks the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible, and celebrations are going on throughout the English-speaking world. ...

By Janie Cheaney | Apr 12, 2011

Several years ago I started noticing references to a new YA novel that was enjoying sensational sales, especially among adolescent girls. As months passed, excitement ...

By emily | Apr 11, 2011

So, we've been up and running here at Redeemed reader for roughly a month and a half. It's amazing to think about that, considering all ...

By Janie Cheaney | Apr 7, 2011

Supposedly, one of the most-asked questions in children's publishing divisions is, "Will boys read it?" Will boys read anything? Or only books that have "butt" ...

By emily | Apr 6, 2011

Roughly three years ago, I read Ginger Plowman's book, Don't Make Me Count to Three. It's a fantastic resource with lots of practical advice for ...

By Janie Cheaney | Mar 29, 2011

Once upon a time there was no such thing as YA in the publishing world. That may be because there was no such thing as ...

By Janie Cheaney | Mar 24, 2011

Few literary cries have echoed down the ages as persistently as that one: the ultimate impassioned plea from the ultimate gothic romance, which stands as ...

‘True Grit’ and True Grace

By emily | Mar 23, 2011

“Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for ...

By emily | Mar 12, 2011

I have been praying for Japan over the last few days, as I know many of you have. In particular, I have been praying for ...

‘A Story, A Story’: Thinking Through African Mythology

By emily | Feb 21, 2011

The Anansi stories have been handed down through generations of Ashanti culture...Born in Ghana I left at aged 3, leaving much of the Ghanaian culture ...

They Don’t Write ’em Like This Anymore

By Janie Cheaney | Feb 6, 2011

In tone, appearance, and character, On the Blue Comet is straight out of the 1950s. On the Blue Comet by Rosemary Wells. Candlewick, 2010, 329 ...

By Janie Cheaney | Jan 25, 2011

Part One. Part Two. What's the problem with a glut of grim, futurist fiction on the YA bookshelves? Maybe nothing. Youth is resilient, and most ...

By Janie Cheaney | Jan 25, 2011

(Find Part One here) Besides being uniformly grim, there are other traits the current crop of dystopian novels share: A post-apocalyptic future--the story opens after ...

By emily | Jan 21, 2011

We live in an age of series picture books. Which, like having 27 McDonalds in every city, makes shopping a little less complicated for tired, ...

Dystopia: Dead Ahead

By Janie Cheaney | Dec 23, 2010

Part One How's this for a scenario: In the future, the USA has been divided into thirteen districts, and the most prosperous oppresses all the ...

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