George MacDonald Books

This quaint but charming tale is by the beloved and respected Scottish storyteller, George MacDonald (At the back of the North Wind.) Originally titled, "My Uncle Peter" this Victorian Christmas story was published in 1870 and recounts the heart-tugging adventures of a badly-abused street urchin who is adopted by a kindly gentlemen, then viciously, greedily kidnapped.

MacDonald 's literature (mainly for adults) exerted a great influence on subsequent writers, who freely admit the importance of his literary legacy. C.S. Lewis regards him as his master, claiming to have quoted from him in almost all his books. JRR Tolkien used his work as a measuring stick for his own writitng in Lord of the Rings. MacDonald himself claims that he writes not for children, but for the childlike.

Named Little Christmas this pitiful waif is a character out of Dickens; she inspires both evil and generous reactions in those she meets, while suffering great injustice with stocisim. This story transports the reader back into violent times, with an ingenuous heroine and a tender benefactor. A delightful book to remind us of Christian charity and rekindle the flame of Christmas generosity.

This is a very nice story of a disfunctional family which includes a distant father, an emotionally weak mother, a cold sister, a rotten big brother, and a physically weak little brother. The story focuses on the sister and her struggles between love for a rich cousin and her desire to help the poor of London. Thrown into the mix is an eccentric uncle who has eyes for his niece and an inheritance which complicates the issue. The question is: Is love stronger than hate, humiliation and the comforts of society. This is not a fast paced story but very rewarding for those seeking to develope their own spiritual perspective on life.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

I enjoyed this book, but I did not like how it ended with the kingdom again falling into disrepair and chaos and then being eventually destroyed. (i guess i just like happier endings)

I had to read excerpt of this book for English class and found it boring and kind of weird. If you are looking for something with symbolism, I would recommend Little Pilgrim's Progress instead. It is a wonderful book.

After reading the Princess & the Goblin, I found this book a bit slow at first. It focuses on Curdie and his moral development, and is perhaps the most "preachy" fantasy novel I have ever read - without being poor literature. MacDonald's ethical and spiritual insights are a natural part of the narrative. Anyway, in our day of political correctness and pretended nicety, this story highlights the war of good and evil that occurs mainly inside us - yet requires us to behave accordingly in our outward life. As the old princess tells Curdie, don't discard your weapons - there are plenty of things in this world that NEED to be killed. A great book for young people and for those who need younger and purer hearts. Like a child's version of a Walter Scott novel, it sets up things slowly, then rushes to a dramatic finish.

The Princess and the Goblin was one of my favorite childhood books, My copy was read and re-read for the dreamlike sense of magic and wonder of the rooms at the top of the tower; the gritty terror of the goblins under the mountain.
I suppose one can read religious allegory into the story if one tries (and the same goes for the poignancy of The Light Princess), but in those cases the message never got in the way of the story.
Such is not the case with The Princess and Curdie. From page one to the end, the characters (there is nothing in particular to identify them with the characters of The Princess & the Goblin save for the names) walk through their roles woodenly in order to illustrate MacDonald's religious and social beliefs. It's unbelievably preachy - and most modern readers will find MacDonald's ideas rather peculiar. His worldview is naively idealistic, verging on offensively classist. (Servants have a duty to serve honestly, a good child should have nothing to keep from his parents, drinking is bad (except if you're a king; then it is wholesome), sophistication is bad, rustic naiivete is good, poverty is a privilege (!!!!).... the list goes on.

If you're looking for a fantasy with the beauty of the Princess and The Goblin, with that fairytale quality to it, try something by Patricia McKillip instead of this "sequel."

Until I read other people's reviews of this book, it never occurred to me that The Princess and Curdie was at all "preachy" or "dull." It certainly isn't any more didactic than The Chronicles of Narnia, and I would say it is much less so. This is one of my favorite books and has been since I was a kid. I can see how it might seem overly moralistic to someone who is only used to reading cynical, modern (or, more appropriately, post-modern) children's books, but I think anyone who can handle C.S. Lewis should be fine with this book. It's a sweet book and a wonderful sequel to The Princess and the Goblins.

Michael Phillips is a superb editor of George MacDonald's books, in case you haven't discovered that. The first book is about a minister who doesn't know the Lord, but comes to it. He makes aquaintance of some surprising people who are dwarfs and they share their lives with him (and us)in a touching, incredible way; they really are at the heart of the story. Also in this is a wonderful, albiet difficult love of a sister for her brother that could be today, not the late 1800's, when it was written. Another is about a doctor and a beautiful woman. I read every Geroge MacDonald I can find, and this is one of the best.

A wonderful tale of a minister's search for Christ and the lives that are affected because of it. It was because of this book that my interest in George Macdonald began!

If you are really interested in reading George MacDonald, this is not the book for you. The text of the orignal book, "Thomas Wingfold Curate" on which this book is suppoedely based, is wildly tampered with, from the very first sentence of the novel. This is not George MacDonald at all. The editor has taken huge liberties with one of literature's great Christian authors. I would suggest that you find the original text of this book rather that reading this. It will be worth the search. It is much better than this abridgement, which doesn't even have the courage to call itself that.

George MacDonald is one of those writers who seems to have had a great impact in the literary world and yet who is little read today. CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien, among others, held MacDonald in very high regard. His innovative method of reviving fairy tales and using them for adults greatly influenced their fertile minds. And yet, while his works are imaginative and hopeful, they probably aren't the best pure writing you will come across.

In this book, MacDonald explores a tricky romance beset with obstacles between Belorba (your narrator) and John. MacDonald first gives you all the background on Belorba's idyllic upbringing with her loving uncle. He then sprinkles details of John's past throughout the book...details which greatly influence much of the action of the book. While you mostly see and experience everything through the eyes of young Belorba, this story is not solely concerned with her coming of age story. MacDonald allows you to appreciate the growth and revelations of other characters as well.

In my opinion, "Flight of the Shadow" highlights MacDonald's weaknesses as well as his strengths. Oftentimes in his life he was not so much a story-teller as a minister with a heart to bring hope to the weary. While doing so in his distinct, dreamy manner, his end goal in this book is always in sight; you never escape the sense that he is trying to prove God's goodness and thus the story is often didactic at best.

To me, the one promising aspect of this book that could lift it from simply being an overly manufactured piece was his exploration of the fantastic. In his Princess tales as well as in "Lilith" and "The Portent" (also known as "The Lady of the Mansion"), he created breath-taking, mind-boggling ethereal realms that intersected and contradicted our everyday world. Such concepts thrilled my mind and stimulated my dreams. However, in this piece, the fantastic element is reduced to a rationalistic interpretation, and all I was left with was a nice but slightly didactic tale.

Though the book is sometimes hard to follow due to its historical setting and language style, it is definitely worth the effort. As Belorba and her fiance' struggle to solve the mysteries of their ancestors' pasts in order to clear the way for a happy marriage, they cling to God's faithfulness and discover His loving, yet sovereign plan. Belorba's unique narrative style makes the reader feel like a present listener. The surprise ending neatly, and delightfully, ties up all loose ends.

Flight of the Shadow is an exciting story wrought with mystery, intrigue, and evil. Unlike many of George MacDonald's other novels, you will find none of the author's preaching and musing. The story is seen through the eyes of Mrs. Day as she records the episodes from her life in a journal. The book is shorter than many of MacDonald's other books, but unveils many valuable truths in the telling of the story.

What is the insideous secret behind the behavior of John's mother? And why does Belorba's uncle appear on the moor at night during the storm when he is believed to be at home? What is the terrible secret he is ashamed to admit that torments him throughout his life?

As with all of MacDonald's works, this book is chock full of spiritual nourishment. I was especially touched by Belorba's deep love for her uncle and his love for her. Reading about John's mother, her own spoiling upbringing and her desire to control every aspect of her son's life, was so poignant as to make me feel not a little unsettled in some of my own parenting practices.

The Flight of the Shadow is a beautiful book which I will enjoy reading again. It is an easy read with no dialect and no veering from the story as occurs in other MacDonald books.

The Reavers is not up to the author's Flashman series -- but, then, what can be. He mixes modern sensabilities in a 17th century setting and too numerous authorial asides that impede the otherwise galloping narrative.

This book is a delightful, lunatic romp through a story part Elizabethan, part Hollywood, and part surreal, wonderful insanity. No, it's not Flashman and wasn't meant to be. It's just George MacDonald Fraser letting his hair down and doing the literary equivalent of a drug-fueled, head-banging, 4 minute guitar solo. Unfortunately, this joyous frolic turned out to be his swan song, as the old fellow passed away earlier this year. What's great about this book isn't so much the story but the writing. It is the effervescent artistry of a master wordsmith, hilarious and brilliant. What makes it more amazing is that it is the work of an octogenarian. If he could write this well at age 82 or so, the next Flashman novel would have kicked some serious you-know-what. Well, we can only imagine what might have been and enjoy what he's left us. And this is a great final gift.

The Reavers is very much in the style of Fraser's "Pyrates" but, in my opinion, not as successful. For those of you more familiar with the Flashman books, both The Reavers and Pyrates are more over-the-top, more fantastic, and the narrator is constantly interjecting with a wink and a nudge.

Pyrates is probably my all-time favorite Fraser novel-- but The Reavers felt more like a rehash. Even so, I definitely enjoyed it.

If you haven't read Pyrates yet, I'd recommend reading it instead.

Although I agree with the previous reviewer up to a point, I recommend this little book as an introduction to MacDonald's writing. It is easy to read and contains deep truths that penetrate to the heart. He brings a fresh and unique perspective from a deep understanding of our Heavenly Father's love for us. This is a book for those who hunger after righteousness, for those who, in MacDonald's words, trust that "increasing desire is the sign that satisfaction is drawing nearer." As Corbin Scott Carnell, University of Florida, has said, "Rolland Hein's expert condensation makes these writings accessible to our time." If I personally hadn't begun with this book I may never have wanted to buy the sermons in their original, unedited form.

In the essay "Sorrow--The Pledge of Joy", George MacDonald wrote: "Out upon such miserable theologians as . . . so cut and pare the words of the Lord as to take the very life from them, quenching all their glory and colour". You won't find these words in the edited version of this essay in _Life Essential_; in my opinion, Hein has so cut and pared the words of MacDonald as to take the very life from them, quenching not all, but much, of their glory and color.

In the introduction, Hein warns us that the editing has taken place, resulting in about half of MacDonald's words being discarded. The ostensible reason is that MacDonald tended to use florid language that is awkward to the modern ear, and that he tended to repeat himself. Search the Internet for MacDonald's original texts and compare them to Hein's editions and see if you don't agree with me that the language Hein cut was often glorious. And when you examine the deletions it will be obvious that elimination of repetition can't explain all of them. On the contrary, the deleted passages often make points not made by the surviving text, points that perhaps made Hein uncomfortable (like, in "Sorrow--The Pledge of Joy", the eternal nature of human relationships: "A heaven without human love it were inhuman, and yet more undivine to desire; it ought not to be desired by any being made in the image of God.")

Do yourself a favor and buy the lovely Johanessen editions of MacDonald's original works instead.

I won't comment much on the story which is an interesting mix of great fantasy ideas and much inspiration, combined with a pessimistic view of humanity, in general. However, this specific version of the book from Quiet Vision Publishing, came to me with the binding completely dried out. Reading it for the second time, in the year since I got it, brand new, from Amazon, leaves me holding a bunch of loose pages -- almost all of the pages are broken out.

One of the most memorable characters from George MacDonald's "The Princess and the Goblin" was the miner boy Curdie, who rescues Princess Irene and infiltrates the goblin kingdom. But the princess was the real focus on the book, not her miner boy.

However, the sequel "The Princess and Curdie" shifts the focus from Irene to Curdie. MacDonald's otherworldly writing elevates what could have been a simple morality tale, and makes it both horrifying and beautiful. This is one book that doesn't suffer as a sequel.

Time has passed since the events of the first book, and now Curdie is back in the mines, and has come to believe that Irene's great-great-grandmother is "nothing but ridiculous nonsense." Then one day he thoughtlessly shoots a pigeon -- a pigeon that happens to belong to that lady. Overcome with remorse, he carries the pigeon to the tower where she lives.

The lady forgives Curdie, but gives him a mission to fulfil, to make up for it: He and a repulsive creature called Lina must find a way to save the king from his malignant advisors. To do that, she gives him the power to tell whether a man is good at heart -- or is turning into a beast.

About ninety-nine percent of the time, it would be a rotten idea to make a sequel to a book like "The Princess and the Goblin." It was charming, magical and optimistic. So why mess with something that is already perfect?

But "The Princess and Curdie" has the success of being a more mature, darker book, with a surprisingly palatable moral lesson. The skeptical Curdie learns that "whoever does not mean good is always in danger of harm," and MacDonald provides a small glimpse at the darker side of human nature.

MacDonald's writing stays dreamy and vaguely otherworldly, even with such ordinary things as a family sitting down to dinner, or children running out to see a dog. The only problem is the ending, a few paragraphs that could have been easily left out, which seem needlessly pessimistic after the book's triumphant events.

MacDonald continues wotj the mysterious, goddess-like presence of the old princess, hinting that she is everywhere under different names. And Lina is an especially poignant addition, a woman who did something, and ended up being turned into a grotesque creature as a punishment.

While "The Princess and Curdie" is very different from its predecessor, it is also a rich, enchanting fantasy story that builds on the strengths of MacDonald's first "Princess" book.

some books are timeless-----this one written over a hundred years ago! just sent a copy to my niece who is 12. plus a necklace was attached(which i was unaware of when ordering).

My grandfather used to read this to us (one of the first copies...darn I wish I knew what happened to that book!) when I was a child and years later I read it as an adult and found it was just as good. It's a wonderful book to read to children in the evening.

I was very disapointed in this book; maybe it was just me but there was really nothing there for me. I could not get into the characters, and the story was not very exciting. It also seemed to go by very slow...

Father of fantasy, my foot. I gave this ridiculous "story" sixty pages and am still waiting for something to happen. The epic tradition of Tolkien and (arguably) Lewis hails from the Mabinogion and (also arguably) the Kalevala, not from some pathetic effort by Macdonald to pen a "fantasy" that my twin four-year-olds could outdo.

It's a credit to "Princess and the Goblin" that its author was a personal favorite (and shaping influence) to fantasy titans C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. But if their liking for George MacDonald's works isn't enough to impress, then take it just for what it is: A creepy, unique, compelling work of early fantasy.

Little Princess Irene has always been kept in ignorance of the goblins -- until one night when she and her nursemaid stay out a bit too late, and are chased by a bizarre creature. They are rescued by a young miner boy, Curdie, who tells her the way to deal with them.

While mining, Curdie explores underground caverns where the goblins dwell, uncovers a terrible plot -- and is taken captive by the malignant goblin queen. And Irene explores a mysterious tower where her magical "great-grandmother" lives -- not knowing yet that she's at the center of the goblins' plotting, and that Curdie may be her only hope.

Like many early fantasy stories, "The Princess and the Goblin" is a book completely free of cliches. Written in the 1800s, this book has the flavour of a long-forgotten fairy tale that MacDonald simply dug up and presented to the public. We have goblins, monsters, a heroic young boy, a brave princess, noble kings and magical ladies. What else is a fairy tale about?

It's also striking for its mixture of childlike optimism and extraordinary writing. MacDonald often writes some scenes with the sort of twee flavour of many nineteenth-century novels, with chirrupy kids and kindly servants. But he also can whip up some truly amazing atmosphere: exquisite moonlit scenes that play out like dreams, or underground disasters that sound like nightmares.

Similarly, it's a credit to him that the characters of Curdie and Irene are as likable as they are. Irene in particular is a triumph, since she borders on twitty sometimes. Perhaps that was deliberate, since this little girl gradually grows in strength and guts as the book progresses, bringing her up to speed with the more mature Curdie.

Part fable and part-fairy tale, and populated with goblins, miners and magical grandmothers, "The Princess and the Goblin" is an enchanting prelude to the modern fantasy genre.