by J.A. Webb | May 18, 2025 | Blog post
Something happened this week that caused me to ask: Is there any fiction genre left written for Christian men?
In the course of my ongoing and indeterminable search for great speculative fiction written for Christian men, I ventured into the Fantasy aisle at my local Christian bookstore. After all, who doesn’t love a rollicking, medieval tale of stalwart heroes combating great evil and horrible monsters? And if all else fails, a guy knows that’s the one place he might find books still written for him.
But . . . but . . . Something happened in the fantasy aisle when I wasn’t looking.
Gone are the chiseled warriors standing atop craggy mountain summits and overlooking forbidding castles, hands folded on the pommels of their swords, feet resting atop slain foes.
Instead, I now find those self-same heroes holding the waists of gowned maidens, their once determinedly set jaws now slack as they gaze into the fawning eyes of their female companions.
No monster in sight.
What’s worse, someone spilled pink ink all over the covers. And glitter!
I ran stumbling from the store, hair fisted in one hand, the knuckles of the other pressed tight to lips closed in a failed attempt to stifle my wails of mourning. Must a guy simply give up reading altogether?
In my lament, I sought solace in that well-worn office bookshelf, the one housing some of my favorite classics. I pulled a cherished tome free and hugged it to my chest while I sat, rocking forward and back, eyes unfocused. I worked through the shell shock, struggled to come to grips with this new world- one in which even that once venerable and safely testosterone-infused genre, the one formerly known as fantasy, has gone the way of the dodo bird.
Extinct. Deceased. An ex-genre, as John Cleese might say.
Finally, my heartbeat settled, and I wiped the tear-blurriness from my eyes. I opened that well-worn leather volume I clutched in still-shaking hands, laid it on the green desk blotter, clicked on my brass reading lamp, and lost myself once again in this manly tale of globe-trotting adventure, high-seas disaster, tyranny, betrayal, true loyalty, and long-delayed justice. Once in which even Jesus himself makes a early cameo and a final, triumphant entrance.
Of course, I’m speaking of the timeless epic, Ben Hur. As a baby Christian, this is one of the first Christian fiction books I found, and it’s still a favorite.
If your sole exposure to this tale is from the movies, I’ll only say you’re missing out. How can a two-hour movie capture this one-thousand two-hundred word masterpiece of a book? It can’t. And even though the movies were, in fact, great- the book is even better.
And it’s available in full-length audio! (. . . but avoid the virtual voice version). My own publisher, Blackstone Audio/Downpour, has a fantastic human-narrated unabridged audio release. And I say that not because they’re my publisher- this was a favorite long before I ever published, or even thought of such. (BTW, Downpour still, for most titles, lets you download an audio file you really own- and can keep forever- to play anywhere sans the restrictive corporate app)
So- even if the world is being turned slowly upside down, and everything a guy thought he could count on continues to crumble- there are still wonderful Christian books a guy can enjoy.
Perhaps soon we’ll be able to bring you one that’s not one hundred and forty-five years old!!???
by J.A. Webb | May 4, 2025 | Blog post
Is pulp Sci-Fi making a comeback? Is this a good thing for Christian readers?
As a lad I consumed bushel basketfuls of what were, even then, vintage paperbacks from the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Voraciously. Much of it blatant (and unabashed) pulp fiction, but some of it extremely well-written. There were even a few unsung masterpieces, glittering jewels which still shine bright in memory while the thousands upon thousands of others have been forgotten.
So it’s been with a sense of remorse that, in recent years, I’ve largely abandoned the genre. It’s just too frustrating to pick up book after book after book, all of which look so appealing on the shelf, only to find inside those glowing covers an endless array of tiresome and alarmist Climate Change diatribes, LGBTQ normalization, and various other flavors of cultural indoctrination too numerous to mention.
I mean, come on Lois McMaster Bujold! Miles Vorkosigan is a great read, and so much fun. Why you gotta mess it up like that?
It makes a guy want to give up. At least I did. Nearly.
But every now and again, I give it another try. I won’t say this week’s selection is a classic that will continue to inhabit memory for decades. But it was a story worthy of attention.
Nether Station by Kevin J. Anderson is a tale that hearkens back to those of my youth. The story itself evinces memories of Arthur C. Clarke, Larry Niven, Poul Anderson and company. A great concept and an exciting tale, just enough action and mystery to keep the pages turning.
What keeps this from being one of those timeless jewels, at least for me, are but a few minor annoyances.
First, I sense in the backstory a hint of what may develop, in later books, into a full-blown case of transpermia. At least in the spiritual sense, if not the literal. Those faint echoes, vaguely reminiscent of Chariots of the Gods, are even now beginning to give me hives. (Okay, fine- look it up if you can’t resist, but don’t waste your time reading it- other than as a cautionary example of the dangerous places the unrestrained and God-denying imagination . . . and fraudulent archaeology . . . can go) Where’d I put that Calamine lotion, anyway?
But I hope I’m wrong, and I guess I’ll have to read on to find out if Kevin was really hinting that Satan was nothing more than a really mean alien visitor. Will he seriously go there?
Second is this. I nearly broke a molar gritting my teeth every time I heard the words “he knew” and “he realized” and “he wondered”. A circumstance which occurred repeatedly. In every paragraph.
Is it just me just me? After all, much of that Golden Age Sci Fi I spoke of was a mishmash of Omniscient POV, shallow sensory detail, non-existent internal dialogue, thumb-fisted narrative “telling”, and head-hopping.
The thing is- over time, fiction has trended to a closer, deeper POV, a more tightly focused mental “camera” and a less intrusive narrator. This change has been good, in my opinion. Give me compelling deep POV, put me INSIDE the head of the protagonist, make me FEEL what he’s feeling. Don’t tell me about it.
Lately I’ve noticed that a lot of modern hard Sci-Fi is written in that older, “telling” narrative style. Perhaps it’s intentional? I’ve had several people, both readers and writers, tell me they prefer this. I’ve even heard it suggested it’s making a comeback. A new trend.
However, I contend that Strunk and White’s Elements of Style was around long before the Golden Age of Science Fiction. That these are not valid writing styles but errors which impede the story. That the transformation of narrative style has been a good thing- creating more evocative, deeper, more compelling fiction.
But perhaps I’m wrong. Perhaps there is a contingent out there that really enjoys this style. If you’re one of those folks, let me know. Send me an email- tell me I’m wrong. And why.
Now, back to the story . . . and in this case, thankfully, we’re talking about a “clean” story that a Christian Man could enjoy, even through the occasional gritted jaw. And aside from the (potential) denial of the history of Creation that I sense waiting in the wings- one worthy of your time . . . when you, like I, can’t find great Christian-made fiction for men.
A condition that still, even in the midst of our epic and ongoing search for great Christian fiction, I still all-too-often suffer.
by J.A. Webb | Apr 5, 2025 | Blog post
Can Christian men really enjoy middle-grade stories seen through the eyes of a thirteen-year-old boy?
If you’ve been reading this blog for any time, you are aware how frustrating has been my search to find thrilling fiction written for Christian men. So often, I retreat to the great classics of the past, all the while moaning, “Where are the great modern Christian writers . . . who are writing for men?”
Sometimes I even take a peek into the YA and MG section, open a few covers, then too often shuffle home empty handed- to pick one of the afore-mentioned classics off my own bookshelf.
I mean, really! How many guys are going to be hooked by a story featuring a pack of snarky teen-age girls? By stories about a geeky kid bullied by the high-school quarterback? We may have lived that story ourselves . . . but who wants to go back and re-live it? Give us stakes that resonate!
Yes, like a bad Groundhog Day nightmare, bookstore offerings too frequently disappoint the Christian man.
But not today.
At the recommendation of a friend- thanks Jeremiah!– yet with trepidation, I picked up A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. I think it was the ent-like green man on the cover that tipped the scales. Who doesn’t love a walking tree monster?
But still, that trepidation was real, having been so repeatedly disappointed by the insipid young protagonists who’ve invaded in so many otherwise promising MG/YA stories. Don’t writers remember what it was like to be young? None of us were ever so vapid. Foolish, perhaps. But not that. At least I hope not.
So it was with great surprise and not a little joy that I entered the world of Monster and found a thirteen-year-old POV character who, not only didn’t make me cringe, but was so well-written that I forgot his age altogether. Was instead swept away by the tale.
Beyond that, I’ll say little about the story. I don’t want to spoil anything for you.
But I will leave with this one caution. Don’t listen to the (very well narrated) audio while driving. Doing so with fogged eyes is highly unsafe. Thanks a lot for the tear-jerker Josiah!
So, though our epic quest for great fiction written for Christian men may not have yielded any new adult fiction this week- still, we did come away with one worthy MG/YA offering.
I’ll take the win.
by J.A. Webb | Mar 22, 2025 | Blog post
Christian men might reasonably wonder- “Why bother to read a Time Travel Dystopian Magical Fantasy written in 1889?”
But if you are asking yourself the same question right now- read on. If you pass this one up because of it’s age you’ll be missing a treat.
As a grade schooler, I so loved The Prince and the Pauper that I grabbed the next book in the Mark Twain section- which happened to be this one- A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. I, like the character of the story, was immediately transported to a new world. One of which I had never imagined. And like him, one I never wanted to depart.
And speaking of being transported into a story- this story is available in audio, narrated by Nick Offerman of TV’s Parks and Rec fame. Give that guy a snow white mustachio and he might be Samuel Clemens. Fantastic work!
But why, as a Christian man, bother to read a book written in 1889? Much less love it? And one of Time travel?? With our modern understanding, such an outdated tale is a waste of our time, no?
That depends. Do you love dry humor or sarcastic barbs? Dystopian social commentary so skillfully woven into the story that you’ll miss it as it slides right past your awareness and into a deeper part of your consciousness, where it will set up shop and begin to remodel the way you see your own world? In a historical setting, no less? Quite a trick, that!
No?
Then how about time travel, non-stop action, political intrigue, soundly beating weaselly bad guys, rescuing both fair maidens and the down-trodden- both at the same time? Would you enjoy a tale of a stalwart man, a defender of right-striving to mightily take hold of his world and correct all the many wrongs he observes- and succeeds? An epic saga of hard work and entrepreneurial genius? Of independence and rugged self-reliance? Of valiant battle against injustice, of social systems which both literally or figuratively enslave those trapped within that society?
“But,” you say, “I hate reading 19th century prose. It’s so stilted, deciphering the story is such work. Won’t flow.”
I get it. But you’re out of excuses.
This book reads as naturally and as cleanly as if written yesterday. If I hadn’t told you, you’d not have known it was older than your grandpa. Or your great-grandpa.
“Oh,” you say, the beginnings of a knowing smirk glimmering in your eye. “You say this book is a great read for Christians, but I happen to know Mark Twain was a heathen. Not a Christian. What do you have to say about that?”
Hmm. Well, I can’t speak to Twain’s eternal condition. But perhaps I’ll share a few phrases from the book and let him speak for himself, such as:
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“ . . . Concentrated power in a political machine is bad and an established church is only a political machine.”
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In context, Twain was speaking of a government established religion- and it’s hard to disagree with that. I’d love a bit less concentrated power and fewer political machines in our time, wouldn’t you?
How about this one?:
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“ . . . We must have a religion, it goes without saying . . . “
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I could go on, but that’s not what this article is about- and plenty of others more qualified than I have already written about Twain’s supposed religious beliefs- well after his own death- coincidentally- so he can’t even have a say in the argument. And not one of those experts seems to agree with the other, by the way.
The point is- while we wait for the modern-day Tolkien to appear, or the Christian Heinlein or Asimov, there waits a fantastical tale that lies forgotten in the dusty tomes of your library. Dust it off. Join our intrepid traveler on his journey back in time.
Like him, you may never want to return.
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by J.A. Webb | Feb 22, 2025 | Blog post
Must Christian men turn to the past to find great fantastical tales?
Are there any undiscovered jewels lost among the dusty tomes lining the shelves of stories past? Read on, as we tell a tale of our recent journeys, and decide for yourself.
Having despaired of locating modern Fantastical fiction — written for adult — (dare I say it . . . Men?), we turned our attention backward in time, a path our feet have so often gravitated toward when frustrated by the dearth present in modern day writing.
But in this disheartened rout, unlike so many other times, we passed by the admittedly tempting safe harbors of Lewis and Tolkien, where so often we’ve taken shelter, crying all the while “oh where are the great modern day Christian authors, who would write for such as we?”
But as we marched wearily onward, a faint cry reached our ears from the depth of a wood by which we were about to pass. Though it were the blackest of woods, we could not but heed the call, and gladly there we met author John Buchan. As the sunset and the blackwood encroached, he whispered to us a tale set in Scotland of the 1600s, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.
Witch Wood is a speculative tale of ancient pagan magic and a battle between true godliness, variations of false religiosity, and the unseen world. There are no anti-heroes here, no pale pastels, no gray areas or moral ambiguity. Only good and evil, true heroes fighting self-sacrificially for the right, unsympathetic villains, the banally self-ignorant, and the willfully sinful.
The supernatural elements of the story are so elegantly portrayed as to cause the hairs to rise on the back of the neck. Better, the author does not make the mistake that so many modern Christian authors do, namely, the monster is never shown in the light of day. One only catches glimpses of him as he darts between the deep wood shadows, never losing the power of dread.
The setting is gorgeously illuminated in the imagination of the reader. The characters are vibrant and true to life. The story and the stakes were such that we often found ourselves clenching fists and gritting teeth.
In short, we’ve found, finally, a “new” fantastical tale worthy of the attention of Christian men. It’s so satisfying to say that!
P.S.- It would be unworthy if I didn’t give credit where credit was due. I discovered this story when Leo Vaughn mentioned it in a recent post on his Substack blog- Resurrecting the Real.
He’s a writer of Christian fantasy himself, frighteningly smart, and his blog is a great read. Check it out!
