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Summary: So much for the Reluctant Dragon
Review: Mr. O'Brien's treatment of fairy tales, Tolkien and Narnia is interesting and informative. His list of recommended books at the end is very useful. However, he is too rigid in his interpretation of dragons. Dragons are not necessarily symbols of Satan. What about the dragons in the Psalms (in some translations at least) that are exhorted to praise God? It would be unfortunate if children, on Mr. O'Brien's advice, were to be denied the pleasure of reading "The Reluctant Dragon." Or Laurence Yep's Chinese-dragon series. Or Patricia C. Wrede's delightful "Dealing With Dragons" and its sequels. There is nothing harmful about these books, or about Madeleine L'Engle's, Lloyd Alexander's and Stephen Lawhead's fantasies, all of which celebrate virtue and the victory of good over evil.
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Summary: Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Dragon
Review: Much of Mr. O'Brien's book is very interesting, and he is correct that how we use myth and legend reveals a lot about us. I found his comments about the movie "Dragonheart" very interesting. He also provides many good recommendations for parents. I depart from his reasoning when he seems to imply that if a dragon or snake is handled as a good character makes a book anti-Christian or anti-God. He seems to feel that snakes and dragons are inherently evil. He even comments negatively on people who keep snakes as pets (not something I want to do, but not because snakes are evil). Creation was made by God and has now fallen. No one part of creation is any worse than any other part (Acts 9: 9 -16). It is man's acts that are evil or good.
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Summary: That's not entertainment
Review: O'Brien has issued a wake-up call to conscientious parents in his latest book. We cannot take it for granted anymore that the entertainment aimed at our children is worthy of their attention. In fact, it may be harmful. The classic stories which teach us about good and evil (fairy tales, myths, classical literature) are being replaced or modified. The Dragon, the symbol of evil or chaos, is being tamed, leaving our children's souls in danger. O'Brien cites many examples of this in popular books and movies. I found his take on Disney movies very insightful and a little scary. Disney invariably belittles authority and religion, especially Catholicism. Yet this company is the world leader in feeding our children their steady diet of movies and videos. One only has to watch the Esmeralda dance in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" to question Disney's idea of 'family entertainment.' O'Brien doesn't leave you in the lurch, however, as he helps us discern what is good entertainment for our children. He also provides a comprehensive list of good literature -- and, thankfully, there's a lot of it out there. I hope every parent and educator reads this book. It is too important to be missed.
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Summary: Don't be misled, don't miss this book
Review: The essential message of this book is that minds are at war for the redefinition of the way you and your children will think, and by implication, children of generations to come.Traditional fairie tales expressed the influence the unseen world has on the world in which we live, but did so within the framework of a clear understanding of good and evil, right and wrong. Today's fairie tale is blurring the defining lines between these elements and creating a powerful, new (yet ancient) understanding that is degrading moral conscience and inviting young people to explore powers traditionally understood to belong to the 'dark side'. They even encourage friendship with any 'good' denizens of that dark side. The original edition of this book was sub-titled "Christian and pagan imagination in children's literature." The second edition more clearly focuses on the immediate problem with its sub-title, "The battle for your child's mind." I read the original edition and was thrilled with the clear presentation of the dangers. This second edition is even more in-depth in its handling of the concepts and issues. The reviewers of this book who speak negatively seem the rightful victims of the very forces exposed in the book. They give clear evidence of missing the point. The point is not, "Are all snakes bad? Aren't any dragons good?" The point is that there is a malevolent mind, unrelenting, intent on destruction, at work at every level in our world, especially operative with tremendous effect in modern literature and visual media. To miss this point is to be a victim of the hypnotic forces of deception. Those who read C.S. Lewis's 'Narnia' series will remember the Marsh Wiggle who burned his own foot in the fire in order to break the witch's hypnotic power over them. This book will help you burn your own foot in the fire so you can wake up. Our culture is in motion, changing form, calling evil good and good evil, and many who are committed to 'good' are embracing the new forms as acceptable. When our culture has finally changed completely, will there be anyone there who will even know what happened? This is a vitally important book. It is sound, sane, insightful, spiritual, discerning, and will enable readers to establish and maintain oases of light in the new dark ages that are already upon us. Don't miss it.
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Summary: Wisdom for embattled parents
Review: This book has wise guidance for parents who suspect that something has gone very wrong in what our culture serves up for consumption by children, but are not quite sure what it is or what to do about it. O'Brien reveals the pagan themes that are increasingly dominant in children's literature and films, discusses why they are destructive, and offers constructive alternatives. Especially illuminating (and entertaining!) are his analyses of the Disney films of the last 25 years. Included at the end is a very extensive list of recommended books for children of all ages. My only complaint is that his analyis is largely limited to the fantasy/science fiction genre of children's literature which is, admittedly, the most popular. But I would have been interested in his analysis of other genres, say historical fiction or (non-fantasy) adventure stories. This complaint is not decisive because O'Brien not only gives examples of dangerous literature, but educates parents to analyze literature for themselves.
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Summary: Yet another attempt to obliterate what makes America great
Review: This is book makes Catholicism look bad. Rooted in fundamentalism, this piece takes a stab at the first amendment of the US constitution and tries to claim that binary dilliniation of everything is good. Well, I'm sorry but some things are not all good and all evil. Mankind has created enough of each though. Those that follow these similar mentalities are the same people who are willing to murder eachother and violate their own religious laws to make a statement that their religion is better than someone else's. They are the terrorists, they are the suicide bombers. We don't need this in America. These people think that there is no medium, they think that everyone else is evil. By teaching our children only unconditional love and unconditional hate, they do not learn how treat everyone else as "thy brother (or sister). They learn to respect only those exactly like them, and they go off and join the KKK or something. In an age where parental fundamentalism is spreading like a plague, we need to remember the goal is peace. Freedom of religeon and expression is what make America great, and this book uses that freedom to protest it's existance.
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Summary: eye-opening
Review: Very helpful with its list of recommended titles, and very educational as to what to look for in books for our children.
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Summary: Every Parent Needs to Read this Book
Review: What if you could have Dostoevsky sit down with you as a parent and teach you about the children's stories that were important to forming him as an artist and a human being? This is what is offered to every PARENT who buys this book. Michael O'Brien is a living genius who is not only a novelist of the highest caliber (having been seriously compared to Dostoevsky), but he is an accomplished artist and man of profound moral depth and wisdom. In this important book, he examines the deep structure of children's stories from old Fairy Tales and the books like The Lord of the Rings, to the modern stories on offer from Disney and others such as the Harry Potter books. Stories, tales and mythologies are important for a child's healthy development, stories change lives and guide adult decisions. O'Brien's thesis is that the big selling stories given to our chidren today carry a perverted cosmology - one that he rightly describes as "gnostic." Briefly, a gnostic world view levels a foundation built on notions of right and wrong, good and evil, heroism and villiany, and replaces it with a totalizing vision of power alone as the only good. This kind of world view has very damaging effects on children. O'Brien helps the parent to discern what literature and movies are healthy for children by giving parents the tools to discern for themselves. This is an eye opener of a book. Every parent should read it.
Rating:
Summary: Disturbing, but very necessary
Review: When I first started reading, I thought that O'Brien was just being an alarmist. Having heard his full case, however, I must agree with what he says. This is a must-read for all Christian parents.
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