The Wonders of Creation: Learning Stewardship from Narnia and Middle-Earth

Hansen Lectureship

by Kristen Page, Christina Bieber Lake (Contributor), Noah J Toly (Contributor)

When an author of fiction employs the imagination and sets characters in a new location, they are in a sense creating a world. Might such fictional worlds give us a deeper appreciation for our own?

Many readers have found themselves, like the Pevensie children, transported by C. S. Lewis into Narnia, and they have traveled from Lantern Waste to Cair Paravel and the edge of the sea. Thanks to J. R. R. Tolkien, readers have also journeyed with Bilbo, Frodo, and their companions across Middle-earth from the Shire to the Lonely Mountain, the forest of Mirkwood, the mines of Moria, and the very fires of Mount Doom. But as often as we enter these fictional worlds as readers, we eventually return to our world refreshed with sharpened insight.

In The Wonders of Creation, biologist Kristen Page explores the beloved fictional landscapes of Narnia and Middle-earth in order to discover what we might learn about real-life landscapes and how to become better stewards of God's good creation.

The Hansen Lectureship Series offers accessible and insightful reflections by Wheaton College faculty members on the transformative work of the Wade Center authors.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, Theology, Environment

ebook

First published November 29, 2022

About the author

Emily Hunter McGowin is assistant professor of theology at Wheaton College. She is a priest and canon theologian in the Anglican diocese of Churches for the Sake of Others (C4SO). She is the author of Quivering Families (2018) and has contributed chapters to a number of other books. You can visit her website for more information, www.emilymcgowin.com, or find her on Twitter @emilymcgowin.

Reviews

[Stephanie’s Ninth Suitcase · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a complimentary copy of the ebook from the publisher. Opinions expressed are my own.

Scripture Connection

For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

Isaiah 55:12
Spiritual Themes

Stewardship is HUGE, throughout the book. In addition to citing the verse from Genesis, there are various Scriptural references that point to our role, as fellow creatures, in creation.

Contents

The book, part of the Hansen Lectureship Series from Wheaton College, consists of three lectures by Page, and each lecture includes a response. The introduction is by Walter Hansen,

Stepping Out of the Wardrobe: Searching Fictional Landscapes to Guide Our View of Our Own World
Response by Christina Beiber Lake
Chapter one introduces the concept of fictional landscapes in Tolkien and Lewis’ work. Page explains that both authors were intimately acquainted with the natural world and this familiarity lent to lush, filled-out, fictional settings. She excerpts passages describing the destructions of Narnia and the Shire, discussing the emotional response that these scenes elicit in readers.
A Lament for Creation: Responding to the Groaning of God’s World
Response by Noah Toly
Chapter two shifts its emphasis to the created world in which we live, with discussion about how decisions by one group of people affect other groups of people— and the world’s ecological systems, at large. Page also discusses a harmful cultural phenomenon: Christians, despite receiving the call to stewardship in the Bible, are those who are least likely to believe that the earth needs to be stewarded.
Ask the Animals to Teach You: How to Regain Wonder and Rejoin the Chorus
Response by Emily Hunter McGowin
Chapter three highlights the importance of wonder, in recognizing the glory of God and cultivating an appropriate relationship with what He created.

What I Liked

The book’s premise drew me in, first because of the literary/fantasy emphasis on the works of Lewis and Tolkien and second because of the stewardship correlation. Stewardship is something that the Lord has strongly emphasized to my mom and I over the past several years, and He has led my mom to design our yards to create a bird/wildlife/pollinator sanctuary. Plus, Meadow Arc is sectioned into various cultural and literary spaces, including “Baggins” and “Narnia.” (It is a lovely landscape and a work in progress.) In some ways, this book felt like it was written especially for
There was an argument I really liked in the first section— something to the extent that stories can make arguments that people wouldn’t ordinarily be willing or able to hear. I’ve seen this in very positive ways, such as when the Lord uses books to speak to me. On the other hand, this is also a reason why I’m so adamantly in favor of promoting good books— because bad books can promote messages that people wouldn’t otherwise be receptive to.

Page’s argument is linked to the theme of stewardship in Narnia and Middle Earth, and I feel that this is a positive instance where otherwise unreceptive readers are invited to consider a new perspective, through literature. Conservative Christians are often fond of Tolkien’s and Lewis’s work, but less open to discussions about the importance of taking care of the world God has given us. I think that The Wonder of Creation, along with the original books, themselves, are eye-opening resources for those who have eyes to see.

I enjoyed the excerpts from the books, as well as the commentary that illuminated some familiar passages in a new light. The close readings were fun and insightful.

One point that really stood out to me was that the Hebrew word used in Genesis in the call to take care of the earth is the same term used later on in commissioning temple workers. This is significant and beautiful to think about!

Content

This book is definitely “challenging” for Christians, especially Conservative Christians— in the best way. I have no content notes.

Recommendation Status

Highly, highly recommended! This work has a strong academic quality (it is, after all, part of a lecture series). For this reason, I could see it integrated into curriculum about Inklings authors, at either the high school or the college level. (I had the opportunity to study the Inklings during my undergraduate experience at the Torrey Honors Institute at Biola University, and I could definitely see this book being integrated!)

I would also recommend the title for those who are big fans of C.S. Lewis and JRR Tolkien.

[Emma Hinkle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dr. Page uses the pivotal works of J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis to emphasize how important stewardship of the earth is for Christians in these three lectures.

I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the stories of Narnia and Middle Earth through this lens. and Dr. Page made some strong arguments about how those who have "privilege would hide the truth that creates discomfort" when it comes to sustainability and the impact of humans on the earth. It was a challenge to me to think of more ways my lifestyle can be sustainable!

The last lecture emphasizes the importance of wonder in a Christian's life and how being in nature can help us encourage the sense of wonder in ourselves. "When we fail to exercise wonder and delight in the natural world, we open ourselves up to the risk of following Saruman's lead by believing that we have discovered new and better ways to shape creation and utilize its resources."

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC of this book!

[meloh · Rating 5 out of 5]

"It would be nice, and fairly true, to say that 'from that time forth Eustace was a different boy.'
To be strictly accurate, he began to be a different boy.
He had relapses.
There were still many days when he could be very tiresome.
But most of those I shall not notice.
The cure had begun."

(Lewis' Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Pg.93. Quoted by Dr. Page on Pg.98)

Lord help us as we attempt to join you in restoring the world we've damaged.
The cure has begun in us, please bring it forth to completion!

[Ella Edelman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book explores creation-care through the lens of beloved fiction in such a way that the reader is moved to wonder at the beauty and lament at the suffering and degradation of the created world. Page's passion is real and engaging, and I found her message thoughtful and compelling. I wondered if this one would only tangentially refer to the worlds of Lewis and Tolkien, but it is clear that the author's love for those fictional places runs deep and informs her own work and thought in real ways.

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dr. Page passionately and clearly lays out the value and beauty of creation, the threats to it, and a call to protect and return to it. I found the last two essays difficult and devastating to read with how jam-packed they were regarding the harm we over privileged humans are causing to the world and humanity in the name of comfort. I definitely need to more closely examine my own choices and practices and be more diligent in choosing what is better rather than what is easy.

[Alyse Knorr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cool approach to eco-theology through the lenses of Lewis’s Narnia and Tolkien’s Middle Earth.

[Graig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book on creation and awe and wonder through the lenses of Narnia and Tolkien’s middle earth!

[Lucas Hagen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful book to read. Page’s passion for both creation and literature is palpable and serves to both call Christians to action as well as cast a vision of biblical stewardship. Page used Tolkien and Lewis to convey how fiction can be a beautiful means of helping readers re-orient their perspectives and reconsider their ways.
This is a very encouraging and convicting read and can easily recommend it to anyone who is interested in nature and/or literature. Ultimately, this work serves as an act of worship and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to join Page in it.

[Sophie Crane]

As Someone who's Read Lord of the Rings & The Chronicles of Narnia, I Can Guarantee You Will Enjoy Reading this Book.
(Thanks to Net Galley for this Book).

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary: Discusses the value of Lewis’s and Tolkien’s fictional landscapes in fostering love and care for the creation of which we are part.

I think it may safely be said that those of us who love the stories of Narnia and Middle-Earth love not only the stories but the places in which they occur. We imagine finding wardrobes leading into a forest with a lamppost or staying with the elves in Lothlorien. We delight in the home of Mr. and Mrs. Beaver and take deep offense at the industrialization of the Shire and the assault on Fangorn Forest.

Kristen Page, a professor of biology and lifelong lover of these stories believes these stories have a power in them to encourage us to care for the creation we live in and not just the imagined ones of Narnia or Middle-Earth. She sets out her case in three chapters, reflecting the three lectures she gave as part of The Hansen Lectureship Series at The Marion E. Wade Center at Wheaton College. She is joined in this volume by Christina Bieber Lake, Noah J. Toly, and Emily Hunter McGowin who each offer a short response to one of her chapters.

In the first chapter, “Stepping Out of the Wardrobe,” Page shares her twin loves of reading about fictional landscapes and reading actual landscapes, something she teaches her students to do. She proposes that the fictional landscapes of Lewis and Tolkien, particularly forests, reflect the careful observation both men made of actual forests, particularly in the detailed descriptions of fictional places they offer in their books. She sees the connection going both ways. Treebeard’s outrage with what Saruman has done to trees he knew by name can translate to our own outrage at human depredations of our forests and land. She decries the plant blindness of many of our children, the removal of plant vocabulary from children’s dictionaries to make room for tech terms, and believes books like those of Lewis and Tolkien’s are one step in restoring plant literacy and the love of growing things. She also sees the hobbits care for the Shire as a model of sustainable practices.

The second chapter, “A Lament for the Creation,” begins with the scouring of the Shire when the hobbits return. Men from the south have turned it into an industrial wasteland, impoverishing its once flourishing inhabitants. The hobbits give themselves to setting things right. She then turns to our own ravaged ecosystems, oceans, rivers, the atmosphere and considers how stories may awaken us to action. She begins with our over-consumption, where we tax the capacity of the earth to restore itself and the industry created brownfields, often adjacent to the urban poor, whose health is impacted by their proximity. She also brings in her own research on how the destruction of habitats increase the threat of novel viruses and diseases as humans and animal species are brought into closer contact. Cocoa plantation spread in Africa, for example, correlates with the increased incidence of Ebola. She quotes an extended passage in Perelandra in which Ransom refuses to partake of a uniquely delicious fruit more than would sustain him, sensing this would not be right, suggesting that we might develop a similar sense. She proposes that lament, both for the creation and the harms that our excesses have caused our neighbors may lead to change, just as Fangorn’s lament in the company of the hobbits led to the resolve to act.

The third chapter, “Ask the Animals to Teach You,” is about regaining wonder. Whether it is the wonder of talking animals including the lordly Aslan, or the beauty of Lothlorien, reading these works fosters wonder for Page, as do her studies of animals, and of plant life. Tom Bombadil teaches us to take delight in things for themselves without reference to ourselves. Tolkien understood that trees communicate, which scientists are discovering to be the case. Wonder leads us to love the physical creation and give ourselves to care for and tend it.

Page’s presentations are accompanied by a center section of a selection of her exquisite nature photography. The responses by Lake, Toly, and McGowin are brief, adding their own disciplinary insights and personal experiences. I’ve appreciated all the Hansen Lectureship books that I’ve read, but this was a special treat. Most have featured humanities professors, who understandably bring their discipline’s critical skills to bear in their discussion of the Wade authors. This was so delightful as a scientist who is a devoted reader of Lewis and Tolkien, but not a scholar in their works, connected her scientific scholarship to the worlds and landscapes Lewis and Tolkien create and that readers love, and how this may open our eyes to our own world. May we read and love and care for those landscapes as deeply as is fitting of true lovers of Narnia and Middle-Earth!

____________________

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher.

[Josh Olds · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up The Wonders of Creation the week after having visited Oxford. After spending the weekend running around to behold all the haunts of Tolkien and Lewis, it felt only natural to retreat with them (and this book) into the nearby woods, sit under a tree, and reflect on what we can learn about stewardship and creation care from Narnia and Middle-Earth.

This book is primarily a collection of three lectures given as part of the Ken and Jean Hansen Lectureship, an annual faculty lecture series at Wheaton. The Wonders of Creation is the sixth lecture to be published by IVP Academic, all of which reflect in some aspect on great English authors. Kristen Page isn’t an English professor or an expert on literature. She’s a biologist who serves as a professor of biology at Wheaton. Using her expertise on creation care, she dives into the worlds of Narnia and Middle-Earth to examine the emphasis that Lewis and Tolkien placed on creation care—something particularly salient as they grew up and lived amid a time of a great technological innovation and great destruction caused by the very same. Taking readers into Narnia and Middle-Earth, Dr. Page explores how a lack of creation care has harmed the world (and ourselves) and calls readers to a more responsible ecological stewardship.

Each lecture is then followed by a reflection from a different individual. Christina Lake, a professor of English, follows up the first lecture, which is about using fiction to guide our own worldview. Noah Toly, a former professor of urban studies, follows up the second lecture, which is a lament at the lack of creation care in our current world. And Emily McGowin, a theologian, responds to the concluding lecture about rejoining a commitment to creation care and coming to love the world the way that God loves the world. The responses are not as substantive as I would have liked, are short, and spend a majority of the time talking about Dr. Page rather than the content of the lecture.

As this is a lecture series, the book’s material does reflect that style. It is very much meant to be something that is listened to or spoken, rather than read. As such, it also carries with it some of the downfalls of spoken language. Page covers her material competently, but not as deeply as I’d like. What would be too complicated or lengthy to explain in a lecture could be explicated in written form. The Wonders of Creation offers an excellent introduction to creation care and Tolkien and Lewis’s ecological views, it could really have gone deeper into their writing to draw out even more themes. As the responses do not really add much, I would recommend listening to the actual lectures rather than perusing the book format. If you’re interested in a volume that does go in-depth into Tolkien’s ecological views, The Science of Middle-Earth is a comprehensive and readable work.

[Mia · Rating 3 out of 5]

‘The Wonders of Creation’ consists of three essays by Kristen Page, along with a written response for each by varying authors (Christina Bieber Lake, Emily Hunter McGowin, Noah Toly). Each piece of writing - both the essays and responses - were fascinating, and I found Page’s perspective really refreshing.

Page’s essential argument is that conservationists are often drawn to their work through an emotional connection to landscapes, something that can often be inspired through literature. She draws upon Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and C. S. Lewis’ Narnia to demonstrate this - for example, the sense of familiarity that is generated through Tolkien’s Shire being based on the West Midlands in England.

I loved her idea that fiction inspires people, changing their view of nature and stewardship. A particular quote that drew me was, ‘now, when I walk through forests and trip over a root, I wonder if it was my clumsiness or the forest’s intention’. Page really made me think and feel such enthusiasm for being outdoors!

Following this, Page also makes the claim that fictional characters / landscapes challenge people to action in conservation. While those in a more privileged position may not see pollution outright, literature and the arts allow for greater access to it. The use of emotion and the creation of lament by authors, she suggests, is also important for creating change.

In her final essay, Page mentions the importance of wonder. She observes that it is often in short supply nowadays - hard to find in a modern, artificial age. Nonetheless, it is something that can be found in literature and even in the Psalms in the Bible as David speaks of the wonders of creation.

Overall, I enjoyed ‘The Wonders of Creation’ as a piece of writing - most prominently for the originality of it. Literature and the environment / conservation are two things I’ve always been passionate about! I would recommend this wholeheartedly.

[Rob Seabrook · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Wonders of Creation is a set of three essays exploring our attitudes to creation through the consideration of imagined worlds, namely those created by Christian authors CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien.
These imagined worlds may seem fanciful when compared to our world, although it had me thinking whether the inhabitants of Narnia or Middle Earth may well feel the same about parts of our amazing world ! But when we read about these worlds, it does trigger our sense of wonder, that can in turn bring us into a place of observing our own environment with fresh eyes.
The final essay, which focused on the importance if wonder, is especially of interest. It shows that an attitude of wonder and awe for creation will lead us to knowing our place in it, understanding its purpose and developing in us a healthy attitude to protecting and caring for the created world. The response to this should be for us to be more concerned to care for the creation around us, to steward our world better and perhaps even begin to worship its Creator.
Each of the three essays has a written response from three different contributors, offering a helpful insight into how we may respond, whether in attitudes or actions.
We have an infinitely creative God, and we, made in His image, are blessed with the gift of imagination. As authors, artists, poets, dancers, scientists, inventors, entrepreneurs or whatever outlet we have for this creativity, we can use this gift to reflect something of the glory of God. Knowing that whatever we can imagine and wonder at about God's creativity here, is likely to surpass our imaginations when we see His creativity in heaven.
See https://www.robseabrook.com/category/... for more reviews of Christian books.

[Michelle Kidwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Wonders of Creation
Learning Stewardship from Narnia and Middle-Earth
by Kristen Page
Pub Date 29 Nov 2022
InterVarsity Press, IVP Academic


I am reviewing a copy of The Wonders of Creation through Intervarsity Press and Netgalley:


When authors such as C.S Lewis, J.R.R Tolkien, George MacDonald, Dorothy L. Sayers, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Charles Williams employ their imaginations and sets characters in a new location, they are in a sense creating a world. Could such fictional worlds give us a deeper appreciation for our own?


Many Readers have found themselves transported by C.S Lewis to Narnia like the Pevensie children. They have traveled from Lantern Waste to Cair Paravel and the edge of the sea. Thanks to J. R. R. Tolkien, readers have also journeyed with Bilbo, Frodo, and their companions across Middle-earth from the Shire to the Lonely Mountain, the forest of Mirkwood, the mines of Moria, and the very fires of Mount Doom. But as often as we enter these fictional worlds as readers, we eventually return to our world refreshed with sharpened insight. In The Wonders of Creation, biologist Kristen Page explores the beloved fictional landscapes of Narnia and Middle-earth in order to discover what we might learn about real-life landscapes and how to become better stewards of God's good creation.


The Wonders of Creation is based on the annual lecture series hosted at Wheaton College's Marion E. Wade Center, volumes in the Hansen Lectureship Series reflect on the imaginative work and lasting influence of seven British authors: Owen Barfield, G. K. Chesterton, C. S. Lewis, George MacDonald, Dorothy L. Sayers, J. R. R. Tolkien, and Charles Williams.


I give The Wonders of Creation five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kristen Page, is a renowned PhD from Purdue University and biologist has given 3 lectures to the Hansen Lectureship Series, which offer great insights and her gifted photography to tie her theme to C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien works. Additional contributions compose the small but exciting work.
Those of us in the Northwest have unbelievable mountains, lakes and land formations can sense the stewardship in the wonders in Narnia and Middle-earth and how quickly we could lose them if we are not careful. This small book is heavily footnoted with many of other authors and poets to make this a very rich experience.
Do you remember Digory’s first impression in Magicians Nephew “all the light was green light that came through the leaves, the woods were very much alive”. Forests are not sort of places where things happen unless the are alive. Many Christians believe that environmentalism should be separate from a life of faith, but Kristen Page makes her case for learning stewardship, as a matter of great importance. Frodo’s response to the scouring of the shire, brings to mind Rev 4:11, “Thou art worthy for thou created all things” brings Tolkien’s use of the need for stewardship. Ms. Page’s agreement is made even stronger with Robert Frost poems and James Weldon Johnson poem “Creation” among others who inspire us to care for our damaged landscapes.
Have you read of an agricultural environment that has been uprooted to make a mall? Storytelling is a means of transforming attitudes to save the rainforests in Africa. Our overconsumption of privileged people to make those with less live in brownfields. God created everything and yet, some species die off without our being aware of them.
I think you will find this a very exciting addition to your library and cause you to totally rethink our need to save his creation.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

In The Wonders of Creation, Kristen Page presents excellent essays on learning stewardship from Narnia and Middle-Earth. At a short but strong 140 pages, this book shows the connection between the world of literary landscapes and Christian responsibility in the real world.

Essay/Response

Page begins by explaining that in order to be moved, we must learn to see. What I most loved about this book was the essay/response format. After an essay by Page, a brief response is provided. The first response is by Christina Bieber Lake, and she encourages those who are more book-minded to begin looking at the real world.

The second chapter is the most challenging. Page asks those who are privileged to lament the effects of consumerism on creation. We have failed to love our neighbors, as consumerist habits hurt those who are underprivileged. In response, Noah Toly says to let it all sink in. To dwell on what we have done.

Challenging and Inspiring

The book ends by exhorting us to worship with children who have the gift of wonder. The world is their cathedral. Practical steps in the reponse from Emily Hunter McGowin include interaction with your local ecology, journeying through fictional landscapes, and taking children to teach us.

This book is a beautiful challenge for Christians to be truly inspired by art and to love our Creator as well as his creation.

I received a media copy of The Wonders of Creation and this is my honest review.

[Meagan | The Chapter House · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will read just about anything on Lewis and/or Tolkien, and to have a book that combines the two is an automatic perk for me!

Page does a good job at assessing each author's take on the environment and stewardship, aligning them with Scripture and giving the reader a number of practical takeaways. No matter where the reader may fall on the political spectrum, we can each find something positive here.

There was a bit of a blunt comment midway through about how evangelical conservatives were the least likely bunch to be concerned about environmental stewardship. This was a bit off-putting to me, perhaps because I am an evangelical conservative for the most part, LOL! So it did hit home, as it should have--but I also felt like it was an imbalanced statement that could alienate the reader or shut down the conversation instead of keep the dialogue going (ergo defeating the purpose or point she was trying to make). A few other comments down the line had the same effect, to me at least.

That aside, this is a solid read, with plenty of footnotes (I can feel my TBR list growing!). A bit academic at times; some sections were more interesting and easily digestible than others, but all certainly provided food for thought, whether or not I agreed with it all.

I received an eARC of the book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

[Chandler Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating look at environmental care and stewardship of God’s creation from the perspective of a Christian ecologist. She is largely critical of historic evangelical negligence of creation care and laments the politicization of the issue. She uses the fictional works of Lewis’s Narnia and Tolkien’s Middle earth, and the wonder that the literary landscapes of these books inspire in the reader, as her jumping off points to call readers back to wonder and appreciation for God’s good creation. For Page, an appreciation for fiction and literary landscapes can be a gateway into appreciation for the environment. She believes that stories can have more compelling and persuasive power for the need of environmental stewardship than mere abstract arguments. She challenges all the ways that American society has become a largely “in-door” society and how nature is no longer natural to us. The book also calls us to recognize wonder as a virtue that we must work to develop within ourselves. Based on the title, I figured the book would be more about Lewis and Tolkien, but these figures and their writings were more of a jumping off point for the writer’s arguments. This let me down a little bit, but it was still a great and challenging read about a topic I have not thought much about!

[Meow558 · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Wonders of Creation by Kristen Page is 3 essays and their responses.
This was a very quick read, and it set off to do what it claimed to do. It talked about how you can use Lord of the Rings and Narnia to enhance how you take care of nature. The first essay is the most devoted to this, the other two are less about that and more about Christianity. The essays were well written, with plenty of quotes and the correct format. I do not think the actual information was expanded on enough. Also the responses were essentially just praising the author of the essays rather than about the actual essays.
I would recommend this book to people who are looking for reasons to care about the planet more, and looking for a way to view it. I would not recommend to anyone who is not Christian.
I got this ARC from InterVarsity Press on NetGalley.

[Bri · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks NetGalley and InterVarsity Press for the ARC in exchange for review!

This book is less reflection on Lewis and Tolkien (and five others) and more on touting Kristen Page herself. There are only three essays she herself has written and then there are three response essays written by others talking about how great Page’s ideas are. Personally, I’d rather come to my own conclusions from listening to the author talk and not from people talking about the author. My own conclusions: Page has interesting points I need to think on more but overall I can’t quite meet her there (yet?).

[Scott Carter · Rating 3 out of 5]

The primary content is based on three essays (originally lectures) from Kristen Page arguing Christians need to be better stewards of creation. Conservation can be inspired through literature and Page leans on the worlds of Lewis and Tolkien. I am appreciative of the essays and the challenge to care for this world. Each of the the three essays contained a response, which was nothing more than a brief praise for the essay and added nothing of sustenance.

There may be an audience for this book, but would honestly recommend just watching the lectures which can be found online.

[Natalie Alane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Received an ARC for review. Based on a lecture series drawing connections between the fictional landscapes of the Inklings and modern day climate change, as well as the Bible, with the goal of helping Christian’s understand the true role and purpose of stewardship, as well as what they can do to aid in climate crisis. Half of it is “responses” from other scholars that spend more time praising Page than truly adding to the academic conversation. Apparently the lecture videos are available online, so honestly, watch the videos instead.

[Christina Estrada · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure I expected to be as impacted by this book as I was, since it was written by a science professor rather than a "writer". But Dr. Page presented an incredibly compelling subject very clearly, and I was completely disarmed of some of my defensiveness against (secular) environmentalism by her parallels between our world and two beloved fictional worlds, all of which are subjected to the effects of greed and self-centered consumerism -- acquired by humanity at the fall.
Lots for me to chew on, and I will.

[Steph Bateman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fascinating read! Through three essays, Page explores the lessons that we can learn from the work of Tolkien and C.S.Lewis, the landscapes that they created and how their characters respond to them. Through the positive and negative relationships to these landscapes that the characters exhibit and through how the worlds are created by the authors, Page shows the importance of being connected to nature and looking after it. She connects this to biblical stewardship and the importance of caring for Creation. Each essay is followed by a response from a colleague, each of whom reinforces her ideas with their own stories and experience. A brilliant book for helping with our connection to nature, understanding our place within it and showing us how we can look after it.

[Justin Harbin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a phenomenal read. Page artfully confronts our dereliction of duty to care for the Creation while welcoming the reader into a sense of wonder, provoking a deeper love for the world and our role in caretaking. As a lover of Lewis, Tolkien, and the outdoors, this was a delight to read from start to finish.

[Nicole Magolan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series of lectures was a nice quick read, with some refreshing takes and reminders about our role as stewards of the natural world -- and looking at it through the lens of our beloved fictional worlds. Appealed to my bookworm heart. Have I mentioned how much I love trees???

[John Damon Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

A promising premise, urgently needed message, but a gimmicky and disappointing execution.

[Rachel Clinger-Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this showing the beauty of the world and literature

[Mollie Melton · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Wonders of Creation by Kristen Page is based on her series of three lectures at Wheaton. There are three main chapters/sections each followed by responses from colleagues in different disciplines.

For the first two sections, the discussion of Tolkien and Lewis was used more as an illustration for the author’s arguments rather than an analysis of those writers and their works, which wasn’t quite what I was expecting. In the third section, however, the use of those authors’ works was much more developed and connected to the chapter. This was definitely my favorite section of the book.

The three responses to the sections written by scholars of other disciplines reflected on the points made and connected them to their own disciplines, which broadened the perspectives on the topic, but were more personal and not necessarily critical responses to the chapters.

I learned some new things by reading this book and ended up with a lot of footnotes highlighted to do more research on. There were points that I felt, though, like the author was starting from a base point that may be different for different readers and so needed more explanation or support depending how much they’ve considered about environmental topics. However, if you’re interested in environmental studies and thinking about how what we read shapes us, you’ll find this book interesting.

[Ashlea Marshall · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to feel more in awe of my Creator when I finished this book. Instead, I felt a burden impossible to move. The second essay especially left me feeling like I could do nothing to help with the horrible state of the planet.