Richard Abanes, Christian Publications Inc., Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, 2002, $11.99, 322 pages, paper. Reviewed by Rick Kajiura, communication projects manager, General Conference office of Global Mission.

n his new book, Fantasy and Your Family, Richard Abanes follows up his earlier work, Harry Potter and the Bible by widening his scope to include more of the fantasy genre. However, a significant portion of the book still deals with J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books.

I have to admit I was expecting something different from a book about fantasy and the Christian family. When I opened the book, I expected to read a condemnation of anything and everything that is fantasy today. But Abanes, it turns out, is a fantasy fan, and he makes a distinction between what he considers good and bad fantasy. Although Abanes touches briefly on the literary quality of the books, he primarily evaluates them from a Christian standpoint.

Abanes begins by looking at the roots of modern fantasy--the myths, legends, and folktales that have been passed on from generation to generation. He points out that these stories, much like Jesus parable. were intended to teach some important life lesson. But are today's fantasies more about gratuitous entertainment than teaching life lessons, or are they teaching lessons we don't want our children reading? And is the end goal of getting children to read so important that it doesn't matter what they read?

Not according to Abanes. He gives a "thumbs down" to the Fear Street and Goosebumps books written by R.L. Stine and targeted to teen and preteen readers. From the descriptions he gives, the books seem to be more of the slasher, horror genre rather than fantasy. To illustrate his point, Abanes includes examples that would make me judge his book not fitting for children either. But I doubt Abanes would have a problem with this since his book seems to be written with parents in mind.

Abanes then focuses on J.R.R. Tolkien and his Lord of the Rings series. Although these books feature magic, Tolkien's characters, in particular Frodo Baggins, do best when they resist the temptation to invoke the magical properties of the ring. Abanes also points out that the story is set in another world, Middle Earth, unlike the Harry Potter books which are set in modern day earth. By removing the setting from the here and now, Tolkien reduces the temptation for readers to experiment with magic themselves. Therefore Abanes deems Tolkien's series acceptable for readers.

Neopaganism & Wiccanism
Abanes also looks at neopaganism and Wiccanism, outlining their beliefs and the increasing interest in the occult in modern society. Young girls are particularly susceptible, he says, due to a continuous stream of movies, books and television shows featuring young female heroines who are witches or involved in the occult. These witches are often shown battling evil forces using their magical powers. Abanes also cites web pages, articles, and ads by Wiccan and neopagan authors linking their works with popular books such as the Harry Potter series.

Personally I found this section of the book particularly interesting. Earlier this year, I visited several West African countries where large segments of the population still practice traditional African religions such as voodoo. Although it originated in this part of Africa, voodoo was carried to Haiti, New Orleans, and Brazil, by those captured and transported for the slave trade. Voodoo is still actively practiced as a religion, particularly in the country of Benin. In the late 1990s, the government of Benin recognized voodoo as a national religion and declared a national holiday in celebration of voodoo and other traditional African religions. Talking with newly baptized Adventists, I often heard stories of past involvement with witchcraft, charms and incantations. Abanes' chapter on neopaganism and Wiccanism clearly shows their roots. Wiccanism and neopaganism with their charms, spells and curses. In the 1980s Adventist Review editor William G. Johnsson wrote an award-winning editorial called, "New Age, Old Mistake." The same could be said of Wiccanism and neopaganism.

In the chapters focusing on J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books, Abanes points out the similarities between Wiccan and neopagan magick,(a special spelling used by occult insiders) to that practiced in the Harry Potter books. He also points out that some of the historical characters mentioned in Rowling's books are based on real historical figures of note in the occult world, or their names are close variations of the names of actual people.

The last two chapters of the book focus on arguments used by those who support the Harry Potter books and questions most frequently asked of the books' critics. In each case Abanes responds to the argument or answers the question. These sections would be a useful quick reference to those who are debating the pros and cons of the Harry Potter books. However, to me these chapters were somewhat repetitious, often restating points made earlier in the book.

This book may not be of interest to all Review readers; but given the continuing popularity of the Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings books, parents, teachers, and pastors may want to have a copy on hand--not as a talisman to ward off the evil influence of fantasy books, but as a springboard for teaching youth to make reasoned decisions about their choice of reading material and to learn to look beyond the surface of the books they choose to read.

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Rick Kajiura is the communication projects manager, General Conference office of Global Mission.