Welcome to Throwback Thursday, a weekly meme hosted by The Housework Can Wait and Never Too Fond of Books!
It’s the nature of book blogging to focus mainly on new releases, but there are thousands of great books out there that haven’t seen the “New Releases” shelf in years. We hope to be able to bring attention to some older titles that may not be at the top of the current bestseller list, but still deserve a spot in your To-Be-Read pile.
You don’t have to be a book blogger to participate! You can put up a Throwback Thursday post on your non-bookish blog; or if you don’t have a blog at all, just use the comments to tell us about a book you remember fondly.
Here’s how it works:
1. Pick any book released more than 5 years ago. Adult, YA, Children’s; doesn’t matter. Any great book will do.
2. Write up a short summary of the book (include the title, author, and cover art) and an explanation of why you love it. Make sure to link back to The Housework Can Wait and Never Too Fond of Books in your post.
3. Link up your post at The Housework Can Wait or Never Too Fond of Books.
4. Visit as many blogs as you can, reminisce about books you loved, and discover some “new” books for your TBR list!
Feel free to grab the Throwback Thursday button code from the sidebar to use in your posts.
Thanks for participating, and we look forward to seeing which books you choose to remember!
My Throwback this week is…
The Oath by Frank Peretti
Oh, Christian fiction, I have a love-hate relationship with you. I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but too often it’s like being punched in the face with a Bible and then slugged in the gut by a preacher. Not that I’ve ever had either of those things happen — most of the preachers I’ve known haven’t exactly been the slug-you-in-the-gut type — but you know what I mean.
However, when it’s done well, I really enjoy it. And by “done well,” I mean that the story is interesting, the characters engaging, and it makes its point through illustration and allegory rather than through blatant and deliberate proselytizing. The Oath, by Frank Peretti (one of the biggest names in Christian fiction), is — in my opinion — an example of it being done well.
The basic premise is a town full of flawed people, where the evil in their lives physically manifests via a viscous black goo literally oozing from their skin. And once they’re sufficiently gooey, they get eaten by a dragon. Yes.
There is tension and suspense, great pacing and some gripping action sequences. Obviously, being Christian fiction, there is an underlying spiritual message and moral to the story. It doesn’t just end at “And then they were all eaten by a dragon.” So if you’d rather it did, you’d probably be better off reading [insert story where they all get eaten by a dragon. I have not yet discovered this book, but if you come across it, would you let me know?]
But if this type of book seems like something you might enjoy — I did mention that the townspeople are being eaten by a dragon, right? — then you may want to check it out.
This is a blog hop! Link up your Throwback Thursday post below!
Just reading through some of your reviews when I found this. I LOVED “The Oath” when I was in high school. Even now (12ish years later), I sometimes think about The Oath. I went to Oregon last summer and passed through a town that reminded me of how I imagined Hyde River. I didn’t realize just how much the book had connected with me until that moment. That’s probably the first paranormal book I read, and I loved the faith element. That could get heavy-handed (and I realize it’s not everybody’s thing) but I thought it was such an interesting allegory. I’m going to try to pull myself away from this blog and actually get some work done now. But I love your reviews! 🙂
Thanks so much! I agree, faith-based books are not everyone’s thing, but this one is definitely one of my favorites. If you’re going to do allegory, you may as well use a dragon. Thanks for visiting!