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Good fantasy doesn’t pull you away from what’s real — it sends you back to it seeing more clearly. These are the Christian (and Christian-imagination) fantasy books I love: worlds full of wonder, courage, and grace.
The ones that started it all
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. Still the gateway. Seven books that smuggle the deepest truths in on the backs of talking beasts and a great Lion.
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. Tolkien’s Catholic imagination runs underneath every page. Sacrifice, mercy, and hope against the dark.
The Space Trilogy by C.S. Lewis. Lewis’s grown-up fantasy — strange, beautiful, and sharper about modern idols than you’d expect.
Newer worlds worth entering
The Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson. Funny, adventurous, and secretly profound. Wonderful read-aloud for families, great alone too.
Black by Ted Dekker. The start of the Circle series — an action-thriller that doubles as a picture of redemption.
Auralia’s Colors by Jeffrey Overstreet. Lyrical, painterly fantasy about beauty breaking into a gray world.
A gentle allegory
Hinds’ Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard. A tender allegory of the journey from fear to the high places. A quiet classic.
A last word
Wonder is a doorway, not an escape. Pick a world and let it send you back grateful.