I had no familiarity with George MacDonald before picking up this book. My interest had been piqued by hearing that he was held in high regard by Chesterton and Lewis. Having read through the selections of his writing included in this edition, I now think that I have a decent idea of MacDonald’s ideas and attitudes about various religious topics. I appreciate the book’s organization into topics, which makes it easier to dip in for a taste here and there. However, I’m left with an uncertain sense of his abilities as a writer. Obviously, tastes in literature have shifted considerably over the past century, and much, if not most, of what is excerpted from the novels here comes across as downright mawkish. I think the general consensus for religious fiction today is that it should be served using a great deal more subtlety! If the editor had seen fit to only include MacDonald’s own writings, then, I probably would have moved on without any inclination to seek out the originals. Fortunately, though, she had Chesterton and Lewis weigh in with their opinions. I found these last sections immensely helpful — particularly Lewis, who, I was relieved to see, dismissed MacDonald’s qualifications as a *novelist* while explicating the spiritual insight and benefit that he found in his writing. Thanks to those recommendations, I may try to pick up one of MacDonald’s novels at some point and just see where it takes me. ( )

George MacDonald was a nineteenth-century Scots writer who was popular in his own day, although now fairly obscure. His fantasy novel Lilith was recommended to students by revolutionary occultist Aleister Crowley, and MacDonald was cast as Virgil in the Dante-dream of Christian bigot and allegorical fantast C. S. Lewis in The Great Divorce. Having read and enjoyed a couple of MacDonald's book-length fantasies, I was intrigued by this title: The Gospel in George MacDonald: Selections from His Novels, Fairy Tales, and Spiritual Writings.

Receiving the book as an early reviewer copy, I was disappointed to find something very different from what I had imagined. It does not consist of chapter-length excerpts from MacDonald, with commentary on their theological significance. Instead, it has little snippets, from a sentence to a few pages in length, organized according to topics of inspirational substance. Very little here is drawn from MacDonald's fantasies, which, if we are to believe his critics, are his best and most essential work, and there is none of his poetry. In addition to passages from his novels, there are excerpts from sermons and correspondence. Mindful of my duty as a reviewer, I managed to read the whole book. But it took a while, and I had to resort to the method of making it a prop for excremeditation. It has been in my bathroom for about six months.

If you think that MacDonald must have something special going on to appeal to both Crowley and Lewis, you're right. I did find enjoyment, one way or another, in most of the content of this book. My eyes glazed over a bit when trying to follow some of the long dialogue passages written in Scottish dialect (although the more impenetrable expressions are glossed in footnotes). The sections on Work, Education, Moralism, and Resurrection have some of the excerpts I liked best, along with the terrific sermon passage on page 84, which the editor has categorized as on "The Boundlessness of Love," and which genuinely approaches the Thelemic gnosis.

The book concludes with two "appreciations" by writers who were fans of MacDonald: G. K. Chesterton and C. S. Lewis. Like the body of the book, each of these is stitched together from multiple published sources. I was sympathetic to Chesterton's praise for MacDonald's work, emphasizing its poetic and mystical qualities. I found it amusing, however, to see the Catholic convert Chesterton attempt to recruit posthumously the lifelong Presbyterian MacDonald (with his further heretical universalism) to his own church (313-14). My low opinion of Lewis, alas, was merely confirmed by what I read here, although it helped me to prioritize The Princess and the Goblin for my next reading in MacDonald's oeuvre, whenever I might get to that. ( )

This was a good read, I enjoyed reading the topical sections of his books and sermons. Now I am going to see if I can find some of his original novels to read. Also enjoyed reading what c.s. Lewis and G.K. Chesterton wrote about him. Very sound spiritually. ( )

Published by Plough Publishing House and edited by Marianne Wright, this is a survey of the gospel message in the fiction and non –fiction writing of George MacDonald. MacDonald was mildly popular during his time, but has the honor of being a major influence in C. S. Lewis and G. K. Chesterton.
Plough Publishing and Wright have done a fine job of organizing MacDonald’s work into subjects, including topics like Finding God, Marriage, Death, and Eternity. Each section of prose is prefaced by a one-two line summary of the scene or source of the quote. In quotes that contain MacDonald’s native Scottish dialect, the translation is provided.
The quotes come from a wide range of Macdonald’s work, including novels, fairy tales, sermons, and private letters. It is excellent chosen collection and a thorough survey of his writing.
I would recommend this to anyone who enjoyed MacDonald’s work, but in particular, to those who wish to get a comprehensive overview of MacDonald’s theology and where it appears in his non-theological writing. From here, one can find specific works of MacDonald’s to read. This is a must for any complete theological library.

Note: I received this book free through LibraryThing's Early Review Program, in exchange for my fair and honest opinion. ( )

Note: I received this book as part of the Early Reviewers program.

This is a nice selection of George MacDonald's body of work, organized around various Christian themes. I for one appreciated it because I have tried before to read MacDonald with little success. This book makes him much more accessible, and there are many nuggets of wisdom to be found. This would be a great addition to the library of any pastor or preacher who wants something a little different in the way of sermon illustrations. ( )