Slow Church
The Englewood Review of Books has just released its annual list of The Worst Christian Book Covers.
As usual the list has gotten mixed reviews: many folks in the publishing business get a good laugh and laud the list for calling out poor workmanship; others chide us for what they perceive as meanness and mockery (see the comments on the list for instance). So, why do we do the list year after year? My friend Karen Swallow Prior wrote a wonderful reflection on last year’s list for Christianity Today, and in it she articulated well our intent:
Bad Christian art that reflects a lack of investment of time, commitment, craft, or skill presents the illusion that the Christian life is not worthy or requiring of the same. … We know from the Bible how much God cares about art, from the painstaking, detailed directions he gave about the adornments of his tabernacle to the varieties of literary art crafted within the scriptures. God’s human creation is designed to imitate him through creating. Given this reality, no one more than Christians should be wary of art that is easy, cheap, or careless in either form or content.
Some samples from the list…
(and if you enjoy these, be sure to check out the full list on the ERB website… and the lists from – 2012 – or – 2013 – )
Mail Order Bride: Widowed, Jilted, & Pregnant On The Wagon Train West
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Last year, we noted the rise of the Oregon Trail Romance novel, and it seems the genre is still alive and well in 2014, and 2013 award-winner Vanessa Carvo submits another hideous cover! |
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