The best fiction across all genres by outstanding Christian authors

While I have enjoyed virtually everything I have read of Tolkien’s, I am particularly passionate about Middle Earth. This tale's imagery and grand narrative certainly stand on its own, but there is an even greater depth that comes from Tolkien’s religious convictions.

From the book’s symbolism to the dialogue, it infuses and distills many elements of the Catholic tradition into its pages. For Tolkien, fairy stories were more than ways to simply pass the time; they were reminders of eternal qualities. While I am digressing to the final book in Tolkien’s trilogy, Samwise Gamgee’s willingness to take on Frodo’s hideous burden of the Ring offers a powerful insight into the core of the Christian faith: love, sacrifice, and hope.

I love C.S. Lewis’ writing, and his books for children hold a special place in my heart. Like Tolkien, a fellow member of the Inklings, Lewis recognized the power of fairy stories and myths to reflect an even greater story of redemption and truth—yet he never sacrificed the story for the sake of a message. 

The land of Narnia, like Middle Earth in some respects, is a place of fantasy and adventure, but again, it is that foundation of faith from which the author created something truly amazing. It is written in a fresh, lighthearted, and engaging way that seems to call us back too out of our dreary and monotonous lives and into a place where the world is young again and anything is possible.

I absolutely love Flannery O’Connor’s short stories; they are like shining gems of literary perfection. She sees through all the meaningless masks and artifices that people put up to mislead and distract, and she describes the motivations at the heart of the conflict. 

No two of her characters are the same, and she brings a clarity of thought and vision like few other authors can. Often, the characters within her short stories make jaw-dropping pronouncements about either themselves or issues of faith or morality. For example, in A Good Man is Hard to Find, the sudden turn of events can be shocking, but there is always a great value to every word she painstakingly wrote in her short life.

This beautifully written children’s book was very meaningful when my mother read it aloud many years ago. The tale follows a poor boy named Diamond who resides in a chilly hayloft above a horse (also named Diamond). It is written with such tenderness and engaging detail that it can’t help but draw the reader into its pages.

The book follows the child’s adventures following his exciting meeting with the beautiful North Wind. It is a refreshingly different and uplifting kind of children’s literature, and it truly is a breath of fresh air.

This may be one of my favorite mysteries; I could barely put the book down. Granted, this title is not full of examples of faith precisely, but Agatha Christy was a devout Anglican (like C.S. Lewis). If one is going to write mysteries, one must appreciate Agatha Christy. She was an incredibly prolific author of some truly high-quality fiction. 

This was the first title I read of hers, and it set me on a path to begin collecting her books. This tale has so many elements that build tension and create a great mystery—from the isolation of the setting to suspicion and general confusion. It is a masterpiece of a whodunit.