Most Popular Books by Walter Wangerin

Walter Wangerin Jr. is know for his powerful storytelling in such books as The Book of the Dun Cow, The Book of God, and Paul: A Novel. Now he offers the most important story of the Christian faith—the life of Jesus presented in the author’s inimitable style. Rich in atmosphere and historical detail and as compelling as any contemporary fiction, this novel will move readers with its creative perspectives and deep insights.

An illustrated version with simplified text of the Old and New Testaments.

From master storyteller Walter Wangerin, Jr. comes this familiar biblical saga told in a fresh, transfixing way. You’ll feel you’ve never heard it before! Melding historical accuracy with imaginative detail, Wangerin uses the biblical books of Judges and Ruth to explore themes of love, faith, grief and community set against a backdrop of war and political instability. The widow Naomi grieves the deaths of her two adult sons after the shocking murder of a beloved adopted daughter, while pondering her responsibilities toward her Moabite daughters-in-law. Ancient Israel is in chaos. When her daughter-in-law, Ruth, begs to return to Israel with Naomi, events are set in motion that will change the course of history. But wait…this isn’t the tame, flannel graph story you heard in Sunday School. In the tradition of Anita Diamant’s The Red Tent and Elissa Elliott’s Eve: A Novel of the First Woman, Wangerin imbues his tale with strong female characters and an earthy realism that gives the timeless Old Testament narrative so much power. You’ll find echoes of contemporary issues throughout: deceit, heartbreak, loss, war, and, of course, the power of love. Naomi’s combined strength and tenderness becomes the pivot upon which a nation turns; her decisions ultimately lead to the founding of the family lineage of Jesus Christ. Breathtaking descriptions, shocking violence, and inspirational courage make this spellbinding novel by a beloved award-winning author a story you won’t soon forget. It’s the perfect novel for your book group, and a satisfying read for those who love thoughtful biblical fiction.

In his passionate and direct style, Walter Wangerin, Jr., examines grief and mourning.

The timeless National Book Award-winning story of the epic struggle between good and evil. “Far and away the most literate and intelligent story of the year … Mr. Wangerin’s allegorical fantasy about the age-old struggle between good and evil produces a resonance; it is a taut string plucked that reverberates in memory” —New York Times “Belongs on the shelf with Animal Farm, Watership Down and The Lord of the Rings. It is, like them, an absorbing, fanciful parade of the war between good and evil. A powerful and enjoyable work of the imagination.” —Los Angeles Times In a time when the sun revolved around the Earth, and the animals could speak, Chauntecleer the Rooster rules justly over his kingdom. But while peace reigns for Chauntecleer, evil is brewing across the river, as the monstrous Cockatrice pillages his own lands and people, preparing for the return of Wyrm. Imprisoned within the Earth to contain this ancient evil, Wyrm is determined to return, with the help of Cockatrice. Keeping Wyrm in his prison is a task too great for any individual animal, so it is up to Chantecleer to rally all of the animals, great and small, to work together to keep the Earth safe once again. “Good and evil were never seen more distinctly not pitted more ferociously than in this animal fable, reverberating with the righteousness of the Bible or a medieval morality play … The animals are not mere literary symbols but are invested with a humanness all their won.” —The Saturday Evening Post “Wangerin’s story functions as a frightening representation of modern evil … a parable for adults to ponder.” —The Christian Century “Wangerin has so fluidly woven all these legends together into one small gem.” —Washington Post Book World

Seeking peace and respite after their devastating battle with the Wyrm, Chauntecleer and his wife Pertelote again lead the animals of the Coop. But their quest is interrupted when Wyrm once again insinuates himself into the lives of the animals. To defeat this ancient evil for good, Chauntecleer will have to face Wyrm again, not on the battlefield, but deep within the serpent''s lair, risking his very soul to ensure the safety of the animals under his protection.

The Absolute, Relatively Inaccessible is a volume of poems divided into three parts. The three parts are bound together by a brace of persistent and developing themes, as well as by the repetition (and the development) of language, metaphor, and imagery. Part 1 presents various characters (mostly African American) confronting death. The poems in part 2 are spoken by an unnamed narrator about his cancer. My cancer, actually, and my experiences. Parts 2 and 3 both descend into silence. Part 3 is a radical reworking of the ancient Mesopotamian epic loosely known as The Songs of Heaven and Hell. The poems are not a translation, though each derives from a separate song, and each uses the characters, the events, the worldview, and the stark imagery of Babylon in the third century BCE. In many respects, these poems have the prosody of the biblical psalms.

Many know the acclaimed author Walter Wangerin Jr., the storyteller who gave us the national bestseller The Book of the Duncow. In Wounds Are Where Light Enters, you’ll see how God’s love breaks into our lonely moments in unexplainable ways. Wangerin tells the stories of memorable characters facing the same struggles we all face as we try to trust in God’s faithfulness. Wounds Are Where Light Enters is a collection of stories that are warm, sometimes funny, sometimes not, but always taking unexpected turns to find the care of God in all the pathways of life. In them we find the grace that enables us to live with the answers we see and the answers we don’t see. In this collection we meet Arthur Bias, the retired black police officer who loves those who hate, Agnes Brill, the shrill piano teacher of patience, Junie Piper, precious of the homeless, Melvin, who honors his aging mother by honoring the little girl she has become, Lucian, the lover of thieves, and Blue Jack, the hammer of God. Readers will discover in these stories a powerful display of God’s working in the lives of all of us. They’ll find a place where he works even in the dark, even in the struggles, even in the wounds. This is the place where God’s light enters.

"Walter Wangerin''s Ascent/Descent is a book all but unique in my experience: its components are biographical, geographical, and--how to name it?--obliquely theological. But in all of the collection''s five sections, the principal word that leaps to my mind is lyrical. Rendering the elaborate narrative of his Virginia and Walter, realizing the hieratic voice of Rilke, even translating the Dies irae, so on, Wangerin''s mouth-fillingly rich language draws us so completely into his material that we are unable (and glad of it) to extricate ourselves. Pluperfectly absorbing!"--Sydney Lea, Vermont Poet Laureate (2011-2015)

The acclaimed author of The Book of the Dun Cow moves from his role as master storyteller to that of counselor and husband in this extraordinary look at the makings of a happy, successful marriage.

No story has more significance than this: the death and resurrection of Jesus. But somehow the oft-repeated tale of Christ’s passion can become too familiar, too formalized, for us to experience its incredible immediacy. The meditations in Reliving the Passion, which received a Gold Medallion Award in 1993, follow the story as given in the gospel of Mark—from the moment when the chief priests plot to kill Jesus to the Resurrection. But these readings are more than a recounting of events; they are an imaginary reenactment, leading the reader to re-experience the Passion or perhaps see it fully for the very first time. As only a great storyteller can, Walter Wangerin enables the reader to see the story from the inside, to discover the strangeness and wonder of the events as they unfold. It’s like being there. In vivid images and richly personal detail, Wangerin helps us recognize our own faces on the streets of Jerusalem; breathe the dark and heavy air of Golgotha; and experience, as Mary and Peter did, the bewilderment, the challenge, and the ultimate revelation of knowing the man called Jesus. “The story gets personal for every reader,” writes Wangerin, “for this is indeed our story, the story whereby we personally have been saved from such a death as Jesus died. “No, there is not another tale in the world more meaningful than this—here is where we all take our stands against sin and death and Satan, upon this historical, historic event. I consider it a holy privilege to participate in it retelling. “Read this book slowly. Read it with a seeing faith. Walk the way with Jesus. We, his followers of later centuries, do follow even now. Read, walk, come, sigh, live. Live! Rise again!”

Most of the poems in the first part of this book, "Six Seasons," were written according to formal strictures. They use various sorts of rhyme (internal or at a line-stop) and rhythms that match the motion of their subject matter. I''ve worked with traditional verse: songs, carols, quatrains, lyrics with refrains, and so on. They follow the seasons of the liturgical year from Advent to the green season of Ordinary Time. The second part of the book, "Leroy James Hopson," is written in free verse in order to allow for the development of a narrative with characters and a setting, an atmosphere and a plot. The entire story takes place during the night of November 10, 1974.

This haunting medieval novella, set somewhat ambiguously in the period of the Crusades, tells the story of Julian the Hospitaller, drawn from ancient legend. Revered for his famous devotion to the Church, Julian must hide a violent nature that leads him to love the hunt and the kill above all. Saint Julian follows the inexorable descent of this golden-boy hero from favored son of nobility to the depths of beggardom, and eventual sainthood.

Ths award-winning author of The Book of Sorrows presents 366 thought-provoking meditations culled from the spiritually enriching work he has written over the years. Hailed by author Toni Morrison as, stunning . . . subtly, magically vulnerable and complex.

"In the perfect center of all my circles and of all the spheres of all the world--is Jesus. Here! Come and see! Can you see the tiny baby born? Can you see the Infant King? Can you recognize in him Immanuel? Now you are seeing Christmas." And so, in this collection of powerful and evocative stories and essays, does Walter Wangerin open our eyes--and our hearts--to the truth of Christmas. A young boy, intent on self-protection, recognizes in his father''s preparations for Christmas "a hope that risks a violent hurt"--and lays bare his heart to love. And so do we. A young girl, encountering death for the first time, finds hope in an empty manger. With her we, too, find hope. A family torn apart by grief finds Christmas once again--and when they do, we weep for both their pain and joy. We weep for ourselves. The African hornbill gives up flight and freedom for the sake of her chicks--and we can only bow our hearts in wonder and gratitude for the sacrifice of Christ, who forsook the glory of heaven to take upon himself the form of man. So much did he love us! The original carols woven throughout this beautiful book, three with musical scores included, are meant to be read or sung aloud. From the whimsical "Sing Softly the Cherries," to the joyful "Carol of All the Instruments," to the triumphant "In the Days of the Angels," Wangerin illuminates and celebrates the true meaning of Christmas. Come worship Immanuel with him. As rare and precious as the gifts the magi brought the Christ child are the jewels presented in these pages by one of America''s most beloved Christian storytellers. Full of vivid imagery and unexpected turns, the stories, essays, and original carols are lovingly crafted to reflect not only the Christmas story, but the whole of God''s redemptive action in the world: I will love you till day is done-- Love you until that night, Night of dying, Dies in rising! Then in the holy dawn I will bear you, my children, home-- Such is the beauty and power of these compelling pieces, whether you read them silently by the fire or aloud at your Advent celebration, you''ll want to return to them year after year, again and again.

Grief-stricken over a friend''s drowning, Potter is visited by a bird who flies with him on a life-changing journey that helps him come to terms with sorrow and death.

Sun, cloud, rain, wind, water, and the whole of creation join family and friends in celebrating the baptism of a child of God.

In Preparing for Jesus, best-selling author and master storyteller Walter Wangerin Jr. recreates verbal images of the events surrounding the Advent of Christ, offering a devotional journey into the heart of the Christmas season. Through rich detail and vivid images, these moving meditations make Christ''s birth both intimate and immediate, allowing us to see Christmas from its original happening to its perennial recurrence in our hearts. Preparing for Jesus is sure to be a seasonal classic, treasured year after year.

A remarkable weaving of faith, myth, and humanity from award-winning novelist Walter Wangerin Jr. Faith, writes Walter Wangerin, is ''a relationship with the living God enacted in this world.'' It is ever-changing and inherently dramatic. The Orphan Passages is Wangerin''s compelling story of a Christian pastor''s career and the drama of his faith. Interlaced with the classical myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, this daring and unconventional inquiry into Christian experience ranks among the most challenging of Wangerin''s works. Wangerin sees in the ancient myth an extraordinary parallel of the twists and turns individuals follow in their journeys of faith. In the author''s own present-day Reverend Orpheus, that parallel is vividly played out -- rendering the modern story of one man both universal and timeless. The Orphan Passages asserts the truth of a legend that people of all times have experienced. It has the immediacy of a well-wrought novel, driving readers on to the surprising yet inevitable conclusion.

In Storycraft: The Art of Spiritual Narrative, celebrated author Walter Wangerin Jr. illustrates the power of well-told stories and shows how important embracing story is as an essential tool for preaching and teaching the gospel. The book offers a theology of story that is profoundly incarnational as the Word takes on flesh in practiced speech.

Given our history, this father and this son might well have gone completely separate ways ... And only in becoming a father did I even begin to understand what it meant, what it was, what would be required of me, and who I was/am within that identity, father. Pastor, author, and father Walter Wangerin Jr., along with his adopted son, Matthew, tell the story of their own lifelong relationship and how they survived times when brokenness and bitterness seemed inevitable. It is the story of Matthew''s desperate search for independence and his father''s own search for authentic fatherhood. This is a book of deep emotion and serious meditation about broken lives and redemption. Father and Son weaves together each writer''s personal story and shows: how earthly fathers and sons are shaped by a Creator''s relationship with his creation how within the human experience of parenting we discover insights into the spiritual nature of home, family, and eternity itself As in As for Me and My House, Mourning into Dancing, and Little Lamb, Who Made Thee? Walter Wangerin Jr. develops a series of insights about family, which readers can apply to their own lives. And these insights gain added resonance from the words of Matthew Aaron Wangerin. Together, father and son have written a book that must be experienced as well as read. It''s a book parents will want to bring their lives to, not just their attention. Father and Son is the story of all of us, for we are all wayward children in need of a loving, patient father.

The expanded Twentieth Anniversary edition of stories, parables, and prayers from the National Book Award-winning author of The Book of the Dun Cow. Updated with eleven new stories and meditations, this Gold Medallion-winning classic interweaves vivid stories, deep meditations, and provocative allegories that together explore the power and meaning of love within an often inhumane urban landscape. The opening chapter, “Ragman,” remains one of Walter Wangerin Jr.’s most beloved works and leads the reader to thirty-three other writings, all bearing the author’s trademark poignancy and lyricism. Ranging from gentle reflections to heartrending invocations, these selections are powerful, thought-provoking explorations of the meaning of faith, the person of Christ, and the communion of believers. Again and again, Wangerin’s cries of faith touch our deepest pains with rays of joyful healing. “This diverse, polished collection . . . attests not only to Wangerin’s skill as a writer, but to the earnestness and warmth with which he enacts his vocation as a ‘servant of faith.’” —Christianity Today “This is a book of stories, stories of all sorts—of fear and pride and death and pain and forgiveness and laughter and tears and hope and many shades of glory.” —Robert McAfee Brown, author of Unexpected News

An illustrated version with simplified text of the Old and New Testaments.

The long awaited conclusion to the National Book Award-winning THE BOOK OF THE DUN COW trilogy, from Walter Wangerin, Jr. Pertelote, widow of Chauntecleer the Golden Rooster, takes up his mantle as leader of the Animals as they seek safety from the great evil of the Wyrm and his children. Desperate to keep safe those she’s responsible for, Pertelote is travelling blindly, suffering the purposeless, undirected, but insistent journey as the new leader. Two other groups of Creatures are making their own journeys through the perilous land: Eurus the merciless yellow-eyed Wolf and his pack, and the sociable pair Wachanga the Cream-Colored Wolf and her friend Kangi Sapa, the Raven. When Pertelote and her band of Animals meet Wachanga and Kangi, she finds much-needed allies in her travels. Allies that become all the more valuable after cruel Eurus begins following the weary Animals with a murderous intent. When the disparate bands of Creatures converge on a hidden crater high in the dangerous mountains, they make a monumental discovery that may finally mean an end to their trials and tribulations. The epic journey begun in THE BOOK OF THE DUN COW reaches its powerful conclusion in THE THIRD BOOK OF THE DUN COW: PEACE AT THE LAST, proving the sacrifices of Chauntecleer and the Animals were not in vain. Praise for THE BOOK OF THE DUN COW:“Far and away the most literate and intelligent story of the year … Mr. Wangerin’s allegorical fantasy about the age-old struggle between good and evil produces a resonance; it is a taut string plucked that reverberates in memory” —New York Times “Belongs on the shelf with Animal Farm, Watership Down and The Lord of the Rings. It is, like them, an absorbing, fanciful parade of the war between good and evil. A powerful and enjoyable work of the imagination.” —Los Angeles Times Praise for THE SECOND BOOK OF THE DUN COW: LAMENTATIONS “[A] profoundly imagined and beautifully stylized fable of the immemorial war between good and evil.” –The New York Times

After receiving his cancer diagnosis, Wangerin wrote letters about confronting his mortality, about living with the messiness of undone tasks and bodily weakness. These meditations present his testimony to faith, love, and the shocking reality of hope.

Autobiographical stories, short fiction, and poetry to explore man''s desire for God and the joy of discovering His presence in time.

An illustrated version with simplified text of the Old and New Testaments.

Of all the potato farmer''s children, only gentle Thistle can stop the terrible potato monster from destroying them.

This epic tale of sacrifice and redemption is the dramatic account of the rise and fall of the Lakota Indians and an absorbing allegorical saga of the Lakota orphan, Waskn-Mani, "Moves Walking."

In this spellbinding novel, Paul, an apostle to the early Christian church, is portrayed as a compelling character who could be at once charming, obstinate, rash, proud and charismatic. His story is told through those who loved him most, and those who were most challenged by him. This rich medley of voices vibrantly recreates both the complex character whose passionate commitment to spreading the gospel of Christ inspired devotion and exasperation in equal measure, and the first-century world upon which he made such a powerful impact. Walter Wangerin, bestselling author of The Book of God, writes not only with a profound and personal understanding of the message Paul was proclaiming, but also with a deep knowledge of the Roman world in all its richness and complexity.

When she misses the Christmas pageant because she is sick, a young African American girl is visited by an angel who takes her back to witness the first Christmas.

Award-winning author Walter Wangerin Jr. gracefully explores the dynamics of prayer. With luminous prose, he surveys the landscape of communication and communion with God--what whole prayer feels like, looks like, and sounds like. If you long for a deeper relationship with God, Whole Prayer is a trustworthy guide.

Ragman and Other Cries of Faith, Little Lamb, Who Made Thee? and Miz Lil and the Chronicles of Grace are among Walter Wangerin Jr.''s earliest and best-loved books. Each is a multifaceted jewel containing stories, essays, parables, prayers, and meditations, all bearing the mark of Wangerin''s trademark poignancy and lyricism. Yet while the books stand on their individual merits, the author originally conceived them as an interlinking set---a trio that would together weave a complex and vivid tapestry of human experience and ''story theology.'' In This Earthly Pilgrimage, these beloved Wangerin classics come together at last, along with brand new writings, in an omnibus that lets the reader trace the tapestry''s threads from their source to their completion. The interlocking stories in Ragman and Other Cries of Faith helped usher Walter Wangerin to prominence as a Christian writer. The opening chapter, ''Ragman,'' remains one of Wangerin''s most popular works and leads the reader into thirty-three other writings in a variety of styles. Ranging from the gently reflective to the incantatory, they are powerful, thought-provoking explorations of the meaning of faith, the person of Christ, the community of believers, and the individual servant of faith. Eleven new pieces make this an updated and definitive edition. The stories, essays, prayers, and poems in Little Lamb, Who Made Thee? continue the themes the author began in Ragman and Other Cries of Faith. Here are children, teenagers, adults, and parents grappling with the deep realities of life. Painting with bold brushstrokes of human emotion and using a wise and gentle humor, Wangerin probes the relationships between children and their parents and what they have to show us about God and ourselves as his children. Like Ragman, this volume includes twelve new stories, fresh from the master storyteller''s pen. In Miz Lil and the Chronicles of Grace, a well-conceived unit of twelve beautifully told stories, anecdotes, and reminiscences evokes the experience of growing up American and living out a spiritual quest. Culled from Wangerin''s childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, and his years as an inner-city pastor, the interwoven stories lend flesh, feeling, and immediacy to themes that are vital to every Christian. With a new Afterword by the author, Miz Lil and the Chronicles of Grace unfolds the moving story of a pastor and storyteller''s career and the drama of his faith.

First-rate storytelling and spiritual reflections in this updated edition of a Christian classic These beautifully told stories, culled from the author''s childhood, evoke the experience of growing up in America and living out a spiritual quest.

Following a conflict with the dreaded Wyrm, the barnyard animals try to piece together their shattered lives while unaware that their enemy plans new attacks.