Since I know there are those of you out there waiting with bated breath for the latest news on Stephanie’s and my ongoing Book Project of Doom, I figured I’d better give an update:

Pilgrim’s Progress puts me to sleep.

I know, isn’t this just riveting? This project is absolutely spellbinding in its fast-paced action and non-stop plot twists! You can all be forgiven for wishing you were us, and living vicariously through our narrative exploits.

Really, though- Pilgrim’s Progress, written in the late 1600’s by John Bunyan, who really needed to make it very, very clear to all and sundry how to be a Good Protestant, wrote a rather long story about this guy (named Christian, because Bunyan’s subtle like that) who goes on a journey to the Celestial City. He meets various characters along the way who try to dissuade/distract/deceive him, but eventually he makes his way successfully (I assume, I keep falling asleep, so I haven’t made it yet) to Heaven.

You know that one great uncle you have who tells what he thinks are interesting stories, but watching his dentures flap and placing mental bets on how long it will take for the upper set to finally drop loose is actually more interesting than his narrative? Imagine him reading a Sunday School curriculum book to you. Now, stay awake. Yeah…

I mean, it’s not bad, per se, or I don’t think so. It’s not particularly good, either, but it’s your basic morality story; no more, no less. Stephanie actually quite dislikes it, which surprised me a bit- she says the theology makes her angry, which is certainly understandable for liberal folk such as ourselves. It’s close enough to what I grew up with that that I don’t even notice- for me it’s just yada yada lake of burning fire, Beelzebub, meh. I’m immune to the bad theology when it’s not delivered by a person to me directly, I guess.

Anyway, we persevere. Meanwhile, if you’re having trouble nodding off at night, I have a suggestion for you…