5 Strangest Things I've Read This Year

I have encountered some of the strangest things in my reading this year. Christian books contain a number of odd, funny, interesting, and surprising things. From people and places to subjects and objects, here are the five strangest things I've read since last summer. Read on for everything from Waylon Jennings to vampires.

Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, and the Beatles appear.

Not just one music celebrity. Not two. Not even three. Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, and the Beatles-among others-find their way into Between Wyomings: My God and an iPod on the Open Road, a memoir-ish book by Ken Mansfield.

Of course, it's nothing new for celebrities to appear in media of all types, but Between Wyomings is the product of a Christian author and publisher. Mansfield encountered the mega-popular cast of characters during his years in the recording industry. During those years, he didn't just rub shoulders, but worked closely with a number of successful musicians and singers.

Mansfield's stories about these celebrities also make this list of my strangest things because of how Mansfield portrays them. Some Christians can only disparage the secular entertainment industry. Mansfield doesn't defend some of the negative things that happen in the industry, but he does choose to tell stories that bring out the funny, even heart-warming and kind, things his musician friends did.

The mob combines with business ethics, and a whole list of strangest things keeps coming.

The mob and business ethics don't seem to belong in the same sentence, unless we're illustrating opposites. I'd never expect the two to go together, and it's precisely that irony which sparked my interest in the book. Michael Franzese, once a mob boss, wrote I'll Make You an Offer You Can't Refuse: Insider Business Tips from a Former Mob Boss. Eleven short chapters contain his tips for running a successful business. But wait. The book turns from a little irony to a whole list of the strangest things I've read.

Franzese illustrates his points with stories from his experiences in the mob. To say the least, the stories make for a more lively volume in this genre of reading. The list of strangest things grows further this way: Franzese doesn't always use his stories as illustrations of how not to do business. In some areas, he points out a more ethical way of doing business; but in others, he points out the wisdom of the mob's approach.

Painted dresses, a unique form of art, symbolize redemption.

Patricia Hickman wrote a novel titled Painted Dresses, in which actual painted dresses play an important role in her story. I've never heard of anything like this art, but from a note in her acknowledgments, I assume someone by the name of Jarrett Ernest has actually produced art similar to what Hickman describes.

In this novel, a woman rescues discarded dresses of family members and friends. In some cases, the women discard these meaningful dresses as a symbolic way of purging bad experiences from their lives. Yet Amity redeems these dresses and their pain. She dips the dresses in paint, then adds new designs, embellishments, or background details. She frames these dresses, and upon her death, leaves instructions for the people she wants to receive the dresses.

Now I've read about a repo man and bounty hunter.

Some of the strangest things in fiction come from real life. I've just recently picked up some books by Randy Singer, a Christian author who writes legal fiction. In False Witness, one of the main characters is a man who contracts with various companies to repossess vehicles and hunt runaway individuals. In his line of work, he sometimes has to be "creative"-perhaps stretch the truth, disguise himself, or outright lie. Not exactly the typical main character in Christian fiction.

I encounter one of the very strangest things in Christian fiction: vampires.

The four books in the Twilight series have sparked a revived interest in vampire stories. Of course, vampires have been around for centuries. Multiple cultures pass on folklore about vampires, and numerous novels have revolved around these creatures. The classic Dracula by Bram Stoker appeared over a hundred years ago. Stoker and following authors portrayed the vampire as an evil creature. But in more recent years, some vampire literature (including the now-popular Twilight saga) has moved toward portraying some vampires as sympathetic characters.

Amidst this shift, Christian literature has mostly ignored the subject of vampires. On the whole, conservative Christians tend to be cautious about stories that portray witches, wizards, mediums, magic, fortune tellers, and yes-vampires. Some write off such stories entirely, while others evaluate very carefully based on how the author portrays such characters.

So despite the current interest in vampires in mainstream secular fiction, I didn't expect to see the trend bleed over into Christian fiction. Yet here it is, one of the biggest surprises I've encountered in recent reading. I've read two Christian novels in the past year that involved vampires, Shade by John Olson and Field of Blood by Eric Wilson. Both novels proceeded from major houses in the Christian publishing arena.

From Waylon Jennings and the mob, to painted dresses, repo men, and vampires, Christian writers continue to bring me surprises. And that, of course, is part of the pleasure of reading.

Sources:
Ken Mansfield, Between Wyomings: My God and an iPod on the Open Road (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2009).
Michael Franzese, I'll Make You an Offer You Can't Refuse: Insider Business Tips from a Former Mob Boss (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2009).
Patricia Hickman, Painted Dresses (Colorado Springs: WaterBrook Press, 2008).
Randy Singer, False Witness (Colorado Springs: WaterBrook Press, 2007).
John B. Olson, Shade (Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2008).
Eric Wilson, Field of Blood (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2008).