“Just when you think you
have things figured out, Peretti’s imagination takes you down an unexpected
route, a trap door opens, and you realize there are more layers to the story
than you imagined.” (WestBow Press) Frank E. Peretti is an influential writer
who draws from his torturous past to create stories which leave the minds of
his readers reeling and their hearts searching. From the beginning, the life of
Peretti has been fraught with trials, but he has chosen to trust God with all
his soul in times of trouble and prosperity. He has sold over twelve million
copies of his suspenseful supernatural thrillers. To accompany his novels he
has devised a children’s series, as well as a narration of bible stories. One
of Peretti’s most anticipated works, Monster, was released in 2005 in
which he asked some difficult questions concerning the theory of evolution,
while telling of the adventures the Sheltons had. His main objective in Monster
was to have his readers look at evolution at face value and realize its flaws
without being didactic, as many Christian writers are. The ideas and truths Peretti has orchestrated
into his novels are extremely relevant in today’s world and have already
touched many lives. He mentioned in an interview that, after reading Tilly,
a high school girl let her baby live instead of going through with her previous
decision to have an abortion. These are the type of personal rewards and
victories some writers only dream of. Peretti has made them into reality as he
lives his life to make a difference so that others might live.
Frank Edward Peretti was born
January 13, 1951 in Canada to his loving parents Gene and Joyce. Intriguingly,
his enticement with monsters began with a birth defect called cystic hygroma.
He underwent his first operation was when he was two months old. However it
would not be his last and he would endure many more painful surgeries on his
tongue. Along with the medical aspect of this defect, his parents and brothers
were in constant prayer over him and even took him to a healing service where
Oral Roberts, a famous evangelist, lifted him up to God. Throughout his
childhood, this disease caused him much pain because of the hurtful and
senseless teasing about the darkly colored tumor which formed in his tongue.
The resulting speech impairment made it extremely difficult at school. His
smaller stature did not help his situation and he quickly became a target. “I
really got into monsters, because monsters could control their situation. They
were ugly; they were outcast. I could identify with that, because I felt like I
was a monster too” (Peretti, CBN). Later on he had a surgery which enabled him
to speak more clearly and fit in better. As a gift, one Christmas his parents
gave him a wooden dummy named Jerry. He used it as a source of entertainment
and comfort because it did not judge him but helped him cope with life.
Following his high school graduation he made an attempt at the Christian music
ministry, and tried many other things such as carpentry, a ski factory
worker, and even pastoring before he found
his true calling, writing. He attended UCLA to study English, screen writing,
and film to prepare him for this endeavor. Somewhere in this chaotic search for
purpose he found and married his love, Barbara, in 1972. He now lives with her
in his home in northern Idaho, along with their two fun-loving dogs, and
continues to write his spellbinding books.
In addition to the constant novel
writing, Peretti’s current hobbies are “playing the banjo, flying, bicycling,
and clearing trails in the woods and astronomy”. One of his favorite stories
right now is the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and he recognized, “the
movie as nothing short of a major landmark.” Presently, Frank Peretti is
immersed in making films out of his books, and has already done this with
Hangman’s Curse and Visitation. These were both great successes and he plans on
pursuing this industry with more of his works.
God
has gifted Peretti since his youth, with an innate story telling ability, which
led to his vast number of successes in the industry. Besides his widely known
adult fiction thrillers, he has created a teen series, a non fiction grouping
of books, and the Wild and Wacky Bible Stories.
His adult fiction is comprised of heart-stopping
suspense thrillers normally involving meaningful Christian messages. Peretti,
in his books, often moots topics such as abortion, evolution, and foundational
Christian principles. His novels
include Tilly (1988), Prophet (1992), The Oath
(1995), The Visitation (1999), Darkness Prophet (2003), Monster
(2005), The Present Darkness (2005), and House (with Ted Decker 2006).
Visitation was easily one of his finest works was recognized by the CBA best
sellers list.
One of Peretti’s early
influences was the renowned Walt Disney, because of his marvelous story telling
abilities. “Some people read stories as a ‘receptor’. I read stories as a ‘creator’”
Peretti states. When he reads a book or watches a film he really dissects
it, picking apart why the story kept his interest and what makes it tick. A
favorite author of Peretti is Michael Crichton; however, he gathers information
as he goes and attempts to glean from everyone’s knowledge. In the book of
proverbs, written by Solomon who was the wisest man in the world, it is said
that, “listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise”.
(Proverbs 19:20) This verse describes Peretti because he considers all types of
counsel when writing a story.
In
his appeal to the children of this generation, Peretti has created a series of
recordings which vary in theme, but are all applicable in the Christian walk.
For instance, one theme is jealousy, and in his animated way he performs a
fable with a moral. He makes the experience enjoyable and memorable. Peretti
thoroughly understands the importance of bringing up the next generation in the
Lord.
This
Present Darkness and Piercing the Darkness are inspirational and
thrilling tales written by Peretti. They involve the lives of the people in two
different towns and the demons and angels fighting for the very souls of the
people. He tells of the anguish of the dwellers of the community as they fight
against other Christians verses the demon possessed and otherwise brainwashed.
These books demonstrate the power of prayer as God’s people cry out to him for
safety and protection. God’s supreme power and authority are also proven when
the Christians are able to bring demons out of the people in Jesus Christ’s
name. Miraculous works are also accomplished, and in the end Heaven has its
victory and Satan is put back into his place.
In
The Wounded Spirit, Peretti recounts his hell-like childhood. He tells
of the unbearable abuse he endured and the ways in which he dealt with his
terrible fate. He shares his family’s loving commitment to him and his health.
Besides his own story, he revisits the Columbine tragedy, where two wounded
spirits, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, had massacred several students enrolled
in their high school. Proverbs 18:14 states, “The spirit of a man will sustain
him in sickness, but who can bear a broken spirit.” Eric and Dylan had been wounded
deeply by the abuse they had received from their classmates and did not know
how to deal with it. It is also likely that those two boys did not know about
Jesus Christ who loves them and thus they gave up for lack of hope. Peretti
insistently stresses the importance of reaching out to these precious people
and not simply watching as they fall into despair.
Frank
Peretti had been asked, in recent years, to give a speech on his childhood
experiences with bullying at a conference. The results of the conference were
more than he could have hoped and it has struck a nerve in a vast majority of
hearers. When Doctor James Dobson heard it, he had his wife listen to it as
well, and they decided it needed to be broadcast on Focus on the Family. After
the broadcast even more responses came in, making it very clear that bullying
was a universal problem. “If devaluing human life- and thereby mocking God’s
creation- is wrong, why do so many do so little to stop it. Worse yet, why do
so many participate as part of the problem?” Peretti clearly proves here that
bullying has always been wrong.
In
the pages of The Wounded Spirit, Peretti suggests that by accepting evolution
one denies the existence of God, and that by denying God one denies the need
for moral rightness. When one is exempt from moral excellence there is no peace
and the world will overflow with mayhem and destruction. As a result humans
live corrupt, evil lives away from their
heavenly Father.
The
book Monster was wonderfully written by Frank Peretti. The two
protagonists, who were present throughout the novel, are Rebecca (Beck) and
Reed Shelton. They start out on a trip to a cabin to enjoy new experiences,
learn, and grow as individuals. Unfortunately, this seemingly innocent trek
into the woods results in the devastating capture of Beck by a monster. The
reader eventually find out that this monster is the byproduct of the
antagonist, Professor Adam Burkhardt, who is a scientist involved in the
mutation of DNA in chimpanzees. The professor had been trying to cover up for
the destruction his beasts had caused. However this could no longer be kept
secret, because the monsters had kidnapped Beck. Reed, grieved by his wife’s
absence, frantically searched for her with the help of his loyal friends Sing,
Cap, and the police force. Many times the persistent rescue team came close,
but the clan of monsters quickly whisked Beck away.
From
Beck’s side of things, the monster that captured her, Rachel, now treats her
like its child. It feeds her, carries her around on its enormous, hairy back,
and defends her when she is threatened by the others. Rachel’s personality
proves to be that of a loving protector contrary to her beast-like appearance.
While Cap is looking for any sign of Beck he
stumbles upon an appalling sight. He finds the laboratory of the professor,
which contains cells filled with a gruesome assortment of beasts. These were
the tortured creatures whose DNA had been tampered with and then cloned. However,
one cell was discovered to have a large jagged opening in the rear. This had
been the cell that belonged to the monsters which now roam freely. Finally,
Reed locates, Beck but soon after, the couple is pursued by the professor who
wants desperately to keep his actions hidden and the events that follow, from
the rest of the world. When the professor corners them with a gun, Reed tells
him that it is too late and everyone knows what is going on. He poses the
question, “Professor, when that chopper lands, what are they going to find
standing here? A man or a monster?” (Peretti 410). This question is interesting
because, by trying to protect his creations, he became the very thing he had
created, a monster. Soon after Reed spoke these convicting words, Rachel, the
monster that had protected Beck, rescues the couple and brings them to the
waiting arms of their friends.
The
most prominent theme in the book is evolution. Peretti implements this thesis
in the story, “There is no such thing as beneficial mutation.” (Elliott
paragraph 4) He later goes on to explain that his story is like most, in that
it has scientists who mess with things in nature they have no business messing
with. Another of Peretti’s goals for this book is that people would ask
important questions about evolution, and that those questions would cause the
reader to question the legitimacy of evolution. “We turn into monsters because
evolution takes away everything that makes us human in the sense of our moral
accountability, our moral absolutes, and our idea of being distinct from the
animal kingdom.” (Elliott paragraph 8) This truth is one of the reasons
evolution is such an important topic for Peretti; it takes away from the fact
that God made us in his image.
Some
of the other minor themes of the book are survival, desperation, and love.
Survival is a theme because Rebecca and Reed start out on a journey to
enlighten themselves on how to survive with out their creature comforts and get
out of their normal routine. Another reason it is a theme is because Beck must
now put what she knows to the test to survive with the clan of monsters. The
next theme, desperation, is present from the very beginning when the
hunter/professor desperately tries to hide the remains of a strangled man near
a logging site in order to keep his experiments a secret. Beck and Reed
are desperate to reunite with each other. Also the monsters are frightened and
desperate to escape their human pursuers. The last minor theme is love, because
it is Reed’s love for Beck that keeps him searching, even when she is presumed
dead, until he finds her. Also, Rebecca’s monster had loved her like her child
and had protected her always.
Frank
Peretti’s writing is unlike the normal Christian speculative writing. He works
his love for the mysterious and the thrilling into his calling to bring truth
to the surface and let it be evaluated for what it is. His past, though
stricken with grief, has aided many with similar wounds stored in their hearts
and souls. He has also allowed his past to influence his writing, thus making
his books all the more valuable. Despite his hardships, Peretti has stood
firmly by Christ his Creator and the lover of his soul. He has appealed not
only to the adult world but also to the teens and children of this
generation. Frank Peretti is a
phenomenal writer whose influence will leave a legacy for other Christian
writers and people as well.
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