October 14th, 2009
Powers, Kimberly. Escaping the Vampire: Desperate for the Immortal Hero. Chicago: David C. Cook, 2009. 192 pp. $12.99.
Introduction
I have not delved into the phenomenon that is Twilight though I have seen and heard quite a bit about the series and the movie. I guess being a children’s minister, this series was not an issue for my area of ministry at my church. With that being said, I want to exhort everyone to not make the same mistake I made in ignoring this series. Kimberly Powers has worked with teen girls for over ten years. She is co-founder of Walk the Talk Youth Ministries with her husband, Tim. She pulls from her experiences in ministering to teen girls as she deals with issues of love and security.
Review
Divided into three parts, Kimberly first sets out to shatter the illusion of the “epic love story” found in most vampire novels. She explains how the allure of the vampire mystique leads down a dark road that would frighten most young ladies (and men) away in real life. Sadly, the longing for a deep, unconditional love causes the young woman to continue venturing down the dark road–the promise of that love is too irresistible.
After showing how hollow and dark vampire tales really are, Kimberly points the reader to the One who does love unconditionally and sent His Son to rescue us all in what is truly the most epic love story of all time. This moves us into the second part of her book where the reader learns Who this person is that loves her so much to die for her. Kimberly shows how we are in need of forgiveness and how we are rescued by His love which leads to our understanding of what we must do to have a relationship with this Man.
The third part helps the young girl to understand who she is in Christ. She will see His undying love for her played out in the real world and not on the pages of some fantasy novel. Ultimately, by the end of this book, the reader will come face to face with the One who lived, died, and lived again so that we can have a relationship with Him.
Recommendation
Kimberly Powers has done many youth ministers a huge favor in writing Escaping the Vampire. Filled with anecdotes, definitions and explanations along the way, this book is an excellent resource for any youth pastor wanting to deal with his or her teens in a loving and winsome manner insofar as the Twilight franchise is concerned. We should take every opportunity to point our young one’s to the One who loves more than we can imagine. If you are the parent of a child who is enraptured by the Twilight phenomena, please do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of this book. You will not regret doing so.
Christian Book Notes 