A Presbyterian minister defends the Harry Potter series from conservatives who denounce the books as paganism, demonstrating how they promote the values of faith and morality, and profiling the main character as a Christ figure.

More than any other book of the last fifty years (and perhaps ever), the Harry Potter novels have captured the imagination of children and adults around the world. Yet no one has ever been able to unlock the secret of Harry's wild popularity . . . until now. Updated and expanded since its original publication as Looking for God in Harry Potter (and now containing final conclusions based on the entire series), How Harry Cast His Spell explains why the books meet our longing to experience the truths of life, love, and death; help us better understand life and our role in the universe; and encourage us to discover and develop our own gifts and abilities.

Granger, a devout Christian, literature teacher and father of seven home-schooled children, gives parents and teachers a roadmap for using the Harry Potter books to teach children Christian truth.

This book is intended for both Harry Potter fans and those searching for the deeper Christian truths hidden within J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. It deals with the questions such as "How do we justify the Magic within Harry Potter as Christians?" and "How can the alchemy within the series help Christians find deeper meanings to their own faith?" Later chapters explain the traditions, history, symbolism, and Biblical references that outline the storyline book by book in a way that makes it easy to use and reference again and again.

Tagline: Now Exploring Books One through Seven

We get so prescriptive with the spiritual life. We prepackage it, duplicate it, mass-produce it, insist upon it, and brag about it. We make it a formula. As a result, we tend to see God from such a narrow perspective. We box God up and compartmentalize Him into thirty minutes each morning. But in reality, He is waiting for us to realize that He invades all the parts of our days . . . if only we would pay attention. In Looking for God, Nancy Ortberg will inspire you to break away from the bland, formulaic approach to Christianity and embrace the often unexpected, at times unnerving, but always extraordinary power of God’s grace. As you journey with Nancy, you’ll find God in places you have never dreamed of looking, and you’ll experience faith on a deeper level than you have ever imagined possible.

Despicable Me meets Diary of a Wimpy Kid in this hilarious illustrated middle grade adventure that follows a hapless warlock-in-training as he struggles to live up to his great and terrible destiny. Meet Wick. He's the son of the Dark Lord, heir to the throne of black and broken glass, and next in line to be the leader of the Grim World. Too bad he's stuck in Remedial Spell Casting (he can barely even cast the fart-revealer spell), he's allergic to fire and brimstone, and the bullies at school insist on calling him Dork Lord. Full of humor, hijinks, and lively illustrations, Confessions of a Dork Lord follows Wick through the pages of his journal as he comes up with a genius plan to defeat his foes, achieve greatness . . . and survive Middle Ages School. "I loved every page, and your kid will too!" --Melissa de la Cruz, bestselling author of the Descendants series "It's not easy being bad. But this book will give you a head start." --Pseudonymous Bosch, bestselling author of the Secret series "Hilarious! Not to be missed!" --Eoin Colfer, bestselling author of the Artemis Fowl series