THE HOBGOBLINS, a novel on John Bunyan is the latest historical novel by author Douglas Bond. This book tells the amazing life of John Bunyan, renowned theologian and author of the best-selling novel of all time, The Pilgrim’s Progress.
I always thought I knew the story of The Pilgrim’s Progress, but The Hobgoblins brings new life and meaning to the classic allegory. Bond shows us the man behind the best-selling novel of all time, giving readers a glimpse into what inspired Bunyan’s pen.
The Hobgoblins traces Bunyan’s path from a blasphemous rouge to a man arrested by God. Documenting Bunyan’s early life, Bond shows us Bunyan the rebellious rouge, mischief maker and vulgar poet. Next we meet, Bunyan the terrified soldier, facing death at the hands of the King of England’s soldiers. Bunyan then shifts from lowly tinker, to unscholarly preacher, to desolate prisoner for his faith. Finally John Bunyan emerges as an author of no small importance.
Bond captures the old-English style of Bunyan, while still keeping it easily understood. Douglas Bond knows his words and how best to use them with masterful skill.
As I read The Hobgoblins, I could clearly see a parallel between the character Pilgrim and his creator. The man laden with a burden, weighed down with sin—that was John Bunyan himself. The man trapped in the Slough of Despond, the man climbing the Hill of Difficulty, the man locked in a cage in Doubting Castle—that was Bunyan. John Bunyan’s life of sin, his attempt at self reform, and his grand deliverance by Christ, along with the suffering that followed for Christ’s sake, all prepared Bunyan to write The Pilgrim’s Progress. John Bunyan was telling his own story and the story of every other believer in Christ walking the narrow road to eternal life.
Still to this day, The Pilgrim’s Progress is only outsold by The Holy Bible. Some have claimed J. K. Rowling has stolen that title, but it took her 7 books to surpass John Bunyan’s 1. The legacy of Bunyan lives on, and his works have been translated into hundreds of languages, and made into many film and audio productions. If you haven’t read The Pilgrim’s Progress yet, join me in putting it at the top of your reading list. Then read The Hobgoblins.
