L. G. Nixon. The Ghost of Darwin Stewart. Fitting Words, 2021.
———. The Ghost Writer. Fitting Words, 2021.
Two middle school aged friends, Lucy and Schuyler, go to a nearby flea market where they meet a gray-haired man who has a box of unusual ancient artifacts he gives to them. Among the artifacts is a device that looks like a magnifying glass called a Spectrescope (the word is capitalized, as if it is a name). We have a hint of what is coming because prologue of The Ghost of Darwin Stewart is a fictionalized telling of chapter 14 of Isaiah or Book 6 of Paradise Lost, the story of the devil being kicked out of heaven.
The Spectrescope is a symbol or allegory for spiritual discernment. With it, Lucy can see angels and daemons (author’s spelling). There is also a kind of magic mirror and ancient looking weapons suggestion Ephesians 6:11-17, the armor of God. So, yes, there are spiritual battles here.
Similar to the beginning of the book of Job, the devil accuses Lucy of being faithless to God—here represented not as a Lion as in the Narnia Chronicles but as a fox called Iam. I am, of course, is the name God revealed to Moses in Exodus 3:14 and is used throughout Hebrew Scriptures. You get the idea. So the battle involves not just tackling the spirits but dealing with accusations. We are reminded that the devil’s main weapons are lies (see John 8:44) and fear (note Hebrews 2:14-15).
Nixon takes an orthodox view of what ghosts are. They are evil spirits impersonating the dead (see I Chronicles 10:13-14 NET). Since the ghost is allegedly of someone who lived before the Civil War, the ghost’s name has nothing to do with Charles Darwin, it is merely a family name. In popular culture and in this story, ghosts also mean haunted houses.
The Ghost Writer takes Lucy and Schuyler on another adventure. This time it focuses on their school. The Spectrescope and Iam’s other gifts are involved again. Evil spirits seem to be intent on causing school-day havoc. Though there are spiritual battles, we are reminded that the battles are based on what we believe, whether we believe something is true or is a lie (see II Corinthians 10:3-5). So two people at the school are carrying burdens they should not be carrying. The Bible suggests that bitterness can lead to sin and rebellion (e.g., see Acts 8:23). But the Gospel can cure bitterness. When the bitterness is removed, so is the temptation to rebel. After all, God is love (I John 4:7-8).
Frank Peretti popularized such spiritual warfare novels in the eighties. More recently, Ted Dekker has added to the genre. As a teacher, I have observed that some of my high schoolers enjoyed their novels. Nixon, then, has written similar stories featuring young teens, aiming her work at the young adult market. Nixon may be onto something about potential readers. These books are not for everyone, but they could be a source of hope for some.