Book Review: Little Pilgrim’s Progress by Helen L Taylor

Some of us may be familiar with The Pilgrim’s Progress, the classic by John Bunyan. Cecilia Kang reviews and shares with us about an adapted and illustrated version, Little Pilgrim’s Progress, that is suitable for children.


If you have read John Bunyan’s classic, The Pilgrim’s Progress, your recollection of it might include a jumble of character names like Mr Worldly Wisdom, Evangelist, Faithful, Prudence, Giant Despair or Apollyon amongst many more. In addition, the chronology of the story may also be a confusing maze with certain events being well-remembered and others a hazy outline. While the storyline is dense with multiple characters and many notable events taking place throughout, the overall message is that of perseverance and reliance on God to bring one through the many trials and joys of life.

When I read The Pilgrim’s Progress to my children over many, many nights, it was clear that Bunyan’s story grabbed them powerfully as the perils and mistakes that the main character, Christian went through were universal and relatable and at the same time, heart breaking. However, at many points in the story over many nights, I struggled to paraphrase parts of the story in a way that was age appropriate for them. Many times, the children would go silent and eyes wide and I would that I had a better way of telling this excellent classic to them. 

During the last church camp, they had the chance to watch the movie of The Pilgrim’s Progress with their friends and enjoyed it immensely so much so that they wanted to watch it again right after they reached home from camp. I truly believe that the beauty of this classic Christian story lies not just in the hard truth of the difficulty and trials of being a Christian in a harsh world but also in the essence of grace. In the many times that the main character Christian gave in to temptation and wandered off the path, relied on his own wisdom, or forgot about what he was warned against, he would be saved just in time whenever he called out to God for help. It brings out the idea of sanctification beautifully and gives strength to Christians to persevere to the end. And this is something that may not be easily explained to children who are yet to understand the sinfulness of ourselves and others. 

When I saw the cover of Little Pilgrim’s Progress by Helen L Taylor and illustrated by Joe Sutphin, I was impressed. The beautiful illustration on the cover is like those of beloved children’s classics – timeless with a bold, gold font and soft shades of forest green, brown and grey. Joe Sutphin, the illustrator of the famed The Wingfeather Saga created a view overlooking a grassland that stretches far ahead with the a glittering Celestial City in the distance.

The characters in this version are reimagined as woodland animals like rabbits, hares, foxes, owls, squirrels, otters and a toad which is appealing to children and armed with shields and swords, which brings forth a sense of adventure and battle that they can easily relate to. I was worried that it would only appeal to my younger ones aged below 12 but was very surprised to find that even my eldest (a youth) was very keen to read it. In this version’s reimagining,  the main character Christian is now a rabbit without a mother and whose friendship with Christiana would later inspire the latter to follow in his footsteps to find the Celestial City. Themes of friendship and loyalty are strong which is more easily understood by children.

The story moves fast with each chapter as short as two pages, thus making it easy to read nightly and even without the parents’ help. The illustrations are simple and sweet in greyscale but has a nice vintage feel to it. The author does not water down the difficulties of the original story but speeds it along with ample description and dialogue that serves it well. In reimagining the story as one of animals and friends, I feel that the children could accept and understand the sadness of when various pilgrim friends end their journey, adding to their understanding of how death in this world is seen as a victorious end as a pilgrim that leads into a new life to God’s kingdom. 

To end, here is a quote from the illustrator, Joe Sutphin on the relevance of The Pilgrim’s Progress written 350 years ago in today’s context:

The world is presenting new forms of challenges to followers of Christ, but the roots of those challenges are the same as they were 350 years ago. Specifically, regarding children, who still face doubt and despair, accusers and deceivers, gossips and flatterers, and at a greater degree and pace than children did 350 years ago. Television, smart phones and social media bring these challenges into a childs world at a rapid pace, and kids need as much encouragement as possible in navigating the challenges of holding onto their faith. The story of Christian and Christiana encompasses such a solid overview of the Christian walk.

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