Book Review: Adorning the Dark
Adorning the Dark
By Andrew Peterson
In the fall of 2019, Brad and I attended our first Hutchmoot. For those of you unfamiliar with Hutchmoot, it is the annual gathering of The Rabbit Room where creatives spend a long weekend immersed in good food, fellowship, and worship centered around the arts. And, for those of you unfamiliar with The Rabbit Room, it is a non-profit Andrew Peterson started that fosters Christ-centered community and spiritual formation through story, music, and art. Our first trip to Hutchmoot coincided with the release date of Adorning the Dark. And I’m glad it did. Having been on a creative high after that weekend then reading this book soon thereafter made for quite the rich experience. In fact, several friends and I read it as our first book in our newly formed book-club I affectionately dubbed “Bookmoot.” But, I digress.
Adorning the Dark, by Andrew Peterson is a breath of fresh air for creatives or people yearning to be creative. Page after page, Andrew describes his personal journey from the adventures of a young boy growing up in Florida to touring on the wildly popular Behold the Lamb of God tour, the community built along the way, and new his adventures at the Warren outside of Nashville. This book encourages creatives to bring their art to the world so that it can be a light for the world. Whether one’s art is music, writing, or visual, readers across the gamut will finish this book energized and with a renewed sense of purpose to pursue the creative fire in their soul as well as the Creator who gave them this fire.
This book, while rich with story, illustrations, and inspiration, was a delightful read, it was more transformative in nature for me. What I mean is, after reading it, I cannot look at my creative work the same again. Whether it is writing a novel, an essay, a children’s book, painting a trout, taking a photo of a babbling brook, or hosting a podcast, my art is important…not because I am the creator, but because I am serving the Creator through my art.
If I can summarize this book in one word, it would be “encouraging.” Not in the “atta boy” sense of the word, but in the sense that it struck courage into my heart and soul. I have a hard time putting my art into the world, as you will hear in future episodes. However, this book, along with some friendly nudges along the way (ahem… S.D. Smith), has helped me to see that, as Andrew puts it, “You have to climb out from under the bushel and share your light with those around you. You have to believe that you’re precious to the King of Creation, and not just a waste of space.” This reminder has “encouraged” me to stop hoarding my art and start loving others through it.
In the chapter, “Art Nourishes Community,” Andrew speaks of the value of community and how important collaboration is with regards to art. For me, being part of a creative community is a deep desire in my soul—a sehnsucht, if you will. (A word I learned from reading this book that C.S. Lewis defined as an inconsolable longing.) This desire is partly why Brad and I started The Storied Outdoors. It is our meager effort to collectively put art into the world so that, in some small way, we can adorn the dark with light.
As I discussed this book with Brad, he offered the following insights.
The genuine transparency that Andrew shows us in Adorning the Dark caused me to lean in and listen. I took great comfort in his willingness to open himself up and give us an example to follow. He was challenging everyone to take a plunge into creating. Though I typically delve in songwriting, after this read, a broader desire to create began to well up in me. He calls it an act of love. "Take thy thoughts captive, put them to music. Then aim them away from you. Love your neighbor as yourself."
The stories of his journey invited me to reflect on my own story. The thought of intention trumping execution is of great comfort to me as I type this blog post amidst a creative endeavor saturated with good intention. Though, what we are doing with The Storied Outdoors is much less stressful than a musical tour, the sentiment has encouraged me to press on with our adventure.
Peterson says that the stories that awaken us are meant to awaken us not only to the reality to come, but to this world and its expectant glory. There are adventures to be had here and now. We mustn't wait for eternity to have them. I loved his imagery of a bridge to elf-land and the opportunity of smuggling back some of its light into the present darkness. An invitation to a quest like this is precisely what I needed.
The pages of this book are sprinkled with plainly stated instruction on writing and living—It reminds us of how the God of the universe, through Christ, opened His heart to us. Peterson calls us to discipline, and only through this discipline will we finish, and then we open our hearts to share it to the weary souls that need this humble offering of our work.
If you are searching for a book that will ignite the creativity in your soul, look no further than this book. Brad and I highly recommend it as an addition to your library. Thank you, Andrew for sending this light into the world for us to enjoy.
