The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan

This Christian classic is one of the most widely read books of all time.

Christian lives in the City of Destruction but desires to reach the Celestial City. Follow him on his journey through the Slough of Despond, Vanity Fair, the Delectable Mountains, and much more.

Reading Level: Ages 13+
Read-aloud Age: 13+

I had not read the full version of The Pilgrim’s Progress until a few years ago- only children’s versions. It was a delight to read the original and really step into the mind of Bunyan. The term “allegory” is often misused, as a true allegory is one in which every character, setting, and event has a symbolized meaning. The Pilgrim’s Progress is truly an allegory, with its symbolized meanings plain to the reader. For example, the characters names reveal much: Evangelist, Faithful, Great-Heart, Giant Despair, Flatterer, Ignorance, and many more.

My argument of this review isn’t if your teen should read The Pilgrim’s Progress (they should), but rather when and what edition. I do think reading a version closest to the original text is going to benefit long term. (If you are looking for a version for children 12 and under, try THIS one.) If your child is not used to reading older styles of English, they may find this challenging, however, I do believe it’s better for your teen to read a modernized English version than no version at all. If you go with a modernized English version, you could have then read it much earlier, as long as you are comfortable with the content. If you want to give them the original (or only slightly altered version), be sure they can follow the 17th century writing style.

My favorite edition is the Lithos Legacy Edition (linked below). This is a stunning printing with vintage wood-cut illustrations, unabridged text with carefully updated language, and heirloom quality cloth cover, gilded edges, and ribbon page marker.

Things to Know If You’ve Never Read TPP:
We live in a time with “easy believeism.” While it isn’t uncommon for Christian to struggle with if they are saved at the beginning of their walk with Christ, Christians in Bunyan’s day often wrestled with Salvation longer, and we see this reflected in a few characters.

There is a brief, but descriptive scene of an execution.

The overall tone of the book is quite heavy, which I believe is by design, but there is little joy throughout.

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