Books with author A.N. Wilson

Joseph, a master craftsman and carpenter, stokes the ire of his family when he weds his pregnant (and seemingly unfaithful) betrothed, Mary. Pious, devout, and guided by the dictates of Heaven, Joseph has no issue with taking Mary – who still claims to be a virgin – as his wife and committing himself to the protection of her child, whom he senses is extraordinary. However, there are others who are also aware of how special the child is, and not all have its best interests at heart. Among these is the despot Herod, whose oppressive rule and wanton cruelty are legendary. Deeply troubled by a prophecy concerning a King to Come, the tyrant is committed to finding – and eliminating – this threat to his reign. (And, having already murdered members of his own family in order to maintain power, Herod has no qualms about killing a baby.) In addition, there are forces beyond the ken of men that also recognize the singular nature of Mary’s child, and which are determined to keep the salvation that the babe represents out of mankind’s reach.All of these factions and more converge on Mary and Joseph as they trek from Nazareth to Bethlehem in hopes of starting a new life. On a journey fraught with peril, Joseph fights to protect Mary and her unborn child from danger on all sides, including the elements, bandits, and Herod’s legions – as well as an utterly evil and otherworldly demonic force determined to stamp out mankind’s only hope of redemption.Armed with little more than his wits, his faith, and his carpenter’s hammer, Joseph must face impossible odds to ensure the safety and survival of not only his family, but mankind’s future…

Readers who love Percy Jackson, the Unwanteds, and Beyonders will discover that 100 cupboards mean 100 opportunities for adventure! The bestselling and highly acclaimed 100 Cupboards series starts here. What dangers are locked behind the cupboard doors? Henry isn’t brave, but when he hears a thumping and scratching on the other side of his bedroom wall, he can’t ignore it. He scrapes off the plaster and discovers mysterious doors—cupboards of all different shapes and sizes. Through one he sees a glowing room and a man strolling back and forth. Through another he sees only darkness and feels the cold sense that something isn’t right. When his cousin Henrietta boldly travels into the worlds beyond the cupboards, it’s up to Henry to follow her. Now that he’s opened the doors, can he keep the evil inside from coming through? “A must-read series.” —The Washington Post

The bestselling and highly acclaimed 100 Cupboards series continues with its action-packed second book, Dandelion Fire. Perfect for readers who love Percy Jackson, the Unwanteds, and Beyonders! Henry has discovered that the 100 cupboard doors hidden behind his bedroom wall are actually portals to other worlds. Now he must go through the cupboards to find the truth about where he’s from and who his real parents are. Along the way, Henry is suddenly struck with a gift of magic—a magic that burns so brightly it attracts unwanted attention. As he discovers the strength of his new powers, he is chased by wizards and faeren and ultimately forced into battle with Nimiane, the evil witch-queen. And this time, the witch is not alone…. "A must-read series." —The Washington Post

Open the cupboard door to this action-packed fantasy that will take readers to the very beginning of the bestselling 100 Cupboards series! 100 Cupboards, 100 Worlds of Adventure!When Hyacinth finds an unusual door, two boys in search of vengeance, and a witch intent on destroying the world, the ultimate battle of good vs. evil begins! Hyacinth Smith can see things that others miss, stop attack dogs from attacking, and grow trees where no trees have grown before. But she’s never had a real home. When her father tells them they’ve inherited a house from their great-aunt, Hyacinth sees trouble brewing. Their great-aunt has been playing with forces beyond her control, using her lightning-tree forest to create doors to other worlds. When one door opens, two boys tumble through . . . bringing with them a battle with the undying witch-queen, Nimiane. Hyacinth, together with the boys, must use her newfound magic and all of her courage to journey straight into the witch’s kingdom in a daring plan to trap evil and kill the immortal. “A must-read series!” —The Washington Post “[100 Cupboards] is my favorite kind of fantasy.” —Tamora Pierce, #1 New York Times bestselling author"This fast-paced fantasy features empathetic heroes." —School Library Journal

The bestselling and highly acclaimed 100 Cupboards series concludes with one final, epic battle in The Chestnut King. Perfect for readers who love Percy Jackson, the Unwanteds, and Beyonders! Hidden cupboards behind Henry’s bedroom wall unlocked portals to other worlds that Henry and his cousin Henrietta couldn’t resist exploring. But they made one terrible mistake—they released the undying witch Nimiane. Her goal? To drain all life from every world connected to the cupboards. Henry must seek out the Chestnut King to defeat her, but doing so will force Henry to make a terrible, irreversible choice. With the fate of the worlds and everyone Henry loves hanging in the balance, will he have the courage to do what is needed to destroy the witch once and for all? "A must-read series." —The Washington Post

Before he wrote the bestselling 100 Cupboards trilogy and Ashtown Burials series, N. D. Wilson delighted readers with his first unforgettable action-adventure story of survival. . . . Thomas Hammond has always lived next to Leepike Ridge, but he never imagined he might end up lost beneath it! The night Tom’s schoolteacher comes to dinner and asks Tom’s mother to marry him, Tom slips out of the house and escapes down a nearby stream on a floating slab of packing foam. The night and stars lull Tom to sleep, and when he wakes, he has ridden his foam raft all the way to the ridge, where the stream dives underground. Flung over rapids and tossed through chasms, Tom finally hits shore, sore but alive. What Tom finds under Leepike Ridge—a dog, a flashlight, a castaway, a tomb, and buried treasure—will answer questions he hadn’t known to ask, and change his life forever. Now, if only he can find his way home again. . . . In the grand tradition of Robinson Crusoe, Hatchet, and Tom Sawyer, N. D. Wilson’s first book for young readers is a remarkable adventure, a journey through the dark and back into the light. A New York Public Library 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing“This is a ripping good adventure yarn. . . . Here’s the perfect remedy for any summer that’s been disappointingly short on thrills.”—The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, Starred“Wilson’s debut is a literate, sometimes humorous page-turner in the classic tradition. Well-read adventure lovers are in for a treat looking for echoes of The Odyssey and Tom Sawyer.”—Kirkus Reviews“Tom’s adventures have several literary ancestors, including Tom and Huck in the cave, and the inventive Swiss Family Robinson, but this is solidly set in the present, standing on its own with well-crafted suspense and fascinating survival detail. . . . [M]iddle-grade readers will also relish the physicality of the journey: underwater swims, tight passages, and rock climbing. . . . [An] appealing and easy-to-booktalk package.”—Booklist“Wilson sets the scene vividly, from Tom’s home to the labyrinth of tunnels and caverns under the mountain, and the central characters’ emotional lives develop both naturally and affectingly. [Readers] will appreciate both the fast-paced adventure and Tom’s determination to make the impossible journey back home.”—The Horn Book Magazine“Wilson’s rich imagination and his quirky characters are a true delight.”—School Library Journal

Readers who love Percy Jackson, the Unwanteds, and Beyonders will discover that 100 cupboards mean 100 opportunities for adventure! The bestselling and highly acclaimed 100 Cupboards series starts here. What dangers are locked behind the cupboard doors? Henry isn’t brave, but when he hears a thumping and scratching on the other side of his bedroom wall, he can’t ignore it. He scrapes off the plaster and discovers mysterious doors—cupboards of all different shapes and sizes. Through one he sees a glowing room and a man strolling back and forth. Through another he sees only darkness and feels the cold sense that something isn’t right. When his cousin Henrietta boldly travels into the worlds beyond the cupboards, it’s up to Henry to follow her. Now that he’s opened the doors, can he keep the evil inside from coming through? "A must-read series." —The Washington Post

The bestselling and highly acclaimed 100 Cupboards series continues with its action-packed second book, Dandelion Fire. Perfect for readers who love Percy Jackson, the Unwanteds, and Beyonders! Henry has discovered that the 100 cupboard doors hidden behind his bedroom wall are actually portals to other worlds. Now he must go through the cupboards to find the truth about where he’s from and who his real parents are. Along the way, Henry is suddenly struck with a gift of magic—a magic that burns so brightly it attracts unwanted attention. As he discovers the strength of his new powers, he is chased by wizards and faeren and ultimately forced into battle with Nimiane, the evil witch-queen. And this time, the witch is not alone…. "A must-read series." —The Washington Post

Fans of both Percy Jackson and Indiana Jones will be captivated by the lost civilizations, ancient secrets, and buried treasure found in the second book of the Ashtown Burials series, action-packed adventure by N. D. Wilson, the author of Leepike Ridge and the 100 Cupboards trilogy.It's been almost a year since Cyrus and Antigone Smith earned their places as Journeymen at Ashtown, home of an ancient order of explorers that has long guarded the world's secrets and treasures. While their studies go well, Cy and Tigs are not well liked since losing the Dragon's Tooth to the nefarious Dr. Phoenix. The Tooth is the only object in the world capable of killing the long-lived transmortals, and Phoenix has been tracking them down one-by-one, and murdering them.The surviving transmortals, led by legendary warrior Gilgamesh of Uruk, descend on Ashtown in force, demanding justice. Cy and Tigs find themselves on the run in a desperate search to locate Phoenix and regain the Tooth. In the process, they uncover an evil even more dangerous than Phoenix, one that has been waiting for centuries to emerge.

Before he wrote the bestselling 100 Cupboards trilogy and Ashtown Burials series, N. D. Wilson delighted readers with his first unforgettable action-adventure story of survival. . . . Thomas Hammond has always lived next to Leepike Ridge, but he never imagined he might end up lost beneath it! The night Tom’s schoolteacher comes to dinner and asks Tom’s mother to marry him, Tom slips out of the house and escapes down a nearby stream on a floating slab of packing foam. The night and stars lull Tom to sleep, and when he wakes, he has ridden his foam raft all the way to the ridge, where the stream dives underground. Flung over rapids and tossed through chasms, Tom finally hits shore, sore but alive. What Tom finds under Leepike Ridge—a dog, a flashlight, a castaway, a tomb, and buried treasure—will answer questions he hadn’t known to ask, and change his life forever. Now, if only he can find his way home again. . . . In the grand tradition of Robinson Crusoe, Hatchet, and Tom Sawyer, N. D. Wilson’s first book for young readers is a remarkable adventure, a journey through the dark and back into the light. A New York Public Library 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing“This is a ripping good adventure yarn. . . . Here’s the perfect remedy for any summer that’s been disappointingly short on thrills.”—The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, Starred“Wilson’s debut is a literate, sometimes humorous page-turner in the classic tradition. Well-read adventure lovers are in for a treat looking for echoes of The Odyssey and Tom Sawyer.”—Kirkus Reviews“Tom’s adventures have several literary ancestors, including Tom and Huck in the cave, and the inventive Swiss Family Robinson, but this is solidly set in the present, standing on its own with well-crafted suspense and fascinating survival detail. . . . [M]iddle-grade readers will also relish the physicality of the journey: underwater swims, tight passages, and rock climbing. . . . [An] appealing and easy-to-booktalk package.”—Booklist“Wilson sets the scene vividly, from Tom’s home to the labyrinth of tunnels and caverns under the mountain, and the central characters’ emotional lives develop both naturally and affectingly. [Readers] will appreciate both the fast-paced adventure and Tom’s determination to make the impossible journey back home.”—The Horn Book Magazine“Wilson’s rich imagination and his quirky characters are a true delight.”—School Library Journal

A radical reappraisal of Charles Darwin from the bestselling author of Victoria: A Life.With the publication of On the Origin of Species, Charles Darwin—hailed as the man who "discovered evolution"—was propelled into the pantheon of great scientific thinkers, alongside Galileo, Copernicus, and Newton. Eminent writer A. N. Wilson challenges this long-held assumption. Contextualizing Darwin and his ideas, he offers a groundbreaking critical look at this revered figure in modern science.In this beautifully written, deeply erudite portrait, Wilson argues that Darwin was not an original scientific thinker, but a ruthless and determined self-promoter who did not credit the many great sages whose ideas he advanced in his book. Furthermore, Wilson contends that religion and Darwinism have much more in common than it would seem, for the acceptance of Darwin's theory involves a pretty significant leap of faith.Armed with an extraordinary breadth of knowledge, Wilson explores how Darwin and his theory were very much a product of their place and time. The "Survival of the Fittest" was really the Survival of Middle Class families like the Darwins—members of a relatively new economic strata who benefited from the rising Industrial Revolution at the expense of the working classes. Following Darwin’s theory, the wretched state of the poor was an outcome of nature, not the greed and neglect of the moneyed classes. In a paradigm-shifting conclusion, Wilson suggests that it remains to be seen, as this class dies out, whether the Darwinian idea will survive, or whether it, like other Victorian fads, will become a footnote in our intellectual history.Brilliant, daring, and ambitious, Charles Darwin explores this legendary man as never before, and challenges us to reconsider our understanding of both Darwin and modern science itself.

This new fantasy-adventure series from N. D. Wilson, bestselling author of 100 Cupboards, pits a misfit twelve-year-old against a maniacal villain with a deadly vendetta. This one-of-a kind story is must read for fans of Brandon Mull and Soman Chainani, and the start of a thrilling tale from a masterful storyteller. Sam Miracle’s life is made up of dreams, dreams where he’s a courageous, legendary hero instead of a foster kid with two bad arms that can barely move. Sometimes these dreams feel so real, they seem like forgotten memories. And sometimes they make him believe that his arms might come alive again.But Sam is about to discover that the world he knows and the world he imagines are separated by only one thing: time. And that separation is only an illusion. The laws of time can be bent and shifted by people with special magic that allows them to travel through the past, present, and future. But not all of these “time walkers” can be trusted. One is out to protect Sam so that he can accept his greatest destiny, and another is out to kill him so that a prophecy will never be fulfilled. However, it’s an adventurous girl named Glory and two peculiar snakes who show Sam the way through the dark paths of yesterday to help him make sure there will be a tomorrow for every last person on earth.