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Great Escape
30 Reflections on Stoicism, Faith, and the Wisdom of Great Stories
By Stephen Kent and Riley Blanton
Published by Post Hill Press
Distributed by Simon & Schuster
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Table of Contents
About the Book
This book is a challenge to disenchanted times—a return to the stories that gave you courage, wisdom, and hope when you needed it most.
Most of us experience the modern world as either terrifying or boring. Cynicism, division, endless news, and addictive tech leave us feeling anxious, distracted, and off-balance. Worst of all, we’re told the world is no longer full of wonder and magic like the great stories promised. It’s time to return to our true selves.
Great Escape is a challenge to disenchanted times and argues that before we ever needed “self-help,” we absorbed time-tested wisdom through books and movies. The Stoic philosophy of Marcus Aurelius and Seneca left fingerprints on the works of C.S. Lewis and George Lucas’s Star Wars. The same tools Epictetus used to navigate a broken world are waiting to be discovered in the stories you grew up with.
Combining life lessons from pop culture, Christian theology, and Western thought, this book explores deep questions about purpose, suffering, love, worry, death, and hope. You’ll travel to Tatooine with Luke Skywalker, visit Howl’s Moving Castle and George R.R. Martin’s world of Westeros, walk alongside Frodo Baggins to Mordor, and even fight beside Goku from Dragon Ball Z—even passing through the wardrobe of The Chronicles of Narnia and into Harry Potter’s Hogwarts.
Why does the world feel so bleak? We’re living in rooms with no windows or sunlight, but a good story and practical philosophy can change that—restoring Focus on what matters most, Balance between extremes, and Wonder in how you interpret everyday life.
Most of us experience the modern world as either terrifying or boring. Cynicism, division, endless news, and addictive tech leave us feeling anxious, distracted, and off-balance. Worst of all, we’re told the world is no longer full of wonder and magic like the great stories promised. It’s time to return to our true selves.
Great Escape is a challenge to disenchanted times and argues that before we ever needed “self-help,” we absorbed time-tested wisdom through books and movies. The Stoic philosophy of Marcus Aurelius and Seneca left fingerprints on the works of C.S. Lewis and George Lucas’s Star Wars. The same tools Epictetus used to navigate a broken world are waiting to be discovered in the stories you grew up with.
Combining life lessons from pop culture, Christian theology, and Western thought, this book explores deep questions about purpose, suffering, love, worry, death, and hope. You’ll travel to Tatooine with Luke Skywalker, visit Howl’s Moving Castle and George R.R. Martin’s world of Westeros, walk alongside Frodo Baggins to Mordor, and even fight beside Goku from Dragon Ball Z—even passing through the wardrobe of The Chronicles of Narnia and into Harry Potter’s Hogwarts.
Why does the world feel so bleak? We’re living in rooms with no windows or sunlight, but a good story and practical philosophy can change that—restoring Focus on what matters most, Balance between extremes, and Wonder in how you interpret everyday life.
Product Details
- Publisher: Post Hill Press (December 1, 2026)
- Length: 208 pages
- ISBN13: 9798895655863
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Raves and Reviews
"It’s hard to share the truth with anyone unless you have their attention. Great Escape is an outstanding reminder that a story has the unique power to focus the mind and open hearts long enough for the deepest, most wondrous truths to take root. Get this book!"
– Wes Huff
Apologetics Canada
“There are many books on Stoicism out there, but none quite like Great Escape. No dry academic treatise or watered-down pop wisdom, the book shines a bright and unexpected light on the connection between this ancient philosophy and an even older human imperative: the need for story. Ranging from Lord of the Rings to K-Pop Demon Hunters, Stephen Kent and Riley Blanton unearth the wisdom hidden in our most beloved tales. Read this book and rekindle your sense of wonder.”
– Eric Weiner
Author, The Socrates Express
“Kent and Blanton expound with mastery and wit on why philosophy alone cannot satisfy the human heart. The best ideas, sound moral reasoning and profound truth can only be inculcated in us through a good story. I wish I had written this book!"
– Parker Settecase
Creator of @ParkNotes on YouTube, 261k subscribers
“Great Escape succinctly yet powerfully combines lessons from the minds of the ancients and the contemporary stories that have had a lasting impact on our culture. It proves that fiction is not mere entertainment, but that a good story can and should inspire us to greater heights of virtue."
– Sam Roden
@MasterSamwise of YouTube, 200k subscribers
“As someone whose life has been changed for the better by the transcendent beauty, darkness, and wisdom of great stories, I can attest to the truth of this exceptional book.”
– Joel Berry
Author of The Postmodern Pilgrim's Progress, former managing editor of the Babylon Bee
“The authors of Great Escape are on a quest for Wisdom—join them on this road and you just might find yourself swept off your feet in delight!”
– Christopher Snyder, Ph.D.
author of Hobbit Virtues
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