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I'm a mommy, wife, chauffeur, zookeeper, reader and book reviewer

Saturday, April 20, 2013

Much to think about

The Shack: Where Tragedy Confronts EternityThe Shack: Where Tragedy Confronts Eternity by Wm. Paul Young
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This story was really hard for me to read having two young girls of my own. I think this is more allegory than the typical Christian fiction. The scenes at the shack remind me of Passport to Life City—a modern version of Pilgrim's Progress.

Mack took his kids on a camping trip while his wife was away over a holiday weekend. On the last day as Mack was packing up to head home, two of his children asked to take one last canoe ride. With many cautions including the promise of life jackets, he allowed them while the youngest sat at a nearby picnic table coloring. When one child waved from the canoe, it tipped, Mack dove in to save his children; while in the commotion the youngest was kidnapped.

A few years later Mack returns to the shack—the site of the last evidence of his daughter Missy. While there he encounters God. The main concern I've heard and read is that God is depicted as a black woman—yest young explains this depiction to my satisfaction. In some ways it reminded me of the movie Contact.

I'm not sure what to think of the discussion on responsibilities and expectations. Personally I felt the Festival of Friends was unnecessary and too speculative. Then the way the rest of the story was wrapped up was too tidy for me.

All in all, the conversations at the shack were interesting and did cause me to think. I really had to consider various religious traditions and what is truly Biblically sound.

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Friday, April 19, 2013

A Phantom sequel

The Opera Ghost LivesThe Opera Ghost Lives by Ann M. Kraft
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Opera Ghost Lives by Ann Kraft is intended to be a sequel to Phantom of the Opera. It tells what happened to Erik after he lost his dear Christine to another man.

While the Phantom of the Opera seemed to me a mix of Goth and Comedy with a bit of romance, The Opera Ghost seems more a Christian romance. Unfortunately this will affect my review as I am not a fan of romance.

The themes of “God's grace can redeem anyone, no matter how bad they think they are”; and “what you look like on the outside doesn't matter it's what's inside that counts” are obvious. In my opinion the most exciting part and a bit of a twist comes at the end. This book wasn't what I expected it to be, but it has some good themes.

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