December 22, 2007

Review of "The God Box"

I'm a bit late with this, but in case you have not heard about the novel "The God Box" by Alex Sanchez, you should. I haven't had time to read and review it, so I'm linking to a review written by my friend David W. Shelton.

In Alex Sanchez’ newest novel for young readers, The God Box introduces a
teenage boy to the greatest struggle of his life: his sexuality. The Lambda
Award-winning author of Getting It tackles a subject ripped from headlines in
this exciting and thought-provoking exploration of what it means to be both
Christian and gay in a small, Southern town.

I’m not sure if I can adequately relate just how refreshing it was to read
a book that so accurately portrays the struggle that young gay Christians
endure. I’ve seen so many stories about young gay teens and adults that are all
about the sex, drugs, and clubbing that is so often associated with the gay
community.

To me, “refreshing,” is neither accurate nor appropriate to describe my
feelings as I read through its pages. A far better word is “living.” This is a
story about life, faith, and love in a way that is as crisp as it is
timely.

You can read the rest of the review on Clarkesville Online.

1 comment:

  1. Jim, In reading the review, I was impressed with the statement: >>What makes this story so powerful is that it shows the compassionate heart behind evangelical and even fundamentalist Christianity. These are people that genuinely believe they’re working for our very souls, often not realizing just how hurtful their actions truly are. Even as I was angered by their actions, I felt compassion for them because they were just SO close to the truth. <<
    This is one of the points I make in my work Confessions of a Bible Thumper, that includes the concept that conservative believers are often well-meaning and are victims themselves of Bible abuse. They are close to the truth, but are misguided in key doctrines.

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