Genre: Christian Fiction
Source: I purchased a copy. The opinions expressed here are my own.
My Review:
Midheaven was one of those
books that I had to keep reading to find out the why. Jodi is a young teen who
has a very dysfunctional family. About the time she feels she has everything
under control she makes a decision that changes her. Dating the rich and popular
kid has its perks and expectations. Unfortunately, his expectations are
different than Jodi's. She gave herself physically to this young man only to
find betrayal. It doesn't help that as a new Christian her actions become very
confusing to her. I could see her spiraling out of control when she made a
forbidden connection to one of her teachers. We know from the beginning of the
book that Charley, her childhood best friend is who she has loved for a long
time. he was much older than her. However, no matter what she does he remains a
true friend to her.
I won't say much more about the
plot. I do want to respond to some of the other elements in the book. Charley's
good friend Geoff is passionate about his new-found faith. He is the one who
leads Jodi to become a Christian. A lot of the other characters in the book
reacted differently to the Christian faith. Some became holier-than-thou and
had no problem judging others. Some stumbled around with no real idea of what
it means to be a Christian. They have no real guidance. As I read this,
different people in my life popped into my mind. I have seen them all. Most of
all it is a book of hope. No matter how much we mess up, God always leads us
back.
Guest Post
What I Do After
Midnight
Folks dedicated or obsessive enough to read all my dozen or
sixteen novels (depending upon whether the latest, five novella-length books
packaged together, counts as one book or five), may remember Cynthia Jones. She
evolved from a woman I knew who frequently bemoaned the condition of the world
by quoting from "The
Night They Burned Shanghai".
Last night, my cat woke me yowling in misery. According to
our vet, his kidney is failing, and he's also epileptic. And after I petted him
for a while and brought him food and water, I lay awake wrestling with the
reality of death, which appears to be stalking our dear cat, while that poem's
final lines echoed in my mind:
"For some men die by shrapnel,
And some go down in flames,
But most men perish inch by inch
In play at little games."
I suspect the poem, published in 1938, was meant as a call for
Americans to respond to the world's horrors. Last night, more than ever, I took
that poem's message to heart and lamented that I haven't done more to relieve
suffering or to battle the perpetrators and promoters of death and other
miseries.
I reproached myself for failing to more actively work for
healing and justice. Except for a few spells of volunteer work and some
donating, all I have done is raise three good kids and written lots of books
and stories that, aside from entertaining, attempt to advocate compassion and
condemn the hunger for revenge and the lust for power. Maybe my books should
allow me to forgive myself for not doing other, more helpful things like
becoming a doctor or an honest politician. Maybe.
So it goes.
My books are nine Hickey
Family crime novels; Midheaven, a Hickey Family
companion; Newport Ave, a noir tribute to my cousin Virgie; Cars, a short story collection; Reading Brother Lawrence, a memoir; Writing and the Spirit, reflections on finding and using
inspiration; and For America, an epic story of the post WWII years in five small
books, coming later this year. To get clued about their release, please subscribe to
less is more, a more or less monthly publication.
My stories most always begin with an experience or
observation. Here's how Midheaven got
conceived:
When I was eighteen, I attended a Billy Graham crusade and
came away with a sense that the Christian faith was far different than I had
previously thought. So I started reading the Bible and tried attending
churches. The Bible reading continued, the churchgoing did not, at the time.
Over the next few years, I started earnestly writing, and in
King's Beach, on the shore of Lake Tahoe, I attended a party where, on one side
of a large room, a group of kids held a Bible study, while across the room
other kids drank, smoked stuff, and laughed a lot.
A girl stood between those groups, gazing left and right,
looking bewildered, before she dashed out of the house. I followed and watched
her run down the road and plunge into the lake.
I saw myself in that girl, often torn between what appeared
to offer pleasure and what felt good and beautiful but required sacrifice.
Together, the girl and I became Jodi, the narrator of Midheaven.
That's a benefit of being a writer: we get to become other
people.
He reads classic novels, philosophy, theology, and all sorts of
mysteries. On his blog, he offers some hard truths and encouragement about
living as a writer.
He has long been the author of novels, stories, articles,
poems, and essays. Lots of honors have come his way, including a National
Endowment for the Arts Literature Fellowship; Poets, Essayists
and Novelist’s Ernest Hemingway Award; Private Eye Writers of
America Best First Novel and Shamus Best Novel; and several San Diego
and Los Angeles Book Awards.
