April '25 Roundup & Ramblings

Raw Data:

Novels - 12 -

Short Stories - 0 ↓

Manga/Graphic Novels - 1 -

Comics - 1 -

Average Rating - 2.81 ↓↓

Pages - 3364 ↑

Words - 1144K ↑

The Bad:

The Wild Adventures of Cthulhu 2 - 1star of blasphemy and utter hypocrisy

Infinity Gate - 1star of just cutting a massive 1300 page book randomly in half

The Good:

Nothing got above 3.5stars this month. That's not nearly good enough.

Movie:

Yu Yu Hakusho: The Chapter Black Saga kept the momentum rolling and held my interest.

Miscellaneous Posts:

• [Journal] Mary Shelley, Frankenstein
• PSA: Blogging and Personality
• Goblin Balloon Brigade - MTG 4E
• My Week XXII
• Goblin King - MTG 4E
• [Art] The Darknesses Cry Goodbye
• Happy Resurrection Day! 2025 Edition
• Goblin Rock Sled - MTG 4E
• My Week XXIII
• Grapeshot Catapult - MTG 4E

Personal:

Man, April's reading stank to high heaven! Two 1stars and nothing above 3.5stars really did my average rating in. I feel like I was mugged and then stabbed in the back when it came to reading books in April. I had plenty of "decent" books but nothing great and I WANT great books.

Work was all over the place. New Guy came and went and came and I ended up being with him, or Tall Guy or by myself. Each week was a new adventure and it was extremely unsettling to me. I like stability.

Weatherwise, April gave us a black eye at the beginning with a weekend snowstorm that dropped 5-6inches of snow! Of course, it was all gone within 3 days and we hit 80 a couple of days. The buds are on the trees, little leaves are popping out and there is sunshine, sunshine, sunshine! So April turned out ok in the end.

Yesterday I got my tri-monthly eye injections so today is going to be a bear. I think I'm going to have to start getting the injections done in the mornings and just take the day off from work, instead of having them done in the afternoons and then suffering the next day at work. Balancing it all with taking vacation time is a real pain!

We started going back to the Seventh Day Adventist church on Saturdays full time this month. While I love the sermons at our Sunday church, and Mrs B loves the people, the music is completely out of control. One time there was a group of us praying in another room while the music team practiced. The drums were so loud that we couldn't hear each other pray. And that's from being in another room, imagine what it is like where they actually are! So while I am having to give up listening to expository preaching, at least I am getting a proper reverence in the church. God is not the God of chaos and bedlam and out of control emotionalism. It wasn't like this when we started attending this Sunday church back in '17 but has crept in over the years, with the leadership's full approval. Ahhhh, life is complicated isn't it?

And I think that's enough "ramblings" for now :-D

Cover Love:

The Hanging Stones, the next Silver John novel wins easily. Believe it or not, that "creature" is supposed to be a were-wolf. Wellman put were-wolves in the proper place!

Plans for Next Month:

A little bit of a change, but not much. My reading is picking up so I will have more book reviews than this month. Instead of doubling up on Monday's though, I'm going to shift some reviews and the My Week posts to Saturdays. It's been a great break to take Saturdays off of writing (since October!) but since the words keep piling up, I'd rather get them out each day instead of doubling up a day. I'm not a huge fan of multiple posts by bloggers each day. No idea why exactly, but I suspect it stems from that leading to burn out and them leaving without a word. You'd think by this point that my skin would have turned into callouses by that, but nope, if anything, every time a blogger leaves now it just hits me all the harder. That means I do whatever I can to make sure that I don't become one of those statistics.

The Hanging Stones (Silver John #4) 3Stars

 

This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: The Hanging Stones
Series: Silver John #4
Author: Manly Wade Wellman
Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
Genre: Folk Fantasy
Pages: 178
Words: 56K
Publish: 1982

So, it might be hard to make out, but that cover shows John hiding on one of the capstones of the New Stonehenge while a werewolf carries a body over its shoulder.

The werewolves in this story are sad, pathetic creatures eking out a miserable existence. They are not alpha predators, they are scavengers of the lowest sort. I rather like that. Puts them into their proper place. The downside is that they aren’t much of a threat, except at the end where they come together in a massive group. While John and Co have to face them, it ends up being taken care of by a group of magically resurrected neanderthals. Yeah, it’s like that.

This was just as low key as the previous Silver John books and boy, it kind of grated. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoyed this but it was like eating rice with a couple of grains of sand mixed in. Irritating.

Still the best Wellman stories that I’ve read though. Understated folk fantasy, it just works.

And once again, the cover is probably the best part :-)

★★★☆☆

From the Publisher & Bookstooge

This Silver John adventure takes the honey-voiced folksinger to the site of a rising replica of Stonehenge, which selfish and ruthless millionaire Noel Kottler is building in Appalachia as a money-making tourist attraction. A pack of werewolves who live nearby spell trouble for his plan, though --- and even they may not turn out to be his worst problem. Eventually, a warlock raises a tribe of ghost made flesh neanderthals who destroy the werewolves and hang the millionaire on the Hanging Stones to prevent him desecrating what Stonehenge stood for.

Grapeshot Catapult - MTG 4E

 

Chapter Black Saga (Yu Yu Hakusho)(1992 Anime)

 

Title: Chapter Black Saga

Series: Yu Yu Hakusho Season 3

Episodes: 67-94

My Thoughts:

In the previous arc (The Dark Tournament) one of the badguys was trying to bore a hole through dimensions from the the demon world to our world. Yusuke put paid to that idea when he won the dark tournament. Unfortunately, someone else has taken that idea and run with it. And worse, it is the former spirit detective that Yusuke has replaced. Nothing worse than an ex-employee with a grudge!

This was another great entry. I think I binged all 28 episodes in a week? What made it different from the slam-bang fights of the Dark Tournament was that the main bad guy, Sensui, has gathered seven psychics and their powers are quite different from just brute strength attacks. Of course Yusuke, his frenemy Kurabara, the demon Hiei, the half-demon Kurama and Yusuke’s psychic mentor Genkai overcome all the odds, but it is not a repeat of the fights of the Tournaments.

The different psychics kept each battle fresh and I never felt like “been there, done that”. Sensui wsn’t much of a bad guy though, just a whiner who saw some really bad things and let them break him. His revelations that the main badguy (Toguro) from the Tournament was just a B Level demon was eye opening though. Of course, that was just a side revelation compared to the revelations about Yusuke’s own ancestors, aye yi yi. Yusuke with long spiky demon hair was hilarious looking though.

With the enemies being people with psychic abilities and not just brute strength, the power up sequences of each of the protagonists wasn’t a rinse and repeat. Yes, their core abilities went up, but HOW it went up was the big difference and I enjoyed that.

While Yusuke and Co are successful in stopping Sensui from destroying the human world with a demon invasion, their victory borders on the pyrrhic as Yusuke now has activated dormant super-powerful demon genes and has made an enemy out of the King of Spirit World due to that fact. Yusuke now borders on the S-Class power level (S stands for Super, which is above A) and has demon genes, not exactly a good place to be.

Overall, I was very happy with this story arc and it held up to my rewatch. I wasn’t bored, I wasn’t rolling my eyes at cliches and I didn’t feel talked down to or that I had to dumb my brain down to enjoy the story. I guess this was a good anime. Just have to hope it stays that way for the final story arc.

Episodes & Summaries

The Dark Tournament has come down to a final grudge match, and Yusuke unleashes his full wrath in a fight to the end. Worn out but victorious, he finds there’s no time for rest or recovery, when a new enemy threatens the boundary between worlds. A tunnel is being carved and once it’s completed, it will lay waste to the World of the Living. Up against former Spirit Realm Detective Shinobu Sensui, and the scourge of the Demon World, Yusuke must awaken a new, demonic power.

Episode Guide - Season Three
Episode Number	English Title	Summary	Original Air Date
67	Return to Living World	After he returns to his hometown from the Dark Tournament in Hanging Neck Island, Yusuke Urameshi runs afoul of three high school boys, Asato Kido, Mitsunari Yanagisawa and Yu Kaitou. Using his psychic abilities, Kito paralyzes Yusuke by stepping on his shadow, and they kidnap him in the process. Kido, Yanagisawa, and Kaito leave a message for Kazuma Kuwabara and Botan, who decide to rescue Yusuke.	February 5, 1994
68	Setting the Trap	Kuwabara and Botan gather Kurama and Hiei to aid them in rescuing Yusuke. Although Hiei is reluctant to do so, Kuwabara convinces him to come with them. The four head to the mansion where Yusuke is held, and find Yu Kaito in the first room.	February 12, 1994
69	The Power of Taboo	Kaito reveals that they are in his territory, a separate dimension in which he can alter reality. Hiei attempts to attack Kaito, but Kaito simply creates an impenetrable barrier. Kaito explains that in his territory, he who says "hot" will lose their soul unless Kaito loses. Hiei, Kuwabara and Botan unexpectedly fall victim to using the word "hot". As time passes, Kurama realizes that neither of them will slip and challenges Kaito to a game of taboo in which words starting with different letters become taboo over the course of the game; if a contestant says a taboo word, they will be killed. Kurama hides while Kaito is in the restroom, emerging when only 2 letters are left and yelling "BAA!" to scare him. Kaito who manages not to cry out, but falls down laughing as Kurama makes faces at him, the laugh noises breaking the taboo and causeing him to lose his own soul while reversing the effects on the victims.	February 19, 1994
70	Genkai's Ruse	One of the kidnappers, Mitsunari Yanagisawa, disguises himself as one of Yusuke's friends, forcing Yusuke to determine who is the impostor. Unable to determine who actually is the imposter, Yusuke manages to use his intuition to successfully determine that "Kuwabara" is the imposter.	February 26, 1994
71	The Tunnel	Genkai and Koenma explain the new threat: someone wants to open the tunnel to Makai. They explain that humans have been spontaneously been acquiring powers as a result of the tunnel opening, causing chaos in the Living World.	March 5, 1994
72	The Reader	Murota, another psychic human with the ability to tap into peoples minds appears, and Yusuke attempts to recruit him. Yusuke defeats Murota, who agrees to find the person who wants to open the Makai tunnel.	March 12, 1994
73	The Doctor's Disease	While Kuwabara, Kurama, Kaito, and Botan survey the cave, Yusuke's group goes to the hospital after Murota was injured by Sniper and runs afoul of Doctor, who creates a mysterious poison that incapacitates both Yana and Murota.	March 19, 1994
74	Sleep, Doctor, Sleep	Yusuke battles Doctor, and is forced to come to a decision whether to kill him to save the people in the hospital. Ultimately, Yusuke blasts Doctor outside of his territory, rendering him unconscious and resolving the situation.	March 26, 1994
75	Caught in the Rain	After Kuwabara and friends attend a concert, they run afoul of Sea Man. While Seaman traps Kuwabara's friends inside his aquatic creature, Kuwabara's inability to use his powers force him into a critical situation. Meanwhile, Kurama goes to see Koenma, as he suspects that Koenma may already know the identity of who is behind the plot to destroy the barrier.	April 2, 1994
76	Kuwabara: Awakening	Kuwabara and Sea Man continue their fight as Kuwabara's dormant powers awaken, and Sea Man realizes that Kuwabara is that can shatter barriers between different dimensions. Using his new spirit sword, Kuwabara frees his friends and defeats Sea Man.	April 9, 1994
77	Sensui's Fall	Shinobu Sensui, the former Spirit Detective, is revealed to be the mastermind behind the plot to remove the barrier to Makai. Koemna discusses his fall into insanity with Yusuke's group.	April 16, 1994
78	Divide and Conquer	Sensui makes his appearance, and battles Yusuke, Kuwabara, and Kurama. Sensui's abilities enable him to battle all three on equal footing. During the battle, Sensui manages to kidnap Kuwabara.	April 23, 1994
79	The Human Race	Sensui travels away while Yusuke is forced to contend with Sniper. Sniper sends hundreds of projectiles at Yusuke with pinpoint accuracy, and eventually marks Yusuke, enabling his projectiles to be sent without him even having to aim.	April 30, 1994
80	Moving Target	Sniper continues his battle against Yusuke and is nearly victorious until Hiei arrives. In a swing of his sword, Hiei incapacitates him.	May 7, 1994
81	Let the Games Begin	Yusuke, Kurama, Hiei, Genkai, Sea Man, Yana, and Kaito face Game Master, a young boy and a stellar gamer whose territory lets him bring any video game to life.	May 14, 1994
82	If You Could Play Forever	When Yusuke's group shows their skill at the games, Game Master plays himself, handily defeating Kaito. Kurama steps forward for the group to challenge him.	May 21, 1994
83	Game Over	Kurama and Game Master play a puzzle game. Kurama's emotional control and intimidation result in Game Master losing the game, and his life in the process.	May 28, 1994
84	Kurama's Anger, Gourmet's Guest	Kurama, still torn over the outcome of the game, attacks Gourmet, who is revealed to been taken over by the Elder Toguro. Kurama traps the Elder Toguro within the Sinning Tree, which forces him to hallucinate his worst fear for all eternity.	June 4, 1994
85	Spirit Detective Showdown	Yusuke's group finally reach Sensui. While Sea Man, Kuwabara, Kurama, and Hiei are placed into another dimension by Gatekeeper, Yusuke must face Sensui alone. Sensui's experience and long-trained abilities as a Spirit Detective put Yusuke at a disadvantage.	June 11, 1994
86	The Difference Maker	As Yusuke manages to gain the advantage through sheer determination, Sensui switches personalities to Kazuya, a merciless killer. As Yusuke is about to lose his life, Koenma appears.	June 18, 1994
87	Power Between the Teeth	Koenma threatens Sensui with his Mafūkan, a defensive spell that can trap even S-class demons. Yusuke stops Koenma and handily defeats Kazuya; Shinobu, the primary personality, takes control of Sensui's body.	June 25, 1994
88	The True Face of Sensui	Sensui reveals his Sacred Energy, which places him on par with S-class demons. To stop him, Koenma releases the Mafūkan, but Sensui's power enables him to break the Mafūkan, making the situation seem hopeless.	July 2, 1994
89	Death of a Spirit Detective	Yusuke fares poorly against Sensui's Sacred Energy, while his allies desperately attempt to break through Gatekeeper's dimension. As Kuwabara manages to do so, Yusuke is struck down by Sensui.	July 9, 1994
90	Attempting Revenge	Incensed by the death of Yusuke, Kuwabara, Kurama, and Hiei increase their power and pursue Sensui through the tunnel. Kurama transforms into Yoko Kurama, as Hiei releases the Dragon of the Darkness Flame. Finally, Kuwabara slices through the barrier between worlds to pursue Sensui into Makai.	July 16, 1994
91	Waking the Lost	King Yama dispatches the Spirit Defense Force to destroy Yusuke's body and seal the tunnel. Yusuke, however, discovers his half-demon nature and awakens.	July 23, 1994
92	The Proof	A newly-revived Yusuke resumes his battle with Sensui. However, Yusuke's body is taken over by a mysterious force, fully awakening his demon side.	July 30, 1994
93	Sensui's End	Yusuke's enhanced powers easily enable him to overcome Sensui, and he discovers Sensui's reasons for opening the gate to Makai.	August 6, 1994
94	Topside	While Kido, Kaito, Yanagisawa, and Sensui's former companions resume normal lives, Yusuke feels unsatisfied that his match with Sensui was interrupted, and is conflicted over his half-demon nature.	August 13, 1994

My Week XXIII

 This week wasn't as tumultuous as two weeks ago (when I wrote the last My Week post), but man, it was NOT smooth sailing.

Resurrection Sunday was the kick off to the week. We had foregone going to our usual Sunday church and had turned down an Easter Dinner invitation to go support one of Mrs B's friends who was going to be in a choir. Only we found out the night before that she had gone to the first practice and didn't like how much work was going to be involved and so quit and hadn't told us. There are personalities involved, so there was no way I was going to sit through a Resurrection Service with this lady the whole time. I really like her husband and he and I get along great, and Mrs B gets along great with him and with her. So I ended up not going to church that Sunday. I felt terrible about it, but I knew I would have felt even worse if I had gone.

Work went well the entire week, but it was very unsettled. Monday I worked with Tall Guy (he's 6'4" and I'm 5'3". For you non-imperialists, that's 33cm). We eased into the week gently and even had an hour's drive each way. Tuesday I was by myself. I had to drive 90min to meet a client, show him a lot corner (an iron rod in the ground) which took 15min, then drive 90min back to the office. I hate driving that much, that quick. Bleh. Wednesday and Thursday I was with New Guy. The very FIRST thing he says Wednesday morning is "did you miss me?", like we were best buds or something. I just looked at him for 10seconds and then said "No". Blabbermouths who tell my boss everything I say out in the field will never be my friends, ever. Work went well with him though, but man, he can't stand the quiet. He always had an earbud in or when we had some down time, would walk around talking on the phone. Today, I am back with Tall Guy. No idea what I'm getting into for the job itself. Guess I'll be finding out in 2hours.

In the last couple of months I've had an itch to play some video games again. It happens every 5-10 years and is pretty intense. I was considering going for a Nintendo Switch 2, but then Aywren did an article on it and at the price point, that was a deal breaker. I then wondered about going with a Steam Deck (a portable, independent gaming system) and docking it to my tv and playing that way. Well, the top of the line Steam Deck, with all the supplies, was even more expensive than the Switch2. What's a fellow to do? I then decided that I could hook my laptop up to my tv using an hdmi cable. That way all I needed was an hdmi cable, a wireless Xbox controller (they work automagically with Windows machines) and the actual games.

Since I had investigated the Steam Deck, I looked into the Steam website, which sells computer games. I had joined up YEARS ago when I was playing Magic the Gathering online (before that blasted Arena ruined everything), so I just had my password reset and started looking. There were some pretty good deals on the Heretic/Hexen franchise (first person shooter, like a Medieval Doom) as well as the whole Doom franchise. But to use them, I had to go through Steam's portal and be forced to be connected to the internet to play them. THAT is the whole reason I avoid the big-name consoles now anyway. I won't have my actions be dictated like that. So I ended up finding out about Gog.com and joined them. They do have a portal system, which helps with upgraded graphics and stuff, but most importantly, I can download the games themselves in drm free form and play them as I wish. And they were having a sale on Heretic/Hexen and some of the Doom stuff. So I ended up buying:

• Heretic
• Hexen: Beyond Heretic
• Hexen: Citadel of the Death Kings
• Hexen II
• Doom I
• Doom II
• Final Doom
• Diablo I
• Diablo: Hellfire (unofficial expansion)

All that for about $15. Even if I only played Heretic, the time I put into that and the enjoyment I know I'll be getting is worth every cent. I mean, how can you not enjoy shooting mummies, dark wizard priests and other horrific monstrosities with a magical crossbow?

I played the first couple of levels with just the keyboard to make sure I actually would enjoy the game and oh yeah, it was a blast! Now I just need to get my butt in gear and start hooking things up and programming the Xbox controller. I doubt I'll become a video gamer, but much like my foray into Marvel Champions, this will give me another outlet besides reading. Multiple hobbies keeps things fresh.

And honestly, that's it. I'll end this post with a nice nature'y picture from work on Monday.

A Groo’s Best Friend (Groo the Wanderer #39) 3.5Stars

 

This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot, by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: A Groo’s Best Friend
Series: Groo the Wanderer #39
Author: Sergio Aragones
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Comics
Pages: 25
Words: 2K
Publish: 1988

This was a GREAT wrapup to the “theft of Rufferto” story Aragones had going. Once again, a single panel really sums up the whole comic. I love when Aragones can do that!

★★★✬☆

From Bookstooge

Groo walks away from the battle of the last comic. He ends up stealing another dog to replace Rufferto, which leads to even MORE shenanigans. Pal and Drumm get involved, another army is involved, the thieves who originally stole Rufferto are involved and the owner of the stolen dog and his guards are involved. In the end, Groo and Rufferto are united and everybody gets the stuffing beaten out of them by Groo! A happy ending for (almost) nobody, hahahahaa.

• All of My “Groo the Wanderer” Reviews

Family Happiness (The Russians) 3.5Stars

 

This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: Family Happiness
Series: (The Russians)
Author: Leo Tolstoy
Translator: -----
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Classic
Pages: 111
Words: 34K

Take an age-gap love story and then Russianize it.

Things were going great. The love between Masha and Sergey was working out, against all of my expectations. I was lulled into thinking that maybe, perhaps, JUST THIS ONCE, I might be reading a happy Russian novella.

Silly me!

Tolstoy guts the reader when Masha, the young woman, is seduced by Petersburg Society, which Sergey her husband had warned her about. What makes it worse, is that he sits back and passively watches it happen. His excuse, at the end, is that “some things” just have to be experience and nobody can warn you against them.

Oh, I raged at that. I almost gave this 1star just for that. It was WRONG. While a husband and wife cannot control the other, they are no longer individuals who can just sit back and let things happen to the other. They are “one” now. Tolstoy goes against that Biblical principle of marriage on every level with this novella. His attempt to patch things up with “well, our passionate love will now be sublimated into family happiness” made me growl.

And yet, and yet I still enjoyed this more than enough to give it 3.5stars. Only a Russian could take passionate eros love and completely divorce it from the kind of love experienced by a family and say that was a good thing.

Slow claps.

Bravo Tolstoy, you’re a real barstard with this one.

★★★✬☆

From Wikipedia.org

The story concerns the love and marriage of a young girl, Mashechka (17 years old), and the much older Sergey Mikhaylych (36), an old family friend. The story is narrated by Masha. After a courtship that has the trappings of a mere family friendship, Masha's love grows and expands until she can no longer contain it. She reveals it to Sergey Mikhaylych and discovers that he also is deeply in love. If he has resisted her it was because of his fear that the age difference between them would lead the very young Masha to tire of him. He likes to be still and quiet, he tells her, while she will want to explore and discover more and more about life. Ecstatically and passionately happy, the pair immediately engages to be married. Once married they move to Sergey Mikhaylych's home. They are both members of the landed Russian upper class. Masha soon feels impatient with the quiet order of life on the estate, notwithstanding the powerful understanding and love that remains between the two. To assuage her anxiety, they decide to spend a few weeks in St. Petersburg. Sergey Mikhaylych agrees to take Masha to an aristocratic ball. He hates "society" but she is enchanted with it. They go again, and then again. She becomes a regular, the darling of the countesses and princes, with her rural charm and her beauty. Sergey Mikhaylych, at first very pleased with Petersburg society's enthusiasm for his wife, frowns on her passion for "society"; however, he does not try to influence Masha. Out of respect for her, Sergey Mikhaylych will scrupulously allow his young wife to discover the truth about the emptiness and ugliness of "society" on her own. But his trust in her is damaged as he watches how dazzled she is by this world. Finally they confront each other about their differences. They argue but do not treat their conflict as something that can be resolved through negotiation. Both are shocked and mortified that their intense love has suddenly been called into question. Something has changed. Because of pride, they both refuse to talk about it. The trust and the closeness are gone. Only courteous friendship remains. Masha yearns to return to the passionate closeness they had known before Petersburg. They go back to the country. Though she gives birth to children and the couple has a good life, she despairs. They can barely be together by themselves. Finally she asks him to explain why he did not try to guide and direct her away from the balls and the parties in Petersburg. Why did they lose their intense love? Why don't they try to bring it back? His answer is not the answer she wants to hear, but it settles her down and prepares her for a long life of comfortable "Family Happiness."

• The Russians

• Leo Tolstoy

• Fyodor Dostoyevsky

• Ivan Turgenev

• Nikolai Gogol

His Face Like Mine (Non-Fiction) Unrated

 

This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission

Title: His Face Like Mine
Series: -----
Author: Russell Joyce
Rating: Unrated
Genre: Non-Fiction
Pages: 217
Words: 65K
Publish: 2024

I am not rating this book because it was not written for me at all, not one tiny bit. It was written for Christians who are wondering if God does love them, or even can. This book is for people who feel that God doesn’t or can’t love them. Hurt people, broken people, who cannot see and accept the Truth. It is for the people who are so badly broken that they need to feel the Truth.

The author is a skinny jean wearing, latte sipping, new york city pastor seeing a therapist. He was born with a rare disorder where half his face wasn’t formed and spent years with reconstructive surgery. Even now, he knows he’ll always draw stares. He was broken from the get-go and the longer he lived, the more pain he experienced. This is his story of how God overcame that lifetime’s worth of pain and made Russell feel His love.

I am not rating this book because there are people in just such a position as this author and this might very well give them exactly what they need in their Christian walk. I cried during almost every chapter while reading this. It was emotionalism ramped up.

Christianity is about the Truth. We are emotional beings and God created us that way, it’s not a bad thing. Those emotions get twisted and broken and so completely screwed up that it takes God’s intervention. But that NEVER changes the Truth. How I feel doesn’t affect the Truth of the Gospel. It might affect how I react to the Gospel, but the Center doesn’t change. What concerns me is that Russell seems to be hewing pretty close to the line of saying that your feelings dictate the reality of the Gospel. He definitely is one of those people who “has” to have an emotional experience to think he’s worshipping God. Give him a hymn and he’ll sing it and be like “That’s nice”. Then give him a contemporary worship song where he’s jumping around and dancing and he’ll be all like “Praise Jesus!” He can’t seem to worship without an emotional experience. The problem is that CCM is built around exciting the emotions and is false worship.

When you are as broken as Russell was, you need to feel the love of God. I don’t know that you could experience it any other way. But when you’re a bit more emotionally healthy, it’s time to control your emotions and not let them run riot through your life. God doesn’t want your emotions controlling your life any more than He wants food or drink or sex or money controlling your life.

I would only recommend this book to the people who are so broken that this is all they can take at the moment. For them, I suspect it will be a true balm to their souls. For anyone else, stay away from this.

Unrated