Rating: 
Summary: This book moved me
Review: I had enjoyed reading Bill Myers "Blood of Heaven" trilogy and was eager to read "Eli". I was prepared to enjoy it....but my experience went beyond that. This book truly moved me. It deepened my understanding, and yes, my love for Jesus. You can quibble with technicalities in this book. Even the author admits his limitations in his preface. Yet it deeply touched my heart. Read it and you will see.
Rating: 
Summary: What if Jesus never came until now?
Review: Eli tells a couple of stories. Conrad Davis, news journalist, has lived an unsettled life so far, marrying several times without a church home. At the beginning of the novel, he's driving to a meeting with a professor who believes that there are parallel worlds, where different decisions are made with different consequences. But he never makes it, having a horrible car accident and left in a coma. In the coma, he enters a parallel world where Jesus never came and Eli arrives. Eli virtually repeats all of Jesus' experiences in the present-day, and the implications are astonishing. Back in the original world, Conrad's daughter visits his bedside and comes to some hard conclusions about her life and the realization that she too was headed in the wrong direction. I spent a few days trying to figure out if Conrad was really in another world, or if Jesus was working through Conrad's coma to help Conrad believe. Overall, this was a thought-provoking novel that I'd definitely recommend.
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Summary: Great work - challenges the reader
Review: This is one of Myers' better works. It really challenges you to think about what your response might have been if Jesus had not come until today. The story is very quick paced and keeps your attention the entire time. It's one of those books that really makes you feel emotionally involved in the story. A great read!
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Summary: Jesus said that? -- Yep
Review: I must admit to being a little skeptical about this book before reading it, but I enjoy Bill Myers' writing, so I bought it. I'm certainly glad I did. Myers succeeds brilliantly in waking the reader up to Jesus' life and ministry. For someone who grew up in the church, this is almost a must-read. I (and I would expect most people) have a lot of pre-conceived notions and ideas about Jesus that would make a lot of His claims sound perfectly reasonable. But coming out of someone else's mouth, they sound absolutely ludicrous (unless you believe it). Not only does this show what people must have thought of Jesus 2000 years ago, but it also illustrates what non-believers today must think of Jesus and those who follow Him.Entertaining yes, but even more thought-provoking.
Rating:
Summary: A VERY Moving Story!
Review: Bill Myers has a talent for writing that I haven't found in anyone else. This story is so very real, and so very deep. This book really brings Jesus home...to what it would be like if He had come to us in our day and time. Would you follow Him? Or would you, as many did, label Him as a cult leader? It is something that you find yourself wondering as you read this wonderfully written story. Bill Myers has successfully integrated the Gospel story of the Bible that many of us know so well into today's world. This could not have been an easy task...but Bill does it! This book just pulls you in and doesn't let go...so many emotions went through me as a read. The joy that is found in Jesus...the confusion, the sometimes difficult struggle that we have trying to follow Him...and finally...the utter realization of the sacrifice that He made for us...His death for our sins. Words cannot do justice to this book...BUY IT...READ IT! It WILL change your outlook...for the better. You will come away refreshed!
Rating:
Summary: Radical and Challenging Fiction
Review: In ELI, best-selling author Bill Myers asks the question, "what if Jesus had been born 2000 years later?" The concept is familiar to readers of the book JOSHUA, but Myers' execution puts ELI at a higher level than JOSHUA ever reached. ELI's story revolves around the character of journalist Conrad Davis, who is thrown from our world into a parallel reality thanks to a coma-inducing auto accident. Davis soon realizes, even though he is not a Christian, that everything about this new reality is the same, save for the fact that no one had the faintest clue who Jesus Christ was. Through his work and his ex-wife he happens upon a controversial figure named Eli, and soon parallels between Eli and the person of Jesus begin to appear. Conrad is taken with what Eli represents and he takes a leave of absence from work to become one of his followers. What results is a modern day enactment of the ministry years of Jesus; specifically His passion week. Myers freely admits at the beginning of the book that this story is a work of fiction. But this fiction has the familiar ring and power of Biblical truth. Because in changing the setting of the story of Jesus, Myers has given it a contemporary and radical edge that strikes at one's preconcieved notions and ideas about the character of Jesus and the world He was born into. Though Myers does take some literary freedom in the translation, the end result is quite sound. I found it much harder to point a finger at the Pharisees and unfaithful disciples after reading this book because the story's concept forced me to put myself in their shoes and, in this modern situation, I realized that I wasn't sure that I would fare any better than they did. In the end, ELI succeeds precisely because of that radical twist. The afore mentioned JOSHUA showed us that we, who are so comfortable with our ideas of Jesus, would probably find him just as much of an outlaw if He came today. ELI accomplishes the same thing but takes it further by forcing us to look at the bigger picture and apply the lessons He taught to our modern world in a surprising new light. In the story's end Conrad is forced to make a hard decision about Eli. The reader hopefully will be just as challenged in their walk with Christ. A fast-paced, thought-provoking read: Four stars.
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Summary: Eli is quite possibly the best book I have ever read!!
Review: I really enjoyed this book. I finish about one out of ten books I start and I easily finished this one. This is a great book for the Christain believer or for any one wanting to get a better grasp on the impact Jesus can have on our lives. Very entertaining and hard to put down. Several times I thought I knew how it was going to end, but it kept surprising me. After finishing Eli in the wee hours of this morning I ran out and bought Bill Meyers first book this morning.
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Summary: Explore This Parallel Universe!
Review: Reading a Bill Myers novel is like wading into a pond that's deeper than you expect. His writing, though simple, is fast-paced and effective. So long as I set aside my "Elements of Grammar" book, I'm able to enjoy his creative premises and engaging plots. In this, his fourth adult novel and my favorite to date, Myers explores the idea of a parallel universe very like our own society where Jesus/Eli has just arrived on the scene. A media man, Conrad Ellis, is thrust into this parallel universe by a life-threatening car accident. As his family gathers in one universe and weighs important issues, Conrad lives life in the parallel universe as a follower of Eli. Eli is a noncompromising person who shows love and grace and a leaning toward humor. He leads a group of followers across the America, preaching and teaching his gospel message. Of course, he is not without detractors, particularly the religious leaders of the day. Eli is a threat to their status quo. Myers cleverly works in Biblical parables and miracles. Eli's dialogue directly parallels Jesus's words at times without sounding outdated. I was mildly disappointed by the depiction of Jake/Peter's denial, and I would've liked more of Eli's personal interaction after his resurrection, but overall Myer's captures the gist of the Gospels in a powerful way. "Eli" works on most levels and definitely made me consider what our collective reaction would've been if Jesus had arrived in our present culture. Although some reviewers have noted the discrepancies with A.D. (anno domino) dating, Myers never actually dates anything in the parallel universe; at only one time does Conrad assign a date in his own mind to the clothing and styles of the hippie generation. Yes, Conrad is slow to recognize certain parallels, but for the story's sake he advances slowly. In this manner, Myers is able to take the reader through a similar heart change--and therein lies this novel's power.
Rating:
Summary: Eye-opening, high concept fiction
Review: Bill Myer's ELI made me reconsider some of my own preconceptions of Jesus Christ and his earthly ministry. I think we often keep the historical Jesus at a safe distance, therefore it was mind-boggling to think of him entering a pornographer's house, approaching a skinhead's camp, and calling a motley crew of disciples! Bill Myers deserves many enthusiastic kudos for daring to bring the Gospel into the twenty-first century. This book is wonderful!
Rating:
Summary: Eli
Review: Eli by Bill Myers was awesome in the simplicity and depth that it was written. We are going to give it for Christmas to several friends. I didn't know until I visited Bill's site that it was available in cassette. We will get this for those who don't have time to read. I would love to see this book become a movie. It's great for believers and those that don't have a clue. I read it in less than 3 full days.
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