Angelwalk

Rating:
Summary: Clumsy ignorant smug middle-American nominal bigotry
Review: Any favourable comparisons to C.S. Lewis' Screwtape Letters are wildly ignorant. Lewis used the fantastic (in both senses) idea of dialogue between devils to make profound observations challenging his readers' double standards and assumptions with great wit. Elwood, in contrast, with clumsy schoolboy writing technique, tries to confirm every ignorant self-satisfied middle-American nominal in their bigotry - particularly nasty in someone claiming to endorse Jesus' teaching.

Much of the profundity of the Letters is the way that they strikingly show that in the 'small' moral decisions we constantly make grave and eternal implications follow. Lewis' senior Devil constantly upbraids his rash understudy for his attempts to be melodramatic and overblown. Subtlety is the key - deceit: you don't need to damn a soul by terrifying them with atrocities, you're probably better off distracting them at a crucial point with a nice lunch or a transient newspaper headline.

Elwood does the opposite. He, at best immaturely, at worst, deceptively, presents spiritual conflicts as relating only to a sensational fraction of the population. Where Lewis made one pause and uncomfortably realise, "This could be me," Elwood has ignorant people going, "Yes, that sounds like them." Lewis was keenly aware of the audience who would be reading his work and sought to challenge and move them, at times with humour, at others with great courage - and usually with a combination of the two: the characters he gently (and at times sharply, but always lovingly) exposes are the same middle-class, nice, educated people like himself who'd be reading such a book. Elwood, however, writes (with consummate ignorance) about, for example, how bad and criminally insane all junkies are, condemning those already judged by his glib readers: he is the Pharisee calling out to other Pharisees, 'Thank God I'm not like this tax collector and sinner.'

To stay with the junkie example, Elwood manages a breathtakingly offensive line to someone who cares about Jesus' teaching. When in laughable melodramatic fashion the user is stereotypically driven to armed robbery and shot by his own stereotypically 'good cop' father (the book ingenuously tries to sell this sort of utterly transparent device as hard-edged realism) what is seen as the tragedy of this death has nothing to do with eternity (something Jesus seemed to feel quite important). Why is it tragic?

"...He wasn't just any computer programmer; He could have been another Bill Gates, a Steve Jobs."

Isn't it tragic that he wasn't hugely successful in the world's eyes and values, but, instead, failed in the world's terms by not making millions and having proud parents. How can a 'Christian' author be promoting:
1) an unsaved policeman with no concept of his own sinfulness as righteous?
2) Bill Gates and Steve Jobs as laudable models of success?

Blimey, the death wouldn't have even mattered so much if he had've just been an ordinary programmer.

At least Elwood is clear on not having two masters: when it comes to choosing between God and mammon, the former doesn't stand a chance.

Elwood couldn't even take the risk of challenging his rich American readers' sinful love of money (What? Is that a problem?). Lewis, publishing during the war dared to question nationalism!

Rating:
Summary: This book is absolutely intriguing and utterly outstanding.
Review: I first read this book in high school, when a friend of mine let me borrow it. As I began to read this book, it immediately caught and held my attention. Because I was in school and had my studies to attend to I had to tear myself away from reading it numerous times. When I finally finished the book, I was hesitant about returning it to the friend who let me borrow it, but I did. I have been looking for this book every since then--that was nearly 10yrs ago. I am in a Christian Fraternity called Gamma Phi Delta. My Chapter (Eta Judges) is the 7th Chapter of the Fraternity established at Grambling State Univerity in Grambling, Louisiana on November 12th 1997 and I am the 8th and last Charter member of the Chapter (#8 of 8). My orientation name/"line name" is Solomon (after King Solomon in the OT).It was through one of my Frat. Brothers that I was led to this site and by the grace of Almighty God that I thought to look up this book and to find this book here. Though I have not yet bought it, I will and will reread it. I still remember what the book is like, the positive impact it has made in my life and what happened in the book. I encourage anyone and everyone to read it for personal enjoyment and Biblical and spiritual education and growth. I intend to share this book with my Frat. as soon as I finish reading it for the second, but not last time. God bless you all...=-).

Rating:
Summary: Hard to keep
Review: I wrote a paper on this book for my English class in a secular college about 8 years ago and my professor immediately asked to borrow it. I still don't have it back. That is okay though, as I am sure she is sharing it with others. I could not put it down once I started reading it. I rank Elwood with Perretti, Bunn, Morris, and Lucado. A different style of writing, perhaps, but none the less spellbinding.