Far from uninteresting but too often self-indulgent and unsatisfying.
A search for faith amid war, terror, and family strife.
Covington (Creative Writing/Texas Tech Univ.; Redneck Riviera: Armadillos, Outlaws, and the Demise of an American Dream, 2003, etc.) purports to look for faith against the backdrop of a violent world. Though he occasionally stays on course, the narrative takes a variety of detours, frustrating readers and muddling his work. The author begins in Juárez, where drug-inspired violence has spread out of control for years. He recounts the work of one preacher who, in addition to burning an effigy of Judas to drive Satan out of the city, runs an inspiring ministry, aiding those living, and escaping from, lives of violence. Covington goes on to recount visits to Turkey, and to the Turkey-Syria border, where he encountered both victims of and participants in the violence. Covington also crossed over into Syria, witnessing firsthand the horror of war. This timely and page-turning section represents the author at his best, as he ably conveys the otherworldly scene of suffering and brutality. However, he continually reverts back to his own personal story. In page after page of self-catharsis, Covington describes growing up with his older brother, a troubled young man who ended up in mental hospitals and nursing homes; his two failed marriages; and his own mental health issues, including a lack of a will to live after returning from Syria. Though not without merit, these sections continually detract from the author’s real mission. Faith, in fact, has little to do with this book. Covington does not have it, nor do most of the people he met during his travels. When he does address people of faith in the midst of violence, he is unable to report on their thoughts and motives with the depth needed for a book on the topic.
Far from uninteresting but too often self-indulgent and unsatisfying.Pub Date: Feb. 16, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-316-36861-2
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Dec. 20, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2016
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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