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Day of Forgiveness

Name: Day of Forgiveness
Author: Paul Anthony
ISBN: 978-0-9743600-2-7

by Paul Anthony ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 21, 2015

An intriguing if ultimately frustrating blend of sci-fi and New Age philosophy.

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In this contemplative sci-fi—the prequel to Love, Light and Labor (1995)—Anthony offers an enticing glimpse into a more utopian Earth.

This novel introduces readers to Tobias Sinclair, a lawyer-turned-author-turned–reluctant savior of the human race. At first, Tobias is a scuffling New-Age hack, on the road promoting his latest book. But a knock on his head during a mugging gives him a whole new perspective on the universe, which he then takes to “the people of the earth.” That’s because, as he explains, Tobias feels a sense of urgency to help them survive: “I continue to think that somehow we will all die, or at least our society will die, if we don’t restructure the way we view ourselves.” The bulk of the novel finds Tobias, aided by friends Mill and Jimmy, attempting to bring others around to his humanistic way of thinking as he perpetually runs into self-interest and sectarianism while espousing forgiveness and togetherness. He says exasperatedly, “If we continue to kill and mistreat one another, we will be a doomed species.” Then, in an unexpected but worthwhile twist, extraterrestrials reveal themselves to Tobias. While the aliens applaud his lofty goals, they fear he’s revealing too much too soon for the humans to process. As alien spokesman Stokes says, “They don’t like change, and they just think of you as a dangerous threat.” Tobias works well as a flawed protagonist who can’t seem to heal his own fractured family while striving to save humanity. His friends are serviceable sidekicks, but most of the other characters are merely faceless, intransigent opposition. Anthony offers thought-provoking ideas, yet, with too much philosophy and not enough action, the novel seems much longer than it is. It’s hard to save people from themselves if they’ve stopped listening early in the sermon.

An intriguing if ultimately frustrating blend of sci-fi and New Age philosophy.

Pub Date: May 21, 2015

ISBN: 978-0-9743600-2-7

Page Count: 266

Publisher: Paul Anthony Corley

Review Posted Online: Aug. 18, 2015

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

GENERAL FICTION

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TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

by Harper Lee ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 11, 1960

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A first novel, this is also a first person account of Scout's (Jean Louise) recall of the years that led to the ending of a mystery, the breaking of her brother Jem's elbow, the death of her father's enemy — and the close of childhood years. A widower, Atticus raises his children with legal dispassion and paternal intelligence, and is ably abetted by Calpurnia, the colored cook, while the Alabama town of Maycomb, in the 1930's, remains aloof to their divergence from its tribal patterns. Scout and Jem, with their summer-time companion, Dill, find their paths free from interference — but not from dangers; their curiosity about the imprisoned Boo, whose miserable past is incorporated in their play, results in a tentative friendliness; their fears of Atticus' lack of distinction is dissipated when he shoots a mad dog; his defense of a Negro accused of raping a white girl, Mayella Ewell, is followed with avid interest and turns the rabble whites against him. Scout is the means of averting an attack on Atticus but when he loses the case it is Boo who saves Jem and Scout by killing Mayella's father when he attempts to murder them. The shadows of a beginning for black-white understanding, the persistent fight that Scout carries on against school, Jem's emergence into adulthood, Calpurnia's quiet power, and all the incidents touching on the children's "growing outward" have an attractive starchiness that keeps this southern picture pert and provocative. There is much advance interest in this book; it has been selected by the Literary Guild and Reader's Digest; it should win many friends.

Pub Date: July 11, 1960

ISBN: 0060935464

Page Count: 323

Publisher: Lippincott

Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2011

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1960

Categories:

GENERAL FICTION

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BETWEEN SISTERS

by Kristin Hannah ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2003

Briskly written soap with down-to-earth types, mostly without the lachrymose contrivances of Hannah’s previous titles...

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Sisters in and out of love.

Meghann Dontess is a high-powered matrimonial lawyer in Seattle who prefers sex with strangers to emotional intimacy: a strategy bound to backfire sooner or later, warns her tough-talking shrink. It’s advice Meghann decides to ignore, along with the memories of her difficult childhood, neglectful mother, and younger sister. Though she managed to reunite Claire with Sam Cavenaugh (her father but not Meghann’s) when her mother abandoned both girls long ago, Meghann still feels guilty that her sister’s life doesn’t measure up, at least on her terms. Never married, Claire ekes out a living running a country campground with her dad and is raising her six-year-old daughter on her own. When she falls in love for the first time with an up-and-coming country musician, Meghann is appalled: Bobby Austin is a three-time loser at marriage—how on earth can Claire be so blind? Bobby’s blunt explanation doesn’t exactly satisfy the concerned big sister, who busies herself planning Claire’s dream wedding anyway. And, to relieve the stress, she beds various guys she picks up in bars, including Dr. Joe Wyatt, a neurosurgeon turned homeless drifter after the demise of his beloved wife Diane (whom he euthanized). When Claire’s awful headache turns out to be a kind of brain tumor known among neurologists as a “terminator,” Joe rallies. Turns out that Claire had befriended his wife on her deathbed, and now in turn he must try to save her. Is it too late? Will Meghann find true love at last?

Briskly written soap with down-to-earth types, mostly without the lachrymose contrivances of Hannah’s previous titles (Distant Shores, 2002, etc.). Kudos for skipping the snifflefest this time around.