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Book Review - The Shack by William Young |
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Wednesday, 03 February 2010 |
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 The Shack by William P. Young
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
The Shack is a "thinking" book. What I mean is that you probably won't agree with a lot of what you think the author might be saying. There are several things that make this tough. First - The author writes in a humble way that makes you "like" the characters. Second - The story is clearly a fictional analogy (and possibly at multiple levels). This means that at times the author does not clearly say what he is trying to imply and so you are left guessing what he means. Third - When the author has a character say something he will say it in regards to the character's life and it may be a bit hard to tell if he is making a doctrinal point or an application point. Fourth - Some of the subject matter is regarding areas of reality that Scripture is silent on. For example, it's just impossible to fully grasp the relationship between the members of the trinity and all the implications that come from it.
However - there are several times that the author will say, "God is..." and at that point we can nail down what he believes about that point. There were several of these that I would not agree with and that certainly affect my view of the book. Outside of all that - I did enjoy the book and I especially enjoyed the opportunity to think about issues from another perspective. He brings out several points that helped me to think less "boxed in, cold factual doctrine" and instead of the personal character and heart of God. I'm not sure I would recommend the book. But if you are secure in your doctrine and enjoy thinking outside of the box you will enjoy this book. View all my reviews >> ADDITONAL INFORMATION (6/5/2010): Very good review dealing more clearly with the doctrinal issues: Al Mohler's Review of "The Shack"
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