The Shack - Revisit

So we are getting down to the last hours before starting the Book Club again and we will be going back to the book that kicked off the Club first.  The Shack by William P. Young.


Feel free to comment here too even after the discussion tonight.

Lets Get Ready to Ruuuuuummmmmmmbbbbbbllllllllllllleeeeeeeee!!!! I mean discuss.

Monday is coming soon and we get to talk about The Fault in Our Stars by John Green .
I hope you are ready.  I am putting some of the questions below that we will go over on Monday.

Hazel says "cancer books suck", was this a cancer book?

Did you have trouble at times reading it, was it tough to finish?

Did the end surprise you?

Would a book that didn't give you the ending by cutting off suddenly bother you?  Do you want to know what happened next?
(by the way some people have written epilogues and even alternate endings and sequels here.

Were these believable teenagers?  Were they more/ less mature than an average teenager?  Could their experiences have changed this?

How difficult do you think it is to write a book from a teen aged girl's perspective when you are a middle aged man?

In a Washington Post article it states:
"John Green’s novel “The Fault in Our Stars” might be a tale of two teenagers with terminal cancer, but it also — maybe surprisingly — has some pretty funny lines. This is intentional: After all, humor is a very powerful way to get through horribly stressful situations."
Do you think this is true?  Do you think this book would have been better or worse without the humor?  Was it disrespectful or irreverent to joke in light of a serious situation?

Would it surprise you to know that John Green was a student chaplain at a children's hospital and he was preparing to be an Espiscopal Priest?

Some additional stuff here:
The philosopher that most impacted John Green in writing this book:  Vi Hart  Really he said she gave him the vocabulary in this QA session.
The book was dedicated to Esther Earl, a fan, who died of thyroid cancer at 16.
John Green asks what is the best way to honor the dead in this youtube video:  Babies and Catacombs: VIENNA (Thoughts from Places)

There are so many other questions that may come up in addition to these and maybe even instead of these.
I can't wait it will be good to see you all again.

Some interesting links related to John Green

A good portion of these links came from Pastor Mike, thanks, Pastor Mike.

An interview with John Green - Devastating Topics

What's the best line from The Fault in Our Stars?

NerdFighters

VLOGBrothers- Green brothers YouTube Channel

The Fault in Our Stars

This book was really a good read.  Sad at many places it is a great way to see what it might be like to be a person dealing with cancer in the first person or vicariously as a parent or friend.  The thoughtfulness of the writing along with the interspersed humor that allows you to digest it was extremely well written.  I will warn you that there is some language and sexual situations in the book, but are not out of what might be expected in the circumstances.  The book will give you something to think about when dealing with those who are dealing with a terminal diagnosis or dealing with the uncertainty after escaping death.  While the book is a Young Adult book, it is very readable and quite intelligent, even using large words for the teenagers.  There are many interesting lines throughout the book that I will dedicate a post to at a later time.
I got a chance to see this movie with my daughter just last night as well.  She did ask to leave in the middle because she knew it would be sad, but we toughed it out together.  She and I both cried like when we read the book.  I was silent, she ....  well a little less than silent, but she wasn't out of place.  While the movie is close to the book it leaves some interesting pieces out such as the defining of the title scene by not even mentioning Julius.  I think if you read the book ahead of the movie there are scenes that will make much more sense to you than those who have not read the book.
This is a great book to read and I hope we stimulate a lot of discussion.  I do think that the discussion may be emotional at time so I hope we are all up for it.

Next Book

So this is a first.  I have the next book even prior to our meeting.

Unconditional?: The Call of Jesus to Radical Forgiveness by Brian Zahnd

You might have heard Pastor Danny mention this book during his sermons.  I think this would be a great one to discuss and I think the small groups might be reading this as well.

Book Club Postponed for a week

For the sake of safety we have moved the Book Club from tonight to next Monday the 24th.  Have a great St. Patrick's Day and see you next Monday.

Meeting Tomorrow Night

Don't forget to come by Covenant tomorrow night.  We will be discussing Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.  I am now adding that book to the one's we have read.

This will be very interesting.  Maybe we can get someone to "Potter"......

I know some of you know what that means.