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Liked It “I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I picked this book up. It certainly sounded interesting; a faithless minister meets the devil. Intriguing to say the least but was it my thing? I wasn’t convinced. |
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“have to order via ILL”
lindyhopkins wrote this review 3 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I picked this book up. It certainly sounded interesting; a faithless minister meets the devil. Intriguing to say the least but was it my thing? I wasn’t convinced.
Chris wrote this review Monday, October 17, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Having finished the book a few days ago I chose to write the review now to give myself a bit of time to think about what it all meant. I’m still not sure.
Gideon Mack is a fictional minister in the Church of Scotland, as the title suggests the book is an account of his life written by him. In the account he tells of his unhappy childhood living with his fanatically religious father, how he met the girl he would later share a loveless marrige with, claims he doesn’t believe in God and didn’t believe in Him when he became a minister and to top it all off claims he fell into a gorge and stayed with the devil for a few days and that he quite liked him. You are challenged by the author to decide whether Gideon truly led this amazing life or if he went completely mad.
The book is well written and engaging, Gideon is a character I can sympathise with and the story stayed with me long after finishing it, I’m still thinking it over now. It is original and funny in places, it is also thought provoking and tragic. Was Gideon mad or not? I think this is a personal conclusion each reader must come to themselves. For me I suspect he probably was, but i’m a ‘glass half empty’ sort of person, i’m sure others may come to a different conclusion.
This book would be excellent for a reading group as it just itches to be discussed; it also demands a re-read which I will oblige with as soon as I am able. Very enjoyable
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“Beautifully written, but largely unfulfilling. The epilogue does manage to save it though. ”
I.J.A. wrote this review Thursday, June 23, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“The premise of this book was very promising but, ultimately, I found it a little underwhelming. The idea of a faithless minister meeting the Devil has a real potential in terms of the theme of belief and I'd hoped for a playful look at religion. However, the novel took a long while to reach its focal point and failed to capitalise upon it once it was there. The writer builds up the story reasonably well but, due to the lack of climax, it feels somewhat disappointing. A readable tale that just missed the spot with me.”
Chris C wrote this review Sunday, January 2, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Great book with an even more wonderful ending. I don't have enough good things to say about this. Check out the synopsis, if you're even mildly interested I guarantee you'll enjoy the writing and story.”
j s wrote this review Friday, August 6, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“The CoS minister of a small town falls into a river and spends 3 days in the company of the Devil. Shunned by his parishioners and friends after relating his experience to them, he writes down his memoirs, and disappears. I thought the book was very well-written and contained a fantastical, and very entertaining story.”
gamiila wrote this review Tuesday, June 22, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Started but not in the mood for it will try again another time.”
Pensham wrote this review Monday, June 21, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
0 of 1 members found this review helpful“read this for a second time in 2009, didnt enjoy it as much. as a result donated to charity”
Karen R wrote this review Thursday, March 11, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“It is good story telling, a small town, a peculiar mix of mundane characters made interesting by their interactions with each other, curious goings on, and you can't always be certain who is telling the truth, you only have Gideon's account of events. ”
jennifer g wrote this review Monday, March 1, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“An enjoyable read particularly for someone who is an atheist like me. There are many other themes particularly about father-son relationship, love, forgiveness, death and bereavement.
Chandrashekar Gangaraju wrote this review Saturday, February 13, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
It was the first time I was reading a book with a fictional editor.”
