Great Expectations can really ruin a Good Book
I picked up Mulberry Park by Judy Duarte and since I've never read her books before, I started out not knowing to expect. Soon I was in to the story. She does a great job with emotional intensity and she writes well. The way she weaves God into the lives of her characters, their questions about Him and how they relate to Him, it was very real and touching.
Then came the changing, where the characters begin to believe that God might be real after all, that He might care about them.
My expectations that had been steadily rising poofed into nothing.
Why? Because I like Jesus in my Christianity. And He wasn't in that book.
It was amazing how I'd zipped through, then when these people convert and there's no mention of Jesus (the main guy of Christianity), suddenly I didn't want to finish. The book is published by Kensington, an ABA publisher. I didn't realize this until later. If I'd known it ahead of time, then I woudn't have expected what I did.
Have you ever been really into a book, and then something subjective happens, and you're out?
Then came the changing, where the characters begin to believe that God might be real after all, that He might care about them.
My expectations that had been steadily rising poofed into nothing.
Why? Because I like Jesus in my Christianity. And He wasn't in that book.
It was amazing how I'd zipped through, then when these people convert and there's no mention of Jesus (the main guy of Christianity), suddenly I didn't want to finish. The book is published by Kensington, an ABA publisher. I didn't realize this until later. If I'd known it ahead of time, then I woudn't have expected what I did.
Have you ever been really into a book, and then something subjective happens, and you're out?
Comments
Kristen's funny! :)
I know it's happened to me, and it's so disappointing. But on the other hand, reading what I don't like makes me that much more aware of what I do, and my motivation to write starts up again. :)
It definitely wasn't delivery. Duarte did a great job with this book. It was just me.
Do you read secular books? It might happen to you more there.
It's one of the main reasons I get things through the library first because I simply can't take being disappointed like that and find myself out $15.
This was one of the few times this feeling happened to me, so it's nice to know you all have felt the same.
I guess I can't either. Well, I think the problem was that she referenced God and His place in our lives so beautifully, that when the characters finally decided to turn back to him, I assumed Jesus would be involved. When he wasn't it just threw me. Very weird but that's what happened. :-)
I experienced something similar when the spiritual thread of a novel was so flimsy it almost became invisible. Sometimes an author can get so hung up on appealing to a non-Christian audience that they dilute the most important part of the message.
So disappointing.
Blessings,
Susan :)
I miss your blog! If you ever start getting withdrawals you can post an honorary post on mine! :-)
The book wasn't published by a Christian publisher, I was just so pulled in by the story that I thought the ending would be stronger.
I agree. Jesus never diluted his message for people. I do think authors do it, but what people need is truth. This soft, mushy stuff isn't going to show someone the amazingness of Jesus. Not if we make him less than what he is.
But to make you feel better, the book had a very strong spiritual thread, so much so that the lack of Jesus at the end was why I was so shocked. I'm thinking that since she went through a secular publisher they probably wanted her to be more generic.
Oh, and I'm so out of the loop. What is an ABA publisher?
Angie, I totally agree. But if it hadn't been for that one thing, the story itself wouldn't have let me down. So it wasn't really money wasted, I just didn't get the fulfillment I'd been expecting.
Hmmm, most of the time I like MCs so that's interesting, Colby. It really is subjective. :-)
I haven't read Mulberry Park, but a Christian message without Christ seems a little incomplete.
wow, you chucked some huh? Funny. :-)