The Shack by William P. Young

 The Shack by William P. Young 


I am sure that this is not going to be the first review of The Shack that harps on how amazing it is.  Not only is the story found between the covers fascinating and life changing, but the story on how the book itself came to be is pretty impressive as well.


Here it is, The Shack has gone viral, but before that happened, would you believe that this book was shunned and ignored by the big Christian book companies?  


Why?  I do not know.  It may be because Mr. Young portrayed God as a big black woman.  Or because Jesus is seen as a loving, short, unattractive man in this story.  I do not know.  But I will admit, these depictions of God and Jesus took me off guard and made me rethink my preconceived notions of what God and Jesus may look like.   And those two little tid-bits are not even the real shockers found in this book.


Odds are, this book was shunned by the Christian book companies because it dared to challenge the institution known as "The Church".  But that is only a guess.

William P. Young

What I do know is that after this book was shot down by the big Christian book companies, William P. Young let a few of his friends read it and they liked the story so much that they got together with a couple hundred bucks and published it themselves.  


So, on a shoe sting budget and a prayer, this book, "The Shack", started to climb its way up the "Got to read it list" and has now found its way into the Top 10 best selling book charts.  


Not only is it a top 10 best seller in Christian book stores, but it can also be found in the top 10 best selling books of 2009.  Sure, I am a bit late with this information, and the review, but better late than never.


Anyhow, The Shack is one of the best books I have ever read.  And it opened my eyes, and my heart, to a loving God who isn't talked about in this manner often enough.  


Many of the questions I have had about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit where brought up and answered in a way that even I could understand.  Granted, on a few of the more lofty ideals, I will have to do a bit more research, but for the most part, this book did a great job of handling the tough questions.


Other than in the very beginning, where a horrible tragedy occurs, this book is a fun and happy read.  But you will find, as you read further, that any tragedy can be used by God to accomplish His purpose.  So even though the first part is a bit tough to read, you got to get through it to get to the good stuff.


I am sure that when you read this book you will find it as heart warming and inspiring as I did.  It is also kind of funny to keep in mind that the powers that be in the so called Christian media, could not keep a good book down.