Book "The Gospel According to Lost" by Chris Seay

This is a book written by Chris Seay in 2009, directed to the fans of the TV show “Lost”. It was published by Thomas Nelson also in 2009 and they were kind enough to send me a copy for reviewing through the Thomas Nelson Book Review Bloggers Program.

The book tells us the story of the main characters of this show, giving a quick refresh on some episodes and discussing the behavior of our heroes and it tries to explain why they act like that, through comparisons and analogies with bible characters and bible histories. The author analyses Hugo Hurley Reyes, Sayid Jarrah, Kate Austen, James “Sawyer” Ford, Jack Shephard, John Locke, Eko, Sun-Hwa and Jin-Soo-Kwan, Benjamin Linus and Jacob.

Chris Seay did a magnificent job with the interpretation of the characters’ personality and the analogy with their equivalent counterpart in the Bible. He makes us “question and meditate and discuss and debate, exploring the power of the unknown”. The author shows us the attention paid by the creators of the show to the shaping of personalities of the characters on the show. The book teaches us that no one is beyond redemption, and that we have freedom to choose between good and evil. The author could go a little bit deeper on the theology, but this book is an excellent reading choice for the fans of the show and also a meditation opportunity for the reader.

Pages: 195

My Rate: 4 Stars

Book “The White Horse King – The Life of Alfred The Great” by Benjamin Merkle

This is a biography from King Alfred of Wessex written by Benjamin Merkle in 2009. It was published by Thomas Nelson also in 2009 and they were kind enough to send me a copy for reviewing through the Thomas Nelson Book Review Bloggers Program.

The book tells us the story of Alfred, fifth son of King AEthelwulf from Wessex, far in line of succession to the throne and not likely to end up being the heir of the throne. Merkle describes with vivid language the struggle of Alfred, losing his mother and all his brothers one by one till he became king of Wessex in 871AD and later king of the Anglo-Saxons. We see his learning experience with the Dane Vikings invasion on Britain. The book teaches us the importance of Alfred on the development of military tactics, planning of roads, economy, and his effort on spreading Christianity, even among his enemies. He was also very important on the revival of literacy, education, and law codes.

Benjamin Merkle did a magnificent research job and he had all the elements necessary to compose a very boring book, but instead he transformed his research into a very enjoyable reading experience. It is a very inspirational book where we learn a lot about loyalty. If only our politicians have half the willing that Alfred had for protecting his people, we would be in a better place now. I never learned properly ancient British history and I am not that much into Biographies but definitely this book is an excellent reading choice and also a learning opportunity.

Pages: 256

My Rate: 4 Stars