Customer Reviews
Way off the mark.... - By: M. Simpson, 21 Nov 2008 
I began reading this book with an open mind, expecting something quite extraordinary, partly based on the reviews here, & partly based on the excitement it seemed to be generating from those that had read it.
The basic premise (and this isin no way a spoiler) is that something very bad happens, & the novel attempts to work through the why's & what-if's of it all. No suprises there..
That it uses some unusual stereotypes for its central characters is unusual, &in parts delightful to read, but once again, no suprises there. I was expecting a little of that anyway.
When I got to the end of the book, & its underlying implication / message of "this might be a true strory" I was outraged.
Outraged, because I found the deeply hurtful central issue of "why did this (bad thing) happen" totally unanswered to any satisfaction. I found the implication that it wasin some way "meant" to happen misjudged, & that all is OKin some other place, bizarre. And I found the whole treatment of such deeply dreadful loss & injustice skirted over, dismissed, & explained away.
This is totally unforgivable from the author (and a totally unforgivable crimein my book too.)
Sorry, fans, it just doesn't live up to the hype I'm afraid.
"This weekend is about relationship and love" - By: Four Violets, 18 Nov 2008 
The blurb says it's "heart-warming & inspirational", & that it's about a man, Mack, striving to understand why God allows pain & sufferingin the world. Well, it wasn't my choice to read the book, it was given to me, & I was determined I would find it smug & irritating.
Right from the start there were surprises: after a few pages I realised it was funny, down to earth, & was going to deliver some jolts. First page, the menin Mack's family are all addressed by their middle name - asin my family. That got my attention. Then the setting seemed eerily familiar & jolt 2, I realised it is setin Nez Perce Indian country, Oregon. I have just read & reviewed "Selling Your Father's Bones" about this place... it was like journeying over some very familiar ground. Jolt 3, whether I liked it or not, the deceptively simplistic language of the book contains some mind-blowingly huge theological conceptsin the most accessible way. There is a lot that orthodoxy will frown at. (Good) - & a lot of answers that will make a lot of sense to a lot of people.
Many readers will immediately love this; (dare I say, it is more likely to appeal to less cynical Americans than British) others like myself will have to struggle past the initial "over-sickly-sentimental" doubts & hesitations. But...
..."Mack would like you to know that if you happen upon this story & hate it, he says "Sorry...but it wasn't primarily written for you"" (page 13).
My own final jolt was on page 147 as this has been the subject of much debate among some of my friends recently.
Finally, if addressing God as Papa sounds weird: Jesus uses the word "daddy"in Mark 14:36.
Tears would not stop.... - By: Ms. C. Graham, 14 Nov 2008 I am not a religious person at all but this book was gripping, moving, inspiring & gobsmacking all at the same time - a great story if you believein God or not.
Now I understand the love of God - By: Christine Lindars, 12 Nov 2008 The great question of our time is: "Why does God allow terrible things to happen?" Here it is, bravely faced - one of the most appalling crimes that a man can commit, & God let him do it. WHY? The answer that Paul Young gives makes sense to me. It cannot be expressedin a few words - it needs a whole book.
Hmmmm... - By: Spartan, 12 Nov 2008 
With so many reviews to choose from there seems little pointin spending much time on the plot, which is just as well as it really is as simple as "Man loses faith owing to family tragedy, meets a really nice God who's also kind of cool, all OK again".
As a story then, The Shack is barely worth a read. If you have faith however there's some interestin reading this authors interpretation of the Christian belief system & there are some nice ideas, albeit New Age & touchy feely about what God might think of how us humans have warped his teachings to suit our own ends.
The trouble with these ideas though is that, for me anyway, they were a bit unsatisfying. Unless I missed the point (a distinct possibility)it's all our fault man, 'cause we chose Free Will & stuff & although God's like really dissappointed he still loves us yeah?
It's that kind of book & goes nowhere near asking if he loved us all so much why'd he kill all the first born that time & unleash all those plagues on the Egyptians, who are also "his" people apparently. I think the author may have skipped the Old Testament when they did itin Sunday School.
If I met God the first thing I'd ask is what's with this Cancer business or why do you let people be born with mental or physical problems? Mack (the protagonist) doesn't bother, sticking to asking why other humans can do such bad things to the rest of us. Whilst its not unreasonable to presume a man who's daughter is killed by a serial killer may be a little obsessed about why God would allow it, half way through I think God had pretty much covered the reason. Surely, given the opportunity presented to him, Mack might have moved on to a few tougher questions?
If you don't buy the whole God idea by the way, it's probably not worth a look.
