Tags
Advice, Authors, Book Writing, Books, literature, Recommendations, Websites, Writer's Digest, Writers, Writing
Top 101 Websites!
Brought to you by Writer’s Digest Winter 2012 Issue!
06 Monday Aug 2012
Posted Recommendations
inTags
Advice, Authors, Book Writing, Books, literature, Recommendations, Websites, Writer's Digest, Writers, Writing
Top 101 Websites!
Brought to you by Writer’s Digest Winter 2012 Issue!
02 Thursday Aug 2012
Posted Recommendations
inTags
Alex Malarkey, Books, Boy Who Went To Heaven, Christian Books, Christian Writing, Disabled, God, Heaven, Kevin Malarkey, Life, Little Boy Goes To heaven, Little Boy's Account Of Heaven, My Thoughts, Quadripelgic, The Bible, The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven, Trip To Heaven
I was surprised about The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven, for starters, I thought it would be a copycat version of Heaven Is For Real. I only assumed that because Heaven Is For Real is the more popular of the two, and I had never heard of this one until a few months ago. Every time I heard the title I thought someone was referring to Heaven is For Real.
Boy, was I wrong! I can honestly say that The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven” is my personal favorite of the two novels. It draws comparison to Don Piper’s 90 Minutes in Heaven because it discusses a great deal of Alex’s recovery from his injuries.
A Quick Summary:
At the beginning of the novel, Kevin, the narrator and father of the injured boy Alex went into detail about the accident that left his son injured. He was talking on the phone with his wife, looking back at his son who asked him a question, all while driving. He didn’t see the vehicle approaching that would hit soon hit his car. At the scene of the accident, people and emergency staff came to help Kevin and Alex, Even when some thought that Alex was dead from the way his head hung, they still prayed for him.
Doctors at Columbus Children’s Hospital soon discovered that Alex had sustained a major neck injury. One expressed his doubt that Alex would survive due to the severity of his injuries. And that’s when it happened. The people came together and prayed for Alex faithful. People would come into the hospital just to pray for Alex in his hospital room. The prayers grew when Kevin launched prayforalex.com, where the family tracked his progress.
Throughout this time, the family suffered from other hardships like financial issues. God answered every worry that Kevin had. After 4 months of being in a coma, Alex finally woke up from his coma. The family came together to learn what they needed to take Alex home and care for him themselves. He ended up in the hospital a few times after that.
More importantly, Alex accomplished milestones that the doctors doubted would be possible because of the injury. He could talk. With every chapter it seemed like Alex continued to prove predictions wrong. The Malarkey family is convinced that if it’s in God’s will Alex will walk again whether it is here or in Heaven.
That’s pretty much the best quick summary I can give.
I had several emotional moments where I empathized with the Malarkeys. The most emotional was probably when their home suffered damages from a snow storm that left the family nearly homeless and in need of a new roof. I remember pausing during this part of the story and looking up the ceiling asking “Why God?”, but after reading Kevin’s father’s point of view, it changed my entire outlook on life and God’s blessings.
With every hurdle I felt compassion for the Malarkeys, but I also felt joy because every need was met through the good will of God’s people who they were blessed to be surrounded by. When they needed a van for Alex and all of his equipment, a church (that the family did not attend) donated money in order for them to purchase one; when they could not afford the $15000 bill to send Alex on a two week stay at the International Center for Spinal Cord Injury, the Eric Westacott Foundation raised $30,000 which allowed Alex to attend on two different occasions; Alex became the youngest person to receive the “Christopher Reeves” surgery, where a diaphragm pacing system is installed into his body in replace of him carrying around a 60-pound ventilator.
Throughout the novel, Kevin Malarkey really stressed the glory of God. God works in the most amazing ways. If there was ever a time that I truly believe a novel about God, it was this book. It was beyond touching and well-written. Alex is a quite admirable young boy. God bless his family!
31 Tuesday Jul 2012
Posted Recommendations
inTags
Author, Authors, Books, Christen Writers, Christian Authors, Christian Books, Christian Faith, Christian Writing, Christians, Guides, Writer, Writers, Writing, Writing Guides
31 Tuesday Jul 2012
Tags
A Journey To Heaven, Alex Malarkey, Books, Christian Books, Christian Literature, Christian Nonfiction, Christian Writing, Church, God, Heaven, Jesus, Kevin Malarkey, Life, Little Boy's Account Of Heaven, Nonfiction Book, Reading, The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven, Writing
I’ll do a review on it later.
Posted by Lane Alton | Filed under Literature
26 Thursday Jul 2012
Tags
Authors, Books, Lane Alton, literature, Magazine, The Writer, The Writer Magazine, The Writers Chronicles, Writers, Writing
A new buy, The Writer’s Chronicle. I also bought the new issue of The Writer too.
Posted by Lane Alton | Filed under Recommendations, Writing
22 Sunday Jul 2012
Posted Recommendations
inTags
Authors, Book Recommendations, Books, Christian Authors, Christian Books, Christian Faith, Christian Writers, Craig Groeshel, Dave Coleman, Erwin Lutzer, Frank Turek, God, I Don't Have Enough Faith To Be An Athiest, Inspirational, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Norman L. Geisler, One Minute After You Die, Recommendations, So You Don't Want To Go To Church Anymore, Spiritual, The Christian Atheist, Wayne Jacobsen, Writers
Here are a few of mine:
19 Thursday Jul 2012
Posted Recommendations
inTags
Aspirations, Celebrities, Celebrity Obession, Dreams, Life, People
The Celebrity Obsession by Shallow Deep.
15 Sunday Jul 2012
Posted Literature, Personal
inTags
Advice, Books, Ellyn Spragins, Inspiration, Lane Alton, Life, What I Know Now, Wisdom, Women
So I went to the library on Thursday and took out,’What I Know Now: Extraordinary Women Share The Wisdom They Wish They’d Had When They Were Younger’ (edited by Ellyn Spragins).
The women include Phylicia Rashad, Nora Roberts, Vannia White, Maya Angelo, Queen Noor,, and a number of other remarkable women from all walks of life. I haven’t started it yet, but I am hoping to start by tomorrow. I am hoping to be left with admiration, inspiration, empowerment, and motivation.
I’ll let you guys know how it goes when I am finished.
16 Monday Apr 2012
Posted Recommendations
inReading Recommendation: Read Francis Chan’s Crazy Love and Forgotten God.”
15 Sunday Apr 2012
Posted Literature
inAside from Native Son by Richard Wright and 5 People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom, my favorites are Sirens of Titan, Bluebeard, Slapstick, and God Bless You Dr. Kevorkian by Kurt Vonnegut.
I know his work may be a little weird, but I love his style of writing. 🙂