Review of Hanging Out with the Most High God Books One and Two
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Marion Latchoumania-Quédou
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Review of Hanging Out with the Most High God Books One and Two
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Hanging Out with the Most High God Books One and Two" by Gordon Bell.]
Hanging Out with the Most High God Books One and Two is one book that combines two novels. This is written by Gordon Bell. In this book, we follow the path of Billy, a gay orphan with nothing left to lose in life. While everything seems gloomy in the eyes of the young man, his aunt awakens him to the Christian faith. From there, a new life of questions and light begins for him.
This book was a series of questions, searches for meaning in life, and, ultimately, multiple proofs of self-sacrifice. I was really invested in Billy's awareness, but also in his questions and his doubts. The author shows us that not everything is to be perfect or easy when one experiences faith. On the contrary, the process described in this book through the eyes of the protagonist is a very long process of finding oneself, a process that is sometimes hard, but which is very well depicted as to make it understandable by the readers.
The author wrote Billy's daily life in a very simple but also very true way, incorporating details that made everything very human but also very touching. There are no caricatures, but rather depictions of simple people with their qualities and flaws. The author gives us realistic characters here, with their faults, their beliefs, their difficulties, but also their tenderness and their good actions. This is also what makes the strength of the book. We follow Billy from his apartment to New York, while he is spending time with his brother and sister, with his aunt or when he is meeting new people that believe, or not, in his faith. Each of these interactions brings its share of questions and interrogations but also kindness and new points of view on life from Billy's perspective. It’s really moving and well-written.
I still found some flaws while reading this book. The downside of writing a book with that many details is that it results in a particularly slow pacing throughout the entire book. I found this book to be more about spiritual contemplation rather than issues. Billy has specific questions that he's actively seeking answers to, that's true. In particular, he tries to understand the coexistence between homosexuality and Christianity, a very important question for him. However, to put it simply, I think a book needs a resolution, even if it's a minor resolution compared to the resolution of the duology the book is set in (this book includes the “book one” and “book two”, while the second volume of this duology includes the “book three” and “book four”.) In the case of this book, I found no resolution. It gave me a fairly strong feeling of stagnation from halfway through the first book and, even if the invitation to reflection is poignant and touching, it made reading painful at times. As I said, at times, the book is really slow, really, really slow.
Overall, I rate Hanging Out with the Most High God Books One and Two 3 out of 5. Unrelated to the story, I had to remove a point because of some grammatical errors. Even though they are few, they sometimes harm the quality of the story. I really love the author’s writing and their way to show flaws and qualities inside every human. I took these books as an opportunity to reflect on life, why we do things, and what we have to bring to people around us. Not only that, but I was really moved by Billy’s story. Furthermore, I do think, however, that these books are best appreciated by Christian people as a way to reflect on religion and how they express their faith. It could be a bit slow for non-believers, and I really found certain passages hollow for a long time. I would even go so far as to say that the story sometimes lost emotion when banal events followed one another.
Despite these flaws, I really love these books. They are perfectly suited for believers who want to reflect on their faith.
******
Hanging Out with the Most High God Books One and Two
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Hanging Out with the Most High God Books One and Two is one book that combines two novels. This is written by Gordon Bell. In this book, we follow the path of Billy, a gay orphan with nothing left to lose in life. While everything seems gloomy in the eyes of the young man, his aunt awakens him to the Christian faith. From there, a new life of questions and light begins for him.
This book was a series of questions, searches for meaning in life, and, ultimately, multiple proofs of self-sacrifice. I was really invested in Billy's awareness, but also in his questions and his doubts. The author shows us that not everything is to be perfect or easy when one experiences faith. On the contrary, the process described in this book through the eyes of the protagonist is a very long process of finding oneself, a process that is sometimes hard, but which is very well depicted as to make it understandable by the readers.
The author wrote Billy's daily life in a very simple but also very true way, incorporating details that made everything very human but also very touching. There are no caricatures, but rather depictions of simple people with their qualities and flaws. The author gives us realistic characters here, with their faults, their beliefs, their difficulties, but also their tenderness and their good actions. This is also what makes the strength of the book. We follow Billy from his apartment to New York, while he is spending time with his brother and sister, with his aunt or when he is meeting new people that believe, or not, in his faith. Each of these interactions brings its share of questions and interrogations but also kindness and new points of view on life from Billy's perspective. It’s really moving and well-written.
I still found some flaws while reading this book. The downside of writing a book with that many details is that it results in a particularly slow pacing throughout the entire book. I found this book to be more about spiritual contemplation rather than issues. Billy has specific questions that he's actively seeking answers to, that's true. In particular, he tries to understand the coexistence between homosexuality and Christianity, a very important question for him. However, to put it simply, I think a book needs a resolution, even if it's a minor resolution compared to the resolution of the duology the book is set in (this book includes the “book one” and “book two”, while the second volume of this duology includes the “book three” and “book four”.) In the case of this book, I found no resolution. It gave me a fairly strong feeling of stagnation from halfway through the first book and, even if the invitation to reflection is poignant and touching, it made reading painful at times. As I said, at times, the book is really slow, really, really slow.
Overall, I rate Hanging Out with the Most High God Books One and Two 3 out of 5. Unrelated to the story, I had to remove a point because of some grammatical errors. Even though they are few, they sometimes harm the quality of the story. I really love the author’s writing and their way to show flaws and qualities inside every human. I took these books as an opportunity to reflect on life, why we do things, and what we have to bring to people around us. Not only that, but I was really moved by Billy’s story. Furthermore, I do think, however, that these books are best appreciated by Christian people as a way to reflect on religion and how they express their faith. It could be a bit slow for non-believers, and I really found certain passages hollow for a long time. I would even go so far as to say that the story sometimes lost emotion when banal events followed one another.
Despite these flaws, I really love these books. They are perfectly suited for believers who want to reflect on their faith.
******
Hanging Out with the Most High God Books One and Two
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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Williams Jaden
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Gordon Bell's Hanging Out with the Most High God Books One and Two is a heartfelt exploration of faith, identity, and self-discovery, following Billy's journey from despair to hope. The realistic characters and touching interactions make this story both moving and deeply relatable.
Latest Review: McDowell by William H. Coles
