 | The Chasm: A Journey to the Edge of Life |
Today, BookTuesday presents: The Chasm: A Journey to the Edge of Life. This is book is by Randy Alcorn, and is published by Multnomah, a company so gracious they sent me a free book, just for doing this review. My gratitude is strong, but not strong enough to be swayed in my opinions….
Several years ago, I read a book by Randy Alcorn titled Edge of Eternity. It was the first book of his I had read, and I didn't quite know what to expect. It was, generally, a good read, though getting into the symbolism was a roadblock for me at the time.
Since then, I've read some of Alcorn's non-fiction writing as well as a novel that is more of an anonymized biography of persecuted Christians in China than it is a novel. I've grown more comfortable with his style since then.
Now, we come to Randy Alcorn's The Chasm. This is not a long book. While I'm not an expert in literary identification, I'd say it was more of a novella than a full-book. It's adapted from his earlier book, Edge of Eternity. Both of these books speak of the journey of Nick Seagrave. Not a material journey, but a spiritual one. The Chasm specifically covers the imagery of a great gulf fixed between the two lands that this journey takes place in.
I'll leave you the rest of the plot to find on your own. The writing is well-crafted and engaging. It's also fairly simple to follow: I was able to consume this book in about a 2-hour sitting. There's plenty of depth to consider that's drawn out by the included study-guide, so don't think it's a boring trip.
Neither is it a shallow one. Nick's story could very well be anyone's. It's a story of seeking, misunderstanding, and finding. A story of the cost of life, and the value of it as well.
Punctuating this story are about a dozen well-drawn illustrations. They convey a depth and character that is stronger for the black-and-white nature than I would have imagined.
In all, this is a good little book for anyone who likes allegory. I'll probably pass this copy around to several folks, including my older daughter, who I think will grasp both the literal and allegorical parts of the story.
And before I forget---yes, free book for the review. No other connections exist.
Doug
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