Tag: Karen Kingsbury

Book Review: This Side of Heaven, Karen Kingsbury

Karen Kingsbury

This Side of Heaven by Karen Kingsbury

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I had never read Karen Kingsbury before attending Liberty University. Watching her lectures and having her share her process, has been a blessing. So when my inspirational writing class assigned a book of hers this semester, I was excited to study her prose. And she far exceeded any expectation I had. Wow! Listen to me; you have to read this book. I am about to read everything she has ever written.

Sure, I may be generous with my five star ratings from time-to-time, but Kingsbury’s book here, truly deserves six, seven, or twenty stars. When I finished it, I squealed hallelujah.

I am a thirty-one year old grown man. I cried so much reading this book, I had to wipe my tears just to see the screen. I am being honest. Chapter twenty-five (no spoilers), I had to take a pause from reading; my heart required a break. I have read hundreds upon hundreds of books, and never had the experience I had with This Side of Heaven. Not only did her writing help muster deep within myself a spirit of revival, reading it I feel has changed me forever. This is life changing fiction.

Every once in awhile I come across a book, I will never forget my experience reading. Like almost having a heart attack on my couch, because of this gem.

Anything else I say, will be perceived hyperbole. I highly recommend this book. May God bless and sustain her art. Just wow!



View all my reviews

I am thinking of adding a couple book reviews to my regular blog. I am wondering if that is something, you, my readers would enjoy? Please let me know in the comments below or send me an email.

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This post is not meant to be self-gratifying or boastful. My purpose is to show you how transformative reading the Bible is.

If you have read my work, you know I teeter on the edge of existentialism. This life is a mess, and God gives me a firm foundation in a collapsing world. He gives me a reason for hope. As an artist and scholar, I have long looked for my voice. I think I found it now; Or at least I am close. I do know one thing for certain, my writing is meant for ministry. Whether that is apologetics, fiction, or creative nonfiction, I do not know, but I know I am called to both cloth and pen.

“I Am Second”

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I study creative writing at Liberty University, under New York Times Best selling author Karen Kingsbury. Both play a major role in influencing me. But for once, I do not mind being influenced. When I write about God or themes of God, my heart feels unleashed. I feel nothing, but peace, love, and fire. There is more to my writing than mere words. A higher message is being conveyed. One of hope, in a world that suffers generation-to-generation.

With that being said, I confess I am no pedantic observer of every scriptural truth. I am after all, human. God and I disagree on quite a bit. I lean progressive in scholarship; think C.S. Lewis. But I do submit to God’s design for life, not mine. I do not understand why some things are sin and others are not; etcetera. But my feelings on the subject are not part of the equation. I am second. This is where I find peace. Submission brings inner peace. That is the lesson I learned from reading the entire Bible.

Now, I am curious to learn what inspires you? What makes your heart race when you write? Whom is the reader you imagine reading your manuscript? I cannot wait to read your answers.

Below is my Goodreads review for the devotional Bible I finished a couple days ago.

Wow! I did it. I read the entire Bible, beginning to end. Peterson’s edition is designed to only take one year; it took me three. Life gets busy. I have school, a toddler, work, other books to read, etcetera. But I am proud to say, finally, I have read the entire Bible; every single word. I spent my mornings with the Bible in one hand and coffee in the other.

You should understand that The Message translation is not an authoritative translation. And Peterson’s, The Message Remix is to be read as a devotional. Serious scholarship will be done elsewhere. But you are not reading this Bible for serious scholarship; you are reading it to spend time with God. To have a daily conversation with your creator, I highly recommend this Bible. It took me years, but I am glad I finished it.
W. Alexander’s Review

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