| The Shack | 
 enlarge | Author: William P. Young
Publisher: Windblown Media
Category: Book
List Price: $14.99
Buy New: $7.13
You Save: $7.86 (52%)
New (84) Used (46) Collectible (1) from $6.98
Avg. Customer Rating:  1887 reviews
Sales Rank: 8
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1st
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.8 x 5.2 x 0.8
ISBN: 0964729237
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780964729230
ASIN: 0964729237
Publication Date: July 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
|
| Also Available In:
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Mackenzie Allen Philips' youngest daughter, Missy, has been abducted during a family vacation and evidence that she may have been brutally murdered is found in an abandoned shack deep in the Oregon wilderness. Four years later in the midst of his Great Sadness, Mack receives a suspicious note, apparently from God, inviting him back to that shack for a weekend. Against his better judgment he arrives at the shack on a wintry afternoon and walks back into his darkest nightmare. What he finds there will change Mack's world forever. In a world where religion seems to grow increasingly irrelevant "The Shack" wrestles with the timeless question, "Where is God in a world so filled with unspeakable pain?" The answers Mack gets will astound you and perhaps transform you as much as it did him. You'll want everyone you know to read this book!
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 1882 more reviews...
 stay out of "the shack" November 23, 2008
(((( if you're planning to read this book, then be careful how far you go because i'm going to give away some info that you might not want to know)))))
the premise of "the shack," by william paul young, is truly frightening, especially to anyone with children. i have two girls, and when i glanced at the blurb on the book cover, i did not think i could read it without either crying or personalizing the experience.
"mac," a nickname that's about as trite as you can get, and his family are very religious, so much that they call God "papa," as if they're having him over for thanksgiving dinner. however, mac's faith is tested when his young daughter falls prey to a serial killer who might also be a child molester as he only attacks children.
mac retreats from the world, as does one of his other children, the victim's older sister, who also retreats and blames herself for what happened. then mac is summoned by God, with a note in his mailbox on a very snowy day, to an old shack in the woods. mac goes and finds not only evidence of his daughter's murder but also a very spiritual experience with the holy trinity.
*******spoiler alert now************
there are three things that bothered me about the book. first, i didn't get the religious "vibe" when i browsed the cover, and i would not have read it if i had because i thought the story was a little too preachy. second, i'm sure anyone who has ever lost someone, especially a child, would have two very painful questions to ask god: why? why did you allow this to happen to my child? and, could you have stopped it? mac asks exactly that to God, and the answer was just plain wrong. after everything that mac deals with in his healing process, he gets the chance to ask god both of those questions. when he asks God, why didn't you stop it? why did you let it happen when you could have stopped it if you wanted to? God's answer is basically, "you wouldn't understand." hey, God, guess what? try me. humor me. tell me, and let ME decide if i understand. help me out a little, and at least let me know that my child's death at least contributed to something good.
i also don't like books that present a fantastic situation, and then it's all taken away. after mac spends a weekend talking to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, he wakes up in a hospital bed where facts show that the entire experience was only a hallucination. that's also wrong. if you're going to write a book that suggests a conversation with God is possible, then don't take it back. don't pull a "Dallas" ending where it was all a dream. stand up for what you started and let it stand on it's own merit. don't give me "it's all a dream."
another thing i didn't like was one particular part which, i think, was unintentionally hilarious, but the book is far from a comedy. mac is talking to Jesus and tells him that he expected Jesus to be more handsome and attractive. Jesus says, "it's my nose, isn't it." and then adds, "well, i am Jewish, you know." that's a line i'll expect on Saturday Night Live, but not in a suspense story.
i bought the CD's, not the actual book. on the last CD there's an interview with the author in which he goes on and on and on about his personal religious journey and all his blah blah blah preachy messages. we got more than enough of the message from the book, so please save the sermon at the end.
 The Shack by William P. Young November 22, 2008
Reading this book is akin to going on a pilgrimage, only with more drama packed in than the average pilgrim would experience! I emerge from "The Shack" with such a "wow" feeling, I know this has been life-changing. The story is gripping, and the characterisation totally original and off the wall. How can you see God as....well, I don't want to spoil the story. The writer certainly has courage, to tackle subjects which are almost taboo, and to carry it off without a hitch. I am left hungry for more. But that is now up to me, I guess.
Why Not? November 22, 2008
The Shack was one of those books that I just couldn't put down, and I almost did. When the main character meets God, and He's an older black woman, I just about said `No'. I was wondering why I would want to continue to read this. I continued because I remember reading the book, "Abandoned to God: The Life Story of the Author of My Utmost for His Highest", and there was a point when Oswald Chambers was asked why he studied Philosophy. To paraphrase it, it was because it helped him understand those who weren't Christians, and how to bring Christ to those who didn't know Him, by understanding them better. Remember that Jesus spent most of His time with what we would call non-Christians. I continued to read, and I must say that I wasn't disappointed!
I found my eyes tearing many times, as I tried to work the reading of it into every available moment of free time I had, and after 5 days, I was done. I had to read a couple of the chapters over to grasp what the author was trying to say. One of the reviews likened this to a parable, and I'd have to agree. It's controversial, but it pricked my spirit, and really caused me to see just how wretched I was, but it did give me hope.
Of course if I was asking God some questions, they would have been different than Mack's. Then again, I didn't lose a child, and after careful thought I would probably been asking the same questions. The book is full of grace, and forgiveness, which I struggle with, even though I know that both are a breath of fresh air. I can't wait to talk to God, to Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. I've got lots of questions, and will probably laugh at my naivetee.
I'd highly recommend this book...
Excellent November 22, 2008
Amazing story and difficult to put this book down once you begin to read it. You won't be sorry you bought it..or put it on your Wish List.
The Shack audio CD November 22, 2008
Very well done. Both my husband and I enjoyed it tremendousley. Each cd lasts about an hour and a half, which is perfect for a day trip. Would recommend it.
|
|
|
