God's Gifts To Us AllISBN: 0-9661776-0-6 See also: amazon.com |
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God's Gifts To Us AllISBN: 0-9661776-0-6 See also: amazon.com |
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The following press release provides an overview of this inspriational, fictional book.
Inspirational Book - How God "Works"
A book from Stevensville, Michigan author Michael S. Brown
describes a modern day messenger of God who explains what God is and how God
"works" in terms of our current understanding of science and technology. The
book, God's Gifts To Us All, is an inspirational fictional story about values and
beliefs.
According to Brown,
"I set out to write a fictional story which accomplished three main objectives. First of all, I wanted to write a book which created a scenario where everyone would believe that God was real. I felt the events of the book would have to touch each individual world wide in order for everyone to believe. This became the core premise of the story."
"The second objective of God's Gifts To Us All was to place the various ancient religions in a context with our current understanding of science and technology. I strived to do this in a way which didn't promote or alienate any religion in the process. I placed emphasis on implementation of beliefs rather than the merits of diverse religious rituals. No specific religion was promoted by the book."
"The last objective was to keep the book short and simple. I felt it was important to create a book which teenagers as well as adults would read - and finish. As it turned out, keeping the story short and simple was one of the greatest challenges."
"I worked on God's Gifts To Us All intermittently for five years. In late 1996, something about the majestic Hale-Bopp comet made me feel it was time to complete the book. I spent most of 1997 in final editing and preparing for publication. The completed book was released on November 12, 1997."
The new book is viewed by some to be controversial, since it
challenges several of the basic concepts found in traditional religions. Part of the
controversy stems from passages which say that peoples' religious beliefs and rituals are
not really important - that their words and actions away from their church are what's
important. Further, people who 'believe' but don't do anything to make the world a better
place are not really living according to "God's Way."
Coincidentally, the story itself describes controversy when the main character
suggests not all the words in ancient religious texts are "God's Words." From
Chapter 20:
One of the citizens asked "There's quite a stir in the religious communities about your comments that parts of the ancient holy books may not really represent God's word - that they contain false statements - lies if you will. Is it your intention to create this turmoil?"
Adam thought for a moment and responded "Lies are lies - truth is truth. A lie shouted from the rooftops, believed by an entire civilization, recorded in beautiful manuscripts, and passed down through hundreds of generations . . . is still a lie." Adam then spoke quietly "The whispered truth by one person which nobody records will always be the truth."
God’s Gifts To Us All was reviewed in the 1998 "the Book Reader" of Scotts Valley, California. Their comments included:
A gentle but strong series of episodes that fictionally examine who God is. How he works. What each of us faces in a life of change. Along the way, it shows how each individual can make the world a better place. An ecumenical story, a feast of words that teach caring, doing.
Mike Brown created his own publishing company in May 1997 and named the Stevensville, Michigan company Bluebird Meadows. In comments provided to the Internet book store AMAZON.COM,
"As a self-publisher of God's Gifts To Us All, the challenges seemed to be without number. At every turn there were temptations to produce the book quicker and cheaper. In the long run, self-publishing became an advantage, since I could take the time necessary to attend to each detail. These details ranged from editing the manuscript to selecting the best printing company that I could afford - and then embarking on formatting the manuscript according to the printer's specifications."
When asked to comment on the final product and the effort required to produce it, Brown responded,
"As I look at the finished book, I feel very good about the result. God's Gifts To Us All delivers its message - but with pace and brevity. The quality of the book's physical construction projects the meticulous care which went in to the contents."
"To me, God's Gifts To Us All is a beautiful book. Its 8-1/2 x 11" white linen hard cover is foil embossed with gold and navy colors. The 176 pages are printed on 70# glossy paper with a 12 point font. Three colors are used throughout the book to achieve the finest in quality, from cover to cover.
Brown reports his current challenges include marketing the new book to area book stores and distribution centers. The sales aspect of the business is viewed by Mike with mixed feelings.
"I see the future for God's Gifts To Us All to be one of sharing, rather than one of sales. True, the books will be sold - but the result of reading God's Gifts To Us All should be new insights, new perspectives, or a better understanding of one's existing values and beliefs. Something like that cannot be bought and sold. It can only be shared."
God's Gifts To Us All (ISBN: 0-9661776-0-6) has a suggested retail of $24.95, however, you save $5.00 per copy by purchasing directly from the publisher, Bluebird Meadows. You pay only $19.95 plus S&H(and MI sales tax if applicable). Free autographs available - just make a note in the "Comments" section of the order form.
