Book Review: The Shack

Several months ago a friend asked me if I'd read the book The Shack. Always interested in a good book, I put it on hold at the library and promptly forgot about it. The book finally came in during the summer and I started reading. I read the first half during the summer and then finished the second half this month.

The Shack comes highly recommended by more people than my friend. The first page of the book is filled with glowing recommendations of people (including Kathie Lee Gifford) who say that this book will change your life and your relationship with God.

I was most curious.

After finishing the book the strongest feeling that I am left with is that this was a difficult book for me to read. I have realized in the last week that perhaps I am an overly thoughtful reader. This makes it hard for me to read the 6 pages every day that I need to read for our ward's Book of Mormon challenge — typically I read much more slowly and think more about what I am reading.

The Shack was similarly challenging but for a different reason. I am unable to read it simply as a story without thinking through the implications of the different concepts presented in the book. There are many little tidbits in the book that are lovely to me. They seem consistent with my beliefs about God and the gospel, and are expressed in ways that make them more accessible to my heart and mind. Unfortunately these tidbits coexist with many other New-Age thoughts and philosophies that are either questionable or diametrically opposite of what I know and/or believe about God.

This meant that each time I came to some idea I would have to mentally stop and sift through it. I would ask myself "Is this part right?" "Could this part be true?" "How much of this is truth and how much is false?" Because of this constant mental evaluation, reading this took much longer than a book of 200 pages would normally take me.

Would I recommend the book? Possibly--to either someone who wants an interesting story, or to someone who is able to tease out the truths from everything else. For someone who has a tendency to believe everything they read? Probably not a good idea...especially since the book is quite critical of organized religion, teaching instead that all everyone needs is to be in a relationship with God.

At the same time, there are some really beautiful parts. Here are a few that I enjoyed. (All thoughts were spoken by the character representing God in the book.)

• Just because I work incredible good out of unspeakable tragedies doesn't mean I orchestrate the tragedies. Don't ever assume that my using something means I caused it or that I need it to accomplish my purposes. That will only lead you to false notions about me...

• If I take away the consequences of people's choices, I destroy the possibility of love. Love that is forced is no love at all.

• Paradigms power perception and perceptions power emotions. Most emotions are responses to perception — what you think is true about a given situation. If your perception is false, then your emotional response to it will be false too.

• Each relationship between two persons is absolutely unique. That is why you cannot love two people the same. It simply is not possible. You love each person differently because of who they are and the uniqueness that they draw out of you.

I might have to read through it again some time, and write down the parts that really struck me. But not right now. Right now it's time to read the sequel to Hunger Games!