Why read this novel?

December 6, 2014

We live in a culture that likes to be governed by the “how to’s of life,” when we should be more inclined to learn by “observing how.”    Learning by seeing and participating tends to cultivate a desire to learn and lends itself to the discovery of new approaches and methods.  I’m not undermining book learning, but more, focusing on the creative use of facts.  You know what I mean; the difference between knowing something and using what you know or are learning.

Novels are often an overlooked means of combining learning with observation.  We understand the importance of a good biography, why can’t we see a novel in the same light?  Of course, some novels are equivalent to mental cotton candy, and serve no real purpose but to bring their readers into a fairy-tale life.  That being said, even in those, principles of right and wrong can be identified, as are the rewards or consequences of decisions.

A recent study from Emory University concluded that reading novels can help boost brain power.  “The neural changes that we found associated with physical sensation and movement systems suggest that reading a novel can transport you into the body of the protagonist,” says neuroscientist Gregory Berns, the study's lead author. “We already knew that good stories can put you in someone else’s shoes in a figurative sense. Now we’re seeing that something may also be happening biologically.”

For most of my life, I have loved reading, but resisted reading novels.  “They’re a perfectly good waste of time,” I often thought to myself.  But a few years ago, during my consulting days, a close friend recommended that I read the book “The Goal; a management-oriented novel by Dr. Eliyahu M. Goldratt.  It was great, and let me see how principles of leadership dovetail with the real issues of everyday life. 

That book sparked the thought for my novel – Polycarp, a destroyer of our gods.  I wanted to help and edify others in their spiritual growth, and this seemed like a great avenue.  I desire to help Christians know more than just theology.  My passion is for the follower of Christ to live in the reality of how God trains and disciples us in living out the theology of His truth.  He wastes no moments, no trials, no blessings or people.  Everything fits our lives to draw our focus to Him and his work in our lives. 

Polycarp was born into slavery, was mentored by the Apostle John, and provided stable leadership in the church when the apostles died.  How could God take a boy from slavery and make him a champion of truth?  History reveals that such men are not made out of an easy life, but as trained and disciplined soldiers of the cross.  They are made to make in impact on their generation and generations to follow.  It’s the experience of God’s guiding grace in the face of trials and the cruelty of life that prove the greatness of God in our lives.

Guy de Maupassant a nineteenth-century French writer and considered by many the father of the short story said: “The public is composed of numerous groups whose cry to us writers is: ‘Comfort me.’ ‘Amuse me.’ ‘Touch my sympathies.’  ‘Make me sad.’  ‘Make me dream.’  ‘Make me laugh.’ ‘Make me shiver.’  ‘Make me weep.’ ‘Make me think.’” 

This is what I have strived to do in Polycarp, a destroyer of our gods.  When you are finished reading it, I hope you see yourself as one being trained and formed by the one true God to have a life that destroys the gods of men.   

Take a look at my novel.  Enjoy it, and let it challenge you by waking spiritual desires and stirring godly passion. Ultimately, let it serve as comfort and as a comparison as you look at your life in light of the life of Polycarp, a destroyer of the gods of mighty Rome.

Read it!  Give it a review!  And please, recommend it!