Tud
01-21-2006, 02:24 PM
Hello everyone,
I'm new to this place so please excuse me if I make a few mistakes but I've been lurking for a few years now and I thought that now would be a good time to add my two cents. Mainly becuase i've finally got something I thought worthwhile to contribute.
That being said, here goes.
I finished Light From Heaven last night and while I was a bit disappointed in what was left out, (I would have loved to seen the reaction when Father Tim brought in Kenny)Overall i thought it was very good. It wasn't up to the level of These High Green Hiils, but it was pretty darn good. It probably would have been better if JK had held off releasing the book and filled it out with the stuff after Christmas, but beyond that I thought it was great.
What I really loved about the book was the perfect ending which made the entire series cyclical. Go back to the first book and see how it starts. Almost exactly the way it started..With Father Tim and Barnabas. But with a huge difference. At the very beginning of the series, you have Father Tim feeling like a failure, burned out, frustrated and not feeling well. He's feeling "old" and used up with nothing to look forward to. not only that but in his entire life he's never ben able to relax.
It is at that critical moment, when he is at his lowest, that God reaches down and extends his mercy. At that moment, as he walks down the sidewalk, that his real life starts and the series takes off. It is at the that moment that a huge , stray dog comes into his life and changes him forever.When Barnabas comes into his life he sets Father Tim on the path to a fulfilling life he never knew was possible. Remember that it was only after he meets Barnabas that he is rescued from his stymied life. Either Barnabas was directly responsible (How else would he have met Cynthia? ) for the life changing event or it occurs after he is adopted and because of the way that he has altered Father Tim's outlook (Puny, Dooley, etc) outlook. All of which ultimately leads to that prefect epilogue scene ten years down the road where Father Tim has finally able to relax and let go. The entire series led to this one moment where Tim can finally let go of Mitford. He's grown enough to finally leave home. And again it is with Barnabas. And then Cynthia calls him to enter the next stage of his life and with a light heart that he would never have possessed otherwise. Appropriately, He's accompanied by Barnabas.
Truly, a good dog is a gift from Christ.
What a prefect ending.
Still, it made me very sad to see him move on..
I'm new to this place so please excuse me if I make a few mistakes but I've been lurking for a few years now and I thought that now would be a good time to add my two cents. Mainly becuase i've finally got something I thought worthwhile to contribute.
That being said, here goes.
I finished Light From Heaven last night and while I was a bit disappointed in what was left out, (I would have loved to seen the reaction when Father Tim brought in Kenny)Overall i thought it was very good. It wasn't up to the level of These High Green Hiils, but it was pretty darn good. It probably would have been better if JK had held off releasing the book and filled it out with the stuff after Christmas, but beyond that I thought it was great.
What I really loved about the book was the perfect ending which made the entire series cyclical. Go back to the first book and see how it starts. Almost exactly the way it started..With Father Tim and Barnabas. But with a huge difference. At the very beginning of the series, you have Father Tim feeling like a failure, burned out, frustrated and not feeling well. He's feeling "old" and used up with nothing to look forward to. not only that but in his entire life he's never ben able to relax.
It is at that critical moment, when he is at his lowest, that God reaches down and extends his mercy. At that moment, as he walks down the sidewalk, that his real life starts and the series takes off. It is at the that moment that a huge , stray dog comes into his life and changes him forever.When Barnabas comes into his life he sets Father Tim on the path to a fulfilling life he never knew was possible. Remember that it was only after he meets Barnabas that he is rescued from his stymied life. Either Barnabas was directly responsible (How else would he have met Cynthia? ) for the life changing event or it occurs after he is adopted and because of the way that he has altered Father Tim's outlook (Puny, Dooley, etc) outlook. All of which ultimately leads to that prefect epilogue scene ten years down the road where Father Tim has finally able to relax and let go. The entire series led to this one moment where Tim can finally let go of Mitford. He's grown enough to finally leave home. And again it is with Barnabas. And then Cynthia calls him to enter the next stage of his life and with a light heart that he would never have possessed otherwise. Appropriately, He's accompanied by Barnabas.
Truly, a good dog is a gift from Christ.
What a prefect ending.
Still, it made me very sad to see him move on..