by Ginger Sanders

Created on: November 09, 2010

Some of the truest words I’ve heard said about The Shack, by William P. Young, were said at a party last night. “Everyone gets something different out of it.”

The Shack is one of those books who’s title you can pull out at a party for conversation, as usually several people have read it. It crosses gender, age, religious and social lines. Immediately the conversation about it gets lively.

It’s quite an interesting book to try and review. It isn’t a traditional novel, but it is. It’s not a religious thesis, but it is, (Certainly an informal, odd one). Once the story is done, it isn’t done with you. It leaves you thinking, and comes back to you constantly as you go about your day.

The Shack has the potential to affect millions of lives both in the people who read it, and the relationships they share with others.

The Shack starts out as a sad, but literary norm, story about the abduction of the small daughter of the main character and the way the family deals with the aftermath. It then evolves to a creative, fascinating story about the world’s relationship with the trinity of God and his (or in some of the story her) relationship with us, in such a down to earth way that the reader can’t help but become totally engaged.

If you take everything literally, a lot of things don’t make sense and it is likely this book will make you ask more questions than it answers; however, I don’t think that the point is to actually answer questions. It’s a spiritual journey for the overly devout and fringe element alike.

Some of the party conversation always reverts to how illogical the facts are and how badly the author transitions, but not one person put the book down. The story isn’t really about the facts of the abduction but the spiritual aftermath. The direction of what we, as readers, decide a normal novel that starts like this should go in, are blown away, but then come back in the end that does kind of fizzle out, but by then no one cares.

Everyone I’ve spoken to though, has said the same thing. I’m going to read it again and again. For me it was a loner, who’s owner had highlighted sections and made notes in the margins. I’m going to buy my own copy now, as I intend to do the same.

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