Books
Psst…Karr? This Sex Scene Is a Really Bad Idea
What do you do with a memoir that details in four pages a graphic display of child molestation?
What if its the author as a young child that’s the subject…
Does that change the make up of the story from autobiography to something more sinister–like pornography?
Does it matter that this is an event in the past? Does it make it any less real or problematic?
Those were some of the questions I asked myself as I finished reading Mary Karr’s 1995 memoir The Liar’s Club.
The book was Karr’s first memoir [she's since written two more--Cherry and Lit--I've read neither of them] and the idea to write it came from her friend Tobias Wolfe.
In her own words, Carr said it was an agonizing task that involved a mountain of emotional labor–not just to revisit dark places but to merely get the words on the page. Here she is in a Salon interview:
“I would lie down on the floor and go to sleep after about an hour and a half’s work. Literally go to sleep like I had been driving all night. I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I went to a shrink and said, ‘Am I repressing something, bah bah bah bah.’ And she said, ‘Well, I think you are just really exhausted by it.’”
Fortunately, her herculean effort paid off.
The Essence of The Liar’s Club
She wrote a compelling, hilarious and haunting autobiography about growing up as a child in Leechfield, Texas–oil refinery country–raised by a hard-working, hard-drinking, but sturdy and surprisingly gentle father who managed to marry a displaced New Yorker living on the outskirts of madness.
The book ended up being a runaway bestseller–a justified judgment given the quality of the writing and a decent payoff for the task of exposing herself.
But the question is–did she go too far?
In Carr’s defense, as a child she played the hand she was dealt–and as a child that’s sometimes all you can do.
What you get is a gritty, foul-mouthed eight-year-old girl who fought hard for survival and security, revenge and love–things hard to come by when you have a mother who’s head is in a perennial cloud of vodka, methamphetamine diet pills, suspect men, brooding jazz and fatalistic literature.
So it comes as no surprise when I tell you that Karr’s mother lacked a woeful amount of judgment, most clearly seen in her decision to allow questionable men to babysit her daughters.
The scene was terrible. And you saw it like a dark storm slowly sweeping in from the sea. At one point I wondered if Carr was going to actually go there. Or would she pull out early enough to avoid the explicit?
I had hope she’d pull out. Earlier in the book Carr handled a case of rape very sympathetically without giving an uncomfortable amount of detail.
That’s why it surprised me that she dove into this particular scene with no holds barred.
Where I’d Like to Have Not Gone
At least that’s my guess because the moment I saw where she was going and had no intention of stopping, I bailed and counted the pages before the scene was over.
Four pages.
Granted, as I quickly skimmed the pages looking for the end (it came, by the way, when the chapter ended) the scene covered mostly emotional territory, like her mental activity during the event.
And I’m glad to say she never revisited the topic again.
But here’s the deal: This scene would NEVER make it to the movie screen. In fact, if you owned a video of this event, you’d be arrested.
Why, then, is it okay in a book? I argue it’s not. It permits us to go to dark places we should never visit.
Naturally, this uncorks a litany of problems, namely censorship. But should the world thank Mary Carr for “going there” on this particular topic and being candid about it?
No.
All this does is allow us to inch our moral boundaries back, calibrated by our sense of appropriate indiscretion–and that’s, unfortunately, what you get when you don’t have absolute boundaries.
Gore Vidal–who defended cannabis laws–once said that some people should be told not to do drugs.
I agree. And the same goes for morality. Mary Karr’s book would’ve been a runaway bestseller without this scene.
A curious–if not disturbing–side note about the The Liar’s Club is it’s viewed as the book that jump-started the memoir explosion. Naturally, in it’s wake we have self-expression without guardrails.
One has to wonder where this will take us if we don’t provide those boundaries.
5 Posts to Make You Wise [A Reading Primer]
Reading is the cheapest and easiest way to grow your brain.
Cheap because you can get most books at your local library–or at Google Books.
And easy because you can learn about the history of gravity…
The political career of George Washington…
Or Augustine’s view of free will from your favorite reading chair.
That’s why I put such a high premium on reading. And spend a smidgen of time here writing about reading.
With that in mind, here are five posts on how to get the most out of your reading routine.
How to Absorb a Book into Your Bloodstream
One of the most important rules when it comes to reading.
How to Abandon a Book
You probably didn’t know this, but there’s an instinct to abandoning a book. An instinct you can develop.
How Do You Read?
Narrow, wide or something completely different? Share your reading style with me.
How to Read a 291-Page Book in 2 Hours
Want to read more books in less time–and even catch up on the classics you’ve missed? Try chapter pacing.
Drop-Dead Easy Guide on How to Journal
Twenty cool and easy tricks on how to get started with your journal. [A guide for those who don't want to spoil the pages of their books with a pencil.]
Granted, reading alone won’t make you wise. But it’s a start. By the way, do you have any reading tips? Please share.
Want 7 Books and 3 DVDs Free? Here’s How
Update 1.14.09: We’ve got us a winner, folks. Who was it? If you didn’t hear from me, then that means it wasn’t you.
Happy New Year’s Eve, folks…
And thank you for the last 365 days of rabid and roughshod fun!
To celebrate I’m giving away seven books and three DVDs.
To enter the drawing simply drop your name and email address in a little form…
Drawing closes midnight Thursday, January 7, 2010.
What books and DVDs am I giving away? Here’s a quick look.
Dug Down Deep
Josh Harris of I Kissed Dating Goodbye and Boy Meets Girl fame writes an intelligent narrative on classical Christian doctrines. [Note: This book isn't released until January 16, so if you win it, you'll be ahead of the crowd.]
The Mirage of Peace
Former Time magazine journalist for Jerusalem explains the rich social, political and religious history that makes the Middle East so volatile.
Hard to Believe
John MacArthur doing what he does best: shatter contemporary misconceptions about Christianity. This time what it actually means to follow Jesus. Adult diapers not included.
Darwin’s Dilemma
The same team who gave us The Privileged Planet and Unlocking the Mystery of Life are back. This time to demonstrate the bankruptcy of evolution in a documentary that travels around the world.
Open Their Eyes
Quintessential Piper articulates how our evangelistic efforts are actually embedded in the sovereign, persuasive power of God.
Herman Who? Hermeneutics Primer
Wretched Radio star and former comedian Todd Friel is an unlikely hermeneutics hero. But he manages quite well to save the day. His opening demonstration is a must-see.
Free Indeed
Sick of bondage to cigarettes? Sex? Lying? Richard Ganz–former psychologist turned pastor–will show you how to truly break free. Short, systematic chapters make this an easy read.
The Easter Answer
Small-town Wisconsin pastor Stephen Kingsley answers Dan Barker’s notorious “Easter Challenge.” Does he succeed? You decide.
Follow Me to Freedom
This is New Monastic prophet Shane Claiborne’s and African-American civil rights leader John Perkin’s out-of-the-box approach to church leadership. [Warning: I have not read this book.]
Unfashionable
Tullian Tchividjian insists Christians make a difference in the culture. Then he sells you on how to do it. [Note: Cover jacket is wrinkled. Some pages water-stained. I must've had a hole in my chin the day I read this book.]
Enter the drawing now that you know what books and DVDs I’m giving away.
By the way, there’s something you should probably know. The books. I’ve already read them. Yeah. You know what that means…
They are marked up, dog-eared and annotated with my rogue thoughts. In other words, they’ve got character.
Outside of that they’re in great shape. Honest.
One more thing. A handful of gracious people gave some of these items to me. People like Al Hartman. John Payne. Stephen Kingsley. Lynette Kittle. To you I say: Thank you for being so kind to me.
Now, what are you waiting for? Enter the drawing.
How to Read John Piper
Not to minimize the influence of other pastors, but John Piper single-handedly altered my vision from a man-centered gospel to a God-centered one…
And he did this by grabbing my jaw and whipping my head around.
How’d he do that when I never met the man?
That’s the beauty of the written word.
And the beauty of John Piper’s books are that they are easy to read, thought-provoking and…
Free. [Well, most are free.]
There is one problem with John Piper as a writer, though. He’s a madman. Prolific to a fault in the sense you will need to block off at least 42 days to read all 42 books. [That's if you read one book a day.]
Don’t have 42 days? You’re not alone. Fortunately you can get a bead on the man Piper and his theology in about four books. Here are the must-reads:
Desiring God
Hedonism is a dirty word. But not to Piper. Especially when our pleasure and it’s near-savage pursuit is found in God. In fact, Piper argues this is exactly what the Bible teaches as our duty: Maximum delight in glorifying God. He pulls it off, folks.
Finally Alive
A relentless, systematic explanation of what it means to be born again. It’s worth having a copy of this book for the commentary about classic biblical texts on regeneration alone.
God Is the Gospel
When we share the gospel with someone how do we present it? Do we focus on the person or God? And when you think of your own salvation and the gospel…does it motivate you to make much of yourself or God? Getting that answer right is crucial.
Don’t Waste Your Life
Work. Retirement. Health. Sickness. What do these opposing conditions of our lives have in common? They are all opportunities to glorify God. Sound unbelievable? Again, Piper pulls it off.
Disclaimer: I’ve not read all Piper’s books. Just eight. But it doesn’t take long before you see four common themes that run through his books. Here they are:
1. Delight in worshiping God is the highest pleasure we pursue. Desiring God
2. Dependence on Christ alone for salvation. Finally Alive
3. Determined aim to hold God far above all creation–including man. God Is the Gospel
4. Deliberate use of every sphere of our lives–including our suffering–to glorify God. Don’t Waste Your Life
So, what do you think? Am I dead on? Are you a Piper aficionado and find this list wanting? My interpretation lacking?
How many Piper books have you read?
Would you add any books to this list? Take any out? Let me know. I look forward to your thoughts.
How ‘The Shack’ Mocks God’s Holiness
Yes.
I’m picking on my favorite rogue Christian and his wild speculations about God again.
Is it because I’m nothing more than a sadistic blogger?
Curmudgeon? Bored?
Or is it because the love affair with The Shack is a good commentary on our contemporary evangelical environment?
Yes to all the above. [Except the bored part.]
See, The Shack still holds clout with the spiritually curious.
Still creeps up in conversations.
And most of the copies I see of The Shack owned by Christians show considerable more wear than their Bibles.
That’s troubling…
Because The Shack presents a flawed portrait of God–what Albert Mohler calls diluted heresy. Let me who you what I mean.
Write Fiction? You Must Follow These Rules
Believe it or not, when you write fiction, you follow certain rules. Rules that guide the plot, setting and characterization.
Young nails it on plot and setting. It’s that last one–characterization–that he misses, a point Trevin Wax made back in September…
I want to expand on that point. Here’s how it works.
If you’re going to write a novel about 18th century Russian peasants…you better get the characterization of those peasants right.
Nineteenth century mathematicians from Brooklyn? Get them right.
Twentieth century bicyclists training in northern California? Get them right.
The God of the Christian Bible? Get him right.
Get your characterizations wrong and you look like a silly know-nothing. And sadly, that’s exactly what Young did–he got the characterization of God wrong.
Let’s compare Mack’s controversial confrontation with God versus some of the Bible examples of confrontations with God to show you what I mean. I’ll start with the Bible.
Biblical Responses to the Holiness of God
When Adam sinned in the garden, Adam hid from God…
When a sixteen year-old king named Josiah read the long-forgotten law of God, he tore his clothes in grief…
When Job antagonized God about his plight, God rose up and riddled off a litany of questions…questions Job could not answer…
When Isaiah bent before the alter of God he screamed “Woe is me for I am ruined”…
When Peter saw Jesus conquer the storm he was terrified and said, “Who is this that the wind and the sea obey him?”
And when John encountered Jesus in a vision he fell at his feet as though dead.
As you can see, the Bible provides an abundant amount of examples that suggest encountering God is NOT a light affair…
And we haven’t even dealt with the hard texts of the Bible. Let’s do that now.
Compare These Tough Texts to…
In Leviticus 10 Aaron’s priestly sons–Nadab and Abihu–offer the wrong type of sacrifice on the altar…
In 2 Samuel Uzzah and his cohorts carry the ark of God on a cart [against God's prohibition to do such a thing] and when the ark threatens to crash into the mud, Uzzah sticks his hand out to catch it…
In Acts 5 Ananias and Sappira hid away some money they promised to share with the community of Christian believers.
What do all of these encounters share in common? Swift execution for what Jonathan Edwards called the “sins of arrogance.”
Mack’s Encounter with God
When Young’s protagonist Mack encounters God, what does he do? Let’s him have it. Throwing in a few choice words to boot.
Nothing out of the ordinary there. In fact, smells like a sin of arrogance. But it’s what God does in response that makes your jaw drop.
He merely shrugs.
My question to you is this: Why should Mack’s encounter with God be any different? I have a thought.
What’s obvious is that Mack is not in the presence of a being who is far superior to him.
We have no sense of awe for Papa. We don’t revere him.
In fact, the God of Young’s book accommodates us. Makes us feel comfortable –not convicted. He appeals to our native narcissism…
A narcissism our secular AND sacred culture nurtures to no end.
As I said in the Craptastic Book That Won’t Go Away post:
We want God on our terms. We want God to accommodate us. To make us feel welcome. We want him to present himself in a way that we can stomach. To justify our emotions like anger, bitterness and resentment.
But Here’s the Problem
In the end, my beef is not with The Shack. It’s with this: Our human tendency to fashion God into our own image, which is tantamount to tampering with the way God portrays himself…
A God who declares he is ferociously jealous for his name.
So what could Young have done to make me happy [not that he's obligated to make me happy]? Killed Mack on the spot after his fit of foul language.
As I demonstrated above, this would not have been the least bit out of character for God.
Understand: Defamation of God’s character carries strict consequences. A character that is illustrated in a demand for perfect obedience to the law of God.
A demand that you and I cannot satisfy. Only Christ.
And only when we see this full, out-stretched picture of redemption do we realize the depth of our dependence upon Christ and sob in relief at his mercy and then bend over backwards in our proclamation to the lost that it is, in fact, possible to have peace with a holy and just God.
Christmas is looming. Do you have an appropriate concept of God?
Search
Get Updates | Subscribe
Somewhat Essential
Recent Posts
Categories
Archives
