Review of "Jibrayil and the Prophet," short story by Dennis B. Boyer



Summary:
He had long suspected that he was being plagued by demons.

So begins the tale of the man from Mecca, a man unsure of his place in the world. Cast off by family and shunned by members of his own tribe, he longs to find meaning in his tortured existence.

But his grip on reality has been slipping away. The man who has been appearing to him, the one who calls himself Jibrayil, claims to be an angel of God. But this being could just as easily be a demon of Hell. Or even a hallucination created by his own fevered mind. Even more perplexing is Jibrayil’s assertion that he is destined to be the highest prophet of God.

Review:
A compelling but simplistically told story of faith.  Faith, much like politics, has a lot of facets.  It's a hairy combination of culture, experiences, education and personality.  Which is really why I think it's so interesting for people to study.  As much as we would all love to have ONE answer to everything it wouldn't be nearly as much fun to discuss.

This story has an engaging writing style but the plot is spread thin where it should have gone deep.  The scenario of a prophet before he becomes a prophet is a critical and interesting moment.  But instead of really exploring this concept, the plot rushes forward.

Still, it's thought-provoking enough.  Worth checking out if you enjoy religious philosophy.

3/5 stars
Reviewed by Alain Gomez

Buy this story on Amazon.

Comments

  1. steveJanuary 23, 2014 at 4:23 AM

    I love this series! I only wish I knew about it sooner.These books got me into reading

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Review of "Ferryman" by Nigel Edwards

Summary: "A mythology grew up around the Ferrymen, fostered by a mystique which they wrapped around themselves. Some thought them amoral servants of a ruling elite, sanctioned to undertake work beyond legitimate resolution; others with more fanciful imaginations – or who were more devout, depending on your point of view – believed them emissaries of Evil, with a capital E." Could the Ferrymen become real in your lifetime? Should they? Read this thoughtful and disturbing near-future science fiction story and decide for yourself. Review: This was a fantastic short story.  "Well-written" doesn't even begin to describe Ferryman ; it's engrossing.  The simple, clean style perfectly highlights our precise  protagonist.  If this future Edwards presents to us does in fact become a reality, the character he describes is exactly the type of person who would become a Ferryman: highly competent with the hint of a god complex. What's  especially clever abou...
Read more

The Short Story Project

I was introduced to the short story genre in high school and simply fell in love.  It's completely different from reading a novel.  A novel is a lengthy involvement.  Character development and plot must transport you into the author's world as the story gradually unfolds. Short stories are distinct experience.  A good short story writer will make you care about the outcome of the characters even though you may not necessarily know anything about them.  It is a complete experience in one sitting; not too unlike reading a poem.  You read the short story/poem for itself and not for the hope that it will drag out for 800 pages and then maybe have a sequel. The short story genre has become a lost art.  When newspapers were at their height, a writer could make a name for himself by publishing a short piece of fiction every week.  Charles Dickens is a perfect example of this.  Since then, the literary world changed.  You have to have an age...
Read more

Interview with Author Hugh Howey

Welcome to Book Brouhaha! Why don't you start out by introducing yourself and telling us a little about "Wool." Thanks for having me, Alain! I suppose I'm just this normal guy who just wrote a little story called Wool. It's about a group of people who live underground. When their society turns on itself, it threatens all of mankind. In a way, it poses the conundrum of every revolution: How do you destroy an unjust social structure without the collateral damage being worse than the injustices were? I suppose the most interesting thing about me, personally, is that I lived on a sailboat while I was in college. This led to a career as a yacht captain, which sent me all over the Caribbean and the East Coast. I didn't start writing in earnest until my wife dragged me away from the sea and into the mountains. I've always loved the short form. I've been told that it isn't as marketable, even though science fiction has a long and glorious history of c...
Read more