Review by lelekaz -- The Bell Maker by Chris Bowen

[lelekaz]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Bell Maker" by Chris Bowen.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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God bestowed upon children so many gifts and talents. He granted them purity, imagination, faith, and originality, offering each child so much promise for their future to come. When these kids grew up, society molded them into “adults”. Habits, stress, and pressure shaped these people, causing them to lose sight of their purpose in life. The unnamed main character in The Bell Maker: A Seeker's Journey by Chris Bowen experienced just that. His life got carried away into the tornado of adulthood where he focused less on his calling and more on how he could live the perfect life set up by society. One letter from his late grandfather changed everything. He found out the secrets that his cooky and mysterious grandfather withheld that unlocked so many of life’s unanswered questions. Slowly but surely, the main character underwent an adventure that involved religion, nirvana, belief, and trust, transforming him into a new person.

The story altogether seemed to have been edited very well. Although some minor errors occurred here and there in terms of quotation marks, they did not not detract from the quality of the story. For the most part, the sentences had extremely good flow and the grammar and punctuation looked satisfactory.

The book contained no vulgar words in the story except one where the author used “ass”. Specifically, in the story it said “But, my ass has lost its cushion over the years, so I do need the couch” (Bowen 14). This demonstrated that the author did not use the word in a derogatory way. In essence, Bowen made the story pretty appropriate for readers of any age. The story also did not have any erotic moments whatsoever, additionally adding to appropriateness of the novel.

Since the story did not focus on vulgarities or erotica, the novel could be read by the general public, including young and adult audiences. In terms of interest, people that appeal to Christianity, spirituality, nature, and philosophy would enjoy the story the most since those themes pop up frequently. In other words, one would have to keep an open mind when reading the story to really understand and appreciate it.

The story had so many excellent attributes that made the story worth reading. First off, the messages within the book amazed me; the story taught about peace, serenity, and finding one’s purpose in life. Moreover, it also taught about moral corruption and the consequences of being constantly distracted. Secondly, there were some real eye opening quotes dotted throughout the book. In fact, I wrote down many in my journal to remember all of Bowen’s lessons. For instance, “Wisdom unused, wisdom untested, isn’t wisdom at all. It is just information passing by” (Bowen 7). This quote hit deeply in the sense that in order to keep wisdom, one would need to practice it and put it to use, rather than let it be forgotten. Finally, the amount of imagery and figurative language used in the book really took it to another level, making readers visualize his every thought.

One thing I did not particularly like as much was the beginning, specifically the first chapter. It became a little bit repetitive trying to demonstrate the main character’s insanity or disbelief about his current situation. The author could have cut the chapter shorter, or even eliminated the first chapter altogether since no critical details existed there.

I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. Overall, the plot pulled me in and taught me lessons to take as I live my life. Additionally, the story had been a quick and enjoyable read. Despite some of its very minor flaws, it turned out to be a well-written book that I would definitely recommend to other people.

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The Bell Maker
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