Review of When Life Doesn't Turn Out the Way We Hoped It Would? Volume 1

[Kayla Archer]

[Following is a volunteer review of "When Life Doesn't Turn Out the Way We Hoped It Would? Volume 1" by Tom Wick.]

---

2 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

When Life Doesn’t Turn Out the Way We’d Hoped It Would: Volume One by Tom Wick is an autobiographical account of Wick’s first twenty years of life. In those twenty years he experienced sexual and verbal abuse, addiction to drugs and alcohol, and traumatic experiences that eventually steered him to salvation in Christ. His purpose for writing this story is to “encourage you to press on, prompt you to face your demons and address your issues, and compel you to love and embrace yourself as . . . you are'' (Wick 3).

Wick’s account begins as far back as the Vikings so that he can establish where his inherited character traits are born. Then he introduces many family members and discusses his love or hatred toward each one. Wick grew up in a dysfunctional home with constant turmoil and strife. His father was an alcoholic who forced his mother into divorce. His siblings were malicious and vengeful toward Wick, introducing him to drugs and sexual abuse. At a premature age, he experienced all kinds of erotic encounters.

Wick describes his adolescence as getting high whenever possible to escape his dysfunctional life. Once his parents divorced, his mother worked and transported them around the country to live with extended family. Here he was introduced to masturbation and struggled with guilt and shame. The constant moving and the shame he felt created feelings of loneliness and anger. Drugs and alcohol comforted him. He eventually dropped out of high school because of an emotional breakdown and spent time in juvenile hall. One of Wick’s darkest times is when his father is diagnosed with cancer and ultimately dies.

When he is qualified, Wick joins the US Navy in order to see different countries, have sex with as many women as possible, drink alcohol, smoke pot, and avoid land combat (Wick 176). It is in this section Wick shares how his out-of-control behaviors land him in trouble.

This story represents the author’s reflection on his circumstances before he became a Christian. It's graphic and disturbing much of the time, as it shares details of sexual encounters, drug usage, brutal beatings, and rape. This piece initially began as an outline for Wick’s fourth step for Alcoholics Anonymous. One can assume he decided to publish his story to encourage readers in their struggles.

I found this story frustrating, disturbing, and fascinating. First, Wick invests time discussing his family, specifically his mother and father. He possesses a deep love for his father and can detect no fault in him, yet his mother is a nagging woman who drove his father to become an alcoholic and abusive husband. This exasperated me to see how his single woman worked to provide for and help protect Wick, but he could merely see it from a child’s point of view. He claims he has forgiven past offenses but constantly goes on a rant of hatred and has to backpedal to his ‘forgiveness’ again throughout the pages.

Second, Wick’s descriptions of his drug use and his sexual encounters made me believe he was bragging about his life before Christ. He would insert “LOL” or little sayings he thought were humorous about an unfortunate situation, but then claim God’s grace and mercy and how thankful he is for God. Some of the encounters he included could have been omitted because they served little or no relevance. At times this reads as a glorified journal instead of an inspiring tale. His description of fights and the rape he encountered were difficult to digest because they were extremely graphic.

Yet, a part of me wants to read the second installment and see if he did get his life together, or if he’s composing this from prison. It is written well for an outline, but there are several redundancies and grammatical issues. There’s also much profanity. For this, I give this book 2 out of 4 stars. At times I didn’t want to continue, but once I did, I was curious to know the rest of the story.

Part of me recommends this story to those who struggle with addiction, but I caution the reader: this book is rated R – for mature audiences only! Those who want to hear an inspiring story of coming to faith in Christ could enjoy this, but again with caution. Anyone who has undergone a troublesome time can refer to this and find a glimmer of hope.

******
When Life Doesn't Turn Out the Way We Hoped It Would? Volume 1
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[WriteOn]

At times this reads as a glorified journal instead of an inspiring tale. His description of fights and the rape he encountered were difficult to digest because they were extremely graphic.

Hmm, some aspects of the book do look gratuitous, and I'm sorry to see the author may still lack insight in to his mother's situation. Considering the many years of disadvantages and self destructive coping mechanisms he has experienced, maybe his enlightenment is still at the 'work in progress' stage.
That seems like a challenging and disturbing read but I think you've given a well considered opinion of the book. Thanks for this great review Kayla Archer, I appreciate how informative and honest it is.