1 out of 4 stars
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Living on Prayer the Meek Inherit the Earth was written by Don Sutherland. It was formatted by Donna Ohs. The genre of the book is historical fiction. It is a very short story that can be read in one sitting. It contains ten chapters.
Don had just finished his seven-year sentence for armed robbery. He is released from prison on the day the story begins. However, he is to begin a two and a half year parole sentence on the top of the seven years. Don is very desperate. He is looking for anyone to call a friend. On the seventh day of his search, he decides to pray to God for help to find a friend. On the following day, he meets Donna. Don and Donna become intimate friends. They have to endure several struggles like homelessness together. Although Don is arrested several times for abusing drugs, Donna persists in being faithful to him.
The main theme in the book is homelessness. However, there are other themes such as love, drug addiction and its effects, religion, child neglect, poor parenting and the effect of dysfunctional families on children. Don was abandoned by his mother when he was seven-years-old. Furthermore, his mother sold a piece of land that his grandfather had given him for five hundred thousand dollars and kept the money. As a result, Don was so devastated that he ended up abusing drugs. This led to other criminal activities like armed robbery that eventually led to his imprisonment.
The book is written in a simple language. However, there are many typos in the book. Almost every page is filled with grammatical mistakes. These errors were a big distraction to the flow of the story. These errors are easily noticeable. It is apparent the editing of the book was done poorly. The shifts in the points of view was also inconsistent. The narration began with the third person point of view. However, before long, it shifted to the first person. What made it weird was that the in some scenarios, the narrator was distinct from the main character and in some the narrator was Don, the main character.
What I liked most about the book was the passion of Don in addressing homelessness and the role of the government in dealing with it. The fact that people pay taxes and some continue to be homeless disturbs Don a lot. As a result, Don dislikes the government. What I liked least was Don’s religious life. He calls himself the right-hand man of God. However, he still abuses drugs. He is also able to converse with the Devil by calling him in his mind. He is ready to do business with the devil by allowing him to take souls of those he thinks of. These will include those who give him no response when he approaches them.
The plot was fairly developed. The characters were not fully built. It was a relief that the book was short. I rate it 1 out of 4 stars. Another round of editing will be of great importance. Additionally, the book also does not fit in the historical genre as stated. It could be placed in the genre of other fiction. I do not recommend anyone to read this book in its current state.
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Living on a prayer the meek inherit the earth
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