Along his journey, the traveler meets two other characters, a crusty old mentor and a very appealing figure who offers advice and leadership (but proves to be a deceiving shape shifter). --A powerful encouragement for believers and an inescapably provacative encounter for those who are searching. Also includes black and white illustrations.

A Journey He Couldn’t Miss… and a Step He Couldn’t Take

He found himself a traveler in the strangest of lands. Where invisible secrets come starkly into sight. Where the fairest of companions leads the way into unsuspected danger and darkness. Where hidden battles burst into the open. Where so much is grasped…and so much more seems unattainable.
   Driven by a yearning he doesn’t understand, compelled toward a destination he can’t quite see, the traveler navigates the inhospitable landscape with determination and a flicker of something like hope—despite the obstacles that seem to unerringly block his path.
   Best-selling novelist Randy Alcorn weaves a supernatural interplay of wills and motives, lusts and longings, love and sacrifice. It’s a potent mix that leaves every reader wondering: Do I really understand this world I live in? Do I really understand myself? Is there more to all this than I’ve ever dared hope?

INCLUDES 12 ORIGINAL ILLUSTRATIONS

Randy Alcorn is the bestselling author of Heaven, with more than 500,000 copies sold. As a fiction writer, his novels include Deadline, Dominion, Deception, Edge of Eternity, Lord Foulgrin’s Letters, The Ishbane Conspiracy, and the Gold Medallion winner Safely Home. He has written numerous nonfiction books as well, including The Treasure Principle, The Purity Principle, and The Grace and Truth Paradox. A former pastor, Randy is the founder and director of Eternal Perspectives Ministries. He and his wife, Nanci, live in Oregon and have two married daughters and four grandsons.

The Chasm by Randy Alcorn is an allegory about the road to salvation. One day Nick Seagrave, a normal guy, finds himself in an alternate reality -- or is it reality? He has to reach the City of Light, but there is a giant chasm separating him from it. Readers empathize with Nick as he goes through many plights common to us all in his journey.

The Chasm is a fast-paced and easy story to read. The book is driven by the plot rather than by the character and the relationships he forms; it is a narrative of Nick’s thoughts, but the lessons come from his decisions and actions. Right after the character representing Jesus gives his life, the most powerful part in the book is when he explains why he died for Nick. It shows the sacrifice of God in a new light.

Nick Seagrave wants to get to the City of Light, but doesn't know how to get there because of the vast chasm that separates him from the city. Many paths lead to the city, but Nick isn’t sure which one to follow because they all look promising. After choosing the wrong path and getting injured along the way, Nick finally finds the right path.

Nick's personality is not developed in depth. His past is mentioned, but the majority of the story is about Nick facing problems and learning to deal with hate, love, envy, loss, anger, and other human emotions and challenges. There are a handful of secondary characters, but none who are prominent; they are used more as devices to help Nick find the right path.

The Chasm has a satisfying finish. Although it is not the equivalent of such allegorical classics as Pilgrim’s Progress or Vanity Fair, it will cause readers to have moments of self-examination. The Chasm is a readable book for all ages and for seekers as well as seasoned Christians. – Ben Schmitt, www.ChristianBookPreviews.com

Alcorn offers a companion to his novel, Edge of Eternity, in this Pilgrim's Progress–style allegory about a man who comes to see his own wasted life through a series of misadventures, battles, and sins. These lead him to a chasm he cannot cross without the help of trusted--should he trust them?--guides, most importantly a Christ figure, the Woodsman, and a tempter, Joshua. The end is not utopia, but a life with unexpected joys and faithful companions. For those who appreciate allegory, Alcorn's fills the bill even as it also includes the realities of contemporary life: "I gazed into the emptiness of my daughter's eyes. I started pushing and shoving. I wanted to kill the men who lusted after her--vile men whose daughters I lusted after." Nothing here tops classic Christian allegories, but noteworthy is a "new creation" view of afterlife: "You will live on a new earth--the old earth made new.... I came not to destroy but to redeem my fallen creation." (Feb.) Copyright 2011 Reed Business Information.

http://www.christianbook.com/the-chasm-randy-alcorn/9781601423399/pd/423399

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