Homeless Like Me
The premise of this book is something I have thought about doing as a writer, myself. I am by no means a wealthy man now, but there was a time when all I built up just was wised away and I wondered about researching the homeless plight and try to get into their heads and figure out what drove them to such depths.In my younger years, when I had not yet met the many rigors of adulthood, I thought all homeless people were mentally ill and worthless. I know, that's pretty harsh and, it was not until I faced the ruin of what I had worked for that understood that most of us are but a few missing paychecks out of the homeless shelter. So, my outlook widened and my mercy grew and I understood that so many made a decision, one day that they had bucked up against the system long enough and scre
w it all! I saw that and made a conscious decision to fight back and never give up my dreams. So, it seems is Brian, the main character of the novel, Homeless Like Me by Donald James Parker.I hope you will read the description below of this fine novel. I think of the words of the Psalm of David, King of Israel "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there."
(Psalm 139 verse 8)
Wherever we go, God is there, and He is not silent. This book very profoundly demonstrates God's care in the deepest and most entrenched broken lives. You should read it. It will speak to you.
Steven Clark Bradley Author of Patriot Acts Nimrod Rising StillBorn!
Probable Cause
Brian has a dream of writing the great American novel. He knows that without a gimmick to set him apart from the rest of the pack, he'll never succeed. From reading Black Like Me, he gets the idea to masquerade as a homeless man to get the material to write the saga of those suffering from poverty. During his first visit to the local homeless shelter to gather facts, he is accosted by Zeke, one of the subjects of his research.
In order to save his skin, Brian spills his guts to the huge black man. After hearing the story, Zeke sees value in the project for his homeless brethren, and pledges to help the wannabe paperback writer. Also on his first visit, a vision of loveliness, aptly named Angel, takes away Brian's breath and subsequently his heart. She turns out to be a fanatical Christian who is waiting for God to reveal the identity of her future husband. Brian decides to write a novel and make Angel the heroine hoping to win her heart in the process.
In order to save his skin, Brian spills his guts to the huge black man. After hearing the story, Zeke sees value in the project for his homeless brethren, and pledges to help the wannabe paperback writer. Also on his first visit, a vision of loveliness, aptly named Angel, takes away Brian's breath and subsequently his heart. She turns out to be a fanatical Christian who is waiting for God to reveal the identity of her future husband. Brian decides to write a novel and make Angel the heroine hoping to win her heart in the process.
About The Author
Don is a 1968 graduate of Madison Central High School in Madison, South Dakota. He graduated from Dakota State University in Madison in 1972 with a degree in secondary education. After moving to Washington State in 1981, Don studied computer programming and turned his writing efforts to software. After twenty-five years of IT work, Don's passion for writing flared up again, and the doctors couldn't do anything to cure it. The outcome is a five book series involving two generations of the Masterson family and four stand alone novels to date. The main focus of his work involves entertaining while educating through the struggle of his characters to find truth. Rather than avoiding controversial subjects, Parker seeks out to shine a spotlight on issues of life which cause conflict.
What Do Readers Think?
A Compelling Read From Beginning To End, November 29, 2009
by Apex Reviews (Durham, NC USA)
by Apex Reviews (Durham, NC USA)
In his efforts to write the Great American Novel, Brian comes up with an ingenious idea: in order to depict the plights of homeless people struggling against poverty, he decides to masquerade as a homeless man. That way, his story will not only be convincing, it will also be based on the genuine, authentic experience of being homeless. As his journey unfolds, though, something quite unexpected happens to Brian: he falls for Angel, a vision of pure loveliness with a heart as big as the Grand Canyon. The only problem: Angel is an impassioned Christian soldier determined not to marry until God delivers her husband to her - whereas Brian has no use for religion at all. As his literary efforts evolve in an effort to win Angel's heart, Brian is little prepared for the ways in which he himself will actually be changed when all is said and done...
Homeless Like Me courageously exposes the reader to one of the more often ignored aspects of the human experience. Deriving its name from a play on the title of the familiar work Black Like Me, author Donald James Parker's insightful tale chronicles a similar journey through the good, bad, and ugly experiences of a particular subset of the greater population. Without falling into hyperbole or exaggeration, Homeless Like Me provides the reader with invaluable insight into how devastating homelessness can be - as well as just how easily it can happen to anyone, regardless of the stability of your current situation. Despite the heaviness of the subject, though, Parker's trademark humor adds just the right touch of levity, providing an effective counterbalance to what could be a decidedly difficult subject to explore.
A compelling read from beginning to end, Homeless Like Me is recommended reading for anyone unfamiliar with the specific trials and tribulations that accompany life as a homeless person. Sure to inspire an increased appreciation for the plights of people from all walks of life.
Homeless Like Me courageously exposes the reader to one of the more often ignored aspects of the human experience. Deriving its name from a play on the title of the familiar work Black Like Me, author Donald James Parker's insightful tale chronicles a similar journey through the good, bad, and ugly experiences of a particular subset of the greater population. Without falling into hyperbole or exaggeration, Homeless Like Me provides the reader with invaluable insight into how devastating homelessness can be - as well as just how easily it can happen to anyone, regardless of the stability of your current situation. Despite the heaviness of the subject, though, Parker's trademark humor adds just the right touch of levity, providing an effective counterbalance to what could be a decidedly difficult subject to explore.
A compelling read from beginning to end, Homeless Like Me is recommended reading for anyone unfamiliar with the specific trials and tribulations that accompany life as a homeless person. Sure to inspire an increased appreciation for the plights of people from all walks of life.
Latonya Franklin Apex Reviews Homeless like me: A review, October 31, 2009 by A. Liu "Artimus"
Homeless Like Me is a novel/e-book published by Sword of the Spirit Publications, a small Christian publishing house set up by the author and a few others interested in spreading the word of God. I was approached by Donald through Book Blogs and invited to review one of his books.
Homeless Like Me has taken inspiration from the international bestseller Black Like Me, written by John Howard Griffin, a white man who posed as an African American for six weeks travelling through the more racially segregated areas of America in the late 1950's.
Although Homeless has taken its cue from Black Like Me, it has gone off on a very different pathway. Brian, the protagonist, is a guy interested in making a quick fortune by writing a book about what it is like to be homeless. As part of his research he visits the local homeless shelter posing as one of those down on their luck but things get hairy when he is busted by Zeke, a big bear-like man who doesn't take kindly to Brian's covert mission. However, they soon find that each has something that the other needs and an uneasy friendship is formed and their journey takes them to some very unexpected places, both physically and metaphysically.
This book contains a lot of different strong themes: homelessness, homosexuality, Christianity and the global economic crisis - which makes the 200 odd pages seem very crowded and a little confused in places. In the first half of the book, I felt that the narrative relied too heavily on character dialogue, mainly between Brian and Zeke, but the flow improved greatly in the second half.
As readers, we join Brian and Zeke, two non-believers as they struggle with their skepticism about God and religion in general. The spiritual struggle that they go through, Brian's in particular, was very effective and realistically mirrors a lot of people's internal conflict about God. With the help of Brian's love interest Angel and the perceptive Soaring Eagle, Brian and Zeke eventually resolve their own struggles and take on the struggles of others.
Being not of the Christian faith myself, I have to admit that at times I found this a highly challenging read. The evangelical religious content of this book is very clear and holds no punches - something not often found on the bookshelves of your local bookstore.
The mission of Sword of the Spirit publications is, according to their website: to distribute uplifting, inspirational, exhortational and challenging literature, both fiction and nonfiction, that will help non-believers understand and embrace Jesus and solidify the faith of the believers and aid them in the quest to live a Godly lifestyle.
Homeless Like Me has taken inspiration from the international bestseller Black Like Me, written by John Howard Griffin, a white man who posed as an African American for six weeks travelling through the more racially segregated areas of America in the late 1950's.
Although Homeless has taken its cue from Black Like Me, it has gone off on a very different pathway. Brian, the protagonist, is a guy interested in making a quick fortune by writing a book about what it is like to be homeless. As part of his research he visits the local homeless shelter posing as one of those down on their luck but things get hairy when he is busted by Zeke, a big bear-like man who doesn't take kindly to Brian's covert mission. However, they soon find that each has something that the other needs and an uneasy friendship is formed and their journey takes them to some very unexpected places, both physically and metaphysically.
This book contains a lot of different strong themes: homelessness, homosexuality, Christianity and the global economic crisis - which makes the 200 odd pages seem very crowded and a little confused in places. In the first half of the book, I felt that the narrative relied too heavily on character dialogue, mainly between Brian and Zeke, but the flow improved greatly in the second half.
As readers, we join Brian and Zeke, two non-believers as they struggle with their skepticism about God and religion in general. The spiritual struggle that they go through, Brian's in particular, was very effective and realistically mirrors a lot of people's internal conflict about God. With the help of Brian's love interest Angel and the perceptive Soaring Eagle, Brian and Zeke eventually resolve their own struggles and take on the struggles of others.
Being not of the Christian faith myself, I have to admit that at times I found this a highly challenging read. The evangelical religious content of this book is very clear and holds no punches - something not often found on the bookshelves of your local bookstore.
The mission of Sword of the Spirit publications is, according to their website: to distribute uplifting, inspirational, exhortational and challenging literature, both fiction and nonfiction, that will help non-believers understand and embrace Jesus and solidify the faith of the believers and aid them in the quest to live a Godly lifestyle.
I think this book meets that mission with (spiritual) guns blazing through this interesting and compelling story.
Written by Kathryn Liu http://kathmeista.blogspot.com
Get your copy of
Homeless Like Me Here
At Amazon.com
Homeless Like Me Here
At Amazon.com
At Barnes and Noble.com
Homeless Like Me @ Barnes and Noble
Go To
To Learn More About
Author Donald Parker
And His Writing
Here are a few of
Donald James Parker's Other Books
Cheri is an innocent fourteen-year-old raised in a small town in Nebraska. Her father lands a promotion, demoting her to a status of 'nobody' in a much larger and inhospitable city. One of the few people she connects with in her new school spills the beans that Cheri is still a virgin. Some of her cool schoolmates exert pressure on her to unbuckle the chastity belt. Faced with the loneliness of the new environment and coupled with relationship problems with her father, Cheri finds the temptation growing strong. When her father recruits a sixty-something babysitter, she is ready to rebel. However, she finds that Jean Macalester is no ordinary woman. Jean's womanly wisdom, background as a flute teacher, and love of God provide a counterweight to the peer pressure of Judy Green, the girl who goes on a crusade to convert Cheri to modern morality. When Cheri and Duke Williams, Cheri's new crush, discover the church youth group plans a chastity pledge, they have to decide whether to join or fly solo.
LOVE BECOMES A REAL SCIENCE For Jeremy, a high school senior growing up near Seattle, there are five seasons: rainy, dry, football, basketball, and baseball season. Jeremy`s world has always revolved around his father and sports. Now there is a new Heavenly body in town whose gravity is pulling Jeremy away from the orbit around his dad. Maria Masterson, the new girl in school, is on a mission to make her voice heard in the debate over the theory that man evolved from lower life forms. Jeremy`s father adamantly believes in Charles Darwin`s theory. Who will win the tug of war over Jeremy`s heart and mind?
Jeremy has studied the theory of evolution and its inherent weaknesses. His conclusion is that the world itself is a testimony to the existence of a creator. He decides to throw himself into studying religion to find out if he can determine who that creator might be and what such a powerful entity desires of him. His motivation is strong due to his love for Maria, who introduced him to Christianity, but Jeremy won't sacrifice truth even for the love of his life. He must find satisfactory answers to all of his inquiries, in order to pave the way to a mutually dedicated relationship based on common ideals.
Maria Masterson and Jeremy Dillon are innocent kids whose world is altered drastically. Their decision to engage the culture they live in and battle for truth in the debate concerning the creation of the Universe and mankind leads them into conflicts in which their adversaries do not always fight by Queensberry rules. A reminder that Christians are to overcome evil with good halts them in their tracks in an attempt to fight back with similar methods. Their only weapon is the Sword of the Spirit of Truth. Their dexterity in the use of this weapon increases as the two are pulled into a battle that they can't win in their own power. This novel could serve as a primer on how to stand tall in a world that wants any person of faith in their Creator to lay low. This book presents intellectual and moral handholds and toeholds for those not afraid to do some spiritual rock climbing.
The saga of Bambi continues as the young basketball player steps up to the college level. Later, the end of his scholastic days brings new changes and challenges as he enters the playing court of adult life. He discovers his enthusiasm, energy, and talent aren't always enough to win this game. A new friend introduces him to the Evolution debate, and Bambi begins a new chapter in his life as he becomes a truth seeker. Track and cross country are featured through the exploits of a delightful new character named Maria.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Where is Patriot Acts available?
it is entertainment or the irrational rambling of a scared
American. I am not afraid; I am convinced that no one
will secure our future except us.
That is why I declare the main theme of Patriot Acts
in one key phrase:
Go To
To Learn More About
Author Donald Parker
And His Writing
Here are a few of
Donald James Parker's Other Books
Cheri is an innocent fourteen-year-old raised in a small town in Nebraska. Her father lands a promotion, demoting her to a status of 'nobody' in a much larger and inhospitable city. One of the few people she connects with in her new school spills the beans that Cheri is still a virgin. Some of her cool schoolmates exert pressure on her to unbuckle the chastity belt. Faced with the loneliness of the new environment and coupled with relationship problems with her father, Cheri finds the temptation growing strong. When her father recruits a sixty-something babysitter, she is ready to rebel. However, she finds that Jean Macalester is no ordinary woman. Jean's womanly wisdom, background as a flute teacher, and love of God provide a counterweight to the peer pressure of Judy Green, the girl who goes on a crusade to convert Cheri to modern morality. When Cheri and Duke Williams, Cheri's new crush, discover the church youth group plans a chastity pledge, they have to decide whether to join or fly solo.LOVE BECOMES A REAL SCIENCE For Jeremy, a high school senior growing up near Seattle, there are five seasons: rainy, dry, football, basketball, and baseball season. Jeremy`s world has always revolved around his father and sports. Now there is a new Heavenly body in town whose gravity is pulling Jeremy away from the orbit around his dad. Maria Masterson, the new girl in school, is on a mission to make her voice heard in the debate over the theory that man evolved from lower life forms. Jeremy`s father adamantly believes in Charles Darwin`s theory. Who will win the tug of war over Jeremy`s heart and mind?Jeremy has studied the theory of evolution and its inherent weaknesses. His conclusion is that the world itself is a testimony to the existence of a creator. He decides to throw himself into studying religion to find out if he can determine who that creator might be and what such a powerful entity desires of him. His motivation is strong due to his love for Maria, who introduced him to Christianity, but Jeremy won't sacrifice truth even for the love of his life. He must find satisfactory answers to all of his inquiries, in order to pave the way to a mutually dedicated relationship based on common ideals.Maria Masterson and Jeremy Dillon are innocent kids whose world is altered drastically. Their decision to engage the culture they live in and battle for truth in the debate concerning the creation of the Universe and mankind leads them into conflicts in which their adversaries do not always fight by Queensberry rules. A reminder that Christians are to overcome evil with good halts them in their tracks in an attempt to fight back with similar methods. Their only weapon is the Sword of the Spirit of Truth. Their dexterity in the use of this weapon increases as the two are pulled into a battle that they can't win in their own power. This novel could serve as a primer on how to stand tall in a world that wants any person of faith in their Creator to lay low. This book presents intellectual and moral handholds and toeholds for those not afraid to do some spiritual rock climbing.The saga of Bambi continues as the young basketball player steps up to the college level. Later, the end of his scholastic days brings new changes and challenges as he enters the playing court of adult life. He discovers his enthusiasm, energy, and talent aren't always enough to win this game. A new friend introduces him to the Evolution debate, and Bambi begins a new chapter in his life as he becomes a truth seeker. Track and cross country are featured through the exploits of a delightful new character named Maria.Patriot Acts by Steven Clark Bradley
Where is Patriot Acts available?This new exciting novel is easy to find and available all over the net. Here are a few links to help you secure you own copy of Patriot Acts.
Patriot Acts (Print Version) at Amazon,com
Patriot Acts (Print Version) at Cambridge Books
Patriot Acts (Electronic Version) at Ebooks on the net
Patriot Acts (Electronic Version) at Amazon.com
Patriot Acts (Electronic Version) at Fictionwise.com
Patriot Acts (Electronic Version) at Mobipocket.com
it is entertainment or the irrational rambling of a scared
American. I am not afraid; I am convinced that no one
will secure our future except us.
That is why I declare the main theme of Patriot Acts
in one key phrase:
No unconditional Talks
Just patriot Acts!
Just patriot Acts!
You can read more of
Steven Clark Bradley's
work at any of these blogs
listed below:
Steven Clark Bradley's
work at any of these blogs
listed below:
Author Steven Clark Bradley
From The Mind of Steven Clark Bradley
Steven Clark Bradley @ Inspired Author
Steven Clark Bradley - Nikki Leigh Virtual Book Tours
Steven Clark Bradley @ The Power of The Written Word
Steven Clark Bradley @ Communati.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Blogtalk Radio.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Facebook
Steven Clark Bradley @ Twitter.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Xanga.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Amazon.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ yuku.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Bookmarket.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Published Authors.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Word That Work
Steven Clark Bradley @ Goodreads.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Myspace.com
From The Mind of Steven Clark Bradley
Steven Clark Bradley @ Inspired Author
Steven Clark Bradley - Nikki Leigh Virtual Book Tours
Steven Clark Bradley @ The Power of The Written Word
Steven Clark Bradley @ Communati.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Blogtalk Radio.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Facebook
Steven Clark Bradley @ Twitter.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Xanga.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Amazon.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ yuku.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Bookmarket.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Published Authors.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Word That Work
Steven Clark Bradley @ Goodreads.com
Steven Clark Bradley @ Myspace.com
