Skip to content ↓

Book Review – River Rising

Book Reviews Collection cover image

Because I review primarily non-fiction I find myself inequipped and lacking confidence in my ability to review fiction. Fiction, after all, is far more subjective than non-fiction. Where a book about doctrine is either right or wrong when measured by the standard of Scripture, a novel can appeal to one person and have no appeal to another. I prefer to deal with hard facts than the intangibles of fiction!

Still, at times I enjoy reading fiction and find it a nice break from what I usually read. I recently read an advance copy of River Rising by Athol Dickson, a novel due for publication in January of 2006. Set in Pilotville, Louisiana in 1927, the subject of the story is Hale Poser, a stranger who has come to the town looking for his roots. He is a timid, humble man, but one who knows the Lord and is always ready to challenge others to know Him better. I will say little of the plot lest I say too much. It is something of an intricate plot and could be easily ruined.

This book gripped me, not even so much because of the story, but because of the atmosphere. The town of Pilotville seems strangely utopic, yet only on the surface. Blacks and whites cohabit the town in relative peace and with some semblance of equality, yet the reader is led to feel that all is not quite right. And indeed, it is not. The author is able to paint a picture of the town in a beautiful, haunting way. Once I began the book I wanted, or even needed, to keep turning the pages.

This is a book that my wife and I both read and we enjoyed it equally. I am glad to recommend it, but, as is the nature of fiction, your mileage may vary!


  • A La Carte Thursday 1

    A La Carte (April 17)

    A La Carte: The vibe shift / The Jurassic Park principle of Christian freedom / This is what power looks like / Don’t stay in the puddles / The awkwardness of Easter / Kindle deals / and more.

  • Airliner

    They Won’t Because They Can’t

    If you’ve flown recently, you have probably made the same observation I have: No one pays attention to the pre-flight safety videos. There may be the occasional uptick in interest after a well-publicized crash or near-disaster, but soon old habits return—people stuff their AirPods into their ears and stare at their phones rather than watch…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (April 16)

    A La Carte: Joy and weeping / Sullivan’s kidnapping / The sin of Sodom / John Piper’s retirement plan / Eagles, fowl, and a Savior with wings / Kindle and book deals / and more.

  • CFL

    Christ for a Cruel World

    This sponsored post is provided by Caring for Life—a ministry that takes the Gospel to those who live on the margins of society and who struggle to cope in a cruel and unloving world. They seek to rescue damaged and vulnerable men and women, many who have been homeless or suffered abuse. They seek to…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (April 15)

    A La Carte: The rotten fruit of Obergefell / The church and the embryo / African Christian authors and publications / Redeeming the time / When a good thing turns deadly / Kindle deals / and more.

  • Men in the Image of Women and Women in the Image of Men

    Men in the Image of Women and Women in the Image of Men

    God made men and God made women. God made men distinct from women and women distinct from men. God made men and women equal in worth and value while also making them distinct in some purpose and function. It’s all obvious stuff, this—obvious matters of differences between the sexes.