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1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
A stunning, original, "Parallel Lives" Dec 14, 2008
By B. Creed
Morgan Ibarra's Scamming God makes the "war on Christmas" seem like a stroll in the park. It ignores the old, conventional attacks on Jesus to embark on a new, nuclear-level analysis. It's a novel that could have been written by the anti-Christ, but its deconstruction of gospel rhetoric clearly shows that there is and will be no such epitome of evil.
The novel's development begins so gently (the story of a lonely New Jersey girl) and powerfully that it seems it will never reach the above conclusions, then closes with a flash--a rush that that leaves the reader bewildered, doubting and sure to go back over the incredible experience--based on a true story--of this novel. In merely three hundred six pages, this is an experience-based understanding of a very human Jesus and one that overturns nearly two thousand years of thoroughly confused dogma.
Although its author clearly disagrees with Frederick Nietzsche, this novel is an illustration of the German thinker's law of eternal return, wherein a petty check-kiting con man becomes the prism through which Jesus can be deconstructed, understood through his rhetoric and, once the con man becomes a celebrated financier, Max Weber's classic analysis of charisma.
This is a straightforward account of a young, vulnerable woman's involvement with this older man, her coming-of-age story. She looks for intelligence in men--but needs experience, much of it heart-rending--to make her a whole woman. It is the novel that answers why Da Vinci and Dostoyevsky kept pointing to the Gospel of John as the key to understanding Jesus. Ibarra believes in change; his story is a celebration of what people can become. It's more than just a story that shows how behind the market meltdown there's a distinct mentality; it is an intellectually revolutionary work--a cultural game-changer.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Superb and Timely Allegory Nov 03, 2008
By Edgar Milford
This is a riveting story about the nature of Evil and Good. Almost too strange until the reader realizes that this must be based on true events. The book evokes the most basic emotions and thoughts of fear, anger, desire, empathy, and horror. The events in the book appear, at first, to be quite alien to the average reader, providing them with what appears to be a safe and vicarious window into nether worlds of the psyche. Yet the reader is unwittingly forced into deep reflection about their own morality and the blind eye which society has for both individual and institutional sociopathic behavior. This book is so very timely in the context of a world in which personal and corporate greed has evolved into something which we not only tolerate but encourage. Even the heroine of the story give us pause. She is no Mother Theresa!! A "Must Read".
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
SCAMMING GOD DELIVERS Jul 25, 2008
By Steven D. Wexler
SCAMMING GOD delivers on its promise. A young, vulnerable woman gets knocked up by a con man, a charismatic criminal, then gets even, pulling the mask off his Enron-like swindle, conservatism and religion. Based on a true story, this novel has an unbelievable climax and a surprise ending that you'll never see coming, yet will leave you questioning authority, reality and everything you believe in. The plot follows a scarring war between two people with chemistry, between "balls" and "heart," and spirals into the ideological battles of the last 30 years. It's actually a very simple love-story, in which every time the heroine gets knocked down--emotionally or physically--she scrapes herself off the floor and comes back twice as strong. It's a coming-of-age, bittersweet tale in which Sara develops into strong, well-rounded woman.
 An epic romp Nov 25, 2010
By JoeV
Morgan Ibarra's novel "Scamming God" is an epic romp through the turbulent decade of the 1970's. It chronicles the coming of age, and loss of innocence, of an entire generation through its poignant and painfully detailed portrayal of the life of its heroine, Sara, whose life is inextricably intertwined with that of the con man with whom she has become entrapped. Her struggle to mature, raise her family and free herself from a hopeless situation eventually results in the strength she requires to become her own person, and in the process finds the courage to do the right thing.
In our post-Enron, post-Merrill Lynch era of the ultimate con game, we are offered a brutally honest portrayal of the depths to which confidence men and shysters of all ilks will go to remain in the game, and the degree of evil this represents. Ibarra does us a service by reminding us that, in an age when corruption is found in the highest levels of boardrooms, courtrooms and halls of government, it takes the moral fortitude of a character like his Sara to see that justice is served.
In this far-reaching novel we are presented a face-to-face portrait of the depth of evil that is greed and corruption personified, and the extent to which lives all around are destroyed in the process.
Ibarra's characterizations are trustworthy and believable, and he demonstrates a grasp of the times within which we live. You will come away from "Scamming God," as I did, with a more finely honed perspective about our troubled and corrupt age.
A story for our times Oct 14, 2010
By iRandy
"This book was an education. Based on a true story, somehow I only heard scraps about this in the news. Thanks for a mind-boggling, eye-opening look at the evolution of scamming in America. I have met Morgan and I think he undersells this book. It has so much to offer us today, especially in this economy."
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