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 Unlike anything else I've read - it's two books in one Jul 19, 2010
By David Drobny
Serengeti Friendship, Soccer Forgiveness is really two books in one. It is unlike anything else I've ever read, probably the first ever unpretentious book tackling the need to forgive, and as an added bonus, serious theological issues.
The first part is a story written for kids, but instructive for adults, which makes it a perfect read for parents looking for a substantive story to read with their kids. The characters are animals-as-children, playing soccer. They talk like kids. They're quirky, silly, and funny. Yet, the story isn't childish. It revolves around a disagreement about what was really said, hurt feelings, stubbornness, forgiveness, and redemption. The story is not pie-in-the-sky predictable. It does not end the way you may expect. It's refreshing because it is real world.
The author infuses theology and life lessons, so much so I wrote notes in the margins. It's sprinkled with Biblical allusions (for example, the tower of Babel, God's place in human disagreements), but most of all, it's about forgiveness. You need not be a Biblical scholar to read, understand, or enjoy this book. Your kids will enjoy the silly humor from the playful characters and the drama of a soccer match. If you want, it's a good springboard to having a conversation about how to meaningfully respond to those you have wronged, those who have wronged you, and how to manage inevitable daily conflict.
The second part of the book is more of what I call a "logical theological" conversation the author has with the reader, and, at times, himself. He discusses faith and the existence of God, reconciling God with human suffering, faith healers, reading scripture in context, and heaven. He argues everyone has faith in something, or someone, and that no man is really neutral on the issue of who God is. The author tackles these subjects almost in a stream of consciousness tone, or the way you would with someone you respect while watching your kids at a ball game, but he always arrives at his point. This style gives him, ironically, credibility because his opinions are honest, thoughtful, and careful to admit his own limitations. It is not a classic theological text, thank God.
He discusses science and religion, technology's role in atheist's objections (even interjecting top 40 song lyrics to illustrate his points), and he answers the "how can we know Jesus is who He claimed to be" objections in a calm, rational way. He even discusses how God could allow hell.
These are real theological questions, honestly confronted. It's not, by any stretch, a complete theological text, any more than Blue Like Jazz is. In this section he inevitably skips across a few theological holes (predestination/election doctrine, sovereignty) which would have made this a complete theological text, but that would have been beyond the scope of the effort.
Read the first part to your kids. Read the rest of it with your older kids/teens. It's different from anything else you've read.
 Serengeti Friendship May 24, 2012
By WES
Bruce Deckert brings home the message of forgiveness in ways that allow both children and adults to embrace the subject at different levels appropriate to life experience. A fun book for kids and parents to enjoy a story and come away with tools for living.
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