Book Description
The compelling conclusion of Gene Brewer’s acclaimed
K–PAX trilogy.
Customer Reviews:
the closer of the KPAX series.......2006-08-06
The last in the three part series featuring prot (that's how he spells it), a part of the personality of one Robert Porter, who, as a result of an abusive childhood has developed three personalities.
But is prot merely part of Robert and his multiple personality disorder, or is he the real thing, that is, from KPAX, where everything is idyllic and void of any semblance to the life Robert lived, particularly the bad parts.
Without spilling the beans, those who find the movie KPAX intriguing and, as I do, find a fascination with mental illnesses and the mystery that surrounds those unfortunate victims, will want to purchase the entire trilogy, "KPAX", "On A Beam Of Light" and "KPAX III". None of the books are very long but they do present some interesting takes on humans and how we behave, be it politics, religion, etc.
Gene Brewer crafts an interesting tale and doesn't drown the reader in psychiatric technicalities, yet opens the door into a compelling world where medicine is in the Stone Age, treatment wise. There is the addition of obvious fiction (you'll know it when you read it) but all in all, it's a very enjoyable read.
Insipid End to an Interesting Series.......2006-04-27
K-PAX III: The Worlds of Prot is disappointing for those readers who came to the series with an interest in psychology or, indeed, in logical human motivations. Unlike the first book (and the second to an extent), this one completely ignores any of the interesting and realistic psychological aspects of patients at MPI that were before present. Also, disregarding the fantasy aspects of the work, the plot simply does not make sense; everyone (except Dr. Brewer) automatically assumes that a patient in a mental hospital is, in fact, a visitor from outer space. While this made sense for the inmates in book one, it does not at all strike one as realistic for the general population. prot is proven to be an alien and becomes even more arrogant and irritating (if that was possible), and preaches to his followers--and hence, to us--on how to change the world, conveniently ignoring biological motivations and the depths of human emotion.
To top it all off, the book ends with a jarring and unneeded sermon on the wonders of life and God, despite the fact that prot spends much of his time denouncing religion. The narrator's point of view in this book is continually inconsistent; the only thing one can be certain about is that he wants to retire.
K-PAX I recommend without question, but K-PAX III: The Worlds of Prot does not live up to its predecessors' standards.
Nothing is as it seems.......2005-09-29
K-PAX 3 was as much of a new book then a sequel. Prot returns as Robert Porter is thrown back into his catatonic state. This is one of those books that will make you want to read further into the subjects of the material such as psychology and cosmology. This is one of the few pieces of fiction that takes you on a real mind trip (Literally). Is Prot really who is says he is? Or is he just another figment of Robert Porter's imagination? Although it should be said that the final installment might leave you with more questions then answers, it was still a good and dignified end in the trilogy.
"Know this: to thine own world be true".......2005-06-19
+++++
This book, by Gene Brewer, is the final installment of the K-PAX trilogy. In this book, there is, as in the previous two novels, a prologue and epilogue. Between are 15 chapters or "sessions" (as opposed to 16 each in the previous two novels). Unique to this book is a "Suggested Additional Reading" list or bibliography.
The prologue is excellent. What it does is cover the highlights of the first two novels then tells us why this third novel was written:
"All...of my thirty-two sessions with Robert/[P]rot [recall that Robert Porter was thought to be the main personality hidden within Prot] are described more fully in K-PAX and K-PAX II [subtitled "On A Beam of Light"] which ended with the birth of [Prot's]...[Earthling] son...in the summer of 1997. At that time it appeared the family...might, at last, live happily ever after.
Unfortunately, this turned out not to be the case..."
Thus this novel is not simply a rehash of the two previous novels.
Prot (pronounced "Pr-OAT") is treated by the same psychiatrist of the previous two novels, Dr. Gene Brewer. (Note that the doctor has the same name as the author.) In this third novel, there seems to be more interaction between other characters and Dr. Brewer, not just with Prot exclusively.
Prot's wit, wisdom, and humor shines through in this novel. Recall that he had this in the first novel also but seemed to have lost some of this in the second novel. It was good to see him in top-form again.
Prot still demonstrates certain otherworldly abilities and even his medical tests are strange. Both Dr. Brewer and the reader are still not sure whether Prot is indeed an extraterrestrial or a traumatized human suffering from "multiple personality disorder."
In this novel, there is more interest in finding out what happened to Robert. As well, the reader is introduced to many new and interesting patients such as "Alex Trebeck" and "Albert Einstein." Prot, as before, has a positive influence on all patients.
Suspense is created when Prot reveals that he is going back to K-PAX for good and will bring 100 of his fellow patients with him. (Why not 200 or 1000? You'll have to read this novel to find out.)
The epilogue as with the prologue is also excellent. We get two possible explanations as to whom Prot is. As well, we are told that "a great many questions" still remain. The last paragraph of the epilogue has Dr. Brewer "look[ing] toward the constellation Lyra" (where Prot's home planet of K-PAX is located) and wondering...
Can this concluding sequel be read without reading the previous two novels? Yes, I think so. This is because the prologue to this novel is so well written. Besides, the author includes in his "suggested additional reading" list the prior two novels, K-PAX and K-PAX II. Why would he list these if he assumed that the reader had already read these novels?
In conclusion, this is a good novel that will hold your attention to the end. As well, it is a good conclusion to the K-PAX trilogy!!!
(first published 2002; prologue; 15 chapters covering sessions 33 to 47; epilogue; main narrative 265 pages; suggested additional reading list; acknowledgements)
+++++
Great book... excellent trilogy.......2005-04-07
This is the third book in this trilogy and it's simply awesome... It is really cool to read about if their are alien species who are millions of years ahead of us might think about our culture, tradition and planet as in whole... Prot is simply awesome... This trilogy is a must read for any sci-fi fan!!
Book Description
His name is Prot. Nobody knows where he's from. And everyone wants to go there.Psychiatrist Gene Brewer doesn't have a diagnosis for the mysterious new patient who calls himself "prot" (rhymes with goat).But this strange and likeable man cannot be-as he claims-from the planet K-PAX.Or can he?Prot knows facts about space that are confounding the experts.He is soon revealing Dr. Brewer's own deepest pains and most sublime longings.And his tales of K-PAX have other patients competing to go along with him when he heads "home."Now the doctor is racing the clock to find prot's true identity before he loses a man whose "madness" might just save them all....Published in a dozen countries with movie rights sold to the producer of Field of Dreams, K-PAX has touched the hearts and expanded the horizons of readers around the world.It promises to join Robert Heinlein's classic Stranger in a Strange Land as a moving, thought-provoking masterpiece of modern-day fiction.AUTHORBIO: Gene Brewer was born and raised in Muncie, Indiana, and educated at DePauw University and the University of Wisconsin, Madison.Before becoming a novelist, he studied DNA replication and cell division at several major research institutions.Dr. Brewer lives in New York City with his wife and Dalmatian.
Book Description
In November, 2001, I was sued, along with almost everyone else connected with the film version of my novel K-PAX, for plagiarizing an Argentinean movie called Man Facing Southeast (the suit was later dismissed). At about the same time, dozens of letters arrived from fans asking where the ideas for the book/film originated. Together, these developments led me to ponder how my difficult life had led me to become a writer, and how I came to write K-PAX in particular. The resulting memoir includes excerpts from unpublished work, and ends with a chapter of advice for other would-be novelists.
Customer Reviews:
For anyone who's ever wondered how a "regular person" becomes a writer..........2006-03-07
Gene Brewer's autobiography traces the process in great detail. More clearly than any book I've ever read, in fact.
Mr. Brewer's transformation from a working scientist, to a struggling writer, to a published novelist, to a Hollywood associate producer working on his own vision, will captivate anyone interested in any of these roles. The decades-long struggle to achieve a dream, the story of a personal belief in oneself finally triumphant, is certain to inspire.
The story begins with a bizarre cast of characters who surrounded the author in his small-town Indiana childhood. Mr. Brewer evokes these people with a sometimes tender, yet more often mercilessly funny, eye. No one is spared. Especially his parents.
We follow him through a "typical" 1950s adolescence, then college, his training as a biologist studying DNA replication and an amateur pilot, then a great love and political awakening.
But it is the jettisoning of a prestigious professional career for the uncertainty of a novelist's life that makes the most interesting reading. Unlike many authors who "dabble" in fiction, writing a book while holding down jobs as lawyers, doctors, etc., Mr. Brewer, without having ever published a story, turned his back on his profession, then sat down to write his first novel.
Which went unpublished. As did the next, the next, the next, and so on. Lengthy excerpts from these unpublished works are included here. They show Mr. Brewer's development clearly. And show why the old adage is true: writers are people who just never quit writing.
The thirteen-year struggle from first novel to publication is a fine tale in itself, managing to be both cautionary and "carpe diem" at the same time. In the end, one comes away with an admiration for Mr. Brewer in particular, and weary novelists in general.
Regarding those who manufacture the worlds into which they love to escape, faithful readers will find answers to some of their most persistent questions. How do writers, especially novelists, "become"? Why? Who are they?
Simple. They're people who must navigate endless, lonely dead ends before finding a path that leads to the wider world, and its readers. As Mr. Brewer did.
Knowing his compelling story will make would-be writers both wiser and better equipped as they set off on similar roads. For those with only an observational interest in the creation of books, this memoir will prove both enlightening and memorable. Ultimately, it's a bellow from the heart. The sound of one man's struggle to be heard.
And a great read, to boot.
Customer Reviews:
keeping it suspenseful.......2006-03-19
the story progresses like the first book. You wonder if prot is just part of of robin's repressed mind, or a real alien who has taken possession of him.
prot reminds me of Mork from Ork. he is a bit arrogant and lacks tact yet says things that really ring true, especially when he's giving his opinion on the human race.
i was late getting back from breaks at work because of this book -so beware. i can't wait for the last book in the trilogy to arrive in the mail.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Epoca, published by Difusora de Informacion Periodica, S.A. (DINPESA) on February 1, 2002. The length of the article is 737 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: cine crítica.(TT: Movies, critic.)(Reseña)
Publication:
Epoca (Magazine/Journal)
Date: February 1, 2002
Publisher: Difusora de Informacion Periodica, S.A. (DINPESA)
Page: 72
Article Type: Reseña
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
This digital document is a journal article from Biological Conservation, published by Elsevier in 2007. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Media Library immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Description:
American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) is a native North American forest herb whose roots have been collected for their reputed medicinal properties and exported to international markets for nearly 300 years. Numerous anecdotal reports suggest declining abundance throughout its range, and the species is currently listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. This study examines the putative decline of American ginseng over the last 150 years in 19 US states by using data from herbarium specimens. For successive time intervals, we calculate the numbers of American ginseng specimens in addition to the numbers of specimens of related taxa that are not commercially harvested. The proportions of American ginseng specimens from adjacent time intervals are then examined for significant changes. An additional analysis evaluates the potential for species overrepresentation in the database due to species collection bias. Despite evidence of preferential collection of American ginseng, the proportion of American ginseng specimens declined significantly through time for six northern states. This result is consistent with a long and intense history of harvest, extensive deforestation in northern regions of the United States, and slow regeneration of American ginseng.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from The Journal of Addiction and Mental Health, published by Addiction Research Foundation on March 1, 2002. The length of the article is 572 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: K-PAX.(Movie Review)
Author: Diana Ballon
Publication:
The Journal of Addiction and Mental Health (Newsletter)
Date: March 1, 2002
Publisher: Addiction Research Foundation
Volume: 5
Issue: 2
Page: 14(1)
Article Type: Movie Review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Semana, published by Spanish Publications, Inc. on November 2, 2001. The length of the article is 1622 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Pantalla Grande.(películas)(TT: Silver screen.)(TA: motion pictures)(Reseña)
Publication:
Semana (Magazine/Journal)
Date: November 2, 2001
Publisher: Spanish Publications, Inc.
Volume: 7
Issue: 453
Page: 41
Article Type: Reseña
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
In Your God Is Too Small, J. B. Phillips explains that the trouble facing many of us today is that we have not found a God big enough for our modern needs. In a world where our experience of life has grown in myriad directions, and our mental horizons have been expanded to the point of bewilderment by world events and scientific discoveries, our ideas of God have remained largely static. It is nearly impossible, Phillips argues, for an adult to worship the conception of God that exists in the mind of a child of Sunday-school age, the "God-in-a-box" notion, limiting God to such inadequate conceptions as "Resident Policeman," "Grand Old Man," "Meek-and-Mild," and "Managing Director." As a result of these insufficient ideas of God, many people live with an inner dissatisfaction, without any faith at all.
Your God Is Too Small explores the ways in which we can find a truly meaningful and constructive God for ourselves, big enough to account for our current experience of life and big enough to command our highest admiration and respect.
Customer Reviews:
A Christian "Classic".......2007-08-04
This is one of those books that is worth reading and re-reading. What a difference it makes to see God as He really IS instead of the "micro" version of our own making.
HIS God is too small as well, alas..........2007-07-25
I picked up this book (I confess, induced by a fire sale price), hoping to see some of the truly disturbing attitudes among contemporary Christian addressed. Too bad, it turned out to be a light-weight attack on simple, modest, I should say, "God reductions". It's OK, but it's hardly bold. All in all, it's plainly written, and it's feather light.
It's also obnoxiously pretentious, as when affirming, without fear of ridicule, that (I am paraphrasing, but I'm not distorting) kind, good, compassionate behavior is only to be found among peoples of Christian tradition... Oh, me, oh my! Too bad that the same could be said (with a little stretch of the truth, but less than Phillips's) of barbaric, murderous, butchering intolerant behavior... (yes, horrendous massacres have been perpetrated by men from all religions and places, but let's keep the Crusades, the Inquisition, the Persecutions, the massacres of the natives in all colonial enterprises, as well as the pogroms, the Holocaust, and what not very, very firmly in fromt of us when daring to talk about "Chrisianity" and "human compassion" in the same sentence).
Honestly, I was hoping for a lesson in humility, as in realizing that a "God" that takes sides in wars, or has (you put in your preferred blessed nationality or group) as "His" only trusts, or who is so small that it's easy for you to tell what "He wants" (??!!) is a concoction with dubious goals. Yes, even one who would have only white western people be decent and humane looks exceedingly minute.
For new ideas, read an old book........2007-07-15
Originally published in 1952, this book is as up to date as tomorrow. For many years, I have observed the truth of the statement that we create God in our own image, resulting in an anemic deity no more wise or powerful than we are, and certainly incapable of creation, maintenance, or salvation. Phillips clearly identifies the source of the powerless god that we humans produce when we make the mistake of beginning with ourselves as a paradigm for holiness.
An opinion ..........2007-02-21
J.B.Phillips his brave reflection : Your God Is Too Small - is a refreshing attempt to " update thinking " Compare it with a spiritual Penetrene/ or an RP7 to loosen fixed views and open stuck windows of our mind.. I felt very rewarded with his Guide for all sorts of minds.. Does our view of God measure up to J.B. Phillips his vision .. ?? You be the final judge ...
M. Paetzold
Australia
A Classic, good read for the novice or the 'experienced' Christian.......2006-07-16
This book was recommended to me by a couple of folks and once I began reading I understood why: it's simple, pithy and a thoughtful read. I read it slowly so I could ponder each point of interest. I can truly say my God got bigger by the time I finished reading this book. And that's a Good Thing.
Customer Reviews:
Prepare to rethink your views........2006-02-07
This book along with Leslie Weatherhead's "The Will of God" are the two most influential books in determining my own personal view of God and how to make sense of many things in this world. There is not much more I can say regarding this book as I feel that that statement of itself speaks volumes for my opinion of this book. It was recommended to me by the one minister in my life who has had the largest influence on my Christianity...and for which I am thankful.
Phillips addresses most all of the views of God that I have encountered in people and then sets each aside by exposing the problems inherent with each view. He challenges the reader to expand his or her view of God and not to try to fit God into a neat little box, but rather embrace God for what He is...bigger than we can imagine. By doing this, it frees the reader to understand Him so much better.
Challenges Us to a Bigger View of God.......2003-09-03
This book helps us learn to accept God as He is rather than as we imagine Him to be. It helps those who have either an authoritarian view of God or a permissive view of Him. We must also face the fact that God does not operate in ways that we can predict. Hence, for example, the challenge of suffering and evil.
Classic.......2002-09-22
An oldie but a goodie. If taken literally, it can seem quite dated and out of touch, but if one takes Phillips' questions and discusses them with contemporary examples, the book can still be vibrantly relevent.
Towards a Greater Picture of God.......2002-08-24
In this small book, Phillips strikes at a vital issue in today's church: the multiplicity of false conceptions of God. The false conceptions of God that we hold are damaging to the faith and Christianity as a whole. Phillips brings many of these inadequate conceptions of God to light in the first half of the book, which I thought was some of the most poignant writing in the book. Too often we limit God, especially so that we can have our "God-in-a-box", which is essentially a shrunken-down God that fits OUR notions of what God is like and where He is. This along with many other false conceptions of God which Phillips gives name, create a pseudo-god that we ourselves hardly respect, and neither do those outside the church. And more importantly they do not reflect the true nature of God as revealed in the Bible.
I was slightly disappointed in the second portion of the book where Phillips tries to open up a more full image of God. Most of it was very well written, and I especially liked the way he pointed to Jesus Christ as the "focused" God that came to be among us and die for our sins. However, scattered things in the latter portion of the book I disagreed with, for example, the way Phillips seemed to downplay sin somewhat. The true ugliness and despair of OUR OWN SIN is what nailed Christ to the Cross and was the punishment Jesus bore IN OUR STEAD! This makes the resurrection of Christ all the more joyful for sin-wearied souls, as we have the promise of forgiveness and eternal life WITH OUR SAVIOR!!! It is important that we recognize our own sinfulness and are repentant that we may receive this great gift. Altogether "Your God is Too Small" is a good little book for all Christians to read.
Don't label, box and bury God.......2002-01-11
This book will show you how we all want to define God as we want to, not as God wants. You will see yourself in the pages of this book and hopefully, you will make an honest effort to rise above your restrictive defintion of God. If so, it will have expanded your understanding of your world. This is a good book for a class in spirituality to discuss.
Average customer rating:
|
YOUR GOD IS TOO SMALL
Manufacturer: MacMillan & Co LTD
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000GLB5YS |
Average customer rating:
|
YOUR GOD IS TOO SMALL
Manufacturer: The Macmillan Co.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000HZH8IA |
Average customer rating:
|
YOUR GOD IS TOO SMALL
Manufacturer: MacMillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000HVZ17E |
Product Description
J. B. Phillips is the Anglician minister who is best known as the translator of The New Testament in Modern English. "if it is true that there is someone in charge of the whole mystery of life and death, we can hardly escape a sense of futility and frustration until we begin to see what He is like and what His purposes are."
Books:
- Lt. Leary, Commanding
- Lunar Orbiter Photographic Atlas of the Moon
- Moonsinger
- Mother of Storms
- Once Burned
- Only Begotten Daughter (Harvest Book)
- Patent Searching: Tools & Techniques
- Personality Plus for Couples: Understanding Yourself and the One You Love
- Phil Gordon's Poker Box Set: Phil Gordon's Little Black Book, Phil Gordon's Little Green Book, Phil Gordon's Little Blue Book
- Rainbow Bridge II: Link With the Soul - Purification (Rainbow Bridge Series)
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- History: Fiction or Science
- Combat Rock
- The Time In Between: A Novel
- Walking My Dog, Jane: From Valdez to Prudhoe Bay Along the Trans-Alaska Pipeline
- 300
- Earth System History
- Color Atlas of Cancer Cytology
- Darwin's Century: Evolution and the Men Who Discovered It
- The Religious Life of Richard III: Piety & Prayer in the North of England
- Title The Life of Samuel Johnson
Contemporary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
![Declining abundance of American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.) documented by herbarium specimens [An article from: Biological Conservation]](http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/I/21N7WP9WNTL.jpg)
