Publication Date: February 14, 2015
I Don’t Believe God Wrote The Bible by Gerald Freeman is the second book in his memoir series. After nearly dying of a drug overdose, Gerry Freeman sets out on a voyage of self-discovery by hitchhiking Europe. Gerry finds that no matter how far he runs, there are things he simply cannot escape. Join a man in the late 80s running from his demons through adventure and odd jobs.
The author, Gerald Freeman, gave me a copy of this novel in exchange for my review.
I Don’t Believe God Wrote The Bible is the story of one man’s journey into his own soul. Readers follow Gerry as he travels through Europe with his friend Jan. Told in a linear stream of consciousness style, Gerry advocates that life is lived in a smoother fashion when we forget the expectations and judgments of others and do what is best for us.
I Don’t Believe God Wrote The Bible is an autobiography and has a quite convincing feel of the excess of the late-80s. Gerry has been caught up in the drug culture, kicks the habit and now sets out to find his purpose. We meet Gerry at his lowest, collapsed on the pavement. As Gerry’s friend picks him up and brings him inside, our main character has the self-awareness to know that his friends are sick of him and sick of his behavior. Expertly laced into the shame of what he’s doing to his friends, is the shame his mother brought on young Gerry in the aftermath of his first wet dream. Gerry tries to convince the reader that he doesn’t care but we know, as we read his story, that this bravado is a barrier between himself and his old life.
Gerry’s story is told by the main character in the present tense to carry the reader on the main character’s quest for fulfillment. Freeman comments on the necessity of readers to find their own truth and expresses this through a narrative that doesn’t hide the character’s warts. We get hints throughout about the man that Freeman will become as a result of his adventure. I Don’t Believe God Wrote The Bible is not all gloom and self-discovery. Freeman has a not wholly appropriate sense of humor that had me smiling, but perhaps some readers will not especially appreciate. This reader was drawn more and more into this fascinating story, as Gerry goes from danger, to perhaps a too-trusting person, to a dodgy encounter, while his sister joins him on his soul-searching path.
People could call this autobiography a post-generation, hippie-backpacking trip through Europe perhaps self-indulging. I believe it opens a window to a past that many of us (thankfully) will not have experienced. There is perhaps an innocence to the people who help Gerry that one might not find in our modern culture. Would anyone leave two strangers alone in their house these days? We’ve seen too much as a generation and perhaps miss some connections as a result of an earned skepticism. Isn’t exposing the reader to experiences outside of their scope the true job of nonfiction?
I Don’t Believe God Wrote The Bible is in no way a perfectly polished read. The errors that I noticed do not greatly distract from the flow of the story. I Don’t Believe God Wrote The Bible is an easy and quick story that will make readers think about their own role on a world stage.
If you’re looking for a nonfiction work to take you back in time, pick up I Don’t Believe God Wrote The Bible today.
You can read our review of Kill Daddy (Life Book 1) by Gerald Freeman here.
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