Customer Reviews

We All Fall Down

5 star:		(54)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

For far too long, fictional explorations of Christianity have been held hostage by poorly written novels that seemed more interested in progaganda than in truth. It's a history that has done too much damage on both sides of the fence...............................................

On the other side, novels that take such simplistic viewpoints about the faith utterly fail to engage practicing Christians or challenge them to explore their beliefs with any real depth. Left Behind turns off non-Christians and allows Christians to develop a sense of self-satisfaction. Both results are harmful.

Caldwell's novel avoids both traps. I have no idea if Caldwell is a Christian or not. What I do know after reading his novel is that he takes the Christian faith seriously, seriously enough to honestly look at why so many people reject it, to honestly look at what it is in humanity that keeps us seperate from God. This novel can be read as a character study, an exploration of spirituality, or simply a good adventure. It succeeds on all levels.

It's my dearest hope that We All Fall Down becomes a widely read novel because Christianity needs to be talked about in a mature, intellegent fashion, both so that non-Christians can feel like there is a door that is open to them, through which they feel comfortable in exploring these issues and so that practicing Christians have help in engaging themselves in a deeper exploration of their faith. Caldwell's novel brilliantly achives both of these tasks. It is a novel that is a pleasure to read and one that lingers in the thoughts for months after it's completion.

Buy this book.

Recomend it to your friends, both Christian and non.

It's an important work

I'm no stranger to Endtimes fiction. I've always been fascinated by the prophecies of the Book of Revelation. As a Christian, I've wanted to read a work that faithfully holds true to the Biblical prophecies and presents the message of Christianity, but as a lover of literature, I wanted a quality piece of writing as well. Unfortunately, until recently, the closest that I had found was the Left Behind series which reeks of inept writing, simplistic plots and themes, two-dimensional characters, and bad evangelicalism. Then, recently, I discovered the Christ Clone Trilogy, a work that perfectly fit what I was looking for in Endtimes fiction. It featured excellent story-telling, three-dimensional characters, and an impeccable knowledge of prophecy, history, science, technology, New Age, and all other subjects covered in the story. Hence, it provided not only quality, but also accuracy and believability. Not only that, but it also managed to practice the often difficult art of good evangelicalism, i.e. presenting the message of Christianity to a secular audience in a non-offensive manner that might actually peak their curiosity in the Bible and Christianity.

But now I've seen something even better.

Brian Caldwell has done something completely different. Instead of dramatizing the Endtimes events prophesized in Revelation, he has used them merely as a backdrop to tell a riveting and very human story of one man's confrontation with himself, God, and human nature.

_We All Fall Down_ isn't simply a good read - it's an artistic work of true literary merit. When reading this novel, I found myself thinking of the likes of Kafka, Camu, Dostoyevski, Ellison, Conrad, and Steinbeck. Caldwell creates thoroughly fleshed out living, breathing characters who experience complex emotions and behave in the often confusing manner of real life people. Focusing on character development, Caldwell weaves his plot as a natural consequence of who his characters are and how they interact rather than creating characters to satisfy plot requirements. Out of this rich character study, he develops complex themes about human nature, divinity, hatred, and relationships.

I haven't read a more powerful and moving novel in quite some time.

Whether you are a Christian or a non-Christian makes no difference as to the value of this novel.

This work should be read by anyone who loves great literature that makes one think and feel. I cannot stress this enough.

A student of mine gave this book and after reading it, I was curious to see what other people's take on it was. It was interesting to read some of the Amazon reviews, particularly the reviews concerning the author's writing abilities.

I'm not going to comment too much on the actual content of the novel, because I believe that that is an area that really depends upon personal tastes. All I will say is that Mr. Caldwell is uncompromising in following through with the theme of his novel, and from there, it really becomes a question of whether or not people are interested in exploring the darker side of mankind, a humanity without belief in the presence of a Higher Spirit.

What I would like to briefly touch on is the literary aspects of Mr. Caldwell's novel, because I think that some people might be missing some of the more complex literary feats that he has accomplished in this stunning work. Mr. Caldwell is one of the few authors I've seen who has managed to move past the Post-modern novel without simply regressing to a previous style. In effect, he has writen a Trans-modern novel. That is, rather than simply embracing the conventional rules of literature, or conversley, creating a work which is mainly concerned with refuting them, Mr. Caldwell has integrated both modern and post-modern to create a unified whole.

The dialouge is straight out of an Elmore Leonard crime novel- tough, funny, and terse, the descriptive prose is lyrical in the tradition of the romantics, the characters are defined by their actions, which are never explained in a traditional, linear way, following the existentialist school of writing, such as Camus. States of pain and ecstacy are reminicent of the writings of Aldous Huxley, Buroughs, and Henry Miller, in their lyrical, almost drugged up quality. The plot itself is subversive, in that it exists, not to complement the theme of the novel, but to stand in oposition. We think Jimmy Lordan is doing one thing, following the conventional role of protaganist in trying to save an old girlfriend, but little by little, we understand that Mr. Caldwell is subverting the role of 'hero' to say something very diffirent about humanity. The plot is non-linear, recognizing that action reaction, be it in actual event or psychological state of mind, does not necessarily flow in a foward motion.

Mr. Caldwell integrates all of these aproaches in a seemless fashion, creating a work of multiple layers which holds up to several diffirent interpritations and readings. These are not errors in syntax or structure, but calculated choices. For example, the final two paragraphs of the novel abruptly switch tense, not because the author is unaware of that switch, but because it personalizes the entire work, and creates an indentification between the reader and Jimmy Lordan that the reader would probably rather avoid. When the main character ends one chapter in open quotations telling a story, and the next chapter begins with those same words, no longer in quotation, the effect is to underscore the subjectivity of a story told in first person tense. It hammers home the point that every single character is not seen in this novel objectively, but through Jimmy Lordan's highly subjective eyes- and further, through the author's eyes and more importantly, the reader's.

In short, this is not a conventional novel, but I think people who are shaken by the writing are allowing their own expectations to cloud the actual quality. I would think that this would be intensified as this is supposed to be a 'Christian' novel, and as such, certain expectation accompany that. Expectations which Mr. Caldwell subverts. The theme of the novel is that we effectively use an assortment of lies and delusions to hide the truth about ourselves, both from the world and ourselves. God sees through all of those lies, and if we are to become close to God, we must also. Our comfortable, conventional ideas about ourselves are actually lies we have told to ourselves. In constantly setting up expectations by use of multiple genre, tone, and structure, and then reversing those expectations, Mr. Caldwell's novel not only speaks to that truth, but creates the SENSATION of having those lies exposed.

We All Fall Down is an uncomfortable novel to read because it communicates, not just an intellectual idea, but a true sense of experience. I don't doubt that many people will be put off by that. But in attacking the literary merits of the novel, they are I think, misrepresenting the enourmous accomplishment Mr. Caldwell has managed. Like all cutting edge work, from Miller to Camus to Buroughs to Bukowski, Mr. Caldwell's skill will initially be rejected and villified by some. Don't be fooled, though, if you read this book, you are reading the beginings of one of the next greats.

For many years now, there have been an awful lot of books produced about Revelations. The emphasis is on awful. For whatever reason, those books have often been poorly writen, preachy to the point of offensive, and completely lacking any real spiritual insight. Finally, in the last few years, two authors have produced amazing books about Revelations. Brian Caldwell's We All Fall Down is the first truly mature look at Revelations. It's not a book for people looking to stand at a distance, as it is an emotionally devistating piece of fiction. It is raw and uncompromising, a book that will grab you by the throat and shake your soul. I don't think I have ever read a book that challenged me to examine my faith so strongly. BeauSeigneur's Christ Clone Trilogy is equally impressive, if in a different way. While Caldwell's book focuses on the spiritual psychology of a single character, Beausigneur tackles the big picture. His novels are intellegent and incredibly well-researched. His novels make you believe that the end of the world could happen, not just spiritually, but intellectually as well. The two authors complement each other quite well, with BeauSigneur tackling the big picture and Caldwell zeroing in on the personal.

What both writers have in common is a perfect ear for dialouge, a scathing intellegence, and an insight into spiritual matters that was exciting to read. After suffering through so many second rate novelists tackle revelations, it was an incomparable pleasure to read these magnificent books.

I was talking to a friend of mine who had just finished this book yesterday and he hated it. I was surprised, because I thought it was one of the best books I've read in years. I spoke to a few other people I knew who had read it a month or so ago and found the exact same response. Three loved it, two hated it. The people who hated it didn't have a problem with the writing, which they thought was excellent, but with the whole tone of the story.

I can understand that. We All Fall Down is a fairly depressing story. That was actually what I loved about it. My thinking is that, if you're going to show what earth would be like without spirituality, it's going to be a pretty depressing picture. The main character falls deeper and deeper into a Hell of his own making and it's not always pleasent to watch. Caldwell ups the ante even more, by describing Caldwell almost wholey from the outside. Even though its the main character himself who narrates the whole book, that narration is done in a detached voice, describing what's happening, but almost never indulging in introspection. It can be off putting, because we want to know why he's making the choices he is.

But I think it was a wise choice, because as the character says at the end, "What else is left to say? It would all be excuses. We just use words to hide the truth." Instead, we have to view Jimmy though other people's eyes and through his exterior actions. It forces us to be more active as readers, to become more involved in the story if we're going to judge it.

This is a spiritual book, but it defines its spirituality by its very absence. We are taken on a guided tour through a world without God and through the life of a man who cannot accept God. Caldwell doesn't flinch from showing the ramifications of that absence, and it's hard to watch sometimes. But in showing the evil that arises without spirituality, he very effectively defines spirituality as its opposite. It's an interesting literary choice, but one that works spectacularly.

I can understand why people wouldn't like this book. It tells us something about humanity that a lot of people would rather ignore. I can see why people wouldn't want to read about a world without God. But I found it to be an illuminating and thrilling read. And in my opinion, any book than can polarize people into such strong feelings, be they love or hate, is a succesful piece of literature. Novels are suypposed to evoke feeling, and this one succeeds. Try it yourself and see which side you fall on.

I Once was Blind, but Now I See... Oh, Jimmy, lost brother.This is the most heartbreaking book I have ever read... but it strikes so close to what I feel will be the truth of the Tribulation of Man in the End of days. Even the Gilbert Morris books I an so high on do not get so down to the dirty real-deal of life under the iron fist of the Anti-Christ as Brian Caldwell's WE ALL FALL DOWN. I hated the book! I could not put it down. I re-read it. I loved it! I hated the book! I loved it... This is a profane work from start to finish. If you read it you will see beyond the shallow words of popular writers on the subject of being left behind at the Rapture. You will know the gut wrenching fear , the dedication of those few... and still who at the end , insanely, selfishly follow an unrepentant soul into perdition, forever. WE ALL FALL DOWN is a work for the strong in faith. It would confuse and enrage any other person. Use it like dynamite if at all(carefully and with the guidance of wisdom and time).

I found this book to be exceptionally frustrating to read. My frustration did not stem from the author's ability to create a solid story. In fact, it is very evident from the text that Caldwell is an incredibly gifted writer. His depiction of the protagonist being tortured put chills down my spine. The twists of logic that were expressed by the torturer in those scenes were exactly what one would imagine someone in that position saying to justify their behavior. Caldwell is also able to show in his writing that he has a strong understanding of the philosophical and theological arguments used to support a Christian lifestyle.

Given his ability to write meaningful narrative and realistic dialogue, it is tremendously disappointing that Caldwell chose to waste his gifts by creating such an unlikable protagonist. I recognize that having a central character with a "fatal flaw" is a standard literary device. However, the device usually makes people feel sympathy when that character meets their fate. Such emotion cannot be generated for the main character in We All Fall Down. It would seem impossible that anyone who recognizes the situation depicted in the book would behave the way he does. While the language didn't bother me as much as other reviewers, the graphic acts of violence seemed totally out of place for a man who understood that he was living through the Apocalypse. As a result, I wasn't troubled by his fate: I was pleased, because he got what he deserved. Sadly, the book becomes unenjoyable because it is centered around this unlikable character.

.... I'm sure the immensely talented Mr. Caldwell will produce some masterful works in the future. However, I'm also sure that We All Fall Down will be noted as an ambitious, yet fatally flawed, debut.

In the expanding-across-the-horizon-like-a-swarm-of-locusts field of apocalyptic fiction, "We All Fall Down" is probably the best -- and definitely the weirdest -- read to come down the pike since the Belgians built that computer in Brussels that records the IQ, weight, and favorite ice cream flavor of every man, woman and child on earth.

I say "weirdest". I guess "most unexpected" is what a mature reviewer would write. But "most unexpected" just doesn't cut it. ...So "weird" it is.

Caldwell opens his novel with main character Jimmy Lordan stumbling through a master's degree at UMass Amherst. Lordan is an egotistical, surly, licentious, self-centered pain in the neck of every person he meets. Fortunately, he doesn't meet many people because he spends most of his free time in his darkened apartment staring into the void. Jimmy's life and, surprisingly enough, Jimmy's disposition only get worse with age. Here comes the Rapture and there goes Jimmy's wife. Here comes the locusts, the nukes, and the One World Community, and, one by one, there go all Jimmy's excuses for being the nasty person that he comes to realize he is.

Caldwell's treatment of Lordan is one of the (many) things that separates this book from pretty much any other piece of apoca-fiction on the market today. Lordan is a bad guy, and a bad guy who is real, at that. He doesn't just doesn't break into an occasional malevolent grin over the top of a tumbler filled with some sort of alcohol while engaged in nefarious plottings. He is a disgusting person in all sorts of small, real ways, and we see him in all his disgusting glory. All the things that would make Lordan a horrible next neightbor are shown so to true to life that they make for a real literary pleasure.

Lordan isn't the only character with some rough edges. His wife is a smoking, drinking, cussing Evangelical. Then there's Stan, the "eccentric" who has held the One World Community at bay and resisted the Mark after months of torture. Turns out that all that is nothing compared with the resistance he has shown to God himself. Squeaky clean government torturers. Homosexual Christians. Racist Christians. It's a mixed up, jumbled up, apocalyptic world.

I have no idea whether Caldwell had in mind the "Left Behind" series in any way or no, but the comparison is pretty much inevitable, so here goes: As a purely literary effort, "We All Fall Down" stands head, shoulders, and belly button above "Left Behind". Caldwell isn't exactly Hemingway, but he actually has some style in his writing. He actually cares about the words his pen is leaving on the page (or word processor on the disk -- whatever); he is not interested in just sounding like a Christian version of the latest bestselling action paperback writer. And then there is the realism. Usually, when we look at history (and at the future) we forget that the people alive at the time were actually *living*. Whatever you think about the Tribulation, when and if it comes, the people living in it will laugh; they will cry; they will give and take; they will marry and divorce; some will die of old age. So, how will the mass of humanity -- not just the nefarious world-domination plotters or the rich do-gooders riding around in their SUVs -- actually live in the Tribulation? How will they get food? How will they find love? And how will their lives appear, not to a TV camera, but to the people themselves? This is the very stuff of which "We All Fall Down" is made, and this is the stuff that "Left Behind" Inc. could care less about.

But "We All Fall Down" is not for everyone. The language is pretty rough. Caldwell is as proficient with profantiy as a junior high Chris Rock fan. Of course, the immediate response is that Caldwell has created a fully realistic character who cusses alot, like alot of real people do. True enough. Either way, though, after the first twenty pages, I was already punch drunk on the "f" word. And, even if you get past the language, what the language is describing is pretty awful too. In full Technicolor, Caldwell shows us a Tribulation world, where evil really seems to be winning -- not just in the media/political sphere, but in all the nitty gritty areas of life. And then, for those who like a clear moral attached to their stories, I don't think we come away with a completely clear view of just what Caldwell was trying to do. His handling of the soul of Jimmy Lordan is a clear warning to us all, but what about the apocalyptic backdrop he provides for Lordan? Did he just want to depict the Tribulation with a sort of unsettling hyper-realism? Or are his departures from the standard Trib narratives a way of -- dare I say it? -- deconstructing the whole genre? Or is he doing a little of both and alot of neither? Honestly, I have to say that with some books, I would be thinking on questions like these over and over again. But "We All Fall Down" isn't quite that compelling. The lack of answers here is just sort of annoying.

In short, Caldwell gives us a full 3D view of a not very nice man living in a not very nice time. If you want to scare your atheist friends into the church, maybe you can do it with this book. If you propose it as the next study topic in your Sunday School class, they will probably ride you out of town on a rail.

We All Fall down is not, I think, a Christian novel. If a Christian novel is intended simply to convert, than this is not that. We All Fall Down is more interested in exploring what it means to be Christian, what the cost is, and why so many people seem to fail at it. Caldwell obviously has great respect for the religion, but he doesn't allow that respect to stop him from asking the really tough questions, and as a result, I think he has written a much better novel than novels of conversion, and as such, as a Christian myself, this novel really made me think and reevaluate what being a Christian means. If, however, a purebred Christian novel is what you are looking for, you might want to avoid this.

I have never been religious. I have often thought about it, but have always had problems with the history of the church, with the self-rightousness of people of all faiths who believe that only they have the right answers, and so on. This is the first book I've ever read that has made me question that. I think that people who are put off by the violence, are missing the point. The exterior violence is, I believe, simply a mirror for the horrid state of exsistence on the inside. Everything Jimmy Lordan says he is and says he is trying to accomplish is shown to be a lie from what happnes in the outside world. The violence makes you flinch because it is, I think, representative of internal spiritual rot.

Mr. Caldwell has created a book that speaks to every problem I've ever had with God. More importantly, he has crafted a very convincing argument as to why those problems are not God's fault, but my own. It's hard to accept a God who drowns humanity, even the children. It's hard to accept a God who messes with a innocent guy like Job. It's hard to accept a God who has created Hell. A Christian friend gave me this book, telling me it might help answer some of those questions. It did, and has left me re-thinking my anger and alienation from religion in a way I never thought I would. That's an amazing accomplishemnt.