Customer Reviews

Hello World! : A Personal Letter to the Body of Christ

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I picked this book out of the bargain bin of a local Christian bookstore chain for $3.99. To borrow a phrase from Huey Lewis & The News, "One dollar's worth was all that I could stand...sometimes bad is bad!"

Paul Crouch reminds me why there is such a need for ghostwriters.
This book couldn't be much worse. Mr. Crouch has absolutely no writing ability. He gives the reader no real insight into the founding & continuing story of Trinity Broadcasting Network, or of himself and his family. This book appears to have been written by a 7th grader.

Worst of all, Mr. Crouch has the disconcerting habit of suddenly CAPITALIZING ENTIRE WORDS AND PHRASES, and punctuating his sentences with EXCLAMATION POINTS!!! Plus, he continually overuses italics & "quotation marks."

Mr. Crouch relates battles and struggles with various "Christian brothers," and complains about how they were always out to get him & TBN: "GOD'S OWN NETWORK!!! But he never tells the behind-the-scenes story about the bizarre people he has on TBN regularly, whose theological ravings have been exposed by many other Christian ministries. (example: the "Word of Faith" movement as epitomized by "Dad" Kenneth Hagin & Benny Hinn).

Finally, this is one, long boring book, full of naming names of those who got on Mr. Crouch's backside over the years, but without any satisfying or amusing anecdotes. My question to Mr. Crouch is this: "WOULD YOU LIKE SOME CHEESE WITH THAT WHINE?"

--John Paul in Oklahoma City

As someone who regards the Trinity Broadcasting Network as a mixed blessing at best (and that's being overly charitable), I was ready to gleefully trash this book. A funny thing happened on the way to my one-star review, however: I began to read this book as a story of perseverance and survival, and a certain amount of admiration began to develop toward Paul and Jan Crouch and their efforts to keep their vision of "Christian" television alive.

The book is addressed from Paul Crouch to his two sons, so the reader feels somewhat like a eavesdropper, in a sense. Being the story of TBN, it is mainly focused on recounting the struggles of building a station, expanding it into a worldwide network, and the attacks that came from without and within, from those wanting to wrest control of the network to long and painful battles with the FCC. Doctrinal issues remain undiscussed, probably because TBN is all over the map doctrinally.

The writing style of this book is certainly not going to win any awards. It reads like something that was dictated into a tape recorder and then transcribed, so if the reader is familiar with Paul Crouch's overly-dramatic speaking style, it will be easy to "hear" his voice. An overuse of the word "precious" is a little off-putting, and the abundance of exclamation points would make Elaine Benis proud.

Still, unless one has a heart of stone, it is hard to keep from being inspired. Paul's fighting spirit, which comes off as vindictive and self-serving on TV, is probably just what the doctor ordered, for without that, along with a few of his wife's strategic tantrums, TBN probably would not exist today. And that would be a good thing? Let the reader decide.

A waste of time and a waste of money.

Try; The Throne Room

"Hello World" was a joy to read. The story of the National Broadcasting Station, "Trinity Broadcasting" is told from start to present in an interesting, faith building way. The author
shares the call of God on his life, his battles and his victories
are laid bare to bring to light a better understanding of the
majesty ministry of TBN that the Lord Himself had ordained.

I loved the early stories of Paul Crouch's family, his beloved Grandmother warmed my heart and her faith was a blessing to this reader.
The book also houses some great pictures of Paul and his wife Jan with many world figures, showing the joy when God opened the door after door of opportunity to spread the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

If you are interested in reading a book that will show the power of God, prayer and faith, this is the book for you. It touched my heart in a way few other books have done.
Very highly recommended!