The Doors of Death and Life (How Like a God) by Brenda Clough  (6)

› Explore similar items : Books (1)

Amazon.com
Rob Lewis, an ordinary computer programmer with a wife and two kids, becomes something extraordinary one day after he wakes up and discovers he can read--and control--other people's minds. It's an ability most people dream of having, but for Rob it quickly destroys his life. There is a death, injuries, the threat of warping the lives of his children. Rob flees to New York where, homeless and destitute, he contacts Edwin Barbaross of the National Institutes of Health. Together they travel to Uzbekistan, where Rob will face both the source of his powers and his own inner demons. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal
Clough's (An Impossible Summer, Walker, 1992) hardcover debut offers a suburban fantasy in which Rob Lewis wakes up one morning with the ability to read?and, ultimately, influence?the emotions of people around him. Frightened, he leaves home, drifting aimlessly through New York City until he meets microbiologist Edwin Barbarossa, to whom he turns for help. Clough explores power, control, and friendship in a well-crafted psychological study. Recommended.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can make it available as an eBook on Amazon.com. Learn more

I own it Not rated Your rating Don't like it < > I love it! Save your rating    ? 1 2 3 4 5

15 Reviews 5 star:  (3) 4 star:  (5) 3 star:  (1) 2 star:  (4) 1 star:  (2)           Average Customer Review (15 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews   7 of 8 people found the following review helpful: Convincing look at the responsibility of having superpowers, August 11, 2000 By  Richard R. Horton (Webster Groves, MO United States) - See all my reviews       This review is from: How Like a God (Hardcover) Brenda Clough calls her "Gilgamesh" books, _How Like a God_ (1997), and _Doors of Death and Life_ (2000), "suburban fantasy", and indeed they depict suburban life pretty well: home improvement, day care, commuting, minivans, even believable contemporary American Christians (a rarity in SF!). For that alone these are refreshing books. _How Like a God_ concerns Washington area software developer Rob Lewis, the father of 18 month old twins, and the loving husband of Julianne, who works in the fashion industry. One day he suddenly realizes that he has an unusual power: he can read minds, the minds of anybody on the planet, and he can control people. After a few mild experiments, he tells his wife, and her response appals him. She wants him to influence her employers to help her career, and then she wants him to look for great personal power: run for President, perhaps. Horrified, he makes Julianne forget everything, but soon her realizes that he can't control his power, and that he is altering his twins unconcsiously, making them act extra mature without even knowing it. In despair, he runs away to New York City and spends months as a homeless man, using his power occasionally to cadge meals and housing. His humanity begins to slip away from him, and suddenly he realizes that he is becoming a monster. When he finds himself about to rape a teenage girl (by mak