John Goode cuts directly to the heart of the matter in Dear God!

“God has given you one face, and you make yourself another.” – William Shakespeare

Title: Dear God

Author: John Goode

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Pages/Word Count: 20

Rating: 5 Stars

Blurb: A Lost Chapter from End of the Innocence

Confronted by prejudice and looking for a way to fight those using religion against his friend, Kyle Stilleno goes to a local church in search of understanding. His inquiry leads him to surprising conclusions and forces him to reexamine his own beliefs. In this lost chapter from End of the Innocence, the enemy may not be where Kyle expects to find it.

**SPOILER WARNING: Contains spoilers from End of the Innocence**

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Review: Twenty pages. What could an author possibly hope to achieve in a mere 20 pages? Surely nothing grand. I mean, c’mon, it’s only twenty pages. Now I know what you diehard Tales of Foster High series fans are thinking.

“But, Sam, it’s John Goode! It’s part of that incredibly awesome series he’s writing! This is no doubt some amazing lost chapter that is integral to the plot and must, do you hear us, Sam, MUST be read before the next, *sob* last book in the series is released.”

Simmer down! I hear ya! I’m a died in the wool fan too, for pity sakes! I have my coveted, dog-eared copies of every book in this stunning series. Now, back off! I have to write an unbiased review…of twenty pages…twenty short pages…twenty incredibly short pages that packed more meaning and more sense into them than the last two HUNDRED page novel I read.

So let me start with the synopsis. Well, Kyle goes to see a priest. He goes because he wants to help Kelly. (You remember him, right? The kid who committed suicide when that viral you tube confession of how he was gay hit the airwaves and ruined his life? Dear god, yes—we remember him.) Anyway, Kyle goes to get ammunition about how God views gays in the bible so that he can stop Kelly’s parents from sending him to that brain-washing, neo-nazi camp that attempts to turn gay kids straight. Remember that part now? Yeah…so he goes to see this priest…and well, here’s what he finds out:

“People today seem to think the Bible is something they can use to say that some people are good and some aren’t. Most hide behind it to defend their own hatred by saying the Bible told them to. I can assure you, Kyle, there is no hatred in that book nor in God’s heart.”

Under Kyle’s direct questioning, the priest then unpacks how misinterpretation over ancient terminology and dead languages has allowed people to substitute modern day language into the Bible that has no place being there.

In fact, author John Goode uses his Father Mulligan to unpack several direct passages that many zealous haters use to indicate that God reviled and condemned homosexuals, when, in fact, God did nothing of the sort. I read these mere twenty pages and had more questions answered about how modern day theology has screwed up the true meaning of a loving God than I had ever discovered sitting in a pew on any given Sunday. And, it was told with that delightful Kyle-induced humor and sarcasm to boot!

So…why should you read this little vignette, Dear God, offered by author John Goode, even if you are not a diehard fan of the tales of Foster High series?

Well, dear readers, here is why: it makes sense, it dispels incorrect thinking, it gives real basis for discussing why homosexuality is NOT an abomination, it allows for the idea that there are faith filled leaders in churches across this country who are not simpering fools who have once again misinterpreted the Bible for their own selfish, mean-spirited desires and, if all that is not enough, it’s part of one of the most wonderfully written YA series currently on the market today.

The bottom line is that Dear God by John Goode puts to rest the false hate that is spewed too often in this country that lands directly into the ear of our youth. God does not hate; misguided, nasty people do. God loves every single one of us delightfully diverse human beings, no ifs, ands, or buts about it!