Greetings Everyone!
I was privilged to wind up with this book on my review list for a second time. As time has passed, I have grown to like this book more and more. It is very thought captivating. I wasn't sure what to do about having a book in my "Queue" for a second time, so I was thrilled to find out that I could do an e-mail interview with Mr. Brouwer!
Below is that interview, which I must add, was a wonderful experience for me. Thank you Mr. Brouwer!
Carol :)
Q: This is is the first book of yours that I have had the opportunity to read and I was thrilled to find that you are such a well published author with over 90 novels already! When and how did you know that God had called you to write?
A: Well, first, I love the sound of ’90 novels’, and I’d like to take credit for doing as much work as that sounds, but in terms of full disclosure, I need to reluctantly admit that many of those books are kids books in a few different series, and the kids books are so much shorter than a a ‘real’ novel. It’s been 18 full novels so far, and I also have to admit I’m a reluctant writer. I love being a published author and I love talking about the process and I love seeing books in print, but the actual writing process is difficult for me.
As for knowing when and how, I guess I wasn’t going to quit until I was published. I started writing in my early twenties and plugged away until my first kids book was published in 1990. Then about three years later, my first novel.
Q: What was your greatest motivation for writing Broken Angel?
A: I love your question, because it lets me talk about my little girls. This is really a daddy/daughter story, with the genetics and politics as a backdrop.Although my primary concern was to tell a story, I also wanted to explore the idea that there are some dangers to mixing faith with politics, as I'd like to suggest that Jesus was more concerned with transforming individuals than legislation, and that he declined the chance to become a powerful political figure and instead chose the suffering of the cross.
I'd also like to suggest that when people of faith give authority to a leader, as they did when the Israelites requested a king, or when the early church elected a pope, that this authority can also lead to danger. Because with authority comes power, and to retain power means maintaining control. We see that the Old Testament kings soon became more concerned about power than serving God, and the disasters that followed. Same with the religious leaders in the temple in the time of Jesus. Same with the Catholic Church and worldly popes, whose abuse of authority led Martin Luther to begin a reformation; as an example, in efforts to maintain control, the church leaders of the early 1500s banned English translations of the Bible, and burned William Tyndale for ignoring the ban, because they did not want laypeople to be able to read the Bible for themselves.
Given this, I wonder where American politics might be in a generation or two, as evangelicals discover the power of bloc voting and continue to give authority to a select few leaders to represent them. The innocence and good intentions of the last decade may well disintegrate to a control grab by unscrupulous leaders. Broken Angel, of course, is that speculative world.Q: I found this web site, http://www.brokenangelsong.com/ with a wonderful song by your wife, Cindy Morgan. You know I have to ask, are the two beautiful little girls in the video your daughters?
A: YES!
Q: Cloning and DNA manipulation is currently an issue among dog breeders. Do you feel that time is quickly approaching, or that it has already arrived where alterations on the genetic level, like the ones that Caitlin was born with, are a real possibilities in our current world?
A:Unfortunately, it’s more than a feeling. The science is advanced enough to make it a reality in the near future.
Q: How far into the world that you created in Broken Angel do you feel that America has already reached?
A: Thankfully, I don’t feel it’s close to Broken Angel’s world, and I believe credit must be given to the First Amendment. For Broken Angel to happen, would take a major world-changing event like global war, that would shake America's political foundation, and the disappearance of the First Amendment. While my political philosophy is much different than many who like the ACLU, and I’m not in agreement with all that it does, I’m in full support of the ACLU’s efforts to separate religion from public institutions. America is a democracy, not a theocracy. Those who wish otherwise need look no farther than the Inquisition to see the importance of the First Amendment. Faith is very important in our family, but my wife and I have the freedom to share that with our daughters at home or church. The First Amendment ensures me that our children are protected from people of other religions trying to impose those views upon them in a public setting.
Q:If you would have your readers carry one thing from this book what would it be?
A: I think one of God’s greatest gifts to us is that he allows us freedom to choose our beliefs. We see that in the garden, when Adam and Eve were permitted to choose. With this, of course, comes heartache. The father in the parable of the prodigal son respected the son’s freedom, but was always waiting for when the son chose to come home. We are born free creatures; God wants us to fly.
Q: I saw great openings for sequels from this book! Do you think you will write a sequel to Broken Angel?
A: Already started! I’m working on it right now. Broken Angel has too many loose ends; and I couldn’t find a natural place in the novel to answer those questions without disrupting the story. In the sequel, as Caitlyn is Outside learning more about the events that forced Jordan to flee to Appalachia with Caitlyn while she was a baby, Caitlyn as an adult is about to discover there is a far greater secret hidden from her than the one in Broken Angel.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Sigmund Brouwer is the author of eighteen best-selling novels for children and adults. His newest book is Fuse of Armageddon and his novel The Last Disciple was featured in Time magazine and on ABC’s Good Morning America. A champion of literacy, he teaches writing workshops for students in schools from the Arctic Circle to inner city Los Angeles. Sigmund is married to Christian recording artist Cindy Morgan, and they and their two daughters divide their time between homes in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada and Nashville, Tennessee.ABOUT THE BOOK
Her birth was shrouded in mystery and tragedy.Her destiny is beyond comprehension.
Her pursuers long to see her broken.
She fights to soar.
A father's love for his daughter…a decision that would change both their lives forever. But who is she really─and why must she now run for her life?
Caitlin's body has made her an outcast, a freak, and the target of vicious bounty hunters. As she begins a perilous journey, she is forced to seek answers for her father's betrayal in the only things she can carry with her─a letter he passes her before forcing her to run, and their shared memories together.
Being hunted forces Caitlyn to partner with two equally lonely companions, one longing to escape the horror of factory life in Appalachia and the others, an unexpected fugitive. Together the three will fight to reach a mysterious group that might be friend or foe, where Caitlyn hopes to uncover the secrets of her past...and the destiny she must fulfill.
In the rough, shadowy hills of Appalachia, a nation carved from the United States following years of government infighting, Caitlyn and her companions are the prey in a terrifying hunt. They must outwit the relentless bounty hunters, skirt an oppressive, ever-watchful society, and find passage over the walls of Appalachia to reveal the dark secrets behind Caitlyn’s existence–and understand her father’s betrayal.
Prepare yourself to experience a chilling America of the very near future, as you discover the unforgettable secret of the Broken Angel.
In this engrossing, lightning-paced story with a post-apocalyptic edge, best-selling author Sigmund Brouwer weaves a heroic, harrowing journey through the path of a treacherous culture only one or two steps removed from our own.
If you would like to read the first chapter, go HERE.
Featured book, Broken Angel http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1400070325 .
Featured author, Sigmund Brouwer: Web site – http://www.coolreading.com/ .
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