I Can See Myself in His Eyeballs: God Is Closer Than You Think (Abridged)

by Chonda Pierce Narrated by Chonda Pierce

Overview

What would it be like to get so close to God that we could see ourselves in His eyeballs? What if we could see our images reflected there because we were so close to him? Chonda Pierce wants to get close enough to God to see herself as God sees her. But to move closer to God, we first have to see him. In this audio book, Chonda, with her usual southern humor, tries to open her own eyes and the eyes of the listener wide enough to see God. Where is God when her husband gets a speeding ticket, when her daughter wrecks her grandfather's truck, when there's a tragic plane crash, or when she's driving down the road in a Chevette held together by wire hangers? Come along and laugh along with Chonda as she tries to catch God at work in the most unlikely places.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

06/09/2014
New York risk management consultant Ray Campbell, the narrator of this fine if flawed crime novel from Edgar-winner Cook (The Chatham School Affair), worked in the African country of Lubanda for a nonprofit organization 20 years ago as an idealistic young man. The present-day New York murder of Seso Alaya, a Lubandan employed by Campbell then, brings back difficult memories of Africa and, particularly, of the only woman he ever loved, Martine Aubert, a white Lubandan who embraced her country as it was, eschewing contributions of do-gooders. Campbell has never forgiven himself for his inadvertent role in Martine’s undoing, and by returning to Lubanda to investigate Seso’s murder, he hopes to make amends by helping her beloved homeland. Cook displays an excellent grasp of the culture of African villages and of NGOs, but the constant time-shifting can be dizzying. And his hero’s habit of couching a wide range of situations, from love to farming, in terms of risk management theory distracts more than it enlightens. (Sept.)

From the Publisher

Edgar Award winner Thomas Cook has a string of beautifully written and elegantly plotted thrillers to his name. A Dancer in the Dust is one of his best ever. This lush story combines current events and a wonderfully realized love story.”— Globe & Mail

“Cook excels at merging contemporary and past storylines into one narrative . . . [and] masterfully captures the tumultuous state of a country in upheaval.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Not since John Le Carré’s The Mission Song have I seen such a loving and sorrowful portrait of modern Africa. . . . A dark read, but a worthwhile one.”— News & Observer (Raleigh)

“[A] very readable genre-twisting thriller/love story/crime novel that will captivate readers from the start to the finish.”—Huntington News

“Highly recommended.”—I Love a Mystery

Library Journal

07/01/2014
Twenty years ago, an idealistic Ray Chambers spent a year in the African nation of Lubanda, under the auspices of Peace Corps-like Hope for Lubanda. His former boss Bill Hammond calls him after years of silence to tell him that the tortured body of Ray's native Lubandan assistant Seso Alaya has been found in an alley behind a sleazy Manhattan hotel. Alaya had called Hammond a week prior about some important information he wanted to give him, but they were unable to meet. Hammond asks Ray to look into the murder and retrieve the intelligence. This investigation is the backdrop for Ray's reminiscences about his stay in Lubanda, primarily his meeting and falling in love with Martine Aubert, a white Lubandan farmer. Martine's views on what is best for Lubanda are in stark contrast to those held by the country's dictator leader, and, Ray, in misguided love, ultimately deceives Martine. VERDICT Cook's hallmark format of the present mixing with the past is evident. Less a murder mystery, the story is more about love and betrayal. Although not up to par with Cook's previous book, Sandrine's Case, or his Edgar Award-winning The Chatham School Affair, this novel features evocative, descriptive writing, a narrative that maintains interest, and a plot-twist ending. It will appeal to both the author's fans and readers who enjoy more literary and politically oriented stories.—Edward Goldberg, Syosset P.L., NY

Kirkus Reviews

2014-08-28
A man wrestles with demons from his past in Cook's introspective if at times overly drawn-out novel. Ray Campbell lives comfortably in Manhattan as a risk management consultant, advising others when and if to take a chance on everything from stocks to property deals. Cook (Sandrine's Case, 2013, etc.) excels at merging contemporary and past storylines into one narrative, and it's no different here: Ray is haunted by his time spent in the fictional African country of Lubanda 20 years earlier. With all the good intentions of the best, if most naïve, aid worker, Ray spent a year in Lubanda, a country rife with violent internal conflicts, as part of the NGO Hope for Lubanda. There, he met the only woman he ever loved, Martine Aubert. Of French and Belgian descent, Martine was born in Lubanda and considered herself a native of the country, an assertion that increasingly chafed the government, who considered all whites a foreign menace to be eradicated. It's clear early on that Martine will meet an untimely, and likely grisly, end during what's referred to as the Tumasi Road Incident, but Cook dances around the facts for a few beats too long, and the suspense deflates. Spurred on by the murder of an old friend from his Lubanda days, Seso Alaya, who traveled to New York with a mysterious message that likely got him killed, Ray returns to Lubanda, both to avenge Seso's death and try to assuage his own guilt about Martine's fate. Cook masterfully captures the tumultuous state of a country in upheaval; it's a shame the story doesn't match the richness of the setting.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940172577925
Publisher:	Zondervan
Publication date:	02/08/2020
Edition description:	Abridged

Related Subjects

• Bibles & Christianity
• Religion
• Christianity
• Christian Life
• General & Miscellaneous Christian Life
• Women - Christian Life

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