'I am with you always, even unto the end of the world . . .'
Peter Leigh is a missionary called to go on the journey of a lifetime. Leaving behind his beloved wife, Bea, he boards a flight for a remote and unfamiliar land, a place where the locals are hungry for the teachings of the Bible - his 'book of strange new things'. It is a quest that will challenge Peter's beliefs, his understanding of the limits of the human body and, most of all, his love for Bea.
The Book of Strange New Things is a wildly original tale of adventure, faith and the ties that might hold two people together when they are worlds apart. This momentous novel, Faber's first since The Crimson Petal and the White, sees him at his expectation-defying best.
***
['I was going to say something,' he said]***
(Canongate Books, 6 October 2014, ebook, Prime Reading)
***
Oh my god, The Book of Strange New Things blew me away. This book is amazing, one of the best I've read in ages.
First of all, I loved the concept behind the book, a drug addict, petty criminal turned pastor goes to another planet to be the minister for a group of aliens. How original is that?
I enjoyed every word of this book. Despite the concept of the book it wasn't overly religious or preachy. The author handled this really well. I'd have been put off if I felt Christianity was being rammed down my throat.
The Book of Strange New Things is one of those books it is so easy to get lost in. I was absorbed page after page. I was fascinated reading about Peter trying to find his way in a strange land with such an unusual congregation.
There a some mildly dark moments at the start of the novel, when Peter discovers that things are going bad on earth. Bea, pregnant and vulnerable seems to be in a world where Armageddon-like events are happening. I loved the way the author handled his feelings of hopelessness because he was unable to physically be by her side to support her.
The book gets quite dark towards the end as Peter and Bea are both tested well beyond their limits. I wept a few times. Peter discovers that the human settlement on the planet has more sinister intentions that he realised.
The Book of Strange New Things is amazing. Apparently, it's becoming an Amazon TV series called Oasis. I will definitely be checking it out.
