Behemoth by Jonathan C. Leicht

Behemoth is about two groups that are searching for what they believe to be current day dinosaur, battling with groups who don’t believe in their quest and want to keep it under wraps if they are successful.  It follows the two groups through the jungles of Africa, hot on the tail of the secretive creatures.  Many legends are told of the creatures by the natives, but are not taken seriously by the Western world, until these two groups go out hunting.

The book has a good story and some of the action is exciting.  It does go into “lecture mode” at several points in the book, which seemed like forced dialogue.  The problem seemed to be that the characters were never fully fleshed out.  One of the adventurers talks about his mentor who was a staunch evolutionist that changed to become a creationist.  It is not explained how this happened, and that mentor was one of the main explorers in the other group.  I felt like there might be some interesting stories to be told about them, but was left in the dark.  I felt like they told more of a back story about the missionary, which was great, but she wasn’t a main character.  I think I knew the most about her.  I think that the book had a good story line, but could have had more character development and it would have made the story more enjoyable.  I think this book would be good for middle school or high schoolers.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Redemption - by Bryan Clay with Joel Kirkpatrick

The decathlon is one of the most demanding events in track and field, and Bryan Clay is the reigning Olympic Gold Medalist.  This book is the story of his journey from a troubled youth in Hawaii, to dominating the Olympic Games in Beijing.  There were a lot of bumps along the way, but with his faith in God and surrounding himself with his family and trusted mentors, he succeeded in attaining gold.

Not knowing much about the decathlon, other than the Dan and Dave commercials, this book was an education in what all goes into the sport, and to professional track and field.  It takes a lot of determination and skill in multiple events.  He showed how by doing his best and putting his faith in God, he can accomplish things that he never thought were possible.  It would be interesting to learn more about his foundation and what he is doing with that, as it was only touched on in the epilogue.  Maybe he’ll write a follow up after London 2012.  It will be interesting to see if he can become the first decathlete to medal in three Olympic Games.  I would recommend this book to anyone, but think it might be best for those that have an interest in track and field.  It does focus a great deal on what he went through during training and events.  I found it interesting, but those that don’t care for track and field may not.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”