Title: Same Kind of Different As Me: A Modern-Day Slave, an International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Together
Author: Ron Hall & Denver Moore
Publication Information: Thomas Nelson (March 11, 2008) , 224 pgs.
Genre: Non-Fiction – Biography
Explanation/Summary:
From the back of the book:
A dangerous, homeless drifter who grew up picking cotton in virtual slavery.
An upscale art dealer accustomed to the world of Armani and Chanel.
A gutsy woman with a stubborn dream.
A story so incredible no novelist would dare dream it.
The book is narrated by Ron Hall and Denver Moore. Ron Hall is the upscale art dealer, and Denver Moore is the dangerous, homeless drifter. Each man narrates a chapter as they tell the story of their history, how they came to know one another, and how their lives have changed since their first meeting.
Analysis and Evaluation:
Absolutely. Hall and Moore deliver the story of how God brought them together to better the lives of each other, and the homeless at the Union Gospel Mission in Fort Worth.
It is a thoughtful, well written story that moved me to tears so many times that I lost count. The testimony given of how God worked in each man is so moving and beautiful.
The strength is that it is an amazing story. It’s a fast read with simple language that draws the reader in to discover how two men who wouldn’t ordinarily meet became best friends.
The weakness is the poor grammar. Honestly, it doesn’t bug me. I think the story works better because some things are spelled out phonetically, rather than correctly. Some grammar “no-no’s” are published, but I think it allows the narrators’ dialect to come through, which I find endearing.
My response to this book has been to tell everyone I know to go read this book. Right now. It certainly highlights today’s societal problem of homelessness, but it shines a light on the solution, and the solution offered isn’t a government program spending billions of dollars, it’s one of people helping people. It shows that one person really can make a difference.
Yes, go get this book right now and read it, then take what you learn from it and apply it to a need you see in your part of the world.
This book was recommended by one of the gentlemen in our small group at church. Boy, am I glad he did. This is by far, the most powerful book I have ever read. If you don’t read any other book this year, read this one. Seriously, go reserve your copy at the library or pick one up at the book store.
Typically, I don’t quote from a book when I do the review, but this nugget has stuck with me since I finished the book a couple of weeks ago. I think it’s powerful, and unfortunately, I think it is all too often true.
Denver Moore, page 80: I slept in the doorway of that United Way over on Commerce Street for a whole lotta years. And every mornin for all that time, a lady who worked there brought me a sandwich. I never knowed her name and she never knowed mine. I wish I could thank her. Funny, though. That United Way buildin was right next door to a church, and for all them years, nobody at that church ever looked my way.
Entries (RSS)
Wow. Looks powerful. I’ll have to read that one!