Stephen Baldwin

With the Vietnam War raging in 1969, two young fathers report for duty. A man of great faith and a doubtful cynic. A quarter-century later, their sons, Wayne and John Paul (David A.R. White and Kevin Downes), meet as strangers. Guided by handwritten letters from their fathers from the battlefield, they embark on an unforgettable journey to The Wall-the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Along the way, they discover the devastation of war cannot break the love of a father for his son. Rated PG-13. Dove faith-friendly (12 ). Closed-captioned. Approx. 95 minutes.… (mere)

This is an unusual read for several reasons! First, the author is a celebrity. Having seen Stephen Baldwin on NBC's Celebrity Apprentice, I was quite excited to have the opportunity to read his first work of fiction. Written in conjunction with Mark Tabb, this murder mystery with a twist is an enjoyable book. Secondly, this purported Christian fiction contains profanity--quite a bit of it--which is why the following disclaimer was sent out:
The statement from FaithWords is:
Normally, it is not the policy of FaithWords to include foul language in our fiction titles. The Death and Life of Gabriel Phillips has dialogue which reflects the heart of the main character. His transformation and ultimate conversion to Christ throughout the book is key to the story and the author’s intention was to make that transformation clear. We apologize if this inclusion offends our readers. We are committed to publishing fiction that depicts the power of Christ’s love in even the darkest life and situation. Harry Helm, Associate Publisher, FaithWords
Thirdly, my observation is that the profanity and adult themes contained in the novel are not attributable to only the main character. Other characters speak with profanity too, and some of the adult themes are spread amongst them throughout the story.

Fourthly, although this is not a book of humor, I laughed out loud when I read the Santa scene. I can't tell more without revealing secrets, but it's funny. I bet you'll laugh too at the Santa part.

The characters are believable. The story is believable. And, (sigh) the dialogue is believable. I must say that it's a good story, and I enjoyed it.… (mere)