Jason Kirk rules!

I didn't grow up in an evangelical culture, so it was fascinating to learn that they imitate secular culture and put a Jesus spin on everything. The idea of listening to christian Nirvava is deeply funny. Great read!

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A must-listen for American evangelicals and ex-evangelicals alike

Jason Kirk gives a raw, honest, hilarious, and beautiful performance of his novel, sharing a coming-of-age story that was intensely relatable for this American ex-evangelical. I cannot recommend this story enough. I laughed, I wept, and I annoyed my friends and family with quotes and earnest recommendation. I cannot recommend this enough, even if you still believe, because it may help you better understand how to love others and, just as importantly, how to love yourself.

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Beautiful story

A sincere coming of age story of a child who grew up in this evangelical community and the existential dilemmas he faces within his family faith and the world he sees before his eyes in early y2k world and quite frankly very revelant to today’s world

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Funny, heartbreaking, irreverent, sincere

A perfect glimpse at turn of the century evangelical youth culture that struck home to my own upbringing. The references to the music, church activities, relationships with purity culture looming overhead, and eventual deconstruction of the teachings that held souls on the razors edge of eternal heaven or hell, all cleverly molded into a story relatable to so many. The authors reading and great production adds to the immersion.

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Interesting read with my adjacent background

I’m a bit older than the characters and couldn’t always directly relate to their experiences, but found enough commonality to my own upbringing for it to really hit home. Kirk does an excellent job tackling the difficult combination of “general adolescent / teenage struggle” with “infinite suffering / end times feedback loop.”

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Required listening for any millennials who crossed paths with evangelical culture

This is the first book in a very very long time that compelled me to write a review. For those of us who grew up in and around evangelical Christian culture (even a Catholic *gasp* like me) in that early/mid 2000s time frame, it scratches an itch I didn’t know was there.

The combination of nostalgia and innocence in the setting and the characters is something I didn’t know I was looking for. And the author’s performance carries with it an honesty that really drives everything home.

I can’t say enough good things about this book. It left me wanting for more, and I’ll probably just listen through again and again. If it even remotely sounds like you might enjoy it, give it a go.

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Nostalgia and [REGRET] wrapped in Nostalgia

I went through my youth experience a decade before this but there are echoes of my high school years bouncing back through the years off of bands, legalism, nationalism, and the undercurrent of making my faith my own. This is a story so real that it's hard to remember it is a work of fiction.
I found this while searching for my favorite band on BlueSky and thought I would give it a try. I am glad I did. While I did not turn in the same direction as the main character though my deconstruction in the mid to late 90s, I can definitely see how that is possible. The book is full of real convictions, real internal conversations debating the reality presented from the pulpit, [YOU WILL REGRET BEING THIS HONEST!] Shut it.
Jason Kirk narrates his own work here and he is enjoyable. He is able to highlight where the author determined emphasis was needed and pronounced all the names and locations great as he knowns what he intended. I enjoyed it, as well as the AIM sound effects to help throughout the book
Like I said, I didn't turn to the same conclusions theologically as Isaac, the main character, but his journey is his own and I can respect that. It is an interesting read that brings up a long, dark past that needs to be rectified and forgiven by myself for myself. Thanks for the flashbacks.

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What an amazing story!

This story is amazing! While I didn’t grow up religious, the story helped me understand some of the kids I grew up with. It also made me nostalgic for that time in my life. I highly recommend this book. It feels therapeutic.

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Heartfelt, humanizing, humorous

Not a world I knew anything about so not exactly the target audience but enjoyed it thoroughly and did a great job making real people out of what usually appear as caricatures from the outside.

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Heartfelt, thought provoking, funny, and fun.

I can’t recommend this enough. This book was both entertaining and eerily familiar. The audiobook brought it to life.

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