Last time I was home, my father recommended to me the book Year Zero, by Jeff Long. He excitedly recounted the plot and told me how he'd not been able to put it down. Prior to this moment, I was unaware my father even read books. Despite my life-long passion for reading, he'd never once mentioned a book he enjoyed. I've never seen him reading a book; I didn't know he owned any books. My father and I don't share many interests; his main hobbies include riding his motorcycle and nascar, and though I love my dad, I've never felt like our passions could find a middle ground. So when he recommended a book to me, it was like a dream come true. My father and I sitting around discussing a book-- fantasy! Needless to say, next time I was at Borders, I bought said book... with a groan. The cover reads "New York Times bestselling author" and has a byline by Dan Brown calling it, "A superbly original thriller," ... just the kind of mass market paperback I normally avoid- like the plague. It sat on my shelf for several months while my snobbery precluded me from picking it up. Then last week a friend's father died unexpectedly, and that night I started reading Year Zero. How could I not want to share something with my dad while I still had the time?
And it was great! Just the kind of page-turner summer read that you'd want to talk about with your dad. It's packed with enough action to keep it going, enough meat to give you something to talk about, enough "what if" to make you think. In a summer where Angels & Demons is likely to make millions, pick up Year Zero if you're in the mood for a different religious thriller experience... then call your dad and tell him you love him, because you never know- the world could end tomorrow. ;)
