2DIE4: The Dangerous Truth About Following Christ

In a colloquial style with all the subtlety of a two-by-four to the side of the head, Dobson, a surfer, skateboarder and motivational speaker who is a son of Focus on the Family's James Dobson, trumpets Christianity as the ultimate adrenaline rush: "You and I were born for excitement and adventure.... Anything else leaves us bored." Christ alone offers the abundant life to all who follow him, but the way is fraught with peril and temptation from Satan and his "evil world system"; Dobson dubs it "murderous war because our enemy is deadly." Furthermore, Christ calls his followers to die daily to their own desires so that they might live more fully for him; Dobson even says that Christ will call some to martyrdom. The book targets a young audience with its references to life in a rock band, The Lord of the Rings, professional wrestling and its central metaphor, skydiving. It offers writing for people who don't like to read: short sentences, sentence fragments and plenty of exclamation points. With its ragged and rugged portrait of the Christian as the world's true rebel, this brief, conspicuous book may draw teens and 20-somethings who are tired of boring religion. (Sept.)