Go West: 10 Principles That Guided My Cowboy Journey

This concise and compulsively readable debut from Sparks documents an unusual faith journey. At the age of 14, the author experienced a vision that directed him to set out on a career in bullfighting, and to use that career as a way of fully engaging his Christian faith. An encounter with professional rider Donny Sparks (a distant relative) led him to adopt 10 principles that would guide him through his bullfighting career and along his path of Christian discipleship. Never predictable—his life includes a stint in the Air Force, an apprenticeship to a funeral director, and a heart-wrenching broken marriage—Sparks travels across the U.S. finding ways to spread the gospel, and finally lands in a place where it all begins to make sense to him. The writing is uneven, but the story is always exciting and flows seamlessly across times and places. Readers looking for inspiration (or just a great story) will discover a wild ride that proves just how twisty some paths to Christ can be. (Feb.)