by Leonard Sweet
Most books have both good and bad points in them. But every so often, I run across a book that has practically no redeeming value. This was one of those books.
Bluntly, it was one of the worst books I've read.
The essence of the book's message: Church should be E.P.I.C. (Experiential, Participatory, Image-Rich, Connecting). Starbucks does EPIC really well. Therefore, the church could learn a lot from Starbucks.
The format takes each letter (E.P.I.C.) and covers a chapter on how Starbucks enacts that letter, followed by a chapter on how the church could follow sync. It is ridiculous, offensive, and flirting with blasphemy to have God saying, "Wow, Starbucks has a great thing going there. Let's try that." (By the way, the Epilogue is entitled "Jehovah Java.")
The content is way off base. But the style is also lacking. Sweet extends his metaphors far beyond bounds of sense and interest. Boxes within the pages (with themed titles like "Brewed for Thought" and "Grounds for Truth") attempt to stir thinking, but are usually rhetorical questions with minimal substance. The ideas aren't even fresh, as I've heard this basic message many times before.
Sweet is clearly a coffee aficionado and he knows something of marketing strategy. This book would've been fine (not good, but OK) if it were just on that subject. But when he drags in the gospel according to Starbucks, it's a whole different story.
Don't waste your time on this book.
GRADE:
_ _ _ _ F
Bad content. Bad style. Just bad.
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