THE Box of Books

There are few cases of religious biographical works that have overcome the boundaries of prejudice to become literary classics. In fewer cases have they been adapted to the big screen (The Mission, Magdalene sisters). The Box of Books, Larry Kelly's biographical foray is a work that in time might achieve similar crossover appeal. Beginning in the 1940's era, set in the mid west, Larry's memoir is a candid personal look at what it means to live a life as Jehovah's Witness without being an expose' or diatribe. As a boy, as if stepping from the pages of a Mark Twain novel, the young Larry's tales take us through his adventures in the open woodlands, to difficulties with an abusive step parent. Eventually including the pitfalls of drug use, religious visions and time spent in the mental ward of a hospital. A survivor's story, this is not a manual on how to best live a religious life, it is rather a tale of a man who kept his faith through his own failures and the challenges that presented themselves.