A book review is to benefit both the author and the reader. The review should help the author discover his or her writing strengths and weaknesses--stylistically and technically--and to hopefully sell copies of the book. A review should also help a potential reader decide whether or not to invest in the book. Therefore, when I write a book review, I try to keep this in mind and be totally honest.

Many times things are not always as they seem on the surface. I must admit that I was thrown by the title, GOD'S ANGELS AND THE RIGHT TO REPLY THE CRAZY LIFETIME OF G.B. LIPSCOMBE. I thought the book would have something to do with communicating with angels or perhaps the author's experience with divine entities. After reading the first few chapters, I wondered where Lipscombe was going and if the book would eventually relate to its title. It did not.

Instead, GOD'S ANGELS AND THE RIGHT TO REPLY is one man's quest for justice. The book is written as a reminiscent journey through the life of the author. His thesis for this entire work is about lies and liars and he boldly stands upon his conviction for truth. In his story, Mr. Lipscombe recounts every injustice he has witnessed in English society. From the rich to the homeless, his personal discourse on crime and punishment is dotted with stories of how people and institutions have deceived him and others.

Describing his childhood, Lipscombe was instilled with the same virtues, morals and values as most children of his generation in the western world. It would lead us to believe that he might hold to his training and become a model citizen. I was surprised to find that the author had spent time in prison. I must applaud his transparency as he honestly shares his own shortcomings and how his sinful side has negatively affected his own life as well as the lives of others. Not quite knowing who to blame for his own poor choices, he exposes them along with the misgivings, conspiracies, and errors of everyone who has crossed his path--companies, government, authority figures, business owners, ministers, lawmakers and the justice system--to name a few. Many of them are deserving of the words ascribed to them and guilty of the very things the author charges to them. For example, on page 412 the author writes:

"The race to war can be slowed down and stopped all together with the use of good law but the devils advocates do not want wars to stop because it is the cause of millions of honest people's employment around the world. The manipulators in government invest lots of money in wars and weapons factories across the world. It is the source of untold billions of pounds of tax money spent and millions of deaths...Lots of different government backed business, make weapons of mass destruction and they sell there weapons, to arm a world full of paranoid fear they have helped perpetuate."

Lipscombe's admitted rebel nature towards authority in his youth is apparent. His lack of "exam qualifications" show that punctuation and grammar are not his forte. I hope that in the future he will have an editor amend his work before publishing. The distracting spelling and typographical errors throughout the book greatly hindered my reading pleasure.

I've heard that venting one's frustration helps get things off one's chest. With an obvious disdain for society, a victim mindset, and his thoughts perhaps influenced by his self-admitted addictions, this book could be Lipscombe's attempt to let off steam and help him make sense of his world. We can use our mistakes to learn a lesson. The author's stay in prison opened his eyes to the evil of human nature, but unfortunately it made him seem bitter. It is my hope that writing this book has also led him to find healing for his wounds, walk in forgiveness and focus on the better side of life and human nature.

GOD'S ANGELS AND THE RIGHT TO REPLY may be an insightful, yet mindboggling, description of how some members of society seek to control others for political and monetary gains. Some readers might enjoy Lipscombe's diatribe, filled with conspiracy theory, accusations and unconventional logic. This book may open some apathetic eyes and raise a conscious awareness to help us avoid the pitfalls of greed and jealousy so prominent in our world.