Review of Truth and Evil

[Alice Glover]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Truth and Evil" by G. Edward Martin.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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“Earth exists in a place halfway between Heaven and Hell. It is a mirror of both and pulled by both, but it could become either. The choice is, and always will be, yours to make.”

Truth and Evil by G. Edward Martin is a Christian fiction novelette that starts with the passage above. Then, we meet a young German soldier who, the author says, “walks through a hell of his own making on his journey back to heaven.”

It is 1942 in a town somewhere in Russia. This German soldier is a Nazi. He is proud of his service to his country and Fuhrer Adolf Hitler. He never doubted that the war was just. He thinks of other races as nonhuman, and he is helping to free the world of their curse.

This German soldier commits a horrible crime. His commander orders him to check out a cellar behind a house. He finds a young girl hiding there and rapes her. He imagines himself a god during the act, wielding the power of life and death over his helpless victim. He returns from the cellar and tells his commander that no one is there. The soldiers walk on down the road, but shortly an allied plane flies overhead and drops a bomb on him and four others in his platoon.

He is blown to pieces on earth, but presently, he is whole again, standing before God. God is angry with him and orders him not to take one step further into heaven. If he wishes to redeem his soul, God says he must go back to earth and tell the truth this time. If you have seen Groundhog Day, where Bill Murray gets caught in a time loop, the story is similar, but a lot darker. And there are examples of religious symbolism as well. The soiled handkerchief the soldier carries was given to him by his mother. She made it from his swaddling clothes, and it seems to symbolize how the war has stained his soul; how it changed this simple German farm boy into the monster who just committed the terrible crime in the cellar.

I gave this book a 5 out of 5 rating. It’s a Christian book and like a Bible parable has a moral to teach. It's also a haunting story that will keep you thinking about it long after you read it. The editor did a great job. I didn't find any grammar or typo errors. But this book is not for young people because of the many instances of rape and violence. Adult Christians, however, should find this story very meaningful, and a subject for deep reflection on the nature of good and evil.

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Truth and Evil
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