Breathe God In, Breathe God Out

Books on religion can be difficult to write because, while the author wants a broad readership, the genre appeals to a smaller audience. Breathe God In, Breathe God Out, by Cedric A. Christian takes a unique approach to this genre in two ways. The first is that instead of preaching his beliefs on God and religion, he tells the story of a young man who recognizes his need to find God, learn to follow him, and change his life’s path. The second way Christian’s approach to writing his book is unique is that he uses both prose and poetry to get his message across. Broken into three sections, “Born of Flesh,” “Born of Water,” and “Born of Spirit,” Christian shares this young man’s journey toward God and following the path of Jesus through poetry. A concise book on a broad subject, this book will appeal to those who are looking for guidance.

The unique layout for his book is to be commended. Having a main character that is focusing on his path to God as opposed to the author preaching to his readers what their path to God should be is appealing. Using both prose and poetry was also a risk that had its merits at times. The prose is a helpful guide for readers to follow the character’s self-awareness and journey. However, the prose was at times inconsistent in quality and message. The inconsistent change in font types was also distracting. The font changes would have had a stronger influence in the book had it been used as a visual crescendo for this man’s journey. I would recommend this book to readers looking for an easy, concise, and encouraging book offering help, hope, and guidance in finding faith, hope, and God. Poems such as “A Journey Incredible” and “Become” are straight-forward and moving. I’m giving this book a 3.5 star rating because, while I would recommend it, the inconsistencies in font were distracting and the strength of the poetry needed refining.