(3 votes, average: 4.00 out of 5)
Loading ...Cliff Falls by C.B. Shiepe
Twenty-three years ago Mel Gibson debuted the character Martin Riggs in the movie, Lethal Weapon. Recent actions by the once “Sexiest Man Alive” left fans wondering if Gibson was more like Riggs than the early comparisons to Steve McQueen and Humphrey Bogart. Blurring the lines between character in a script and real life is not always limited to child stars and faltering accomplished actors/actresses.
Frequently people face the temptation to create an identity rooted in a performative act – like a self-selected vocation. Running to the end of achievement triggers the existential questions turning on the fulcrum of one’s own humanity. Some run. Others turn skeptical. Still others choose the game rather than reality.
C.B. Shiepe faces down this human dilemma in his first novel, Cliff Falls. Child star Clay comes face to face with his own running. Ted chooses the game rather than reality. And Rose preferred to see the humanity in them all.
“All he knew was that he had this desire to have control, to get it all back, to take back every false perception of who they said he was. Just for a day he wanted the inside and the outside to be the same.” – About Child Star Clay in Cliff Falls.
From the back cover,
In a world where entertainment has become our religion and religion our entertainment, Cliff Falls wrestles with the question of what it means to be truly human – comfortable in our own skin when everyone wants us to be someone or something else. What Clay discovers will changes his life and perhaps yours as well.
The book is sold exclusively at www.clifffalls.com. (Shipping is only $3.99 for one or two books.)
About the Author
In the fall of 1996, C.B. Shiepe went over the falls in his own life when a health challenge landed him in bed with little more to do than write. This story was part of that restoration and was years in the making. It took several incarnations, first a television pilot, then a screenplay, and finally, a novel. He doesn’t plan on writing an opera, so hopefully the book did the job.
With so much of life already on hold, the last thing he wanted to do was write a book, but he had a story to tell, and perseverance won out. Writing in coffee shops at 5:00 o’clock in the morning, he drew on his own experiences working in the entertainment and faith worlds.
Looking back, he never asked himself if he could write a novel, a screenplay, or a television pilot. He just did and learned along the way, starting a publishing company to boot. Belief is a powerful thing.
Born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, his family moved to sunny Southern California when he was four. A graduate of the University of Southern California, he began his career in production at the Walt Disney Company. He has consulted numerous churches nationwide, and co-created three ministries in Hawaii and California. He has coached entertainment executives and pastors on brand management, synergy, and visionary leadership.
Founder and Creative Director of Cliff Falls Media, Inc., C. B. Shiepe continues to develop creative content that explores who we are and how we are connected to each other. Understanding that “at one time or another we all go over the falls”, he continues to write and speak to an intergenerational audience about the Cliff Falls experience. “It’s one thing to believe in something when you don’t need it to be true. It’s another when everything is riding on it.”
Above all, he thanks the One who has seen him through. “After you have suffered a little while, He Himself will restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” Whatever that looks like, he’s game.
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Mark Wilson
I just finished a fabulous novel, Cliff Falls, by C. B. Shiepe.
This page turner revolves around exploited child television star, Clay Grant, who disappears on his eighteenth birthday after an arson fire destroys the Hollywood studio backlot, and spends the next fifteen years on the run, hounded by the media. He goes from place to place trying to fit in, until he is discovered again.
He eventually lands in jail, after a fight with an aggressive, determined photographer, and brought up on charges of tax evasion.
A kind minister who knew him during his television days, comes to the rescue, bailing him out of his plight, and offering a new start in the small town of Cliff Falls.
The plot thickens after his arrival, however, as the pastor’s own family members are forced to face their own need to drop the mask and be real.
Cliff Falls draws the reader to significant personal reflection through several thought provoking moments It’s particularly good read for those who feel trapped by the expectations of others or obligated to fulfill a role.
My review is posted at http://www.revitalizeyourchurch.blogspot.com
Sep 13th, 2010
ricknier
I’m trying to figure out which kind of childhood star to tell you to imagine. Should I give you someone like Drew Barrymore who was first seen in E.T.? It seems like it would be more fun to poke fun at Danny Bonaduce. Not that the Partridge Family wasn’t top-notch. Everything else has come back. Why not that family?
But if we are to actually talk about this book, you’re going to want to imagine Gary Coleman or Todd Bridges, you know, poster children for troubled childhood stars. Because that seems to be the mold that author C.B. Shiepe has gotten Clay Grant, childhood star from the fictional Little Guy Mike.
Clay Grant is as troubled as they come. Used and abused by adults who should know better than to view a kid as a cash cow, Clay grows cynical. And why not? He doesn’t know who he is or who he even wants to be.
The description on the back was enough to intrigue me.
In a world where entertainment has become our religion and religion our entertainment, Cliff Falls wrestles with the question of what it means to be truly human -comfortable in our own skin when everyone wants us to be someone or something else.
I was not disappointed. This was a quick and easy read with more than one character leaving you asking questions throughout. If you’ve ever asked questions about identity, then I recommend you take a spare day to read thsi book.
Original post at http://www.ricknierwoo.blogspot.com
Sep 21st, 2010
renee
I was initially quite skeptical of this book because of my snobbishness. The book was published under “Cliff Falls Media” and I didn’t recognize a single name in the endorsements. This tends to be a discouraging sign that I will not find that book enjoyable.
To my pleasant surprise, I discovered that this is actually a good little book.
It’s a “coming-of-age,” “rediscovering yourself” novel that portrays the main character well. There was enough symbolism in the story to keep me interested, and the writing was decent. It followed the years of an exploited child star and his return from self-imposed exile- the entertainment industry angle gave it a different feel from other similar books.
I appreciated the message, and the honest portrayal of a disillusioned person’s feelings. It wasn’t overtly evangelical, but it was realistic.
I’m glad I picked this book to review.
Nov 8th, 2010
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