This book does not go straight. It is not a road in Wyoming. The earth spins while orbiting the sun. A car on a Tilt-A-Whirl queases children at the country fair using a similar motion - tightly spinning on a larger, also rotating platform (throw in some rising and falling for good measure). This book is built on that pattern - spinning small and spinning big - and follows the earth through the seasons of one orbit. Like the earth and the Tilt-A-Whirl, you will end at the beginning. (Preface, pg. x)
Whew. So that's two pages into the Preface. I think it gives you just a taste of the beautiful, dizzying journey that is Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl. Wilson takes you through an unconventional mash-up of "philosophy, poetry, theology, narrative, ad nauseam." (Preface, pg. xi) There's no clear-cut outline here, no alliteration. The chapters bear names like "Your Mother Was a Lizard" and "The Problem of Evil and the Nonexistence of Shakespeare: A Paper by Hamlet, Prince of Denmark." It's hard to explain, but I'll do my best.
In another review of this book, Patrick Schreiner wrote,
The best way to describe this book is a creative worldview book. He seeks to answer the questions: What is this place? Why is this place? Who approved it? Are the investors happy? Am I supposed to take it seriously?
Wilson is definitely creative. He shows us that we're in a Story, a great Novel, written by a glorious, omnipotent, Author. This Author has put us in His Story with meaning and purpose. Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl reflects on life in the Story, or life in the Carnival. (There are lots of metaphors.) Wilson examines the meaning of this life, the existence of God, variant philosophies, hell, the beauty of the broken world, the importance of the apparently inconsequential, and how all of it brings glory to the Author. This book is a joy to read, and it really leaves you with "wide-eyed wonder in God's spoken world."
So I loved this book, and its delightfully unconventional path. But I cannot finish this review without mentioning one caution, a roadblock that I found difficult to get over throughout the book. It was the profanity. Wilson made a brief case for it, again in the Preface:
There are times when my word choice may seem odd for a "religious" book hoping to reach a "religious" audience. But rest easy - I never reach the level of shock and surprise achieved by such writers as the prophet Ezekiel. (pg. xi)
Now I don't think that is an especially strong argument for the use of profane language, and I found it simply unnecessary throughout the book. For me, it distracted from the message. The words were no more than a dozen and all mild profanity, but in my opinion, it still took away from the purpose.
So then, Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl probably isn't for everyone. But I think the good ultimately did outweigh the bad. If you can stomach the crass words and are interested in this mash-up of theology and philosophy, there is much good to be found in the beauty of the writing style, the magnificence of the God presented, the way Wilson can evoke an image, and the joy of seeing that you're part of the Story.
Buy Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl here.