What is "The Windows of Heaven"?

2004-11-06T14:05:00.000-08:00

Interested in ancient Flood literature? Want to talk about creation, cataclysm, or evolution? Want to go beyond "creation science illustrated" and still keep to the heart of a Genesis-based worldview? Why are the first 11 chapters of Genesis important today?

The Windows of Heaven is a 4-book novel series about a dying world violently destroyed and reborn. It is intelligent fiction with multi-dimensional characters and plot, and a redemptive theme. The Windows of Heaven re-tells the ancient Flood apocalypse for the 21st century, relying on multi-cultural myth and legend, and centered on the Hebrew sacred history in the Book of Genesis. It explores, among other things, how the untested worldview assumptions of even the most advanced civilizations can eventually lead to social breakdown and institutionalized chaos. The Windows of Heaven series is a character-driven speculative science fiction epic about a world that was, and perhaps even more about the world that is.

Reveiwers and readers say of Book 1, Dawn-Apocalypse Rising...

"The action is both physical and psychological. We are hurled headlong into a battle involving dinosaurs in Chapter 1, (of Book 1: Dawn-Apocalypse Rising) and in the midst of that battle, we are pitched into a flashback filled with action that almost psychologically cripples the hero…" --iUniverse Editorial Review

"Others have said it, but it is worth repeating: You have not read the story of Noah as it is written here. Finally, someone has taken the time to creatively set forth a worthwhile story in the antediluvian world." --Amazon Reader Review by Rob Mullen

"Powderly has crafted a dramatic fictionalized interpretation of Noah and the ancient peoples that is intellectually stimulating and picturesque." Tom Gilbert of "Living the Solution"

"Throughout, with only brief respite, the tone is tense. Suspense hangs on every page." --iUniverse Editorial Review

"K.G. Powderly's "Dawn Apocalypse Rising" is one of the few novels concerning the Biblical antediluvian world, and it is most likely the best. Powderly has taken a world of which we have no information and formed a back story to it almost as complete as that of Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings". This is a must read." --Amazon Reader Review by "Obi-Zahn Kenobi"

"Dawn-Apocalypse Rising is so richly dimensional that not only are landscapes and elements of landscapes described, but their psychological or symbolic importance is immediately apparent and impressive." --iUniverse Editorial Review

"In Dawn Apocalypse Rising, we are introduced to the pre-flood world in way that few could ever imagine. A'Nu-Ahki (the Noah figure) is the most compelling character I have ever come across in a book, and his world is a world so unlike and yet like our own, that you cannot help but be captivated. With dragons and Titans and men who live for centuries, and so much more, I was not able to put this book down." --Amazon Reader Review from "Nyetgirl"

"We often tend to elevate mythic heroes like Noah to an unreasonable stature. It’s good to see the author shows the humanness, and more importantly, how God works through people even with their faults. That should give any of us hope." Tom Gilbert of "Living the Solution"

"Dawn-Apocalypse Rising is continually fast-paced, either in the narrative itself or in the flashbacks. Interest never flags." --iUniverse Editorial Review

"The ending of Dawn-Apocalypse Rising… is another hook, a cliffhanger that makes us yearn to reach for the second volume of this epic." --iUniverse Editorial Review

"The Windows of Heaven is an extraordinary piece of relevant, speculative fiction that combines history, theology, and philosophy, dovetailing geological eras with biblical figures familiar to us. The novel is an intellectual investment, as well as a pleasure, reading like dramatized history. The rich, entertaining philosophical issues of morality are as timely today as they are in the context of this sweeping epic of human and cosmic power struggles." --iUniverse Editorial Review

"If you do read Powderly's masterpiece, you will never be able to look at Genesis the same way again." --Amazon Reader Review by "Nyetgirl"

"The Windows of Heaven is certainly one of the very few science-fiction works that I’m aware of that deals with the far-distant past, combining biblical and speculative geologic histories into a single, compelling narrative." --iUniverse Editorial Review

Browse the first three books--Dawn-Apocalypse Rising, The Paladin's Odyssey, and A Broken Paradise--at kg-powderly-books.com or buy them at discount at Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and other web book distributors in the USA and Europe.

On Book 2, The Paladin's Odyssey, reviewers and readers say...

"In this follow-up to Dawn-Apocalypse Rising, Kent Powderly returns us to the antediluvian world of dinosaurs, long-lived humans, and high technology. Powderly does a masterful job of covering time from the perspective of a young man in his fifties. U'Sumi, the Biblical Shem, is confronted by his own predjudices and fears when he falls in love with a follower of a pagan religion. Even more exciting and relevant than the first, this story takes a number of unexpected twists and turns, and will certainly not disappoint readers of historical fiction, science fiction, or fantasy. Most importantly, in all of the fantastic settings of this book, the characters still shine through as the brightest points of the book. T'Qinna's story is heartfelt and dramatic, and perfectly compliments the quest on which U'sumi finds himself. The reader familiar with ancient legends and mythology from around the world will find him/herself nodding at the way in which Powderly neatly ties together fictional and historic elements. But for the novice, the story will be a great awakening to a world unfamiliar, yet strikingly relevant to our own." --Rob Mullin, Amazon Listmania on Ante-Diluvian Fiction

"Powderly... is concerned with the time just preceding the Great Flood, but because the biblical prophecy of Armageddon and the end of the world have recently been debated by national news magazines and Internet sites, all centering around the use of weapons of mass destruction unleashed by rogue nations, Israel, and the U.S., readers everywhere will be snared by Powderly’s concern with events that occurred before the end of the world in that earlier era. His flair for well-structured drama works superbly and logically as the framework for this novel." --iUniverse Editor's Choice Award Review

"Tension pervades The Paladin's Odyssey as warfare threatens those reluctant to kill for mere power. Above all, the impending forecast of the world’s end looms ever larger as U’Sumi and his father battle their way toward home. Throughout, these characters—both flawed by genetics, scorned and mocked—seem absolutely real. We root for them and cheer them on as they narrowly escape potential death during the novel. Both men are heroes in the grand tradition, ever surprising us with their larger-than-life cunning, ingenuity and resilience." --iUniverse Editor's Choice Award Review

"In short, the pacing of The Paladin's Odyssey is not for the squeamish, but for those who relish masterful storytelling, the reward is well worth the late nights when bedtime is pushed back repeatedly for just one more hour of Powderly’s magical storytelling." --iUniverse Editor's Choice Award Review

Book 3, A Broken Paradise is now available at Amazon, BarnesandNoble.com, and other on-line book stores!

Book 4, The Tides of Nemesis is due out in Spring of 2005!

Why a Literary Undeground?

2004-11-06T13:27:00.000-08:00

Perhaps the term "Literary Underground" is a tad melodramatic, but many Christian artists, authors, and musicians sometimes feel too constrained both spiritually and artistically by the near-total polarization of publishing into "Christian" or "Secular" venues. This is not meant as a slam on the growing amount of quality fiction in Christian publishing, or on the need for personal biblical accountability among Christians in the arts. I realize that believers have had to protect themselves and their children from an increasingly hostile secular artistic and moral environment. We're all tired of artists who push the moral envelope just for the sake of gratuitous thrills. But even necessary systems have their blind spots.

What about literature that deals with the pervasive evils that today's mid, high-school, and college-agers already are forced to live with because others have already pushed the envelope a long time ago beyond where Christians would like? We don't want the envelope pushed, but are we to leave new generations to these wolves (literarily speaking) simply because the life issues new generations drown in are already beyond subject matters where Christians feel comfortable? What about stories that provide a biblical framework for processing evil lives in evil times by redemptively-themed literature? We forget today that the apocalyptic imagery in the Old Testament and the Book of Revalation was some the most disturbing and shocking literature of its day.

For those of us who believe that the God of the Bible is the God of the real world, and that we should use our art not only to build-up Christians but to reach into the general "free marketplace of ideas" as much as possible, many of the traditional publication venues have become unreachable. The reasons for this are manifold and complex. One is that the literary arts are no longer the mainstay of public communication and entertainment as they once were. They still have, and will always have an essential role, but movies have often supplanted the novel as the primary story-telling model for our culture. New novelists can rarely support themselves by novel writing, even if they have a decent book out. It often seems that authors can no longer bank on their writing talent to win the attention of publishers, unless they also have well-known speaking or TV ministries, or movies that have been based on their books.

Sometimes we Christians have become too comfortable in the walled safety of our intellectual ghetto. We have all seen Christian writers and musicians that "went secular," or tried to plow new ground, who later fell away from the faith, or into gross sin. (It's easy to forget when this happens that many believers in the arts who have moved outside the traditional venues have also remained true, and even strengthened their faith and biblical worlview.)

So, calling all fiction writers, calling all artists--what say you?

Nov. 8, comments follow-up by KGP
Thank you for visiting, Veggiedude and HR. Veggiedude, it was difficult to know in what sense your comment was intended, until I visited your blog. Thanks for making it easy for me to do that. Starting a blog isn't the "best we can do," but it is something. Admittedly, it is also something I am new at. Though we are apparently on diffent sides of the worldview divide, I appreciate your comment, and hope you will weigh-in again. The Judeo-Christian worldview may not be the mainstream that it once was, but it is becoming an increasingly potent counter-culture that will not be so easily marginalized in the decades ahead. Historically, Judeo-Christianity has functioned best as what we today would call a counter-culture. We learned the hard way from the darker episodes of our own history that it is not a good idea to try to compel people "to believe" by political pressure or military force. The fears of our doing this, that are drummed up by so much of the mainstream media, are overplayed and unrealisitic. This is not to say that we will not actively engage in the political system by voting our consciences to help form sensible, just laws, and by using legitimate avenues of intellectual and moral persuasion (like blogging) in the marketplace of ideas. To do any less would be to pretend that the Judeo-Christian God of the Bible is not the God of the real world--which would be like us shooting ourselves in both feet, and in the kneecaps. Most of us are not that stupid.

HR, thank you for your kind words of encouragement, and I hope you will visit again.

A Christian Literary Underground in a Dying World

What is "The Windows of Heaven"?

Why a Literary Undeground?