The Bottom Line
Pros
- Well-written novel.
- Good Character development
- Uses the song as a basis for the plot.
Cons
- None.
Description
- Foreword written by Tim McGraw.
- Published by WestBow Press.
- An inspirational novel.
Guide Review - Michael Morris - Live Like You Were Dying: A Story About Living
While many country songs have given birth to "inspirational" books, rarely, if ever, has a song inspired a novel. After an emotional recording of "Live Like You Were Dying," some publishers brainstormed about the possibility of a novel based on the song. Commissioning novelist Michael Morris, WestBow Press set about creating the novel. At just 178 pages, "Live Like You Were Dying" is a short novel but it tells a compelling story about life, love and family.Nathan loved his family, consisting of a wife named Heather and a daughter named Malley, but seemed, to the rest of the world, to love his job and money more than anything else. A hardworking manager at a manufacturing plant, Nathan suffers a horrendous accident that turns to be a blessing for a tumor is found. After talking to doctors Nathan decides to take some time off and live life, but not before an abbreviated attempt to work. During this time Nathan follows the path laid out in the lyric of the song but Morris' prose also stretches a bit to show how even the hollowest of men can come around to be the man everyone around them thought they could be.
Fans of Tim McGraw will undoubtedly want to check this novel out as will fans of the novel writer. Even if you aren't a fan of Tim or the song, the story is still a good one that's worth checking out. It is well written and is so visual that I can see some sort of movie being created from this, most likely a "Hallmark Hall-of-Fame" type of movie.