Muscle and a Shovel

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tryphon

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A Protestant friend of mine (ex-Catholic) suggested that I read the book "Muscle and a Shovel ".
I understand that this book is anti-Catholic and I have no interest in reading it, but I would appreciate the comments from those who have read it.
Thanks!
 
tryphon said:
A Protestant friend of mine (ex-Catholic) suggested that I read the book "Muscle and a Shovel ".
I understand that this book is anti-Catholic and I have no interest in reading it, but I would appreciate the comments from those who have read it.
Thanks!
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I cant give you a answer to your question as I have never read the book or even heard of it. I decided to check out your thread because I work in construction so the thread title “Muscle and a Shovel” caught my attention 😃

I a non-Catholic Christian asked me to read a anti Catholic book I would agree. Not out of interest but because I feel I am very strong in my faith (I am a protestant convert to The Catholic Church so I did a lot of research before I decided to become Catholic) and I have heard almost every negative thing said about The Church and every argument and none of it impresses me or even comes close to the rock solid Catholic apologetics I have read that converted me.

But… before I agree to read a anti Catholic book, I would ask if they would agree to read a Catholic book. I would choose “Rome sweet home” by Scott Hahn. It is not anti-protestant but it very easily explains Dr. Hans The journey from Protestantism to Catholicism and the arguments that went on in his head that made him question protestant tradition (that includes Sola Scriptura, or “Bible Only” tradition)

If your friend is a ex-Catholic, I am guessing they have had a lot of false info about The Church planted in his head and does not even know The Truth about what a gift from God they have left behind. Why should you read a anti Catholic book if they wont read a Catholic book? But I only recommend this to Catholics strong in their faith, with a good foundation. Those who are not that strong in The Faith should not read anti-Catholic stuff if they don’t know much about Catholic apologetics. Just my opinion FWIW. God bless.
 
LaughingBoy1503 said:
I meant “If” a non-Catholic Christian asked me to read a anti Catholic book
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You make a good point! A few months ago I did give him a book to read that showed the fallacies of the anti-Catholic sects (Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic) by David Currie. I do not know whether he actually read it. Thanks for your posts!
 
ServusHumilis said:
Why not check the 1000 reviews of it on Amazon? 🤷
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Actually, I did.

Almost 900 of them are five-star; 40 are one-star. Out of a 1,000 reviews none were two or three-star reviews? How often does that happen?

Among the negative reviews is one comment which suggests that the author has been actively soliciting positive comments from his friends; in fact, one comment even begins, “When I volunteered to write this book review…”.

Volunteered? To whom? The the reviewer goes on to call the author, Michael Shank, by the familiar name, Mike. Does this sound like an arm’s length relationship between author and reviewer?

The negative reviews paint the picture that this book espouses basic “we’re right and everyone else is wrong” fundamentalism.

I’m guessing that the author has stacked the deck with friendly reviews while the 40 negatives were from people who actually bought the book without having a prior relationship with the author.

I could be wrong.
 
Randy_Carson said:
Actually, I did.

Almost 900 of them are five-star; 40 are one-star. Out of a 1,000 reviews none were two or three-star reviews? How often does that happen?

Among the negative reviews is one comment which suggests that the author has been actively soliciting positive comments from his friends; in fact, one comment even begins, “When I volunteered to write this book review…”.

Volunteered? To whom? The the reviewer goes on to call the author, Michael Shank, by the familiar name, Mike. Does this sound like an arm’s length relationship between author and reviewer?

The negative reviews paint the picture that this book espouses basic “we’re right and everyone else is wrong” fundamentalism.

I’m guessing that the author has stacked the deck with friendly reviews while the 40 negatives were from people who actually bought the book without having a prior relationship with the author.

I could be wrong.
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I have the numbers here:
  • 5 stars, 892
  • 4 stars, 43
  • 3 stars, 12
  • 2 stars, 13
  • 1 star, 40
Reviews for the book (maybe you looked at a different edition, kindle, paperback, etc.)

Unfortunately, sometimes it is hard to get sincere reviews of a book, perhaps look up blog entries, perhaps a Catholic blog has reviewed it. I’d check other means such as this.

But I totally agree, amazon reviews have to be taken with a grain of salt, someone even told me there is a “buy positive reviews” site to get people to say such and such things.

I’ll leave it at that.
 
Path_Finder said:
I have the numbers here:
  • 5 stars, 892
  • 4 stars, 43
  • 3 stars, 12
  • 2 stars, 13
  • 1 star, 40
Reviews for the book (maybe you looked at a different edition, kindle, paperback, etc.)

Unfortunately, sometimes it is hard to get sincere reviews of a book, perhaps look up blog entries, perhaps a Catholic blog has reviewed it. I’d check other means such as this.

But I totally agree, amazon reviews have to be taken with a grain of salt, someone even told me there is a “buy positive reviews” site to get people to say such and such things.

I’ll leave it at that.
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Wow. You’re right. When I glanced at the chart and then came back to post here, in my mind, I was visualizing those two and three star bars which are barely visible.

Still, that’s an odd distribution, isn’t it?
 
Some of the reviews, the one star reviews claim to be from persons who are Church of Christ.

The book seems to be from a Church of Christ perspective but some of those persons who go to the Church of Christ don’t seem to like it.

I note one person said something he said about Baptists lacked something to be desired.

The book may be from the “Fellowship of CoCs” meaning the ones I have seen since I was a kid, buildings and so on.

It does seem to get some negative flack from Fundamentalist types concerning the meaning of Baptism, etc.

Here is an entry from a Church of Christ member, he says:
My friend and brother Edward Fudge is also correct in describing your theology as a false gospel.
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oneinjesus.info/2013/10/muscle-and-a-shovel-in-reply-to-the-author-michael-shank/
 
Randy_Carson said:
Actually, I did.

Almost 900 of them are five-star; 40 are one-star. Out of a 1,000 reviews none were two or three-star reviews? How often does that happen?

Among the negative reviews is one comment which suggests that the author has been actively soliciting positive comments from his friends; in fact, one comment even begins, “When I volunteered to write this book review…”.

Volunteered? To whom? The the reviewer goes on to call the author, Michael Shank, by the familiar name, Mike. Does this sound like an arm’s length relationship between author and reviewer?

The negative reviews paint the picture that this book espouses basic “we’re right and everyone else is wrong” fundamentalism.

I’m guessing that the author has stacked the deck with friendly reviews while the 40 negatives were from people who actually bought the book without having a prior relationship with the author.

I could be wrong.
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Yes it is odd. I’ve don’t think I’ve ever seen a product with so many reviews. Who even has that many friends?
 
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