This is the first Daniel Black novel I've read. And I can't praise this writer enough! A wonderful storyteller, Black puts you in the midst of the story, and you will see it all in your mind's eye! You won't want to put this book down!

When a married man, and father, leaves his past behind in search of a "possession-less" lifestyle, he has no idea what may be called of him. To what sacrifices he will truly have to make.

Follow this man as he comes to have friends, who have no idea what true sacrifice is until Lazarus Love III comes into their lives.

I can promise you, this book has a sift enough pace you simply won't want to put it down, and you won't want it to end!

I give this book five stars.

A big thumbs up.

And my personal highly recommended award. ( )

A book that is difficult to read, and while the ending is a bit hard to believe, the characters are rich and full and the descriptions of living homeless in the modern world make up for these down sides.

Lazarus Love is the third of his name. His grandfather owned a sheep farm in Arkansas, and his son became a crack addict. Lazarus Third (Trey) is the son who tries to save his father, visits his grandfather during summers and learns to "listen to the lambs" and raises himself out of poverty to own a home in Buckhead. He marries well then decides there must be more to life than owning things. Which there is, but Trey goes about it so very wrong.

His two children and wife, including his son, Lazarus (Quad) are left wondering how and why, as he leaves them after about 15 years of marriage to go live on the streets. Because he feels it's more honest. And the resulting damage he does to the children of his body are deeply explored, as are the miracles he does for the "family" he brings together under the underpass called "The Upper Room."

The relationships between the characters, all of whom center around Lazarus Trey, are brilliant; the reasons for homelessness are varied and full of despair, including the lack of privacy, cleanliness, and responsibility are also well drawn. Where this book fails is the trial, including the Family's way for hiring the lawyer and the trial's almost instantaneous resolution. Additionally, the explanation for Trey's leaving his family is just flat. Men leave their families all the time and the reasoning in Black's book is as unreasonable as all the others. Which may be the point. ( )