Tim Bishop’s love of real-life bicycle
adventures shines true in this faith-based fictional tale of a man who’s hit
bottom in more ways than one and needs a miracle to save not only his own life,
but that of a man he’s just met. Persistence goes both ways for Douglas and the
Lord of life who stands knocking at every turn in this heart-pounding ride.
Lisa Lickel, author of UnderStory and UnderCut
The Persistent Road
Tim Bishop
Contemporary Christian Fiction, AdventureOpen Road Press, June 20, 2023
368 pp print
$2.99 Kindle
$17.99
Buy on Amazon About the Book
The Persistent Road
There’s always an escape.
Sometimes you need to search long
and hard for the right one.
After losing all he once
cherished, Doug Zimmer follows his wife’s parting bread crumbs and rides up the
Pacific coast—on a bicycle. Armed with a revolver and only a vague plan to get
through the months ahead, he aims to end his depression one way or the other.
As spiritual forces wrangle for
his soul, he pedals eastward across America. He meets Lauren Baumgartner—a
younger adventurer with a vibrant spirit—and a band of zealots who confront his
aversion to religion. Accompanying Doug are not only sunny days and the beauty
of nature but also the perils of the road, fellow travelers with their own
stories, and the hollow silence of solitary campsites playing host to unseen
creatures of the night.
A
jarring episode on a climb through a treacherous pass brings Doug face-to-face
with life and death. Will Doug’s adventure deliver him from loneliness and
lament . . . or hurtle him to an abrupt end?
My Review
Tim Bishop’s love of real-life bicycle
adventures shines true in this faith-based fictional tale of a man who’s hit
bottom in more ways than one and needs a miracle to save not only his own life,
but that of a man he’s just met. Persistence goes both ways for Douglas and the
Lord of life who stands knocking at every turn in this heart-pounding ride.
A double knock-out punch hits salesman Douglas
Zimmerman right in the gut with the loss of his job to a slimy colleague and
his wife to cancer. Doug’s wife, however, bequeathed a gift better than this
brief moment of humanity on planet Earth. Completely down and out, after a few
months drowning in sorrow, Doug decides to follow Ruth’s scavenger hunt, never
dreaming the prize was his soul…and a secret only his sister knew.
Douglas set off on a bicycle ride north from
his home in Los Angeles, directed by notes his late wife had written to him,
leading him on a journey of rediscovery, initially of their deepest intimate
moments, and later, one of self-discovery meant to challenge his beliefs…or
lack thereof. He soon crosses paths with both religious nuts and exercise
fanatics, and kooks, do-gooders, and reckless sorts as he rides across the
mountains on his way east. He’s sure he wants nothing to do with the religious
nuts, even when he’s bothered by deep questions that force him to contradict
his loosely held morality, or especially when they make him ponder his fate
while trying to hand out charity. Others on a similar path ride in and out of
his life, dispensing advice both wanted and unwanted. Lauren, however, with her
naïve outlook and innocent bicycling style, connects with him more often than
not in ways that he both longs for and wants to avoid. When she introduces a
new fellow rider, he’s not sure what to think of the man who boasts of riding
300 miles a day just to stay in shape.
On a particularly dangerous leg of mountain
roads, tragedy forces Doug to look himself in the heart and not like what he
sees and feels. He makes a risky move to save his new friends while finally
admitting the hypocrisy he’s been living. How could anyone accept or love what
he sees in the mirror?
Told through Douglas’s eyes, Bishop creates a
nice parallel story of both running from and seeking wholeness and healing
through the only way to salvation in the person of Jesus, the persistent lover
of our souls. It’s a lengthy book, and Bishop has a hard time moving past his
nonfiction habits of sharing a lot of minutiae and details of life on the road
such as he shared in his previous works. The real adventure begins several
chapters in with lovely imagery, and some harrowing adventures, and a vast
amount of soul-searching. Recommended for those who love inspirational
adventure tales with satisfying conclusions. Discussion guide included.
About the Author
After a thirty-year career in business, Tim Bishop left his corporate
treasurer position, married his dream
girl, and embarked with her to parts
unknown—on bicycles. Ten thousand miles later, the first-time newlyweds have
written four books about their cycling adventures. Their devotional,
Wheels
of Wisdom, won four first-place book awards.
Publishers Weekly dubbed
it “a road map for life.” Tim volunteers as a coach for a ministry that reaches
people who are dealing with challenging life issues. He has written numerous
articles for various Christian content providers and has been a part of three
church plants. These faith experiences have given him an evangelist’s heart to
reach people in creative ways. A graduate of the University of Maine, a CPA,
and a three-time Maine chess champion, Tim and his wife, Debbie, live in Middle
Tennessee. Connect with him at
TimBishopWrites.com.
