The Shepherd & The Knucklehead

About the Book

Review submitted by educator, Jeri Lowe, 7/14/05:

If you were a child of the I, Me, Mine generation and happened to rise out of the suburban catacombs with a little bit of your soul intact, then this book’s for you. You will appreciate this flowery tome that mocks the overly educated, politically correct, and the flowery language league in a strange farce. However, the joy is in the journey. The author asks us to turn away from outside voices that distract from the search for inner truth. One must listen quietly for the inner voice that never lies. For those of us who made it through the scourge of the seventies, Chris is a voice that reminds us that we are part of all we have met.

Some food for thought, if you have a pocketful of plankton and a willingness to do something about poverty and ignorance then by all means do so! Besides, The Shepherd and the Knucklehead serves a two-fold purpose- your soul and your vocabulary will be enriched at the same time! How’s that for duality?

Tripping through the seventies in a psychedelic haze through the doors of perception in a cartoon graveyard, Schiavo’s world is eerily reminiscent of an acid flashback. It’s a little like trying to find that good, safe place before everything turns into a total bummer. At times, the read is slightly schizoid; however the author’s world functions well on eight tracks and weaves, an intricate tale.

However, it’s both the duality and the war of man. Oliver Tweed can be construed as a part of the author’s, disassociate episode, waxing prophetic about poverty and possible solutions. He beseeches us to, “Kelp him if we can, because he’s feeling down” There is certain magic within man, and it’s in duality that we can find beauty and empathy. OT leaves us with a certain feeling everything will be all right again.

The author dares us to jump through the chasm of Lake Duality and explore a parallel universe somewhere between fact and fiction. Schiavo explores his own battle with his duality in a temporal world that is fleeting, yet beautiful. The Shepherd and The Knucklehead is a delightful story of humanity at its deepest level, one part tragedy and one part comedy.

Schiavo’s, a self-declared “Soldier in the war on poverty”, too he beseeches us to join him by exploring how we are human and divine. Christ was fully human and fully divine, and by following his example he asks if we love him we must follow him. It’s a simple, bare necessity of life to do what is right, or attempt to do so, instead of following the crowd and caring for ourselves only, we can show our inherent humanity by demonstrating, ”Deeds not Creeds” We need to take responsibility for what’s going on now. However, the duality of man is according to Aquinas based on contingency and necessity. Not one to fly overboard or on board by the constraints of the overly educated, the Flowery Language League, or the politically correct, Chris cautions us to stop listening to endlessly loquacious and biased outside world chatter, it’s better to explore the inner workings of a man. Instead of endless talking we should develop the soul and the voice within that we all are capable of reaching, if we only ask. Or are we too busy spewing a not so delicate spin zone of babbling on forever? Why not practice a Zen like mantra and ask our bicameral voices to become our guides?

Jim Morrison reminded us that “ No one here gets out alive” for those of us who wrestled with demons under a Wishing Tree on a grey New Jersey day trawling for adventure by the “lake” of our own making- in the end, this book is about love - pure and simple. I raise my glass in a toast to the author and his multiple identities listen very hard and help them eat kelp!

Matthew 7:14 Narrow is the gate

About the Author

Christopher Schiavo lives in Hawthorne, N.J. with his wife and three children. A graduate of Mount Saint Mary's College of Maryland, he received a B.S. in Business/Finance. He realized one day that he hadn't been using both sides of his brain adequately. Hence his fascination with duality—the topic of this book. Oliver steals an apple off the Tree of Knowledge, takes a small bite and thinks through his understanding of his duality. He hand picks homunculus Francis Bacon, who serves as a "beard" for his humanity. Together they leave the street they both grew up on and are off on their travels. They exchange ideas through letter writing and contemplate what confuses them. Bacon's wisdom gives reason for Oliver to pause and sort out the questions of his duality. These questions get answered by clues left in a lyric by Jim Morrison, who for Oliver was not just entertainer but counselor. Here is a clue for you, this is "The End"...If you would like to talk to the author you can e-mail him at: CMSCHIAVO @AOL.COM.