Book Review: The Final Summit

A Review of The Final Summit

By Andy Andrews

The Final Summit is a sequel to Andy Andrews’ The Traveler’s Gift and marks the return of the character David Ponder.  The basic premise of the book is that God, at different points in history, selected people called travelers, who He allowed to travel through time and learn the divine secrets of success.  In The Final Summit these travelers are summoned together to save humanity from the end of time by answering a single question: “What does humanity need to do, individually and collectively, to restore itself to the pathway toward successful civilization?”

In general, the book was engaging.  Andrews writes in an accessible style for the average reader.  History buffs will enjoy the historical information that Andrews presents.  I was particularly interested in Eric Erickson, the WWII spy, who was intrinsic to the fall of the Nazi war machine but has very little written about him.  For more information about Erickson, see Alexander Klein’s The Counterfeit Traitor.

On the spiritual side of things, The Final Summit is pretty weak:

Number one: None of the answers that the travelers come up with, including the right one, have anything to do with God.  I kept hoping for one of these great people to say something like, “love God”, “submit to God”, or “faith in God”, but apparently, God has very little to do with humanity’s salvation.  In fact, King David, the man who had a heart after God’s own heart, responded with “self-discipline” as the answer to humanity’s peril.  And at one point, Mark Twain scoffs at someone who suggests “faith” as an answer and calls them a “brownnoser”.  Jesus’ name is never mentioned, though He is alluded to once as the boss’ son.

Number two: Andrews also seems to think that worldly success is what it takes to be great in God’s eyes.  All the travelers are famous people who did famous things on Earth: leaders, scientists, writers, rich and successful businessmen, etc.  There is not a single fisherman or carpenter among them, not a very biblical stance on what it takes to be great in the kingdom of heaven.

All-in-all, the read was enjoyable if you have some time to kill, but there is not much spiritual depth here.  If you want to find success here on Earth, you might find some good tips in The Final Summit, but if you want to be great in the kingdom of God, you won’t find many answers in this book.

A review copy was received by the publisher.  All opinions are my own.