Fools Rush In

It's nearly impossible to comprehend how this has all happened within one person's (young) life. It serves the reader a grand lesson of suffering, endurance, and relentless motivation.

The writing is intelligent, clear, calm. Which is very helpful, given the nature of this story. The book is from the author's point of view but the characters and stories are unoppressed. They are given enough freedom to divulge themselves to the reader through the dialogues and actions relayed by the writer. There is almost a faint journalistic quality to this tale in that we are being told a story and given room to take it in and interpret it in our own way. And despite the difficult subject matter, the author does not drown us in his emotion. It is excellent writing.

This novel is a journey, physical and psycological. It is fantastic in its scope. The reader is invited along for a very personal ride. It is the story of a young man coping with what he's been dealt. Truly courageously, without the help of denial or delusions. I have encountered very few books that are so deeply enriching, that linger. I feel fortunate to have read it.


Once In A Lifetime   May 14, 2004
Ashley Roberts (Chicago, IL United States)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful

I admit I was partially drawn to this book because of it's connection with U2, and I am a huge U2 fan. The storyline hooked me though, I heard about it through different websites and I decided I had to read it. I am so thankful that I did. This book was amazing, there is no other way to describe it. This is one of the best books I have ever read in my life and I have read many books. No other book resonated with me so deeply (expect Hemingway, Plath and a few others). I can not pinpoint what I felt connected to most, the people or the beauty in darkness. It was probably the latter, I read this book and it made me want to live more so than I had before. Ever since I was eleven or twelve, when I first heard U2, I felt I had found a purpose, a goal in life to do something worthy. Many say that it's a dream, unattainable and a waste of time. This book made me believe in the dreams I've had and those I will have. I can not say it enough, this book was AMAZING. Bill Carter has a gift, the gift of relaying emotion on the one-dimensional page of a book. There is so much wisdom in Fools Rush In, questions were asked that I've thought about and the context of the novel and concept of the novel helped answer these questions. There are some books that will stay with you for the rest of your life, The Alchemist was one of them for me and this book was another. Talking Heads said "once in a lifetime", that line just seems so appropriate here.


What did you do today?   September 27, 2004
Big Wave Dave (Arizona)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

Fools Rush In is sentimental without being sappy and bold but not arrogant. The book is a great combination of an easy read with a profound message which is this- help yourself by helping others. This universal truth is presented without being preachy or pious. Carter tells you what happened to him but not what you should do.
In the end, this reader was left with the dual emotions of disgust for the things people will do to other people for no good reason and hope for the people who do things for others for no good reason. Carter did something exceedingly rare in these modern times- he took a stand and did something about a situation that was unacceptable to him.
Fools Rush In has a good pace and interesting characters and places. Buy the book and expect to be entertained and moved. Carter has the makings of a fine American author.


Not what I expected   October 19, 2004
Rebecca Patrick (Wales)
1 out of 3 found this review helpful

Someone at a youth hostel in Ireland gave me this book back last summer when they heard that I was into traveling in the areas that Bill wrote about. I read it on a lark because at that point I had ran out of everything else to read and was down to my guidebooks-always a last resort! I was very engrossed once I began it, and didn't put it down until I finished it. Not exactly a travelogue, or a war diary, or even a memoir in the traiditional sense, yet it manages to combine elements of all three effectively. Don't let this little gem slip away. Once you read it, the characters will become so real to you and their situations so familiar that you'll feel as if you went through the Sarajevan seige yourself.