Book Review: Nevertheless by John Kirkby

This was originally part of my Wider Reading Scheme at my college.

Nevertheless is the story of CAP (Christians Against Poverty), a charity that helps people in debt. The book follows the story of John Kirkby, the founder of CAP, from his early years to 2008, when CAP was 12 years old.

The book begins with his early life before he became a Christian, involving his job in finance. The book moves through Kirkby's story, through how he became a Christian and the beginnings of CAP. CAP had troublesome beginnings, and has since turned into an international charity that helps thousands of people, though finances have always been a problem and money is the main theme within the book.

Once the story of how CAP started has been told, the book shifts from autobiographical reflections to quoted diary posts following the growth of CAP, and its financial difficulties, in present tense, through its humble beginnings with its first clients to its international expansion to Australia and New Zealand.

The book finishes with a hopeful epilogue about how CAP will continue its work in the future, helping people become debt-free and bringing the message of Jesus to clients.

The overall tone of the book is a happy one, and its story is uplifting and inspirational. Even for non-Christians, Kirkby's determination is still an inspiration in that he just wouldn't give up doing what he felt called to do, and that he felt was the right thing to do, just because there was no money, and despite standing in the face of sometimes quite unpleasant opposition.

However, there are some bad points in this book. At times, it can get quite laborious to read, especially the chapter which talks about when CAP turned 10; this chapter follows five months' worth of diary posts by Kirkby, and it's quite tempting to give up before the chapter has finished. (However, I would recommend not skipping parts of this chapter and reading it all in one go, as it is quite incredible to see the story of these five months unfold before your eyes.) The second thing about this book that isn't a strong point is the fact that it is littered with typos. They are quite frequent and can get annoying, but these do not detract from the overall story and I don't think they got in the way of my enjoying the book as a whole.

I would recommend this book to others, as it is a truly feel-good book (despite the 'Hard Times' chapter which can be quite uncomfortable to read, but reminds the reader that this is a real story with real circumstances), and the book is filled with inspirational messages and quotations from Scripture.