Pursuing the Prize: A Hunter's Look at Life

Steve Chapman
Harvest House Publishers (2007)
ISBN 9780736920216
Reviewed by Richard R. Blake for Reader Views (7/07)


Steve Chapman has collaborated with The Hautman Brothers and Harvest House Publishers to produce “Pursuing the Prize.”  The book is similar in format to his recent book “Fish Tales.” 

Steve is an avid sportsman.  His writing takes on the pulse of the hunter as he describes his excitement.  “My heart rate shot to hummingbird levels…”  Or, “The only muscle I moved was my index finger as I slowly clicked off the safety and felt for the trigger.”

The magnificent paintings by the Hautman Brothers, James, Robert and Joseph, are stunning in detail and color.  These painting bring to life the stories and meditations, poems, and quotes included in the text.

Vicariously sitting with Steve, waiting for the magic moment, I could almost feel the solitude of the woods, as I bonded with nature.

Chapman has an amazing ability to draw lessons on life from his experiences and enthusiasm for hunting.  He finds illustrations in the habits of the “white tail deer, the “clockwork turkeys” and a “turtle on a fence post.”  Steve challenges the reader to learn lessons from these animals, and nature.

Rich quotes and poems from Jack London, Henry David Thoreau, John James Audubon, and others add another dimension to the meditative value of Steve’s stories.

“Pursuing the Prize” is more than a book of hunting stories.  It exemplifies the life of a man who has consistently modeled a life in pursuit of the “prize of the high calling of God.” 

“Pursuing the Prize” is for the hunting and sports enthusiast. It is a quality book and ideal for gift giving for anyone who enjoys hunting stories and a sense of finding a new nearness to God from nature.

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