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Same Kind of Different as Me

4.18 of 5 stars 4.18 · rating details · 28,773 ratings · 4,633 reviews

Meet Denver, a man raised under plantation-style slavery in Louisiana in the 1960s; a man who escaped, hopping a train to wander, homeless, for eighteen years on the streets of Dallas, Texas. No longer a slave, Denver's life was still hopeless-until God moved. First came a godly woman who prayed, listened, and obeyed. And then came her husband, Ron, an international arts d

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Hardcover, 237 pages

Published June 1st 2006 by W Publishing Group (first published January 1st 2006)

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Feb 11, 2009 Sheryl rated it 4 of 5 stars

i had no idea this was printed by a division of nelson, a christian publisher or i would not have read it. but i am glad i did as it raised more questions than it answered and was fantastic on so many levels. the mystery, magic and miracles described...the fascinating story of denver...a modern day slave, and the question of the value of prayer for anyone, believer or not was thot provoking for the hardline evangelical. but denver's life, dialect/speech and history was the highlight. the chapter...more

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Dec 07, 2012 K.D. Oliveros rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: religion, inspirational

Definitely heartwarming. A feel-good book and an appropriate one to usher this season of love. I made the right decision to pick this up to celebrate the start of Advent.

This is a story of three people whose lives intersect beautifully resulting to their realizations of who they are and what they are capable to accept. This acceptance leads not only for them to be at peace with themselves but also to witness a modern miracle: how faith can influence other people to do whatever good they can do f...more

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Nov 06, 2008 MB rated it 1 of 5 stars

This was a book group selection, not my own selection. I didn't like it, I thought the style was atrocious, and ultimately I didn't believe one of the narrators (the art dealer). I thought the "modern day slave's" story was absolutely fascinating, but the rich white art dealer was too busy telling us how much better a Christian he was than anyone else. His faith did not sound sincere to me; I felt like he was constantly clubbing me over the head with it.

Please note: some of my book group felt th...more

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Jun 01, 2009 Jackie rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: book-club, memoir, religion, americana, unhappy-families

Its awkward to read a memoir when you don't like the subject. It's awkward to read religious propaganda from a religion you don't subscribe to or ever intend to subscribe to. And it's really awkward to feel the terrible sadness of a real person's death while gawking at the absurdity of her family and friends' visions of angels and spirits.

I have to admit I started off with the idea that I wasn't going to like Same Kind of Different As Me. I'd read some reviews and they were largely polarized, wi...more Its awkward to read a memoir when you don't like the subject. It's awkward to read religious propaganda from a religion you don't subscribe to or ever intend to subscribe to. And it's really awkward to feel the terrible sadness of a real person's death while gawking at the absurdity of her family and friends' visions of angels and spirits.

I have to admit I started off with the idea that I wasn't going to like Same Kind of Different As Me. I'd read some reviews and they were largely polarized, with religious folks loving it and everyone else complaining about the preachiness. I fully expected to be in the second camp and got to my nit-picking right away.

One of my pet peeves is book (and movie) descriptions that are not accurate. The subtitle is: A Modern-Day Slave, and International Art Dealer, and the Unlikely Woman Who Bound Them Together. No no no. Yes in his early years, Denver was a "modern-day slave" and lived through shit that most of us cannot imagine. However, he left that life 40+ years ago, and I'd not call the 1960s "modern day". While we're on the topic of slavery, isn't the word "bound" kind of in poor taste? And if anyone is going to bring together a wealthy snob and a jaded homeless man, a wealthy person with a passion for serving the homeless seems to be the most likely person to make the introduction (or is it unlikely for any wealthy person to be genuinely philanthropic?).

Once I got beyond the book jacket things didn't get a whole lot better. While, Denver's story was fascinating, Ron came across like a egomaniac, a woman-hating rich guy pushing his religion. Eventually the cancer story kicked into one heart breaking scene after another and I finally started to become involved with the story and my opinion of Ron slowly climbed. In the end, I did find the book to be inspirational from a civic-works kind of context and I was able to dig out a few pearls of wisdom from Denver's messages.

Once I realized I was reading evangelical propaganda, it all made a little more sense. (Make no mistake this isn't a memoir that happens to be religious, it's published by a publisher who deals exclusively in Christian books.) In a way, I read it as kind of a social-studies text-a view into a world I don't normally see. There are people who believe this stuff and talk like this and attempt to disguise their proselytizing as humanitarian work. Ron and Deborah are probably supposed to be roll models. I could see that the things I disliked about Ron are part of that whole culture. In all, Same Kind of Different As Me reinforced some of the negative stereotypes I already had about evangelicals. I wish that wasn't the case as I'd like to be less judgmental.

Denver's fascinating early life, Deborah's good works, her good intentions and her emotional story all lead me to like this book more than I'd expected to. But the self congratulations, religiousness and propaganda subtracted largely from my ability to like this book.(less)

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Jackie Christine wrote: "I don't see where the nature of the publisher has anything to do with the credibility of the authors' stories and their telling of t...more
updated Aug 10, 2010 11:32am

Alex Thank you for this. I'm about a third through the book now and I can't stop thinking the exact same things you've written down in your review. It's en...more
updated Jan 09, 2013 07:18pm

Mar 23, 2008 Nandi Crawford rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone who feels they are not going anywhere in life

Recommended to Nandi by: Walmart

Shelves: bios-autos-and-memoirs, the-south-and-it-s-things

I am currently reading this book; I saw it in Walmart and I didn't pick it up then, but I just had to get a copy of this book. I'll hold judgement for now but from what I've read, I am touched. No, it may not be the most well written book, it may not be this or that, but if it touches lives, I'm down for it anyday and from what I see here, that's what it's doing.

Well, I finished this within a day and I tell you, I wanted to grab a hanky and cry when Debbie died. One thing that struck me most wa...more

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Feb 23, 2009 Faith rated it 3 of 5 stars

When I was at FSU, a girl came up to me in the public restrooms and started chatting with me. She was very nice and friendly, but at the end of the conversation, just like that, she invited me to go on a Christian retreat with her. I was very put off by this. She'd maybe talked to me for 2 minutes and proceeded to invite me to a whole weekend activity as if we were old friends.

That's kind of how this book made me feel. Just as I'm getting to know the characters and their backgrounds, suddenly t...more

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Sep 11, 2008 LaLa rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: my dad or my mom - i can't decide.

Shelves: relig-ish, memoirs

ok - so this is kind of a hokey book. I mean, it's joint authored by this very rich christian white man and this very homeless christian black man and it's about thier relationship. So you can understand. A little hokey. But I was really blown away. I mean, how many homeless people do you and I have relationships with? and meaningful ones? ones where they come and live in our house? where we go to the presidential inaugural ball together?
I'm just saying.
As far as a guide for how to meet people,...more

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Nov 15, 2011 booklady rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, adventure, autobiography, biography, crime, education, family, non-fiction, prayer, psychology, religion, scripture, spiritual

A recommendation from my daughter's college roommate, an Evangelical Christian who doesn't even like to read, but she was squeezing this book in between Thermal Dynamics and Bio-Chemical Engineering homework, college life, church and a boyfriend. It seemed a high endorsement.

Same Kind of Different as Me is a true story about how God likes to bring people together for His own purposes. In this case, we have a former cotton-picker, turned runaway, street man, ex-con, who meets a wealthy art deale...more

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Mar 22, 2009 Nancy rated it 3 of 5 stars

The first thing I noticed about this book is that it was reviewed by Barbara Bush, and her review made me throw up in my mouth a little. (In case anybody is interested, when I hear the name "Barbara Bush", I hear again Barbara's voice on the radio during the aftermath of Katrina, saying how the shattered former New Orleanians at the Houston shelter "never had it so good." I will never forgive her for that. And Laura! Laura couldn't even remember the name of the hurricane)

Somehow this book had t...more

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Apr 21, 2008 Kim Villarreal rated it 2 of 5 stars

I think the concept for this book was great. But whoever helped the two main characters tell their stories added so much fluff for "dramatic content" that the story was almost ruined for me by the end. I think if Denver Moore and Ron Hall had just told their story simply it would have been a wonderful book. I had a hard time believing that anyone actually said any of the dialogue by the time I finished.

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Apr 21, 2009 Leslie rated it 2 of 5 stars

I don’t know what it is about my book club picks this year. They seem to be taking a religious, emotional turn at full speed around a curve with no side rail. Perhaps it’s because of the difficult times we are facing. Perhaps people are drawn to inspirational tales of overcoming obstacles and wanting to discuss them in an open forum. So far, 3 of the last 5 books we’ve read have dealt with death on some level and it’s not even Halloween yet. Not Sherlock Holmes solving a mystery type of death, b...more I don’t know what it is about my book club picks this year. They seem to be taking a religious, emotional turn at full speed around a curve with no side rail. Perhaps it’s because of the difficult times we are facing. Perhaps people are drawn to inspirational tales of overcoming obstacles and wanting to discuss them in an open forum. So far, 3 of the last 5 books we’ve read have dealt with death on some level and it’s not even Halloween yet. Not Sherlock Holmes solving a mystery type of death, but long drawn out, miserable suffering sort of death. Do I want to read about this stuff in a time of crisis? In the words of Charlie Brown, good grief,no, no, no. Not one right after the other. I’m starting to have nightmares. Seriously.

With that said, if you’re still even reading this depressing ink (if I were you I’d have stopped long ago) my third tale of woe in this series of “inspirational” reading, is one of Denver Moore, a man born and raised in Louisiana in the 40’s and 50’s, and until the late 60’s worked for “the man” on a share-cropping farm. He’s never been to school a day in his life. Never gotten a birthday present. Never owned a home or a car. He’s a man who’s skimmed along the surface of life without anyone noticing. Until he meets Ron Hall and his wife Debra at a homeless shelter, two rich people trying to make a difference. They notice him, and everything changes, for all three of them.

If this book had only been about Denver, I probably would give it 4 stars. His story was very interesting and almost unbelievable. A modern day slave on a cotton farm, he worked for nothing but food and a roof over his head until he literally jumped on a train to Texas and while there remained homeless for almost thirty years. Somehow what he said rang true.

However, Ron Hall’s part of the story (as it is told from both their perspectives) I found to be self-indulgent and (here’s that dreaded word again) preachy. He talks of his “poor” beginnings in a white middle class family. How he smoked pot with “fat chicks” in college and how later he rose from Campbell Soup salesman to a fantastic and super rich art dealer of the famous. Somewhere along the way with the help of his saintly wife, and after he’s caught having an affair, he finds God and a purpose in life. His wife drags him to a homeless shelter where the two of them come across Denver, who is of course all too happy to be hounded by two rich people with a cause. It’s not hard to guess what happens next.

So, I’ll say no more of this get happy tale but this: ugh.
(less)

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Dec 03, 2008 Katy rated it 1 of 5 stars

The Denver part of the story was very interesting but, I found Ron to be selfish and uninteresting. I could careless about how much he (Ron) was spending on new homes, cars ect. Denver's life was heart-breaking and I really enjoyed reading about his life

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Apr 02, 2009 Gary rated it 4 of 5 stars

Admittedly the broken english title "Same Kind of Different as Me" piqued my interest and boy did I enjoy this book. It is an autobigraphy of two men and the miraculous events that were orchestrated bringing two vastly different lives and lifestyles to intersect in a purely heavenly moment. Something every reader should get out of this book is a deeper understanding of homeless people and a greater mystery of providence. If you feel you have been given a bad hand and would like to dive into the...more

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Jul 16, 2011 Amanda rated it 4 of 5 stars

I began reading this for one book club but ran out of time. But then the other book club I'm in picked this book too. Guess it is time to start reading this all the way through this time.

I'm glad I was presented with another opportunity to read this book. I'm not sure if I would have picked it up to finish again if it hadn't been for the selection to read this with my other book club. It still did not make it into my top book picks but it still served the purpose of a good read and offering thou...more I began reading this for one book club but ran out of time. But then the other book club I'm in picked this book too. Guess it is time to start reading this all the way through this time.

I'm glad I was presented with another opportunity to read this book. I'm not sure if I would have picked it up to finish again if it hadn't been for the selection to read this with my other book club. It still did not make it into my top book picks but it still served the purpose of a good read and offering thought provoking moments throughout.

The beginning of the book was a little slow for me. However I understand that the author needed to build the back story. I'm not sure I appreciated the different voices used to write this story (Denver and Ron) but it was almost as if it was fitting to the title and almost necessary for the book.

Meeting for the book discussion raised many questions and deep thought. How does one decide when it is time to let go with death? Is your faith strong enough to get you through the hard times and still stay with God? More importantly, how could one start to live their life in hopes to being (or trying to aspire to be) the next Deborah? Also just for a thought, one girl from our group sent out the idea, "we don't know what angels look like".

One of my favorite parts from this book is when Denver asks Ron if he is going to catch and release him. This in turn had me sit and think about the friendships I have "caught and released". Part of me feels they were necessary to my own development as a person yet another piece asks if I might have abandoned some in their "time of need (growth)". Have you ever caught and released someone in your life?

I feel I am still searching for something to make my life whole. I often sit and wonder what it is that I may be called to do. How could I best use my gifts to help others in this world? Do I have the strength to leave my comfort and dive head first into whatever it may be?

Now onto some quotes...

"... who knows our number of days. I intend to fulfill each one of mine."

"Am I terminal? ... We're all terminal... None of us makes it our of here alive."

"People think they're in control, but they ain't. The truth is, that which must befall thee must befall thee. And that which must pass thee by must pass thee by."

"How do you live the rest of your life in just a few days?"

Spoiler (last few lines of the book)
"But I found out everybody's different - the same kind of different as me. We're all just regular folks walkin down the road God done set in front of us. The truth about it is, whether we is rich or poor or something in between. this earth ain't no final restin place. So in a way, we is all homeless - just workin our way toward home."(less)

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Feb 16, 2009 Jessica rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: biography-autobiography, read-in-2009

While I enjoyed Denver's passages, Ron's passages left me with an uneasy, almost offended feeling. There is a point where he is talking about enlisting and he speaks of an incident with a woman he smoked pot with. Twice within the same paragraph he refers to her simply as the "fat chick". I was completely taken aback and aghast at such a juvinile and mean spirited statement that he felt the need to reiterate a few sentences later. There is another passage he talks about his $500 European Designe...more

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Jan 29, 2009 Erica rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was a book that made me think about the people that I come into contact with and what I can, or have, learned from them. It made me ponder if I have ever really added some sort of value to someone else's existence. I have not had an experience like the relationship in the book (coming together with someone from the opposite side of the track), but I do have people in my life that I can't imagine not having met. It is a rare occasion when a book makes me cry but I found myself choked up as I...more

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Mar 25, 2009 Grant rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The bottom line is that this book tells a good tale (a bonafied true story!) about a homeless black guy and rich white guy who become best friends through the pluck and persistance of the latter’s freakin’ angelic wife. The story is remarkable, and it has left a real mark on the city of Ft. Worth, TX. I’m not saying that it’s for everyone, but anyone who ever laid a claim to a hope in The Lawd could use this book as quick test of the state of their soul. (I know mine could use some work.)

more: h ...more

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Aug 19, 2008 Joyce rated it 2 of 5 stars

I wish I could say I liked the book. I felt ambushed about half way through when it became a cancer story. Perhaps that doesn’t make sense, but having lost one of my sons to cancer and then a few years ago my brother, it is hard to read stuff like that without somehow steeling myself for it first. In any case, I just didn’t care for how it was written, even beyond the cancer part of the story. Maybe a bit too much of patting themselves on the back. I don’t know. I did not feel like it was that w...more

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Apr 08, 2008 Kris rated it 5 of 5 stars

A wonderful true story, especially in today's rush-rush world where we barely notice those around us. A truly inspiring story of how one woman's love, motivation and faith connected two very unlikely gentlemen and part of a city.

Set mostly in Fort Worth, TX it was especially interesting for me to read something set so close to home.

This book was a learning experience for me on so many levels, but it espeically opened my eyes to things I had no idea went on in our recent history. But also to th...more

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Jul 02, 2008 Kathryn rated it 3 of 5 stars

I don't know that I enjoyed this as much as most of my book club (though the book club where we disscussed it was a great night). I enjoyed the spirituality of it and the glimpse into a different kind of worship than I practice. There were parts that I really did enjoy reading like where Denver drives to Colorado with a truck loaded with more things than he's ever owned. Maybe I'm just the most cynical person, but I just kept wondering why they wrote the book. What was the aim in writing it? The...more

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Aug 16, 2007 Melissa Reinke rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: EVERYONE!

I've had this book for a few weeks. It had been suggested to me by a few people and then someone actually bought it for me. I finally started reading it Sunday afternoon and finished it that night. I'm not a terribly fast reader at all, I just couldn't put it down. The two narrative voices are completely different and the reader is completely drawn into each narrator's story in appropriate measures. I would be just as moved if I didn't work in a Rescue Mission. It's an amazing story of how helpi...more

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Nov 06, 2007 Marci rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Christians

Shelves: favoritebooks

I recently read this book for a book club I am in. It is a true story co-written by two very different men that God brought together in a very unusual way. The first man is a former share-cropper (pretty much modern day slavery). He was raised in rural Louisiana and suffered much because of his race and poverty. He ended up homeless, uneducated and in prison. The second man is a Texan, white, rich and is an art deal. He had the "American Dream" life in every way. However, God saw these two men a...more

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Jan 03, 2009 Steve rated it 2 of 5 stars

I'm not sure what to say about this other than I found myself skimming the last 100 pages. There are certainly a lot of compelling and inspirational pieces to the story, but I have to say I felt like the two main characters were somewhat delusional in their religious beliefs and faith, and that a lot of suffering could have been avoided by a few reality checks along the way. The revelation that seemed to most amaze everyone concerned was that a black man and a rich evangelical white man could be...more

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Aug 25, 2008 Meghan rated it 4 of 5 stars

An easy read about a great friendship between two men from very different backgrounds who come together through their faith and really through a dream the one man's wife has about a homeless man. The book is very much a spiritual book. It is not pushy in any way.....purely a story of how faith moves people during happy, lonely, fearful, sad times.

Warning/spoiler...there is a person in this book who dies of cancer. It is a vivid account of death and dying which I wasn't prepared for. I found it...more

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Jan 07, 2009 Jen rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is a double memoir of two very different men and how their paths cross. One is a very wealthy white man, the other is a homeless black man. The two become unlikely best friends. I really enjoyed Denver's story as he was a sharecropper in Louisiana for the first part of his life. The book has a highly religious theme that I didn't care for, but it didn't turn me off either. The description of Debbie's death was particularly difficult to read.

I enjoyed it overall and recommend it because it...more

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Jan 29, 2013 Michelle rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What a great book! Half way through I had alligator tears running down my cheeks. A beautiful true story of how small acts of kindness can make all the difference!

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Mar 30, 2011 Debra rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoirs

Everyone should read this one. I laughed, I cried.. it was amazing.

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Nov 11, 2008 Erin rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Elizabeth

Recommended to Erin by: Mom

I just read this while my Mom was visiting us b/c she wanted it back before she left. I had heard about this book but it didn't seem like my kind of book. However, I was wrong and really enjoyed reading it and following the stories of these 2 men and how God used them to serve others. And to see these men grow into the men of God that He has always wanted them to be was wonderful. There were some tough things to read about that happened to Denver. But it was a great true story that encourages yo...more

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Mar 01, 2009 Nora St Laurent rated it 5 of 5 stars

I'm amazed at how God weaves our life in a way that allows us to accomplish His will here on earth. This story about Ron Hall an affluent art seller and Denver Moore raised as a slave in a time when everyone was supposed to be "free". Debbie Hall is willing to share God's greatest gift with the unemotional, guarded, smelly homeless community. Debbie sees people the way Jesus did. Ron steps out to help Debbie to love the unlovable because he wants to spend time with his wife,nothing more.

I loved...more

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Jan 06, 2009 Kirstin rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: non-fiction

The alternating viewpoints of Ron (the wealthy art dealer) and Denver (the homeless former share cropper) helped keep this story moving along just as I would start to get irritated by one or the other. I was duly saddened by the poverty that exists in our country (and a bit appalled at both the amount of money spent on art and the amount that can be earned by reselling it). I was impressed at the willingness of the Hall family to reach out and help the homeless and befriend Denver. I was amazed...more

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While my daddy was fightin´ the big war in the Pacific, my grandmother delivered me in the farmhouse kitchen near Blooming Grove, Texas, in September 1945. This was back in those days when country girls knew about birthin´ babies and lucky for me, because my granddaddy and the town doctor were on the bucket brigade of a barn fire that night. I grew up in the bed of my granddad's Chevy pickup till...more

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“The Word says God don't give us credit for lovin the folks we want to love anyway. No, He gives us credit for loving the unlovable.” — 31 people liked it

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