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Type of bind: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN num: 9780786714605
ISBN number: 0786714603
Label: Da Capo Press
Manufacturer: Da Capo Press
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 256
Printing Date: August 23, 2004
Publishing house: Da Capo Press
Sale Popularity Level: 468640
Studio: Da Capo Press
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Product Description:
Calvin Becker is back in a timeless story about the volcanic sexual curiosity of a fourteen-year-old boy born into a fundamentalist family so strict that he has never seen a movie, watched television, or danced (and has to hide his five copies of Mad magazine in the attic). It is 1966, and Ralph and Elsa Becker, Reformed Presbyterian missionaries from Kansas, are stationed in Switzerland, and on a modest ski vacation with their three children: tyrannical eighteen-year-old Janet, angelic Rachael, and our narrator, the irrepressible Calvin, who puzzles over his sisters' bras, as they hang on a line hidden away 'so that I could not get a good look unless I ducked under the sheets ... to the feminine heart of the laundry maze.' But at the Hotel Riffelberg, high above Zermatt, Calvin falls into the hands of a waitress who, while bringing him his breakfast each morning, serially initiates him into ecstasies he can barely comprehend. The resulting family crisis triggers a larger crisis of faith in his fundamentalist father, leading to a climax, which rips Calvin out of his childhood. With echoes of Irving and Roth and its own uniquely human voice, Zermatt is a coming-of-age gem.
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Rated by buyers 
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I have fallen in love with Frank Shaffer's "Calvin Becker" universe. The characters are well developed, and his descriptions make me feel like I've spent lots of time in Portofino and Zermatt (Which I really have!) The stories are well written, and give the reader a feeling like slipping on a soft old sweater and sitting by the fire on a cool, damp winter's evening. However, the relationship between Calvin and his best friend, Jennifer, drives much of the plot in the very first two books, and Jennifer is nowhere to be found in Zermatt. I missed her terribly because I want to see what happens to the couple as they grow up. (This is supposed to be a "Coming of Age" story, at least for Calvin.) It's clear that the feelings between the two of them are changing as they get older and closer to adolescence. However, the way that "Zermatt" ends leaves us with clear clues that there is more about the Becker family coming soon. I also got the feeling that Jennifer will be there when the subsequent chapter begins. I certainly hope so!
Rated by buyers 
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I have not read the book but from the reviews it is obvious that this is a diatribe and mock against Franky's own family. This is very sad because my wife and I knew the Schaeffer family, spent time in Switzerland in 1977 and were inspired by their love for the poor in spirit, the spiritually hungry and the destitute souls who came to them from distant lands. We were also encouraged by Dr. Schaeffer's love of wisdom. Consequently, hundreds of young people were exhorted to live a life of dignity, using the gifts that God had given them to honor Him and serve their fellow human beings.
I was inspired by Dr. Schaeffer and the late Dr. Wilton Krogman to conduct original Neanderthal research that had never been done before. I took the very first cephalometric x-rays of Neanderthals in the museums of Europe and the Middle East that combined the two disciplines of paleoanthropology and orthodontics. The book "Buried Alive" is the result of that research. My wife used Edith's writings on family life to create a wonderful home for our family with five children.
Finally, the Schaeffers were no "Bible Thumpers", as we would be forced to believe. However, they did acknowledge the absolutes of Scripture, one of which states."Honor your father and mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the Lord your God gives you." Exodus 20:12 Need I say more?
Rated by buyers 
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As a novel, I found this less satisfying than the previous two books about Calvin because the narrative seemed episodic, rather than an expression of a writer's fully realized vision of time, place, and plot. Simply put, the story jumps from one anecdote to the next: this happened, and this, which made me think about ---, but then this happened...
Such a presentation may well resonate with people able to identify themselves with the author or his experiences. But I could not see what distinguishes this from other coming-of-age memoirs written by Western men, except that Calvin's life seems to have become more and more insular over the course of the trilogy.
I could not identify with the author or his experiences, but it was certainly easy to identify the characters and settings described: n.b., described, not created. To most American evangelicals and fundamentalists, Schaeffer's family of origin is well known for its attempts to define and arguably circumscribe the ideal of Protestant orthodoxy. Caricatures of the family in this book extend even to their habits of dress, which is interesting given the writer's apparent agenda of reclaiming his story from the lore of his family.
Much about the circumstances of the author makes me uncomfortable, but I admit that the novel succeeds in at least two areas. First, it provides literary exegesis of the erotic imagination of an American boy. Second, it virtually assures that no further hagiographic treatment of his family and their mission can take place without somehow addressing issues raised by Schaeffer's books, some of which are mental illness and abuse.
The book surely reads differently for those who do not place Frank Schaeffer in context of his family of origin and of a career developed with family support and connections. But my guess is that this ramble is of greatest interest to those who recognize Edith -- er, ELSA in her trim grey suit teaching Bible study in the great room of the chalet. So if you do not know or know of the Schaeffers, the book is a fast, uncomplicated read. If you do know or know of the Schaeffers, you may find yourself wondering whether reading the book makes you party to the sin of detraction. I am thinking about that, myself. A lot.
Rated by buyers 
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I've read everything America's best writer on all things to do with fatherhood and family has written. Portofino was terrific, Saving Grandma stupendous, and Keeping Faith, A Father-Son Story About Love and the United States Marine Corps touching. But "ZERMATT" is the best yet. You heard it here first: Zermatt will become an American classic. If you realy want to get inside the head of a fifteen year old boy and the inner dynamic of a family driven by religious delusion, this is the book. For anyone who had a powerful mom, a father doing his best to keep up and religion hanging over them all, Zermatt is the book.
Rated by buyers -
In this howlingly funny follow up to Portofino and Saving Grandma, Mr. Schaeffer again tackles the theme of religious zeal and hypocrisy, setting the backdrop at a European ski resort. I laughed out loud at the unbalanced Swiss maid, the two-faced sister, the manic- depressive father, and drunken English gentleman as seen through the eyes of an adolescent boy.
There is more to this book than the comedy routine. At the heart of this is a question that has plagued me as a believer for years: where is the line between getting close to God and playing God?
Whether you're looking for a bildungsroman, a nostalgic look at Europe in the 60's, or just a good long laugh, Zermatt will deliver.
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