Roger Huang

Book Review of Chasing God by Roger Huang

Disclaimer: This ebook was given to me through Book Shout which regularly gives or signifcantly reduces the price of one title for 24 hours. There is no requirement to write a review, although a link to Goodreads is provided if you wish to do so. The review expresses my true opinion.

A compelling story of the author’s life to date which begins as he waits naked, in a darkened room with two of his brothers to be savagely beaten by their father. Huang details an amazing account of leaving Taipei for the streets of San Francisco where he leaves his abusive home to live on the streets and make his own way in life. On a rare visit to his the street outside his father’s grocery store, he runs into the young woman who steals his heart…and whom he pursues until she agrees to marry him. And the adventure has just begun!

Huang makes no bones about the ongoing issues of unforgiveness, abandonment, abuse and low self-esteem that he continues to battle with, with his difficulty, seeming well-nigh impossible to overcome, to love his wife and new family. But, in the midst of all of this, he and Maité are transformed by trusting in the God of the Bible. And now the adventure begins to get serious, much, much more intense.

Huang and Maité are working hard to make ends meet in a very expensive city. They have four children, live in a two-bedroom apartment, and they both work; Roger at two jobs as the story gets into full swing…and then he applies for a third job! On his way to work at the posh Parc 55 he runs into a problem: he has a flat tire just blocks away from work but in one of the poorest and roughest neighbourhoods in the Bay area—Tenderloin. Roger tries to keep his distance from the panhandlers, the drug dealers, the barkers offering a visit to strip clubs and the gangs, mostly from the gangs as he calls for a tow…and then heads back into his car to keep it from being stripped (I think!) and stay out of the hands of the trouble on the streets. But, in the few minutes he waits for the tow truck to arrive, Roger’s memories of his abusive past are stirred as he sees the nearest gang harass a thin boy of about 10…and he does nothing.

By the time he has returned home, God has spoken to him: “What would you have done if that were your son?” Roger’s story continues:



My gut clenches in a visceral reaction as I imagine Phil and Christian at the mercy of a bunch of thugs. No one lays a hand on either of my sons. I would have helped him. Protected him.

In a bright moment of clarity, the next thought pierces me with a swift and sharp conviction: They are all the same to Me.



And that moment of hearing the voice of God radically transforms his life.



This is the true life story of Roger Huang which focuses on what Roger and Maité have done in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco since that moment in 1983. It is the story of a man who believes that God still speaks to people today, and that that same God acts in miraculous ways to save people and to restore broken lives. I was moved to tears, frequently. I believe you will be inspired and encouraged and challenged to make a difference in your own neighbourhood. Read this book, you’ll be glad you did.… (more)