Reads
I have recently finished a few books, some started recently, others begun a while ago. Some of them are as follows:
Plan B: What Do You Do When God Doesn't Show Up the Way You Thought He Would? by Pete Wilson.
Wilson does a great job of exploring what happens when believers expect God to do certain things, act in certain ways, when tragedy or unexpected change comes in our lives ... but God does something totally unexpected. Or He seems to do nothing at all.
It's a great look at the struggle and a biblical approach to dealing with it all, no matter what's going on in your life. He makes no claim to have all the answers -- just some suggestions.
If you think this even might be a book for you, it probably is.
Lee Child's The Affair.
I became interested in the character of Jack Reacher when the 2012 movie Jack Reacher was first advertised. I borrowed this book, and though it was the newest of the series [#16], I didn't feel I had missed anything at all, and I enjoyed this action movie in book format. Written in first person, it took a minute to adjust my thinking, but I found it very hard to put down.
Vanished Smile: The Mysterious Theft of Mona Lisa, by R.A. Scotti.
I just finished reading this book moments ago, and found it fascinating. I have always enjoyed non-fiction history that reads as if it were fiction, and this book is no exception.
The first of Scotti's I have read, I am certain it will not be the last. She explores the mystery of the theft of La Gioconda, but also the mysteries of her great allure, of the true identity of the thief or thieves behind the painting's disappearance, and that of her eventually recovery.
Fans of historical fiction and non-fiction alike will enjoy this, I believe.
I am also currently reading, or am about to begin reading, the following:
Surprised by Laughter: The Comic World of C. S. Lewis, by Terry Lindvall.
Okay, if you don't already know this about me, it's time you found out: I am a C. S. Lewis nerd. I own a copy of nearly everything he published, and a large chunk of what has been published about him. I have books, magazines, articles, papers, videos, etc. on Lewis and his works.
I have often quoted him and will likely do so in the future, despite the fact that there is much in his writings with which I disagree theologically.
Lindvall shows that "the unique magic of Lewis' approach was his belief that explosive and infectious joy dwells deep in the heart of Christian faith" [from the book description]. Well said. I have just begun reading this.
Jesus Wars: how Four Patriarchs, Three Queens, and Two Emperors Decided What Christians Would Believe for the Next 1,500 Years, by Philip Jenkins.
Although I have not yet begun reading this book (nor the two listed hereafter), I look forward to it. I love history, especially that of the Church and the Roman Empire. And, although I am quite certain that the book contains much with which I will vigorously disagree, I am eager to discover exactly what it proposes about the history of Christianity and to learn more about history that I do not yet know.
The Auschwitz Volunteer: Beyond Bravery, by Captain Witold Pilecki.
The first-hand account of Polish Cpt. Witold Pilecki of his nearly three-year undercover mission inside the Jewish concentration camp of Auschwitz.
I am fascinated by the idea of this man's bravery and commitment as he volunteered to be taken and to experience the horrors of the Third Reich himself, in order to report what was truly happening, and to hopefully prevent further horrors.
A short video trailer for the book can be seen here.
William Manchester and Paul Reid's The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill, Defender of the Realm, 1940-1965.
One of the thickest books I own, I know that I will spend a great deal of time in this book. Churchill has always appealed to me as a fascinating man of the modern world's recent history.
While this is the third of three separate volumes, it is nevertheless a large tome of 1053 pages, plus 67 pages of endnotes and a 68-page index. Eat your heart out, Stephen King.
The first two books (by Manchester alone) are The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill, Visions of Glory, 1874-1932 and The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill, Alone, 1932-1940.
So ... what are YOU reading?
Wilson does a great job of exploring what happens when believers expect God to do certain things, act in certain ways, when tragedy or unexpected change comes in our lives ... but God does something totally unexpected. Or He seems to do nothing at all.
It's a great look at the struggle and a biblical approach to dealing with it all, no matter what's going on in your life. He makes no claim to have all the answers -- just some suggestions.
If you think this even might be a book for you, it probably is.
Lee Child's The Affair.
I became interested in the character of Jack Reacher when the 2012 movie Jack Reacher was first advertised. I borrowed this book, and though it was the newest of the series [#16], I didn't feel I had missed anything at all, and I enjoyed this action movie in book format. Written in first person, it took a minute to adjust my thinking, but I found it very hard to put down.
I just finished reading this book moments ago, and found it fascinating. I have always enjoyed non-fiction history that reads as if it were fiction, and this book is no exception.
The first of Scotti's I have read, I am certain it will not be the last. She explores the mystery of the theft of La Gioconda, but also the mysteries of her great allure, of the true identity of the thief or thieves behind the painting's disappearance, and that of her eventually recovery.
Fans of historical fiction and non-fiction alike will enjoy this, I believe.
I am also currently reading, or am about to begin reading, the following:
Surprised by Laughter: The Comic World of C. S. Lewis, by Terry Lindvall.
Okay, if you don't already know this about me, it's time you found out: I am a C. S. Lewis nerd. I own a copy of nearly everything he published, and a large chunk of what has been published about him. I have books, magazines, articles, papers, videos, etc. on Lewis and his works.
I have often quoted him and will likely do so in the future, despite the fact that there is much in his writings with which I disagree theologically.
Lindvall shows that "the unique magic of Lewis' approach was his belief that explosive and infectious joy dwells deep in the heart of Christian faith" [from the book description]. Well said. I have just begun reading this.
Although I have not yet begun reading this book (nor the two listed hereafter), I look forward to it. I love history, especially that of the Church and the Roman Empire. And, although I am quite certain that the book contains much with which I will vigorously disagree, I am eager to discover exactly what it proposes about the history of Christianity and to learn more about history that I do not yet know.
The first-hand account of Polish Cpt. Witold Pilecki of his nearly three-year undercover mission inside the Jewish concentration camp of Auschwitz.
I am fascinated by the idea of this man's bravery and commitment as he volunteered to be taken and to experience the horrors of the Third Reich himself, in order to report what was truly happening, and to hopefully prevent further horrors.
A short video trailer for the book can be seen here.
One of the thickest books I own, I know that I will spend a great deal of time in this book. Churchill has always appealed to me as a fascinating man of the modern world's recent history.
While this is the third of three separate volumes, it is nevertheless a large tome of 1053 pages, plus 67 pages of endnotes and a 68-page index. Eat your heart out, Stephen King.
The first two books (by Manchester alone) are The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill, Visions of Glory, 1874-1932 and The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill, Alone, 1932-1940.
So ... what are YOU reading?
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