Recommend a book
July 30th, 2007I’ve gotten into the practice of doing these “recommend a book” posts every three months or so, and have found them immensely helpful. It’s time for another one.
I read Voddie Baucham’s “Family Driven Faith” and thought it was excellent. Read Ray Van Neste’s review of it here. It’s a quick read, and you can finish it in two or three days.
I also recently finished “How Now Shall We Live?” by Chuck Colson and Nancy Pearcey, and am just about done with Pearcey’s “Total Truth.” I’d classify this duo of books as revolutionary to my thinking about Christianity and worldview issues. Unlike the Baucham book, however, these are going to take a much larger time commitment — but it will be time well spent.
I just ordered “While Europe Slept,” by Bruce Bawer — one that I’ve been planning to read for a few months. I’m expecting good things from it.
So, what book or books have you read in recent weeks that you’d recommend to others? Or, maybe you’ve read one that you’d encourage us to avoid. Here’s your chance.
I reread the “Dune” series by Frank Herbert recently. I’d recommend that for fiction. For nonfiction I’d recommend “God is Not Great” by Christopher Hitchens.
Hints for Parents, by Gardiner Spring and
Tell Me About Heaven, by Randy Alcorn are short ones I have read recently and mentioned at my chidlren’s lit blog- one for parents and one for kids.
I have read several US Hisotry books this summer but the best one was probably The Campaign that Won America: The Story of Yorktown, by Burke Davis. The account was well told (and it is quite inexpensive as well). Second place in my summer history reading would go to Washington’s General: Nathanael Greene and the Triumph of the American Revolution, by Terry Colway. I was fascinted with learning more about GReene who played such a key role in the Revolution but is so overlooked. The author is not great (he does not seem to appreciate the difference in cultures between then & now for instance), but the topic is so compelling it was a worthwhile read.
Last Flag Down - John Baldwin & Ron Powers
One of the best historical books I’ve read recently, it’s the story of the last voyage of the Confederate warship Shenandoah. The Shenandoah wreaked havoc on Northern shipping while circumnavigating the globe (1864-1865). This book focuses on the journal of Executive Officer, Lieutenant Conway Whittle (an ancestor of co-author Powers). True, dramatic, and very readable.
Tim,
The “How Now Shall We Live?” book is also available in a workbook format.
I used it as my text for a class I taught in our Christian school in Greenville.
Good stuff. I believe it was balanced in its approach, as well.
1) “Free of Charge: Giving and Forgiving in a Culture Stripped of Grace” by Miroslav Volf. Doctrinally, there are a couple of points that I disagree with, but overall this book is amazing. It focuses on why it is so hard to give and forgive and how slight adjustments to our thinking (i.e. realizing that both actions are Christ working through us) can fix that problem.
2) “John Knox” by Ridley Jasper. This is definitely a tome, but an awesome biography about one of the fathers of the Scottish Reformation. A bodyguard priest who end up challenging the English monarchy. Interesting guy.
Thanks for the Greene book recommendation, Ray! I’ve been looking for a biography on him and this sounds like a good one. What an interesting individual and an amazing general. Looking forward to getting that one.
I just finished re-reading WWJD, a retelling of the classic, In His Steps by Sheldon.
It was a book I read while I was a teenager and made a big impact on me to be a “doer” of good as opposed to just someone who talks about doing good. It really motivated me to action then and it rekindled some of that motivation that tends to get lost with me in day-to-day living.
The theology is not a major concern of the author but the story line keeps you immersed and the events show the benefits as well as the heartaches that come with following Christ.
It is a good quick read and was worth the re-read for me. (You should be able to buy a used copy cheaper than what is listed in the link above.)
j razz
I’m glad to hear of the Greene biography as well. That’s been one I’ve had my eye on for a while, but I haven’t been able to get around to it.
Inside Delta Force by Eric Haney (especially for fans of the show The Unit)
Luke, Thanks for the heads up on the Knox bio. I have been interested in finding a good bio on him. He is most definitely one of the more interesting fellows from that time period.
Cameron, That Shenandoah book really sounds interesting!
“The Holiness of God” by R.C. Sproul is a good one.
Did anyone see that article in ESPN Magazine a couple issues ago about Josh Hamilton? That was pretty cool.
Tim-
“While Europe Slept” http://abunga.com/details/?ean=9780385514729 is quite the read. I read it last fall and it certainly opened my eyes to new viewpoints. The quotes below are two of my favorite from the book. Have you read any of his other books? I look forward to your thoughts on the book. Enjoy.
Gavin
Gavin@abunga.com
“The main reason I’d been glad to leave America was Protestant fundamentalism. But Europe, I eventually saw, was falling prey to an ever more alarming fundamentalism whose leaders made their American Protestant counterparts look like amateurs. Falwell was an unsavory creep, but he didn’t issue fatwas. James Dobson’s parenting advice was appalling, but he wasn’t telling people to murder their daughters. American liberals had been fighting the Religious Right for decades; Western Europeans had yet to even acknowledge that they had a Religious Right. How could they ignore it? Certainly as a gay man, I couldn’t close my eyes to this grim reality. Pat Robertson just wanted to deny me marriage; the imams wanted to drop a wall on me. I wasn’t fond of the hypocritical conservative-Christian line about hating sin and loving the sinner, but it was preferable to the forthright fundamentalist Muslim view that homosexuals merited death.” P33
“Given what I’d seen and heard of evangelical Christianity in America, I hadn’t been terribly upset that Christian belief in Western Europe had declined precipitously since World War II and that the churches were now almost empty. But I was beginning to see that when Christian faith had departed, it had taken with it a sense of ultimate meaning and purpose—and left the Continent vulnerable to conquest by people with deeper faith and stronger convictions. What’s more, no longer able to take religion seriously themselves, many Europeans were unable to believe that other people might take religion very seriously indeed.” P34
Scott-
I just realized I mistyped the name of the author. It’s actually Jasper Ridley. My bad.
I should also have mentioned David Vaughan’s Give Me Liberty: The Uncompromising Statesmanship of Patrick Henry. I am almost finished with it and it is good. It is not a full bio, but a brief one (150pp or so) followed by brief treatments of various charater traits found in Henry which are instructive. Vaughan had sone his homework in primary sources so the book is rich in direct quotes which is nice. It is a quick read.
I just read R.C. Sproul’s latest book “The Truth of the Cross.” It was really good, and I would highly recommend it. You can read my full review of it here.
“Economics in One Lesson” by Hazlitt.
Everyone should read it, but most especially I wish every member of Congress would!
I recently finished Why I Believe by D. James Kennedy (fairly short), and for lovers of history (fairly recent and presidential in this case) I’m halfway through volume 3 of Stephen Ambrose’s trilogy on the life and times of former Pres. Richard Nixon. Absolutely fascinating from start to finish.
Currently reading, “What is Reformed Theology?” by RC Sproul and he has cleared up some of my misconceptions of Reformed Theology.
I’m sure most of you in here have read it or really have not need to read it since you know what RTh is for the most part.
I’m getting ready to finally read Ted Williams by Leigh Montville. I’m currently reading “The Chinatown Death Cloud Peril” a novel about the great pulp writers back in the day.
And Tim I took your advice a while back and got “The Big Picture Story Bible”. What a great book.
Glad you liked it, Zoner. Another great one that we’re reading now is “The Jesus Storybook Bible,” by Sally Lloyd-Jones. It shows how all of Scripture points toward Jesus Christ.
Right now, I’m reading Breast Cancer Husband by Mark Silver. I hope none of you are ever in a situation where you’d need to read it. It’s a helpful book though.
“The Going to Bed Book” and “Bulldozers”…. wait…. my other reading list includes….
“Manhunt” - about the Lincoln assassination and the hunt for John Wilkes Booth. Very engaging and interesting.
“The Exemplary Husband” by Stuart Scott. Very helpful.
For the ladies, my wife has recently discovered the works of nineteenth century writer Elizabeth Prentiss to be very good.
I believe I recommended Manhunt during the last post like this. Fabulous book.
“Bulldozers” rocks too!