As a self-confessed bibliophile, I’m always open to suggestions. And, I’d love to hear about what you’re reading. So, what have you enjoyed reading recently (any genre)?
To get things started, here are a few of mine:
- The Wise Man’s Fear, Patrick Rothfuss (not quite as good as his first one, but still a lot of un)
- Stein on Writing, Sol Stein
- Jonathan Edwards: A Life, George Marsden (a re-read, but still so good)
What about you? What have you read over the last few months that you really enjoyed?
“Why four Gospels” by David Allen Black; “Who’s afraid of the testament god”; “getting the reformation wrong”; “defending constantine”.
“Man and Incarnation: The Biblical Theology of Irenaeus” by Gustaf Wingren
“The Vindication of Tradition” by Jaroslav Pelikan
I recently picked up the Galatians volume in the new ‘Bible in Medieval Tradition’ series. I just finished the introduction (~75-80 pages) and loved it and learned a lot from it.
“Surprised by Meaning: Science, Faith, and How We Make Sense of Things” by Alister E. McGrath;
“Maximum Faith” by George Barna;
“The Language of Science and Faith: Straight Answers to Genuine Questions” by Karl Giberson & Francis Collins;
“The Deep Structure of Biology: Is Convergence Sufficiently Ubiquitous to Give a Directional Signal” edited by Simon Conway Morris.
“Hank Greenberg” – Mark Kurlansky
Every year at the beginning of baseball season I read a baseball book. This year I read about Hank Greenberg, who is one of the greatest hitters, as well as being the first Jewish superstar. He almost broke Babe Ruth’s HR record – in 1938. He is also famous for not playing on Yom Kippur during a tight pennant race. The book is better more for the details and asides than for unfurling an interesting thesis. But, great details there are, e.g. basketball in the early 20th century was considered a “Jewish sport” and dominated by Jewish players.
“Jesus and Mythology” – Rudolf Bultmann
Continuing to fill in gaps from my seminary education. An interesting read for the sake of thinking about gospel proclamation and contextualization. It would be ludicrous to put Bultmann in the “evangelical” camp, but you read him and realize he is working to proclaim Christ, and bring people into a “personal relationship” with the living and true God.
Marc,
That is a tough question, since I have read and are reading several good books right now, but perhaps one of my fav’s of late was Peter Leithart’s: Deep Exegesis, The Mystery of Reading Scripture.
Also I am still getting through Mike Horton’s systematic, The Christian Faith. It is simply a grand sweep to my mind!
And finally one both you and Dr. Jim West might enjoy (if you both have not already read it?).. Stephen Edmondson’s: Calvin’s Christology.
I haven’t read the following yet, but I’m so excited I’ve got to mention it.
I know this will not be many people’s cup of tea, but The Royal College of Psychiatrists are going to send me a review copy of:
I’m so excited about getting my hands on this and one of the editors – Andrew Sims – is foremost in researching the intersection of Christian faith and psychiatry.
Can’t wait!
That sounds fascinating. I’ll look forward to hearing what you think.
(1) Biography of Bonhoeffer by Schlingensiepen
(2) Eberhard Busch, The Great Passion: An Introduction to Karl Barth’s Theology
(3) Biography of Alexander the Great by Freeman
(4) After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory by Alasdair MacIntyre
How was the Schlingensiepen book? I’ve seen that one referenced positively several times as a better go-to bio on Bonhoeffer than the one by Metaxas.
In my opinion, Schlingensiepen is definitely not as fun to read as the Metaxas one (I’ve read that one as well). It’s definitely more ‘objective’ or ‘technical’ in that it floods you with as much information about Bonhoeffer’s life as possible. At the same time, it makes it harder to enjoy because it reads almost like a news story about Bonhoeffer’s life rather than an engaging narration of his life. However, I’m not sure if it’s because I already read Metaxas that I am currently feeling this way. But for a good survey of Bonhoeffer’s life, I think Schlingensiepen is definitely the one to read.
Echoes of Scripture in the Letters of Paul and A Conversion of the Imagination by Richard Hays; The Resurrection of Jesus by Michael Licona; and Jesus, Paul, and the People of God: A Theological Dialogue with N.T. Wrightby Nicholas Perrin and Richard Hays (eds).
Mike S. I agree, we have gotten so used to the modern psychological bio, but for Bonnoeffer Schlingensiepen’s is the most historical.
Adam Nicholson’s God’s Secretaries: The Making of the King James Bible. Nicholson presents an excellent historical narrative.
Suzanne McDonald’s: RE-IMAGING ELECTION: Divine Election As Representing God To Others & Others To God, (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2010).
This is a great book! She has me really re-configuring my thinking on election. She provides, methinks, a better framework through biblical grammar to conceive of how election as representation looks; all the while in conversation with John Owen and Karl Barth. Good stuff!
‘Dark Matter’ by Michelle Paver — an excellent novel, a sort of combination of H.P. Lovecraft and M.R. James.
‘How to Write a Blockbuster’ by Helen Corner and Lee Weatherly, which should really have been titled: How to Write a Novel That Other People Will Want to Read. Contains very good advice about novel construction.
‘Heavenly Participation’ by Hans Boersma — a paradigm-shifting book that is, so far, being sadly ignored by evangelicals.