Last week I posted my list of “best” books of the year. It is always fascinating to me that rarely is there a relationship between my “best” books and the books followers of this blog are most interested in. Of the 174 books reviewed to this point in the year, here are the top ten according to the number of views their reviews received on the blog (as of 12/19/2018–some were close). The choices were heavily weighted on the religious end of spectrum, which reflects the following of the blog. I do hope those who read theological books also explore other genres! I think this enriches our imagination, our understanding of the world, and of what others who may or may not share our beliefs are thinking. So, here is the list:

1. Canoeing the Mountains, Tod Bolsinger. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press – Praxis, 2015. This book explores leadership in uncharted territories using the journeys of Lewis and Clark. This didn’t get a huge number of initial views, but steady traffic throughout the year. Review
2. Little Fires Everywhere, Celeste Ng. New York: Penguin Press, 2017. This was on my “best books” list as best literary fiction. Here’s my synopsis: “When Mia Warren and her daughter Pearl rent a duplex apartment from Elena Richardson, the matriarch of a successful Shaker Heights, Ohio family, it sets in motion a series of events, “little fires” that culminate in a fire that burns down the Richardson home, and transforms the lives of both families.” This has been neck and neck with #1 all year. Review
3. White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism, Robin DiAngelo. Boston: Beacon Press, 2018. Robin DiAngelo coined the term “white fragility” in 2011 to describe the discomfort whites often experience in discussions of racial issues. She both describes this, and better ways to engage. Review
4. Twelve Lies That Hold America Captive, Jonathan Walton. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, Forthcoming January 8, 2019. This book hasn’t even come out yet! It discusses twelve cultural myths that form a kind of American folk religion that are in conflict with the hope we find in the gospel and the vision of the kingdom of God. Review
5. The Lost World of the Flood, Tremper Longman III & John H. Walton (with a contribution by Stephen O. Moshier). Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2018. One of the “Lost World” series of books, all of which seem tremendously popular, this one on the flood narratives of Genesis 6-9. Review
6. Husband, Wife, Father, Child, Master, Slave, Kurt C Schaefer. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2018. The author argues that the household codes in 1 Peter are actually a subtle satire opposing the norms of the Greco-Roman culture of the day. Review
7. Water at the Roots, Philip Britts (edited by Jennifer Harries, foreword by David Kline). Walden, NY: Plough Publishing, 2018. This also was on my best books list as an account of the extraordinary life and the writings and poetry of Philip Britts, a leader of the Bruderhof community that migrated to Paraguay. Review
8. Washed and Waiting (revised with new Afterword), Wesley Hill. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2016 (originally published in 2010). This is the narrative of a celibate, gay Christian man, including thoughts about the recovery of the place of celibacy and the importance of spiritual friendship in the church. Dr. Wesley Hill is a professor of biblical studies at Trinity School for Ministry in Ambridge, PA. Review
9. Biblical Leadership: Theology for the Everyday Leader. Benjamin K. Forest and Chet Roden, eds. Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2017. This is a study of leadership in the Bible, book by book. Review
10. The Lost World of the Israelite Conquest, John H. Walton and J. Harvey Walton. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2017. The second “Lost World” book to make this list. It explores the Canaanite conquest and argues that this was not a divinely commanded genocide or Holy war. Review

Looking over the list, several of these books were “near misses” on my best list and two made it. Perhaps it shouldn’t surprise me, but a number have an element of controversy, dealing with issues of race, Christianity and American culture, social roles, sexuality, the Flood narratives, and the Conquest narratives. It is also striking to me that two deal with the issue of leadership, including the book that was tops in views.

Looking over these statistics reminds me that each of these views represented a real person interested enough to visit my blog and read at least some portion of the review. TI love connecting people and good books, but that only works when people visit as you did this year. Thank you!