Introduction

I’ve been reviewing books for over a decade now, and I have to admit it is quite a privilege to read and write about so many amazing books, including the twenty in this “Month in Reviews.” Beside the Campion and Cadfael mysteries, in which I continue to delight, I read the newest Gamache from Louise Penny. It was worth the two year wait! From mystery to memoir, I finally read Joan Didion’s profound reflection on grief, the Year of Magical Thinking and Catherine Meeks, A Quilted Life, the marvelous account of the life journey of a sharecropper’s daughter.

I always enjoy some good history, and this month I surveyed turning points in American church history, an account of the Challenger disaster, whose lesson might be, “listen to the engineers,” and Bob Woodward’s account of the Biden years. Oh, and I also reviewed a Candice Millard book, one of my favorite writers. Equally, I love biographies, two of which I reviewed: an intellectual biography of Blaise Pascal, and one of J. Gresham Machen. Finally, I will highlight two of the theology books I reviewed this month, one on Bonhoeffer’s theology of the church, a refreshing break from the squabbles about his life, and a challenging argument from New Testament and early church sources against remarriage after divorce. Enjoy!

The Reviews

Beyond the Wager: The Christian Brilliance of Blaise Pascal, Douglas Groothuis. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514001783) 2024. Argues that Pascal’s brilliance extends beyond his famous “wager” to his scientific, philosophic, and Christian insights. Review

The Man Within, Graham Greene. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781504054003), 2018 (First published in 1929). Francis Andrews flight from smugglers he betrayed endangers a girl with whom he takes refuge. Review

J. Gresham Machen: A Biographical Memoir, Ned B. Stonehouse. Banner of Truth Trust (ISBN: 9781848718746) 2019 (First published in 1954). A biographical memoir chronicling Machen’s evangelical faith and scholarship, first at Princeton and then at Westminster. Review

River of the Gods, Candice Millard. Doubleday. (ISBN: 9780385543101) 2022. The story of the explorers who sought the Nile’s source, the clash between them, and their unsung African guide. Review

Hide My Eyes (Albert Campion Number 16), Margery Allingham. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781504087384) 2023 (first published in 1958). Campion closes in on a serial killer unknowingly supported by a widow with an odd museum and a young niece visiting. Review

Cultural Sanctification, Stephen O. Presley. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (ISBN: 9780802878540) 2024. How the early church pursued cultural engagement through holy discernment rather than fight or flight. Review

Word Made Fresh, Abram Van Engen, foreword by Shane McCrae. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (ISBN: 9780802883605) 2024. An invitation to delight in poetry while discovering how form and language help make meaning that may enrich our lives. Review

The Lost World of the Prophets (Lost World Series), John H. Walton. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514004890) 2024. How understanding the ancient Near East context of the prophets can shed light on their message for us. Review

Bonhoeffer for the Church, Matthew D. Kirkpatrick. Fortress Press (ISBN: 9781506497822) 2024. A study of what Bonhoeffer wrote about the church’s identity, purpose, practices, and life together. Review

War, Bob Woodward. Simon & Schuster (ISBN: 9781668052273) 2024. Summary: A behind-the-scenes account of three wars during the Biden administration–Ukraine, the Middle East, and for the American presidency. Review

The Grey Wolf (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache Number 19), Louise Penny. Minotaur Books (ISBN: 9781250328144) 2024. Gamache, Jean-Guy, and Isabelle seek to avert a plotted catastrophe, trusting no one but each other. Review

The Way of Belonging, Sarah E. Westfall (foreword Lore Ferguson Wilbert). InterVarsity Press (ISBN: 9781514008539) 2024. How our longing to belong is an invitation to embrace and extend the deep love of God. Review

The Holy Thief (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael number 19), Ellis Peters. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781497671614) 2014 (first published in 1992). During a flood in Shrewsbury, the relics of St. Winifrid are stolen; a dispute over their disposition and a murder follow. Review

The Good News of Church Politics, Ross Kane. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (ISBN: 9780802883834) 2024. Proposes politics as a spiritual practice by which we love each other within and beyond the church walls. Review

Turning Points in American Church History, Elesha J. Coffman, foreword by Mark A. Noll. Baker Academic (ISBN: 9780801097492) 2024. Shows ways the church contributed to American history through 13 key events over four centuries. Review

The Year of Magical Thinking, Joan Didion. Vintage (ISBN: 9781400078431) 2007. A memoir of grief and remembrance for Joan Didion’s husband, John Gregory Dunne. Review

Challenger, Adam Higginbotham. Avid Reader Press (ISBN: 9781982176617) 2024. The heroism of the seven Challenger crew members and why a critical design flaw was ignored, resulting in their deaths. Review

The Integration Journey: A Student’s Guide to Faith, Culture, and Psychology. William B. Whitney and Carissa Dwiwardani. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514000564) 2024. An approach to integrating faith and psychology focused on lived experience, one’s culture, and pursuing justice. Review

A Quilted Life, Catherine Meeks (foreword by Michelle Miller). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802882899) 2024. The story of a sharecropper’s daughter who overcame racism and health issues to teach and to lead racial healing efforts. Review

Remarriage in Early Christianity, A. Andrew Das. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802883742) 2024. A study of both NT texts and early church fathers offers no basis for remarriage after divorce.

Book of the Month

According to the National Endowment for the Arts, only 12 percent of Americans listen to or read poetry. Abram Van Engen’s Word Made Fresh is a wonderful introduction to poetry. He begins by proposing that we read poetry for pleasure. He provides a number of poems with brief introductions for the reader to find ones they like. Then he offers practical helps in going deeper into how poets make meaning in poetry. This is a great book if you have wanted to read poetry but have no clue where to begin or have read something and have no clue what the poet is saying. I also can’t help but wonder if the beauty and care with words we find in poetry may be a help to us in our troubled times.

Quote of the Month

Joan Didion’s The Year of Magical Thinking is marked by her elegant and eloquent prose as she processes the grief of losing her husband. Here is one example nearly a year after he died:

“I know why we try to keep the dead alive; we try to keep them alive in order to keep them with us.

“I also know that if we are to live ourselves there comes a point at which we must relinquish the dead, let them go, keep them dead.”

What I’m Reading

If you read my most recent The Weekly Wrap, you will see I have these books ready to review this week: Agatha Christie’s One, Two, Buckle My Shoe, Samantha Harvey’s Orbital, Dana Gioia, Meet Me At the Lighthouse, and Mike Cosper, The Church in Dark Times. Cosper’s book is a powerful exploration of the cults of authority and ideology, and the erosion of meaning, and the corrosive and dangerous effects these have on the church

As for current reads, The New Anabaptists by Stuart Murray is of interest because I worship in a church in the Anabaptist tradition and it is intriguing to explore how our community might live more fully into that tradition. I recently discovered Stuart M. Kaminsky’s Abe Lieberman stories. He’s a worldly (and maybe spiritually) wise Jewish detective in Chicago. I’m currently reading Lieberman’s Day, centering around the murder of his nephew. Poverty, By America, by Matthew Desmond is a research based study of poverty in the US. He finds its source in the power structures of society that benefit by keeping people poor. He is the author of Evicted and combines personal story telling with data-driven conclusions, as he did in that book.

Another book in the Anabaptist tradition is By Fire: The Jakob Hutter Story. It is a well-drawn, graphic biography of Hutter’s life, when “heretics” were burned at the stake. You’ll Shoot Your Eye Out!: Life Lessons from the Movie A Christmas Story is written by Quentin Schultze, the mentor of Jean Shepherd, the film’s screenwriter. He proposes that there are a number of “secret” parables in this modern classic. I’ve always had a special place in my heart for the film, having lived in greater Cleveland during the time the movie was filmed there.

Well, that’s the Month in Reviews for November 2024. Hopefully it suggests some gift ideas, and maybe something for your own reading wish list

The Month in Reviews is my monthly review summary going back to 2014! It’s a great way to browse what I’ve reviewed. The search box on this blog also works well if you are looking for a review of a particular book..