The Month in Reviews: November 2025
Introduction
Cornucopia would be a good description of the books I reviewed this month. For example, there were new novels by Ian McEwan and Wendell Berry. Then I ranged the extremes from Paul Kingsnorth’s ominous Against the Machine to Charlie Mackesy’s reassuring Always Remember. I explored weighty matters like liberal education (written by a conservative arguing in its favor) and a natural law vision of property rights. Of course, I found time for a George Simenon mystery and a Terry Pratchett Discworld novel.
Then on the Christian book front, I read a book on racial change in the church, Dorothy L. Sayers and cinema, a book that I thought broke new ground on matters of faith and science, a study of the Psalms, and a book about “mid-faith crisis.” I also read a biography of George Whitefield and a memoir of a Palestinian Christian family over five generations. Lastly, I read a wonderful new history of the Edmund Fitzgerald published in time for the fiftieth anniversary of its sinking in 1975.
The Reviews
What We Can Know, Ian McEwan. Albert A. Knopf (ISBN: 9780593804728) 2025. A researcher in 2119 seeks a lost poem read at a famous dinner in 2014, reconstructing the circumstances of the dinner. Review
Pietr the Latvian (Inspector Maigret, 1), Georges Simenon. Penguin Books (ISBN: 9780141392738) 2025 (first published in 1930). Maigret tracks an international criminal appearing in a number of guises, not always sure he is tracking the real Pietr. Review
The Wages of Cinema (Studies in Theology and the Arts), Crystal L. Downing. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514008805) 2025. A Christian aesthetic of film in conversation with Dorothy L. Sayers’ ideas on creativity and artistic integrity. Review
Let’s Be Reasonable, Jonathan Marks. Princeton University Press (ISBN: 9780691193854) 2021. An conservative argument for liberal education rooted in John Locke’s idea of the cultivation of reason. Review
The Gales of November, John U. Bacon. Liveright (ISBN: 9781324094647) 2025. A new history of the Edmund Fitzgerald, its final voyage, crew and captain, and the possible reasons for its sinking. Review
The Sacred Art of Slowing Down, A. C. Seiple, foreword by Chuck De Groat. Tyndale | Refresh (ISBN: 9798400506321) 2025. Explores ways to become aware of our inner state, to tune into our bodies, and tend our souls. Review
The Light Fantastic, (Discworld, 2) Terry Pratchett. HarperCollins (ISBN: 9780063373679) 2024 (first published in 1986). Saved from falling off Discworld, Rincewind, Twoflower, and the Luggage try to avert its destruction by a red star. Review
One Star, Three Kings, Rebecca Grabill, illustrated by Isabella Grott. Paraclete Press (ISBN: 9798893480122) 2025. Imagining the journey of the Magi, blending scripture and history as they follow the star and seek the newborn King. Review
Beyond Church and Parachurch, Angie Ward, foreword by Jerry E. White. InterVarsity Press | Missio Alliance (ISBN: 9781514009574) 2025. A proposal that moves beyond siloed, competitive relationships to a collaborative model of missional extension. Review
The Earth is the Lord’s (Emory University Studies in Law and Religion), Liam de los Reyes. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (ISBN: 9780802885203) 2025. Property rights in view of natural law over against Lockean theory, and its application in Catholic Social Teaching. Review
Marce Catlett: The Force of a Story, Wendell Berry. Counterpoint Press (ISBN: 9781640097759) 2025. A story spanning three generations beginning Marce’s disastrous experience of selling his tobacco at a loss in 1906. Review
Beyond Evolution, Sy Garte. Tyndale | Refresh (ISBN: 9798400501364) 2025. Rather than evolution hindering belief, observes a reluctance in biology to follow evidence warranting belief in a Creator. Review
Kingdom Racial Change, Michael A. Evans, David L. McFadden, and Michael O. Emerson. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (ISBN: 9780802883728) 2025. Three men tell their stories, analyze them using sociology, and propose strategies for Christians pursuing justice. Review
The Divine Dramatist (Library of Religious Biography), Harry S., Stout. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (ISBN: 9780802801548) 1991. A biography of George Whitefield focusing on the drama of his preaching and his impact on American religious life. Review
Mid-Faith Crisis, Catherine McNeil and Jason Hague. InterVarsity Press (ISBN: 9781514010365) 2025. When the foundations of one’s faith are shaken, it appears an endpoint, but may be a transforming experience. Review
Daughters of Palestine, Leyla R. King. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (ISBN: 9780802884992) 2025. A memoir of five generations of daughters of a Palestinian Christian family and a journey from Shafa ‘Amr to Texas. Review
Against the Machine, Paul Kingsnorth. Thesis (ISBN: 9780593850633) 2025. An account of the rise of techno-capitalism and the threat it poses to humanity and to the Earth. Review
Always Remember, Charlie Mackesy. Penguin Life (ISBN: 9780593994825) 2025. The boy, the mole, the fox, and the horse continue their journey together and learn what it takes to get through storms. Review
The Message of the Psalms, Walter Brueggemann. Augsburg Fortress. (ISBN: 9780806621203) 1985. Provides a framework of orientation, disorientation, and new orientation as a rubric for reading the Psalms. Review
Best Book of the Month
John U. Bacon’s The Gales of November not only tells the story of the tragic final voyage of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Bacon also researched the stories of the twenty-nine men on the boat, it’s reputation as the “Queen of the Great Lakes.” He helps the reader understand the terror of a Lake Superior storm. While not landing on a cause for the sinking, he explores the factors that could have contributed to it. In addition, he tells the story of Gordon Lightfoot, the song that captured the imagination of so many, and what it meant to fam0ilies of those who died. Summing up, Bacon’s telling lives up to the greatness of Edmund Fitzgerald, honors those who died, and keeps its story alive for a new generation.
Quote of the Month
I suspect people will either think Paul Kingsnorth’s Against the Machine over the top Luddism or a prescient warning. I probably lean toward the latter camp. I think there is something worth considering in this subheading and opening sentence in one of his chapters:
“What Progress wants is to replace us.
“Perhaps the last remaining question is whether we will let it.”
What I’m Reading
I just began reading Beyond Stewardship, an edited collection of articles. Many recent Christian writers on the environment (including Pope Francis) argue that the idea of stewardship is inadequate to encompass our calling to care for God’s world. I look forward to what new ideas this collection of essays proposes. Then, Watching the Chosen, another essay collection, got me to watch The Chosen. I am heartened to find that a number of the contributors came to this series with the same skepticism I did, and like me, most changed their minds from the first episode on. One aspect of The Chosen is the depiction of a Jesus who welcomed all to his table. In Eating with Jesus, Robert D. Cornwall raises questions about the “fences” we put around the Lord’s Supper Communion or the Eucharist depending on your church. He wonders if we should place restrictions on who may partake when Jesus was so open.
On the fiction side, I’m about halfway through Louise Penney’s Black Wolf which picks up where The Grey Wolf left off. Gamache’s team wonders if they were mistaken in identifying and charging the person who they thought the Black Wolf. Is the Black Wolf still out there? Is there something far worse than the poisoning of Quebec’s water supply in the offing and could it go beyond Canada’s borders? Those are all questions at this point. Finally, I’m enjoying The Harlequin Tea Set and Other Stories by Agatha Christie. These are early short stories, written as she was perfecting her craft–a feast for Christie fans.
In the next couple weeks, I’ll be putting together my ‘Best of the Year” post, but there are several on this list that might make good gifts for the booklover in your life!
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. Thanks for stopping by.