Author: rtrube54

The Month in Reviews: October 2024

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Cover image of "Looking Up" by Courtney Ellis

Introduction

This month, my reviews were dropping like autumn leaves–twenty-two in all. Among them were a new and a classic work of literary fiction, books by Colm Toibin and Willa Cather respectively. I reviewed two collections of poetry, one an anthology of Catholic poetry and the other, a chapbook of nature poetry from well-known poets. Then there are always those mystery series I’m working through–two Brother Cadfael’s, a Campion, and a Cork O’Connor–all quite engaging!

Turning to non-fiction, I reviewed biographies of Civil War general James Longstreet and the Van Sweringen brothers of Cleveland. While we are on the topic of Cleveland, I thoroughly enjoyed Luke Epplin’s account of the 1948 World Champion Indians. And I read a strange account of a talking mongoose that haunted a family on the Isle of Man.

As always, there were some books of serious theology, including a monograph on the priest-king of Psalm 110, a finer grained study of the divine imperial cult the Apostle Paul encountered, a biographical study of John the Baptist, and a history of the Churches of Christ in America. Then there were devotional works including a collection of prayers compiled by Evelyn Underhill, a wonderful introduction to prayer practices, and a delightful book of Advent and Christmastide readings and resources for families of all ages. Finally, I rounded out the month with a fine book weaving bird watching and the grieving of a grandfather’s death, and a thought-provoking book on our beliefs and practices around death and burial.

The Reviews

The Potter’s Field (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael No. 17) Ellis Peters. Mysterious Press/Open Road Media (ASIN: B07B6B2CSP), 2014 (First published in 1989). The Potter’s Field, a gift to the abbey, turns out to be a mystery rather than gift when a plow turns up a woman’s body with long black hair. Review

Long Island (Eilis Lacey No. 2), Colm Tóibín. Scribner (ISBN: 9781476785110) 2024 Eilis Lacey returns to her home in Ireland when she learns the wife of a customer of her husband is carrying his child. Review

Contemporary Catholic Poetry: An Anthology, Edited by April Lindner and Ryan Wilson. Paraclete Press (ISBN: 9781640606463), 2024. An anthology of works in diverse styles, aesthetics, and forms from 23 Catholic poets born since 1950. Review

Paul and Imperial Divine Honors, D. Clint Burnett. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (ISBN: 9780802879851) 2024. Studies inscriptional evidence in three cities offering a nuanced treatment of the Roman imperial cult. Review

The Fast: The History, Science, Philosophy, and Promise of Doing Without, John Oakes. Avid Reader Press (ISBN: 9781668017418) 2024. The history, science, philosophy, and promise of doing without, set against the author’s own experience of a seven-day fast. Review

Invisible Giants, Herbert H. Harwood, Jr. Indiana University Press (ISBN: 9780253341631) 2003. The story of two brothers from Cleveland who built a rail and real estate empire centered on Cleveland’s Terminal Tower. Review

Longstreet: The Confederate General Who Defied the South, Elizabeth R. Varon. Simon & Schuster (ISBN: 9781982148270) 2023. From Lee’s “old war horse” to the Radical Republican who defied the “Lost Cause” and fought to vindicate his war record. Review

Christmaker, James F. McGrath. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802884008) 2024. A life of John the Baptist making the case that he was a far more important figure than just the opening act for Jesus. Review

Looking Up: A Birder’s Guide to Hope Through Grief, Courtney Ellis (Foreword by Kay Warren). InterVarsity Press (ISBN: 9781514007167) 2024. A birder’s guide to hope through grief consists of reflections on various birds as the author grieves a grandfather’s death. Review

Copper River (Cork O’Connor Number 6), William Kent Krueger. Atria Paperback (ISBN: 9781439157817) 2009. Cork hides at a cousin’s from hit men who have wounded him only to be drawn into a search for killers preying on runaways. Review

The Beckoning Lady, (Albert Campion Number 15), Margery Allingham. Open Road Media (ASIN: B08CRRLLC2) 2020 (First published in 1955). While friends prepare for a midsummer party, Campion tries to unravel two murders in Pontisbright. Review

Creating a Life with God (20th Anniversary Revised edition), Daniel Wolpert. Upper Room Books (ISBN: 9780835820394) 2023. Prayer practices for relationship with God, in silence and solitude, with mind and body, alone and in community. Review

The Joy of Advent, Rebecca & Stephen Grabill, Illustrated by Claire Therese Gray. Paraclete Press (ISBN: 9781640609556), 2024. Daily readings, reflections, activities guiding families to create meaningful Advent and Christmastide traditions. Review

The Royal Priest: Psalm 110 in Biblical Theology (New Studies in Biblical Theology), Matthew Emadi. Apollos/IVP Academic (9781514007396) 2022 (Apollos [UK] website). A study of the theme of the priest king of Psalm 110, tracing this idea from Genesis through the New Testament. Review

Our Team, Luke Epplin. Flatiron Books (ISBN: 9781250313799) 2021. The story of four men who propelled the 1948 Cleveland Indians to a World Series Championship and how they changed baseball. Review

The Song of the Lark (Prairie Trilogy), Willa Cather. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781504035361), 2016 (First published in 1915).  A young woman from a frontier town discovers her passion for music, eventually taking her to the world’s opera stages. Review

Lay Me in God’s Good Earth, Kent Burreson and Beth Hoeltke. InterVarsity Press (ISBN: 9781514007600) 2024. A Christian approach to death, care for body of the deceased, and burial, making the case for natural burial. Review

Evelyn Underhill’s Prayer Book, Evelyn Underhill, edited by Robyn Wrigley-Carr, foreword by Eugene Peterson. SPCK (ISBN: 9780281078738) 2018. Prayers compiled in two books by Evelyn Underhill for retreats she conducted, edited into a compact edition. Review

Reviving the Ancient Faith, Third Edition, Richard T. Hughes and James L. Gorman. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802877291) 2024. A history of Churches of Christ in America, from sect, to denomination, to recent fragmentation and decline. Review

The Summer of the Danes (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael, Number 18), Ellis Peters. Mysterious Press/Open Road Media (ASIN: B00LUZNZ60) 2014 (First published in 1991). A peaceful embassy with Brother Mark to two bishops results in both becoming hostages to Danes at war with Wales. Review

Gef!: The Strange Tale of an Extra-Special Talking Mongoose, Christopher Josiffe. Strange Attractor Press (ISBN: 9781907222481) 2017. The strange tale of an extra-special talking mongoose that inhabited a home on the Isle of Man in the 1930’s. Review

Poems on Nature (Signature Select Classics), various authors. Sterling Publishing Co. (ISBN: 781454944768) 2022. A chapbook of several dozen poems by the world’s greatest poets on the natural world, the air, the sea, and the land. Review

Book of the Month

Courtney Ellis’s Looking Up deftly weaves reflections on various bird with the process of grieving a beloved grandfather’s death. It is not only a profound exploration of the seasons of grief but guaranteed to make you look up and “consider the birds of the air.”

Quote of the Month

Robyn Wrigley-Carr’s, Evelyn Underhill’s Prayer Book work to edit the two prayer books, compiled by hand by Evelyn Underhill for the retreats she gave, is a marvelous gift. Here is one of the prayers I loved from this book:

O blessed Lord Jesus Christ, who bid your disciples stand with their loins gird and their lamps burning, be with us at this hour. Here we dedicate ourselves to you anew. Help us to run the race that is set before us with redoubled vigour and fresh vision. Teach us how to trim our lamps that they may not burn dim. Guide us to the constant recollection that the candle of the Lord is the Spirit of humanity. And by Your risen power, make us a power for you in this place, for Your own name’s sake. (Number 131)

What I’m Reading

I’m nearly finished with Ned B. Stonehouse’s biographical memoir, J. Gresham Machen. Machen taught New Testament at Princeton until a reorganization of the board communicated doctrinal drift, leading Machen and several others to found Westminster Theological Seminary. Douglas Groothuis’s Beyond the Wager is a wonderful commendation of Pascal as a theologian and apologist, far beyond his famous “wager.”

Then, in fiction, I’m reading Graham Greene’s The Man Within, his first published work. Another writer I enjoy is Candace Millard, whose River of the Gods chronicles Richard Burton and his company’s search for the source of the Nile. Finally, in my quest to grow as a reader of poetry, I am finding Abram Van Engen’s Word Made Fresh most helpful. He gives us permission to find and read poetry we enjoy and then leads us into even greater enjoyment of those works.

I was also excited to receive today Louise Penny’s The Grey Wolf. I’ve mentioned a number of times how the Gamache stories got me through the pandemic. I read all eighteen and after a two year break, I’m looking forward to number nineteen and the chance to catch up with old friends in the village of Three Pines.

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.

Review: Poems on Nature

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Cover image of "Poems on Nature" by various poets.

Poems on Nature (Signature Select Classics), various authors. Sterling Publishing Co. (ISBN: 781454944768) 2022.

Summary: A chapbook of several dozen poems by the world’s greatest poets on the natural world, the air, the sea, and the land.

A book I’m reading on poetry right now advises that the best way to get into reading poetry is to read and notice what particularly arrests our attention and gives us pleasure.. So I decided to follow this advice with this delightful chapbook that a local bookstore threw in as an “extra” with my other purchases. Poems on Nature collects several dozen poems from some of the “greats” in poetry. These include Emily Dickinson, William Wordsworth, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Christina Rosetti, William Blake, Sara Teasdale, and many others.

The poems are organized around “Air,” “Sea,” and “Land.” I’ll mention one or two in each section that I particularly enjoyed. You’ll probably like different ones, and that is just fine!

Under “Air,” I delighted in revisiting Paul Laurence Dunbar’s “Sympathy” with its famous line “I know why the caged bird sings…” I had not encountered John Greenleaf Whittier’s “The Robin,” in which he recounts the words of an old Welshwoman explaining how the robin got its red breast. In addition, there are poems from Keats, Wordsworth, Shelley, and Yeats, and others.

“The Sea” poems evoked for me something of the sea’s mysterious character. Christina Rosetti in “By the Sea” asks “Why does the sea moan evermore?” By contrast, Thomas Campion celebrates the empire of Neptune in “A Hymn in Praise of Neptune.” Then Alfred, Lord Tennyson evokes our fears of sea creatures of the deeps in “The Kraken.” I’ve always found thought-provoking the image of the ebbing of “The Sea of Faith” in “Dover Beach.”

Finally, the section on “Land begins with Joyce Kilmer’s “Trees.” We all know the opening lines “I think that I shall never see / A poem lovely as a tree.” But do you remember her self-deprecating concluding lines: “Poems are made by fools like me, / But only God can make a tree”? Then Vachel Lindsay speaks for every homeowner in “The Dandelion” that is “rich and haughty.” It scorns the lawn-mower, even when its “yellow heads are cut away.” “By noon you raise a sea of stars / More golden than before.”

Sara Teasdale concludes the collection with “There will come soft rains (War Time).” She describes the coming of spring in a time of war. She concludes with a haunting pair of couplets:

Not one would mind, neither bird nor tree
If mankind perished utterly;

And Spring herself, when she woke at dawn
Would scarcely know that we are gone.

This should give give us all pause amid our hubristic pretensions.

Poems on Nature is ideal for gifts. The first page even has “to” and “from” lines for inscriptions. The chapbook format makes for easy carrying, more portable than an e-book. It is a great introduction to several dozen great poets without the bulky anthology. I really must thank my local bookseller!

Review: Gef!

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Cover image of "Gef!" by Christopher Josiffe

Gef!: The Strange Tale of an Extra-Special Talking Mongoose, Christopher Josiffe. Strange Attractor Press (ISBN: 9781907222481) 2017.

Summary: The strange tale of an extra-special talking mongoose that inhabited a home on the Isle of Man in the 1930’s.

This book, a gift, is definitely outside the wheelhouse of what I usually review. Specifically, I’ve never been a fan of the paranormal. That is the best category I can come up with for this “strange tale.” James Irving had been a successful agent of the Dominion piano and organ company until the business collapsed in World War I. In 1916, he purchased a farm estate on the Isle of Man known as Dorlish Cashen. Eventually he and his wife Margaret moved to the isolated location to take up farming. Their older children were already living apart from them. A daughter, Voirrey, was born in 1918. They tried to fit in but were perceived as aloof outsiders. And they barely subsisted as farmers.

In late 1931, when Voirrey was 13, they started noticing taps and thumps around the house. A creature appeared to be living in the walls, especially in proximity to Voirrey’s room. After several weeks of interacting with James in a variety of screeches, it began speaking. At first, the creature wasn’t pleasant. It seemed to be drawn to Voirrey but also watched Margaret disrobe. It spit through gaps in boards. And it urinated. A scary nuisance. This continued for about ten years until the creature disappeared.

Word spread as James talked with locals, some who thought the site had always been a bit strange. Then a number of experts in the paranormal visited. Believed originally to be some form of a “man-weasel” most concluded from glimpses that the creature was a mongoose with unusual powers, including clairvoyance.

This book is a recent effort to tell the story of all the efforts to figure out what was going on. What kind of creature was this? How could it speak? Was some kind of spiritual presence involved or was this an elaborate hoax (although one without benefit to the Irvings)? The book reproduces news clippings from the time as well as photographs of the family, the farm, and indistinct photos of the creature. Efforts to photograph, collect paw prints, and hair samples were inconclusive at best. Yet phenomena experienced by the family and some of the visitors (Gef did not perform on demand) suggest there really was some form of strange presence.

Josiffe considers various theories about the creature’s relationship to each of the family members. Voirrey, as an adolescent girl seemed at first to be a focus of attention. Later, James, and to a lesser extent, Margaret were the object of the creature’s attentions. Some wondered about Margaret’s powers of clairvoyance. Others speculated that James obsession with the creature reflected a response to the business failures of an intelligent man.

The author devotes several chapters to the kinds of spirit creature it might be–ghost, poltergeist, familiar, elemental spirit, fair, brownie, tulpa, etc. In the end, there is not enough evidence for any conclusive finding.

What was striking to me, reading as a Christian, was that there is no mention of consulting with an exorcist, those whose ministry is to evict spirits inhabiting either a person or place. Clearly, a being communicating through an animal is a reminder of the serpent in the garden as is the capacity for supernatural knowledge. The unhealthy effect on each of the family members long term suggest a negative if not malevolent presence. Yet there was no concerted effort to cleanse the house of its presence but rather an acceptance of its presence and a kind of status quo. Sadly, there seems to have been no pastoral presence exercising spiritual discernment, only psychic researchers who thought it an interesting phenomenon.

The book is and will be of interest to those drawn to the paranormal and to folklore. The author took great pains to document the story, including interviews and site visits (the house is no longer standing). I believe in the existence of a spirit world, and the need to discern spirits. But I cannot commend excessive focus upon them, and hence my lukewarm response to this book.

Review: The Summer of the Danes

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Cover image of "The Summer of the Danes" by Ellis Peters

The Summer of the Danes (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael, Number 18), Ellis Peters. Mysterious Press/Open Road Media (ASIN: B00LUZNZ60) 2014 (First published in 1991).

Summary: A peaceful embassy with Brother Mark to two bishops results in both becoming hostages to Danes at war with Wales.

It all began as a welcome break from monastic routines for the adventurous Brother Cadfael. His former assistant, Brother Mark is now a Deacon with Roger de Clinton, Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry. His return to Shrewsbury means more than a delightful reunion with Cadfael. Indeed, with the approval of Abbot Radulfus, he is to join Brother Mark as Welsh interpreter. In fact, Brother Mark is the bishop’s emissary to show support to both the new Bishop at St. Asaph and the Bishop of Bangor, both covering Welsh territory. It should be a ten day trip with a good friend in the country of his youth. What could be more pleasant?

At St. Asaph, Mark’s gift to Bishop Gilbert comes at an opportune time. Owain, prince of Gwynedd has also arrived in might. The gift signals Roman support when Gilbert most needs it. But another visitor signifies trouble. Bledri has come to plead the cause of Owain’s estranged brother, Cadwaladr. Owain agrees to hear him in Aber, his royal seat. Mark and Cadfael join the royal train to Aber.

But they are not the only ones on the journey. Father Meirion, a Welsh priest associated with Gilbert accompanies his daughter, Heledd, who he has arranged to marry a Welshman in Bangor. But not by her choice. Rather, with the coming of the Roman rite, married priests are not in vogue. Meirion is a widower, but his daughter is a reminder of his anomalous status. Until, that is, she is removed by marriage. She has great fun flirting with Bledri on the journey. Not exactly a submissive bride…or daughter.

Things go sideways at Aber. Bledri warns that Cadwaladr will come in force if Owain doesn’t settle the dispute and restore Cadwaladr’s land rights. A man brutally murdered by Cadwaladr’s men stands in the way. That night, warning comes that the Danes are coming ashore at Abermenai, hired to fight by Cadwaladr. Then a horse is found missing and it is thought that Bledri has fled with crucial intelligence. It is not so. Bledri is found by Cadfael, murdered in his bed. It is Heledd who has fled. But where?

The solution of the murder must wait. Owain rides in force to meet the Danes. Meanwhile Cadfael and Mark complete their mission in Bangor, taking time as they return to look for the girl. While they split up to search, Cadfael find Heledd only for the two to fall into the clutches of foraging Danes. Mark spies them captive and reports back to Owain.

Owain’s forces and the Danes are lined up a mile apart. Owain is unwilling to fight them–the fee the Danes agreed to with Cadwaladr is his to discharge. It seems this is what the Danes wish as well, and the hostages are well-treated, which eventually include Brother Mark, when Cadwaladr betrays his trust. Owain and the Danish leader are struggling for a peaceful resolution but there are others who could jeopardize it as well as the lives of the hostages. Meanwhile, Heledd, who has had no choices in the matter before fleeing, seems to flourish, even as she waits for who knows what.

The Owain of history appears to be a shrewd character, maintaining rule against the perfidy of Cadwaladr and the presence of the English. And so Peters portrays him here. He receives the grudging respect of the Danes and the mutual respect of Hugh Beringar, whose shire borders Welsh lands. Heledd is a fascinating character, a woman who refuses to accede to the marriage made for her. Cadfael alone suspects another future for her.

After this adventure, Cadfael welcomes the return to monastic routine. But for how long?

Review: Reviving the Ancient Faith

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Cover image of "Reviving the Ancient Faith" by Richard T. Hughes and James L. Gorman

Reviving the Ancient Faith, Third Edition, Richard T. Hughes and James L. Gorman. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802877291) 2024.

Summary: A history of Churches of Christ in America, from sect, to denomination, to recent fragmentation and decline.

“If only we could be like the early church. If only we could get back to the Bible.” I’ve heard this refrain over many years from many Christians. Little do most know that the United States witnessed a significant, organized attempt to achieve just such a reality in the nineteenth century. In Reviving the Ancient Faith, Richard T. Hughes and James L. Gorman render a history of the Restoration Movement, begun by Thomas and Alexander Campbell and Barton Stone. In this new edition, Gorman updates the scholarship of Hughes early work, trims the overall content, and adds chapters on recent developments in a new part three, “The Fragmentation of a Denomination.”

Specifically, the goal of the Campbells and Stone was to return to “primitive Christianity.” They sought a church without denominations, one that was based on the Bible and the Bible alone. They focused on baptism by immersion for repentance from sin, a way of salvation centered on human response to Christ, and a focus on Christ’s return and coming kingdom, or apocalypticism. The authors trace the respective movements begun by Campbell and Stone, their merger in 1832 and subsequent history. Particularly, they show a movement led by its publications as well as the Bible schools and colleges they founded, and the reaction of other leaders to them.

It is an account of growth and conflict, between sectarian ideas and emerging denominationalism, between church-centered efforts and mission societies, between law and grace. Perhaps of great significance was the sectional character, between North and South. Likewise, and as an adjunct, we see the growing tension between apocalypticism and a growing Christian nationalism. And they trace the tension between mission to all, including Blacks, and a largely segregated movement. Thus, they show how difficult it is to separate biblical and cultural Christianity.

The history traces the transition and development of the Churches of Christ as a denomination, beginning with the 1906 distinction between them and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). I wish the authors would have given more space to this parting of the ways. Particularly, I would have valued a brief account of the subsequent history of the Disciples of Christ. Instead, they trace a denomination wrestling to maintain their distinctive emphases, often through the “fighting” style of a Foy Wallace while trying to modernize in their buildings, journals, and schools.

The newly added third part shows a church that has fragmented around these tensions, reflecting a broader fragmentation. On one hand, part of the church identified more with evangelicalism. This includes figures like Max Lucado, who identified so much with mainstream evangelicalism that his church ceased to be identifiably Church of Christ. Revivalist impulses manifest in the International Church of Christ movement led by Kip McKean. Meanwhile, a sizable number of churches embrace politically conservative forms of Christian nationalism.

On the other hand, the authors chronicle a progressive movement embracing racial reconciliation, the ministry of women and the acceptance of LGBTQ persons. Both conservative and progressive trends reflect efforts to reform a denomination in decline, again reflecting the larger landscape of the American church, The work concludes by recognizing an uncertain future.

This is an important and well-researched account of a major religious movement in American church history. It is a case study of both the aspirations and hubris in a “back-to-the-Bible” movement. And it is a reflection of the broader American landscape that has had such a powerful shaping effect on churches. In particular, it is an account of a church centered in the American South. Thus it sheds light on more than a denomination. It is an important study in American Christianity.

____________________

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review.

The Weekly Wrap: October 20-26

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Image for The Weekly Wrap for October 20-26: person wrapping a book
Photo by cottonbro studio on Pexels.com

Reading for Our Times

In the United States, where I live, most of us feel besieged with political advertising and daunted by the nightly news. When I turned the calendar to 2024, I had a sense it was going to be like this. I also believed, both then and now, that books play an important role in sustaining us in dark and troubling times. In my “Bob on Books 2024 Reading Challenge” I wrote this:

“As I look ahead to 2024, I anticipate politically contentious times and more global conflict and ecological challenges. I think of St. Augustine who drew upon his spirituality and his extensive reading to write The City of God as he watched the decay of the Roman Empire. Yes, sometimes, books offer a temporary escape, but we cannot escape our times. The best books offer us the vision, the imagination, the principles, that give us the wherewithal to meet our times.”

I’ve been thinking about how my books have helped with this. Disarming Leviathan met some of my concerns head-on, in terms of how I may engage with those with whom I differ politically. On the other hand, reading the poetry of Mary Oliver reminded me of how much in the world our politicians do not control, that come day by day to us as gift. The mysteries of Brother Cadfael portray people who lean into their faith and work amid the turmoil of ongoing civil war. A book on death and dying reminded me of the larger questions that form the backdrop of our lives, against which many of our political squabbles seem trivial.

I’d love to hear about the books that are offering you the wherewithal to live in these times. Our common love of books seems one of the ways we may encourage one another. Therefore, I would love to hear from you!

Five Articles Worth Reading

The other night I watched Stephen Colbert interview Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Aleksei Navalny. I was impressed by the courage of both Yulia and Aleksei. The New York Times portrays that courage in “How Aleksei Navalny’s Prison Diaries Got Published.”

Molly McCulley-Brown makes the case in LitHub for “Finding Your Way Back to Wonder: On the Power of Poetry to Sustain Our Spirits.”

I admire booksellers, especially those who own indie bookstores. In “This Bookstore Historian Sees Bookselling as Activism” I found yet another reason to appreciate their work.

Bibliophiles talk a good deal about their unread books. We joke about getting through our TBR piles by our 849th birthday. Umberto Eco saw his unread books as an “anti-library” and more valuable than the books he’d read. Find out why in “Umberto Eco’s Antilibrary: Why Unread Books Are More Valuable to Our Lives than Read Ones.”

The 18th edition of “The Chicago Manual of Style” has just been published. It is the writer’s and editor’s bible. Read about its history and recent changes, including allowing the use of “they” in the singular in “A Venerable and Time-Tested Guide.”

Quote of the Week

Science fiction/fantasy novelist Ursula K. Le Guin was born October 21, 1928. She made this thought-provoking observation about science fiction:

“If science fiction is the mythology of modern technology, then its myth is tragic.”

Would you agree? I also wonder if this would be true of contemporary science fiction, of which I’ve read little.

Miscellaneous Musings

And so it has begun. Book publications have already started posting their “Best of the Year” lists. Publishers Weekly came out with this one on Friday. I think it is a bit early. However, I wait until December to post mine. Is it reflective of an effort to get out in front of holiday book-buying? This must be difficult for those with books coming out after October 1. Do they get included in next year, I wonder?

I’ve mentioned poetry a couple times in this issue of The Weekly Wrap. Abram Van Engen is an English professor at Washington University and has written a book on learning to read and enjoy poetry title Word Made Fresh. It is written for beginners, the 88 percent who never read poetry and looks like it is really helpful in understanding poetry and enjoying it. Although he writes from a Christian perspective, he looks at great poetry that wouldn’t be necessarily identified as “Christian.”

A question arose on my Facebook page about the number of Christian books I include in my posts. This would typically amount weekly to two or three in blog reviews and two or three “Books of the Day” with a cover photo and brief description. In context, I make about 90 posts a week on the Facebook page–articles, reviews, quotes, and images. I try to represent a wide range of genres and viewpoints.

Partly I post out of obligation to publishers. But I also post about books that usually represent the best of what Christians are thinking and writing. Our broader media often doesn’t cover such books. I suppose I could be more niche-y. But that’s not how I read or experience the world of books. I’d rather not have two blogs or two pages because I have one reading life that weaves it all in a seamless whole. I hope others won’t mind and maybe find it intriguing. At least I can hope!

Well, that’s The Weekly Wrap for October 20-26, 2024!

Find past editions of The Weekly Wrap under The Weekly Wrap heading on this page.

Review: Evelyn Underhill’s Prayer Book

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Cover imaged of "Evelyn Underhill's Prayer Book" edited by Robyn Wrigley-Carr

Evelyn Underhill’s Prayer Book, Evelyn Underhill, edited by Robyn Wrigley-Carr, foreword by Eugene Peterson. SPCK (ISBN: 9780281078738) 2018.

Summary: Prayers compiled in two books by Evelyn Underhill for retreats she conducted, edited into a compact edition.

Evelyn Underhill was an Anglo-Catholic who wrote extensively on mysticism and the spiritual life. Her favorite retreat site was Pleshey and in the 1920’s and 1930’s she conducted a number of retreats there. As part of her preparation, from the years of 1924 to 1938, she compiled two handwritten books of prayers for her use as she led prayers.

These books disappeared after her death. Then Underhill scholar Robyn Wrigley-Carr came across a leather bound volume of handwritten prayers during a visit at Pleshey in 2016. What she had discovered was the second of the two books, consisting of prayers compiled between 1929 and 1938. Returning to check her copy against the original, she discovered that the first volume had been found, with prayers from 1924-1928. This led to her creating a single volume edition, preserving the numbering and index system created by Underhill.

Underhill draws many of the prayers from spiritual writers from the third to twentieth century. In the introduction, Wrigley-Carr notes the influence of Friedrich von Hugel on Underhill, particularly in the writers he recommended. As a result, her prayers draw on these writers.. Wrigley-Carr includes a list by century in the introduction and offers brief author biographies in the back by order of their appearance. Examples of writer range from Augustine to AEthelwold of Winchester, John Donne, John Henry Newman, and Christina Rosetti.

In addition, Underhill wrote many of the prayers herself, especially in the second part of the work, beginning with prayer number 68. Names of authors appear after their prayers. However prayers without attribution are Underhill’s. She also draws from various church liturgies including the Book of Common Prayer.

The prayers cover a wide range of subjects, from praise of God to consecration of oneself to intercession for others, including the ill, the dying, and our communion with the saints in glory. An index combining the two volumes, following Underhill’s indexing, appears in the after matter.

The work serves as a wonderful introduction to the prayers of great spiritual writers through the ages. It was a delight to encounter the prayers of Launcelot Andrews. For example, this Benediction:

The power of the Father guide and guard us.
The wisdom of the Son, enlighten us.
The working of the Spirit, quicken us.
Guard our souls. Strengthen our bodies.
Our senses, refine; our conduct correct; our characters, set in tune.

Bless our actions; perfect our prayers; breath into us holy thoughts.
Our sins that are past, forgive, our present sins, amend, and future sins, prevent.
   Unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly, far beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us: to him be glory in the Church in Christ unto all generations.

Likewise, I found Underhill’s prayers equally rich. For instance consider this prayer of consecration (#131):

O blessed Lord Jesus Christ, who bid your disciples stand with their loins gird and their lamps burning, be with us at this hour. Here we dedicate ourselves to you anew. Help us to run the race that is set before us with redoubled vigour and fresh vision. Teach us how to trim our lamps that they may not burn dim. Guide us to the constant recollection that the candle of the Lord is the Spirit of humanity. And by Your risen power, make us a power for you in this place, for Your own name’s sake.

This is a treasure rediscovered. Certainly, this is a wonderful resource for our personal life of prayer. We often grope for words to express our heart’s longings. Likewise, this book, so compact, makes a wonderful resource to take on retreat. Finally, retreat leaders will find this a rich resource of prayers for retreatants as will those who plan worship services.

Review: Lay Me in God’s Good Earth

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Cover image of "Lay Me in God's Good Earth" by Kent Burreson and Beth Hoeltke

Lay Me in God’s Good Earth, Kent Burreson and Beth Hoeltke. InterVarsity Press (ISBN: 9781514007600) 2024.

Summary: A Christian approach to death, care for body of the deceased, and burial, making the case for natural burial.

The height of the COVID pandemic accentuated the increasingly institutionalized and impersonal ways in which we deal with the ultimate realities of dying, death, and the bodies of our deceased. Given the deadly character of the infection, dying patients were isolated. They often spoke their final words to family on an I-Pad. They died alone, perhaps comforted by a masked and begowned caregiver. Because of public health concerns, families couldn’t gather for funeral services or bury their dead. It was an extreme version of the increasingly common American way of dying, controlled by the medical and funeral establishment, with the family and one’s faith community playing marginal parts.

Kent Burreson and Beth Hoeltke advocate a very different approach to death and burial. As Lutheran Christians, they believe our approach to dying and our burial practices ought to reflect our faith. Specifically, they focus on the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus as both our hope and pattern. In this, we find both the example of being lovingly laid to rest and the hope of our own bodily resurrection as part of the renewal of all things in the new heaven and earth.

They invite us to rethink things we may not want to think about at all. They begin with burial. Instead of embalming, makeup, expensive metal caskets and concrete vaults, or energy intensive cremations, they advocate natural burial in which an unembalmed body either in a shroud or wooden casket is committed to the earth. They contend this is most consonant with Christian belief and the most environmental way of burial. For this reason, another name for natural burial is “green burial.”

The authors invite us into end-of-life planning. Not only do they consider our burial practices. They also discuss how we talk about or euphemize death. Likewise, they offer resources for how we support the dying, including where we die. We learn about death doulas, who walk with families through the dying practice. They explore alternatives to the funeral home, including preparing and laying out the body at home. We learn how to treat bodies of loved ones with dignity. They discuss funeral services–not “celebrations of life” where both the reality of death, with the body present, and the hope of the resurrection are joined.

The book is both theological and practical. Some of the practice reflects the particularities of Lutheran order. While the authors discuss various alternatives, they clearly prefer death at home, family preparation of the body, church funerals, and natural burial. A group I read this with struggled to find a biblical case for this. At best, we found that these practices broadly reflect a Christian understanding of death, the dignity of the body, and our resurrection hope. But we noted both other burial practices in church history and the reality that no matter the disposition of the body, the supernatural reconstitution needed in resurrection. The strongest argument, especially for natural burial, is the ecological one.

However, the book is very practical. Some may be squeamish in reading the chapter on washing and preparing the body. Yet, this is what families do in much of the world. We didn’t embalm the dead in this country until the Civil War. The authors inform us of permits needed to transport bodies, and of states that require funeral directors to do this. They discuss where burials may take place, including church yards, where this was once common, or even on private property (check the laws in your state) as well as the growing number of “green” cemeteries.

The last third of the book is in workbook form, allowing the reader to begin their own process of planning. Additional appendices offer resources, including comparative burial costs, books, websites, and state by state funeral boards.

The reader may or may not agree with their preferred approaches. However, this book offers resources for beginning hard but important family conversations. It also offers a wealth of resources for pastors to teach on death and dying. Most of all, it stirs me to think about how we might live our hope even in our dying.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review.

Review: The Song of the Lark

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Cover image of "The Song of the Lark" by Willa Cather

The Song of the Lark (Prairie Trilogy), Willa Cather. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781504035361), 2016 (First published in 1915). 

Summary: A young woman from a frontier town discovers her passion for music, eventually taking her to the world’s opera stages.

Thea Kornberg nearly did not survive her childhood in the frontier town of Moonstone, Colorado. Deathly ill with pneumonia, only the ministrations of Dr. Howard Archie, then just a country doctor, save her life. The experience also forges a lasting bond between them. As the daughter of a minister, learning piano and singing were par for the course. Yet even as a child, Wunsch, her piano teacher discovers an unusual passion for excellence. Not only does she exhaust his ability to train her. She also recruits her own students and replaces Wunsch after a moral lapse forces his departure from Moonstone.

She also attracts the attentions of Ray Kennedy, a railroader who wants to marry her when she comes of age. But his longing is never fulfilled. He dies in a rail accident. But, knowing her unfulfilled potential as a musician, he leaves her a bequest of $600 to send her to Chicago. She is fortunate to train with Andor Harsanyi. But he describes himself as exhausted after piano lessons with her because of her intensity. Yet he wonders if the piano is her instrument. When he learns that she sings in a church choir, he asks to hear her sing. He realizes that her voice is her instrument.

He connects her with Madison Bowers, the best voice teacher in Chicago. Although not a pleasant man, she develops as a singer under his instruction. To pay her way, she also accompanies other students but quickly comes to despise their stupidity. On the edge of disillusionment, she is introduced to Fred Ottenberg and a Jewish family who are friends of his, the Nathanmeyers. The chance to sing at their music parties kindles her love of performing. But she is worn out and ill. Fred whisks her off to a friend with a ranch near ancient cliff dwellings.

She comes to understand her passion to perform, how it is a part of every fiber of her being, during months of solitude. Meanwhile, she is falling in love with Fred. But she learns that he is married and bound to a mentally invalid wife. From New York, she wires Dr. Archie, who has always looked out for her, having escorted her to Chicago. She will accept no further help from Fred, despite the fact that he is from a wealthy brewing family. Yet they remain on friendly terms. Dr, Archie provides her a loan to go to Europe to continue to train.

The work concludes in New York. Dr, Archie, Fred, Harsanyi, and even Spanish Johnny, from the Mexican part of Moonstone, hear her perform at the Met to acclaim. Through their eyes, we glimpse the full realization of the passions and drives that have animated her life, poured out in performance. And we see the contempt she feels toward mediocrity. We observe the life of a diva, and what she left behind–the prairies, her parents, who died while she was in Europe, and those who stood in her way. And those who attend her performance remind us of those without whom it would not have been possible.

As in the other Prairie trilogy novels, Cather draws a compellingly strong female character. Having been around singers, I also thought she really got inside the psyche of a singer, exploring what makes them great. It’s not merely a voice but how the voice and the music become the means through which a whole personality expresses itself. We also see the sheer work involved, not only the practice but getting inside the idea of a piece and giving expression to that with one’s whole body.

Review: Our Team

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Cover image of "Our Team" by Luke Epplin

Our Team, Luke Epplin. Flatiron Books (ISBN: 9781250313799) 2021.

Summary: The story of four men who propelled the 1948 Cleveland Indians to a World Series Championship and how they changed baseball.

I read this book while the Cleveland Guardians were in the playoffs for the American League Championship. I fantasized about some of the glory of the 1948 World Series Champion Indians rubbing off on this team. Alas, the Yankees (Cleveland nemesis #1) put an end to those hopes in a five-game series. As a lifelong Cleveland fan, once again I find myself saying, “There is always next year….”

Our Team tells the story of the last championship baseball team in Cleveland by focusing on four key men who helped propel them to a championship. Bill Veeck. Bob Feller. Larry Doby. Satchel Paige. Two Whites. Two Blacks. They not only brought a championship to Cleveland. They helped change baseball.

Bill Veeck. The baseball entrepreneur who lost his lower leg to a war wound that he did not give a chance to heal. Instead, he relentlessly worked to fill Cleveland’s lakefront stadium through crazy promotions and fireworks, while cobbling together a team that included the second Black player as well as a veteran pitcher in the Negro Leagues.

Bob Feller. The aging Cleveland pitching ace from the Iowa cornfields, determined to make up for four lost seasons while in the military. In post-season exhibitions, he found another way to make money. Often, he matched up with Satchel Paige and other Black teams, but offered tepid reviews of Black players. In 1948, he struggles through the first part of the season, recovering something of his form late in the season, only for it to desert him in the tie-breaking playoff and World Series.

Larry Doby. The young war veteran playing for Newark in the Negro Leagues, spotted by Veeck and recruited for his power and speed. He was the second Black player in the majors after Jackie Robinson. Enduring separation because of race and riding the bench in 1947, he transitions to center field, propelling the Indians into contention with his bat, speed, and arm in 1948.

Satchel Paige. As much an entrepreneur as Feller or Veeck, he’d made a comfortable living pitching for over two decades in the Negro Leagues, wondering if he’d ever get a shot. In mid-season in 1948, Veeck finally recruits him to lift the struggling Cleveland pitching. His six wins and seven saves make a crucial difference in their pennant run

Luke Epplin skillfully interweaves their four stories into an account of the incredible season of 1948. As he does so, he shows how Veeck changed the character of the fan experience. Through supporting Doby and Paige, he made the Indians “our team” for the whole city, Black and White. In Bob Feller, we see a player trying to establish his own agency when there was no free agency. Then, with Larry Doby, we see the loneliness of separate lodgings and meals, the isolation from other teammates, and the efforts of Veeck to support him. Finally, with Paige, we witness a form of vindication of his greatness, as well as his incredible durability.

Of course it took more than the efforts of these four to win a championship. Epplin also chronicles the performances of Bob Lemon and Gene Bearden, bolstering the pitching when Feller faltered. And he describes the incredible season of player manager Lou Boudreau.

Epplin also gives us a sense of the evanescence of these moments of greatness. Veeck sacrificed his marriage and family for his baseball dreams. And sadly, aside from a pennant in 1954, the Indians would spend decades in mediocrity. Only with a new ballpark and contending teams would they again exceed the attendance figures of the Veeck era.

Personally, I especially appreciate the treatment of Larry Doby, whose great accomplishments have often been overlooked. And it was a gift to remember that great team and incredible season…and hope we will not have to wait too long for another one.