The Month in Reviews: June 2025

Introduction

I reviewed a number of books of note, both current and backlist during June. In addition to Bauckham’s magisterial work which I will discuss below, I reviewed several books of import in the church context. One was on safeguarding from abuse, a second was on a Christian conception of family, and a third discussed faith deconstruction. Then there was a wonderful, interdisciplinary collection on justice and rights, and a study of the working homeless through a study of five Atlanta families.

Turning to more literary works, I delighted in a collection of the prayers of mystics translated by Scott Cairns. At last, I read Roger Lundin’s now classic biography of Emily Dickinson. And I read one of the few Wallace Stegner works I’ve not read. Of course there are the usual mysteries and a recent edition of Tolkien’s writings on the rise and fall of Numenor. And so much more…

The Reviews

Walking Through Deconstruction, Ian Harber, foreword by Gavin Ortlund. InterVarsity Press (ISBN: 9781514008560) 2025. What it is, why it happens, the phases of deconstruction and walking with someone through this process. Review

How the World Made the West, Josephine Quinn. Random House (ISBN: 9780593729793) 2024. An argument that Western civilization reflects a 4000 year history of the mixing of global cultures. Review

There Is No Place for Us, Brian Goldstone. Crown (ISBN: 9780593237144) 2025. The plight of the working homeless through the experience of five Atlanta families. Review

Justice and Rights, Edited by Terence C. Halliday and K.K. Yeo. Langham Publishing (ISBN: 9781786410023) 2024. Nicholas Wolterstorff in an inter-disciplinary conversation on the salience of justice and rights in Christian scholarship. Review

The Spectator Bird, Wallace Stegner. Vintage (ISBN: 9780525431879) 2017 (first published in 1976). A postcard from a Countess leads a retired literary agent and his wife to revisit the time they’d spent with her. Review

Jesus and the Eyewitnesses, 2nd Edition, Richard Bauckham, foreword by Simon Gathercole. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802874313) 2017. Argues from both early church fathers and internal evidence that the gospels are based on eyewitness testimony. Review

The Saint-Fiacre Affair (Inspector Maigret, 14) Georges Simenon (translated by Shaun Whiteside). Penguin (9780141394756) 2015 (first published in 1932). [Publication link is to American edition currently in print] Maigret receives an anonymous note of a crime to take place in his home town, and though present, cannot prevent it. Review

Love’s Immensity, Scott Cairns. Paraclete Press (ISBN: 9781640605886) 2020 (first published in 2007). Reflections and prayers of mystics from St. Paul to Julian of Norwich translated and rendered in verse. Review

Skills for Safeguarding, Dr. Lisa Compton and Taylor Patterson. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514010730) 2024. A guide for religious organizations to prevent abuse, act appropriately when it occurs, and care for survivors. Review

The Little Book of Data, Justin Evans. HarperCollins Leadership (ISBN: 9781400248353) 2025. Stories of how people have used data to solve big problems and how that might apply in one’s own work. Review

Emily Dickinson and the Art of Belief, Revised Edition (Library of Religious Biography), Roger Lundin. Wm B. Eerdmans (ISBN: 9780802821270) 2004 (My review is based on the first edition, published in 1998). A biography of Dickinson focused on her life and faith drawing upon poetry and letters. Review

Households of Faith, Emily Hunter McGowin. InterVarsity Press (ISBN: 9781514000069) 2025. Instead of blueprints of the biblical family, casts a vision of families as apprentices in love together. Review

The Fall of Númenor, J.R.R. Tolkien, edited by Brian Sibley, illustrated by Alan Lee. William Morrow (ISBN: 9780063280687) 2022. The collected writings of Tolkien on the Second Age of Middle Earth, covering the rise and fall of Númenor. Review

Passions of the Soul, Rowan Williams. Bloomsbury Continuum (ISBN: 9781399415682) 2024. An exploration of Eastern Christian writing on the passions that may be distorted into sin, paired with the Beatitudes. Review

Trickster’s Point (Cork O’Connor, 12), William Kent Krueger. Atria Books (ISBN: 9781451645712) 2013. When Jubal Little, candidate for governor is killed by an arrow while bowhunting with Cork, Cork becomes a murder suspect. Review

Footsteps of Faith, John D. Roth, editor. Herald Press (ISBN: 9781513815169) 2025. A 40-day devotional on what it means to live in Jesus’ footsteps, published for the 500th anniversary of Anabaptism. Review

In Praise of Good Bookstores, Jeff Deutsch. Princeton University Press (ISBN: 9780691207766) 2022. A tribute to bookstores, their importance, and what makes them great from a veteran bookseller. Review

Curtain, (Hercule Poirot, 44) Agatha Christie. William Morrow (ISBN: 9780062074096) 2011 (first published in 1975). In Poirot’s last case, he and Captain Hastings reunite at Styles to catch a murderer involved in but unsuspected in five murders. Review

The Problem and Promise of Freedom, Steven Félix-Jäger. Baker Academic (ISBN: 9781540968142) 2025. A critical and constructive theology of freedom, basing true freedom in covenantal relationship with God. Review

Honeybath’s Haven, Michael Innes. Penguin Books (ISBN: 9780140048858) 1979 (out of print). Little does artist Charles Honeybath think that yielding his place in a senior home will lead to an artist friend’s death. Review

Best Book of the Month

As I alluded to in my Introduction, Richard Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. I thought this was an example of path-breaking scholarship. It was thorough, engaging other theories and objections. He makes the strong case that our canonical gospels either were written by an eyewitness to Jesus, or represent eyewitness testimony. That’s not absolute proof of the truth of these accounts but strengthens our confidence in their credibility.

Quote of the Month

Emily Hunter McGowin’s Households of Faith challenges the “blueprints” for biblical families propounded by many authors. She writes:

“With this book, I hope to speak a word to Christian families of all kinds that is neither a rigid, unattainable ideal nor an uncritical, feel-good placebo. I am not promoting a particular blueprint of family to which all Christians are expected to conform, nor am I trying to obliterate the notion of family as outmoded and useless. Instead, I am seeking a new paradigm for the family within the framework of the church and the kingdom of God, rooted in the Scriptures and the best of the church’s traditions, that I hope will be empowering and encouraging as we learn to live as households of faith today” (p. 10).

She goes on to propose that families are places where we are joint apprentices learning to love as followers of Jesus.

What I’m Reading

It seems that July is the month for reading up on sex and marriage. Having marked our 47th anniversary recently, you’d think we have this down. But the two books I’m reading right now are both worthwhile. The Marriage You Want by Sheila Wray Gregoire and Keith Gregoire makes the point that our teamwork in all of life is connected with the intimacies of the marriage bed. Sexuality and Sex Therapy is written for Christians who are engaged in helping couples with sexual issues. It provides solid information, which is much needed because of the bad counsel sometimes offered by Christians in this area.

On a different note, Why I’m Still a Christian by Justin Brierly reflects two decades of conversations with atheist and those of other faiths and gives his reasons for still believing in Christ through it all. I loved Abraham Verghese’s The Covenant of Water and am finding myself totally engrossed in his earlier Cutting for Stone. Which is better? I can’t yet say. Finally, I try to read a baseball book every summer. This year, I’m reading The Glory of Their Times by Lawrence S. Ritter. The book consists of oral histories from some the greats from the early 1900’s. While the positions and rules haven’t changed much, so much else has!

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!

The Month in Reviews May 2025

Introduction

While spring time is the season of planting, this month of reading has been a veritable harvest of interesting books. One of these was Gabrielle Zevin’s, The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, a sweet-sad love story set in a bookstore. It’s been a month of learning about the life of Jakob Hutter, an Anabaptist forebear, the art of Georges Roualt, the poetry of Luci Shaw, and the wonders of marine biology. Early in the month, I enjoyed a fine biography of theologian Markus Barth and a book on Christian discipleship by Luke Timothy Johnson. Finally, I finished the month with six reviews of children’s books, courtesy of IVP Kids. Believe me, these books are not just for kids, though I list them in a separate section below. With that, here are the reviews!

The Reviews

Tucker’s Last Stand (Blackford Oakes, 9), William F. Buckley, Jr. MysteriousPress.com/Open Road (ASIN: B0116EBXKY) 2015 (first published in 1990). Blackford Oakes teams up with mercenary Tucker Montana to block troops and arms flowing from North to South Vietnam. Review

An Incremental Life, Luci Shaw. Paraclete Press (ISBN: 9781640609792) 2025. Poems celebrating the daily moments offering glimpses of joy, growth, insight, and the quiet presence of God. Review

Imitating Christ: The Disputed Character of Christian Discipleship, Luke Timothy Johnson. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802883100) 2024. Contends our understanding of Christian discipleship has shifted in recent centuries from personal sanctification to social justice. Review

Markus Barth, Mark R. Lindsay. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514001622) 2024. The first biography of Markus Barth, drawn from access to his letters and papers, highlighting his theological legacy. Review

Judea under Greek and Roman Rule, David A deSilva. Oxford University Press (ISBN: 9780190263256) 2024. Covers the period from 334 BCE to 135 CE, Hellenizing reforms, revolts, Herods, and Roman domination. Review

The Body Keeps the Score, Bessel van der Kolk. Penguin Books (ISBN: 9780143127741) 2015. An account of the growing understanding of the effects of trauma on the brain and the body and promising treatments. Review

The Lawless Roads, Graham Greene. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781504054263) 2018 (first published in 1939). Greene’s journey through Mexico to the states of Chiapas and Tabasco where Catholicism was most severely repressed. Review

Writing and Rewriting the Gospels, James W. Barker, foreword by Mark Goodacre. Wm B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802874528) 2025. Drawing on ancient compositional practice, argues for for a “snowballing” process of gospel writing. Review

Until the Last One’s Found, Curt Parton. Wipf & Stock (ISBN: 9798385225439) 2024. An evangelical pastor argues that God will ultimately reconcile and restore all to himself through Christ. Review

Northwest Angle (Cork O’Connor, 11), William Kent Krueger. Atria Books (ISBN: 9781439153963) 2012. A family vacation is disrupted by a derecho, casting Jenny onto a remote island where she rescues an infant sought by killers. Review

Jakob Hutter: His Life and Letters (Classics of the Radical Reformation, 14), edited by Emmy Barth Maendel and Jonathan Seiling. Plough Publishing (ISBN: 9781636080901) 2024. Biography, letters by Hutter, chronicles of Hutterites, testimony, and Hutterite and government letters. Review

A Prophet in the Darkness, Wesley Vander Lugt, editor. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514011058) 2024. An exploration of the work of Georges Roualt and his identification of human suffering with Christ’s sufferings. Review

Third Girl (Hercule Poirot, 40), Agatha Christie. HarperCollins (ISBN: 9780062073761) 2010 (first published in 1966). A young girl disturbs Poirot’s breakfast claiming she may have murdered someone, then leaves, telling Poirot “You’re too old.” Review

The Last Romantic (Hansen Lectureship Series), Jeffrey W. Barbeau with contributions from Sarah Borden, Matthew Lundin, and Keith L. Johnson. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514010518) 2025. The influence of Romanticism on C.S. Lewis in terms of imagination, subjectivity, memory and identity, and the sacraments. Review

Abundance, Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson. Avid Reader Press (ISBN: 9781668023488) 2025. A vision of an American future where we invent and build what’s needed and for government that enables rather than hobbles growth. Review

Reading the Margins, Michael J. Gilmour. Fortress Press (ISBN: 9781506469355) 2024. How reading literature may enhance empathy for those on the margins, illuminating the advocacy of scripture for them. Review

The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry, Gabrielle Zevin. Algonquin Books (ISBN: 9781616204518) 2014. A widowed bookseller’s life changes when a rare book disappears and an orphaned child is left in his care. Review

Knock at the Sky. Liz Charlotte Grant, foreword by Sarah Bessey. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802883759) 2025. After losing faith in biblical inerrancy, the author returns to Genesis with all her questions, seeking God in the story. Review

Gutta Percha Willie, George MacDonald. Rosetta Books (ASIN: B07KX64ZB3) 2018 (first published in 1873). The story of a young boy who gives himself to discover his own work within God’s work and how he finds his vocation. Review

Makers by Nature, Bruce Herman. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514009802) 2025. Letters to students, artists, and friends on calling, making, and process, with reproduced works by the author. Review

If the Ocean Has a Soul, Rachel G. Jordan. Tyndale Refresh (ISBN: 9798400505843) 2025. Meshes marine biology and biblical insights, exploring the integration of science and faith. Review

Reviews of Children’s Books

Jesus Loves the Little Children, All the Children of the World, Tara Hackney. IVP Kids (ISBN: 9781514010495) 2025. A board book with a fresh version of this song and images representing all the children of the world. Review

Kaylee Prays for the Children of the World, Helen Lee, illustrated by Shin Maeng. IVP Kid (ISBN: 9781514009161) 2025. Kaylee and her grandfather learn of needy children in the news and struggle for words to pray. Review

Not Finished Yet, Sharon Garlough Brown, illustrated by Jessica Linn Evans. IVP Kids (ISBN: 9781514007952) 2024. While “painting prayers” with Gran, Wren discovers she can honestly share all her feelings with God. Review

Zion Learns to See, Terence Lester and Zion Lester, illustrated by Subi Bosa. IVP Kids (ISBN: 781514006696) 2024. Zion goes to work with her father at the community center and learns how those experiencing homelessness matter to God. Review

Birth of the Chosen One, Terry Wildman, illustrated by Hannah and Holly Buchanan. IVP Kids (ISBN: 9781514007020) 2024. An account of the birth of Jesus based on the First Nations Version reflecting Native oral storytelling. Review

Penny Preaches, Amy Dixon and Rob Dixon, illustrated by Jennifer Davison. IVP Kids (ISBN: 9781514008584) 2024. A young girl loves the big ideas she hears in Sunday sermons, aspires to preach, but friends discourage her. Review

Best Book of the Month

Makers by Nature is a combination of a theology of artistic practice and the wisdom of a master artist on various challenges of artistic work. All of it is presented in the form of a series of warm letters to former students and friends. Each “chapter” is introduced with some of the artist’s work in full color reproductions. This book was a feast for my eyes and heart!

Quote of the Month

I deeply appreciated A Prophet in the Darkness on the work of Georges Roualt. Roualt’s deep empathy with human suffering intersected with his faith. This quote gives a flavor of that:

“Paul Klee says ‘Art does not reproduce the visible; rather it makes visible.’ This is what the art of Georges Roualt (1871-1958) has done; his images have penetrated deeply into the human dilemma to find meaning and offer hope, helping us to see light in the darkness, making visible the invisible.”

What I’m Reading

I’m just coming to the end of Richard Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. Bauckham marshals extensive material to demonstrate that our four canonical gospels are based on eyewitness testimony rather than communal remembrances of the ministry of Jesus. Love’s Immensity by poet Scott Cairns translates the works of mystics throughout church history, a journey into loving contemplation of God. Skills for Safeguarding explores abuse within the church and other Christian contexts and the best practices to safeguard against abuse and to deal with it in a way that cares for survivors and properly deals with perpetrators. Every church and ministry needs to read and implement the practices in this book!

Justin Evans offers an entertaining and informative book on data and how the data revolution impacts us all in The Little Book of Data. It’s chilling how much data we give up about ourselves everyday, often without being aware of it. Finally, there never seems an end of Tolkien books! The Fall of Numenor covers the second age of Middle Earth, which preceded The Lord of the Rings.

If you’ve read this far, thanks! I hope your summer reading bears a rich harvest and hope these reviews help!

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.

Introduction

This edition of The Month in Reviews for April 2025 includes 21 reviews–about as many as I can cram into a month. There were some long books including the biography of J. Robert Oppenheimer and a book on the next Jesus Quest. There were some short books as well including a book on Easter, one on reading by C.S. Lewis and Robin Wall Kimmerer’s newest. All were candidates for my best of the month. Between the long and the short were my usual collection of mysteries, novels, and books on theology. Some standouts included Mark Noll’s classic Turning Points, a recent book on recovering from purity culture, and a history of the bookstore in America. All in all, it’s a long list, so let’s get to it!

The Reviews

Habits of Hope, Todd C. Ream, Jerry Pattengale, and Christopher J. Devers, editors, foreword by Amos Yong. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514010709) 2024. Essays by educators on six key practices and how they may cultivate hope among faculty and students. Review

Religious Freedom in a Secular Age, Michael F. Bird, afterword Bruce Riley Ashford. Zondervan Reflective (ISBN: 9780310538882) 2022. Distinguishes types of secularism, opposes dismantling religious freedom, and proposes a new apologetic. Review

The Serviceberry, Robin Wall Kimmerer, illustrations by John Burgoyne. Scribner (ISBN: 9781668072240) 2024. A day of picking serviceberries leads to an extended reflection on natural abundance, reciprocity, and gratitude. Review

Easter (Fullness of Time Series), Wesley Hill. IVP Formatio (ISBN: 9781514000366) 2025. Explores the history and significance of Easter, not only as a day but as a season of celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. Review

Finding God Along the Way, Christine Marie Eberle. Paraclete Press (ISBN: 9781640609891) 2025. An account of hiking with a group whose average age was 67 on the 300 mile Ignatian Camino. Review

Vermilion Drift (Cork O’Connor, 10) William Kent Krueger. Atria Books (ISBN:  9781439153871) 2011. The discovery of six bodies in an underground iron mine leads to facing uncomfortable truths about Cork’s father. Review

John of History, Baptist of Faith, James F. McGrath. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802883995) 2024. A historical-critical study of New Testament and Mandaean sources, developing a historical portrait of John. Review

Citizenship Without Illusions, David T. Koyzis. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514008621) 2024. How Christians may engage politically without giving idolatrous devotion to parties or ideologies. Review

How to Get Along with Anyone, John Eliot and Jim Guinn. Simon & Schuster (ISBN: 9781668033074) 2025. An approach to conflict resolution based on the five ways people respond to conflict. Review

Tending Tomorrow, Leah Reesor-Keller. Herald Press (ISBN: 9781513813356) 2024. Facing an uncertain ecological future by drawing on one’s faith and learning from creation, to re-vision how we may live. Review

Bring Back Your People, Aaron Scott. Broadleaf Books (ISBN: 9781506494555) 2025. A blunt discussion of how to reach out to those who have embraced Christian nationalism. Review

American Prometheus, Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin. Vintage Books (ISBN:  9780375726262) 2006. A biography of J. Robert Oppenheimer, focused on his leadership of the atomic bomb program and security clearance trial. Review

Turning Points: Decisive Moments in the History of Christianity. Mark A. Noll. Baker Academic (ISBN: 9781540964885) 2022 (the link and publication info is for the 4th edition of the book. My review and the cover image are of the 1997 first edition). Twelve decisive moments in Christian history along with twentieth century events that may be turning points. Review

Martyr!, Kaveh Akbar. Vintage Books (ISBN: 9780593685778) 2024. A young immigrant poet in recovery struggles to find meaning in a life after his mother’s plane was shot down and his father died. Review

Three Act Tragedy (Hercule Poirot, 11), Agatha Christie. William Morrow (9780063376045) 2006, (first published 1934). Two deaths after a drink, with most of the same guests present on both occasions, sets Poirot to investigating murder. Review

Recovering from Purity Culture, Camden Morgante. Baker Books (ISBN: 9781540904263) 2024. Exposes the myths and harms of purity culture and how to reclaim both healthy sexuality and faith. Review

The Reading Life, C. S. Lewis. Harper One (ISBN: 9780062849977) 2019. Essays and brief readings from his books, essay collections, and letters on the joys of reading. Review

The Bookshop, Evan Friss. Viking (ISBN: 9780593299920) 2024. A history of bookstores in America through the lens of fourteen bookstores or bookselling venues. Review

The Next Quest for the Historical Jesus, edited by James Crossley and Chris Keith. Wm. B. Eerdmans Co. (ISBN: 9780802882707) 2024. A prospectus for a new round of “historical Jesus” research: both foundations and research topics. Review

The Open House (Sir John Appleby, 26) Michael Innes. Penguin (ISBN: 0140036636) 1972 (out of print, link is to used copies available at ABE Books). When his car breaks down, Sir John Appleby walks up a drive. The mansion at the end is suddenly lit with its front door open. Review

John Henry Newman: A Life Sacrificed, Ida Friederike Görres. Ignatius Press (ISBN: 9781621646983) 2024. A study of Newman focused on the cost of his conversion to Catholicism and how it formed his character. Review

Best Book of the Month

Robin Wall Kimmerer’s The Serviceberry is a wonderfully concise lesson in ecology, the abundance our earth often produces, and the virtues of reciprocity and gratitude that calls forth. The illustrations and the typography makes this book a feast to both eyes and heart.

Quote of the Month

On Reading is a delightful collection of the essays, and shorter pieces C.S. Lewis wrote on reading. He makes this observation about why we read and why stories enthrall us:

“We want to see with other eyes, to imagine with other imaginations, to feel with other hearts, as well as with our own.” 

What I’m Reading

The Lawless Roads is the first non-fiction work of Graham Greene’s that I’ve read. It his his account of traveling through Mexico to chronicle Catholic persecution under the Calles regime. I find myself wondering how he will survive at times. Markus Barth is a biography of the son of Karl Barth, a first-rate biblical scholar overshadowed by his more illustrious father. I’ve enjoyed learning of his passionate anti-semitism as well as his distinctive ideas on baptism and eucharist. I’ve finally gotten around to reading Until the Last One’s Found by Curt Parton, an argument for evangelical universal reconciliation and restoration. It is well-argued, although I have not so far been persuaded.

Bessel van der Kolk’s The Body Keeps the Score is the sourcebook for many advocating trauma-informed therapy for those suffering from wartime and abusive PTSD. I’ve appreciated his stance as a learner from his patients and care for them. I’m also just starting out on a biography and collection of the writings of Jakob Hutter, after whom the Hutterites are named. He is one of our Anabaptist forebears and I’m eager to learn more of that history, often on the margins of most church history accounts.

I find reading more challenging to get during in this time of the year as I get my yard in shape, and tend our flower and vegetable beds. But I get to practice some of what Robin Wall Kimmerer writes of!

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.

Introduction

It’s funny how you end up reading related books, even when you didn’t plan it that way. In this case. several of the books I reviewed this month concerned the early church’s discussions of the Trinity and the Incarnation. I reviewed a couple of books from university presses, one on free will and one on inflation. I read a wonderful early work by Wallace Stegner and Nobel prize winner Han Kang’s latest novel. There are books in this list on communication and leadership. And of course, there are several mysteries, including the inaugural volume of the Thursday Murder Club and another Cork O’Connor mystery. I loved a new compilation of the works of Stanley Hauerwas and a classic by Simone Weil. You’ll find all these and more in The Month in Reviews: March 2025.

The Reviews

The Trials of Jesus, Paul Barnett. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802884336) 2024. The historical and geopolitical context, the principle figures involved, and the succession of trials Jesus undergoes. Review

Yellowface, R. F. Kuang. William Morrow (ISBN: 9780063250833) 2023. What happens when a famous author dies immediately after sharing an unpublished draft of her latest work with her writer friend. Review

Crowned with Glory and Honor (Studies in Historical and Systematic Theology), Michael A. Wilkinson. Lexham Academic (ISBN: 9781683597308) 2024. Argues for a Christian anthropology based on Chalcedon’s understanding of Christ’s person-nature constitution. Review

Heaven’;s Keep, (Cork O’Connor, 9), William Kent Krueger. Atria Books (ISBN: 9781416556770) 2010. The charter plane Jo is in in goes down in a snowstorm in Wyoming and is not found. Subsequent evidence offers hope. Review

Triune Relationality (New Explorations in Theology), Sherene Nicholas Khouri, foreword by Gary R. Habermas. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514008843) 2024. Argues that relationality is among the perfections of God that only a Triune God meets. Review

Leading Well in Times of Disruption, Joseph W. Handley, Jr., Gideon Para-Mallam, and Asia Williamson, editors. Langham Global Library (ISBN: 9781839739859) 2024. Amid global disruptions, focuses on the qualities needed in those who lead the church’s global mission. Review

Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson, Emily Dickinson, edited by Mabel Loomis Todd and Thomas Wentworth Higginson. Gramercy Books (ISBN: 0517362422) 1982 (originally published 1890, 1891, 1896). A republication of Dickinson’s poems as first published in three series shortly after her death. Review

Shock Values, Carola Binder. University of Chicago Press (ISBN: 9780226833095) 2024 An economic history of the United States, considering the various means used to stabilize prices and control inflation. Review

The Thursday Murder Club (Thursday Murder Club, 1), Richard Osman. Penguin Books (ISBN: 9781984880987) 2021. Four seniors meet on Thursdays to solve cold cases until a present day murder leads to something more. Review

Remembering Laughter. Wallace Stegner, afterword by Mary Stegner. Penguin Books (ISBN: 9780140252408) 1996, (first published 1937). An early Wallace Stegner novella. What happens when Margaret Stuart’s sister comes to live with her and her husband. Review

Communicating for Life, Quentin J. Schultze, foreword by Martin E. Marty. Integratio Press (ISBN: 9781959685098) 2024. An introductory text in communication grounded in a theology of communication and a vision of faithful stewardship. Review

Scripture in Doctrinal Dispute (Doctrine and Scripture in Early Christianity, Volume 2), Frances M. Young. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802882998) 2024. A study of how scripture was used in the doctrinal controversies concerning the Trinity and Christology. Review

Beren and Lúthien, J.R.R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, with illustrations by Allen Lee. HarperCollins (ISBN: 9781328915337) 2018. An edited collection of different versions and extracts of one of the most celebrated love stories of Middle-earth. Review

Free Agents, Kevin J. Mitchell. Princeton University Press (ISBN: 9780691226231) 2023. An argument based on the evidence of the development of nervous systems, for the evolution of individual agency–free will. Review

Light Unapproachable, Ronni Kurtz. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514007105) 2024. An explanation of the doctrine of divine incomprehensibility as well as God’s gracious accommodation. Review

Waiting for God, Simone Weil, Translated by Emma Craufurd with Introduction by Leslie A. Fiedler. Harper & Row Perennial Library (ISBN: 0060902957) 1973 (Originally published in 1951, link and cover photo are to current edition in print). Weil’s correspondence with her mentor and four essays on her religious thought focused around loving and attending to God. Review

Jesus Changes Everything (Plough Spiritual Guides), Stanley Hauerwas, edited by Charles E. Moore with an Introduction by Tish Harrison Warren. Plough Publishing House (ISBN: 9781636081571) 2025. The radical implications of Jesus’ call to follow him for every area of life from personal to societal. Review

The Hollow (Poirot, 26), Agatha Christie. William Morrow (ISBN: 9780062073853) 2011 (first published in 1946). When Poirot sees Dr. John Christow lying dead poolside with Christow’s wife holding the gun, the murderer seems obvious. Review

Paul the Storyteller: A Narratological Approach, Christoph Heilig. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802878953) 2024. A narratological approach showing that Paul combines implicit and explicit narratives, making him a gifted storyteller. Review

We Do Not Part, Han Kang, translated by E. Yaewon and Paige Aniyah Morris. Hogarth (ISBN: 9780593595459) 2025. Kyungha makes a harrowing journey through a blizzard to save a friend’s bird, confronting the reality behind her nightmares. Review

Best Book of the Month

I chose Light Unapproachable by Ronni Kurtz. I thought this an example of the best of theological writing. Kurtz offers a highly comprehensible account of divine incomprehensibility, writing with brevity, clear organization, and at a level understandable by the lay person.

Quote of the Month

One of the books I really liked this month was Stanley Hauerwas’ Jesus Changes Everything, part of the Plough Spiritual Guides series. These are edited compilations. In this case I thought it read seamlessly. I loved this statement by Hauerwas on the church:

“Put starkly, the first task of the church when it comes to social ethics is to be the church. Such a claim may well sound self-serving or irrelevant until we remember that what makes the church the church is its faithful manifestation of the peaceable kingdom in the world. As such, the church does not have a social ethic; the church is a social ethic.”

What I’m Reading

A few months ago, I read James F. McGrath’s Christmaker, on the life of John the Baptist. I liked it so much that I’ve followed it up with his more in-depth treatment, John of History, Baptist of Faith. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed a memoir by a former campus minister on the Ignatian Camino, a lesser known pilgrimage than the Camino de Santiago. It’s titled Finding God along the Way. Tending Tomorrow is an Anabaptist reflection on seeking the flourishing of both people and the planet. As part of an Anabaptist community, I find this of great interest.

I decided to tackle American Prometheus on the life of Robert Oppenheimer, who led the effort to make the atom bomb. From the trailers, the movie portrays him as brilliant and troubled. That comes through in the book as well. Finally, I’m reading another Cork O’Connor, in which Cork seems to be in the process of uncovering truths about his long-deceased father.

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.

Introduction

When I look back at February, I marvel at the wonderful selection of books I reviewed. From Amy Peeler’s outstanding commentary on Hebrews to Haruki Murakami’s latest novel. Wonderful essays on American beginnings by Jill Lepore to an exploration of why our culture is unfriendly to families and child-bearing. I finished the Margery Allingham-written Albert Campion stories. Faithful Politics is an especially timely exploration of the ways Christians have engaged politics.

I finished the months with accounts of two “luminous” people, one an autobiography of Jacques Lusseyran and the other a biography of Congressman John Lewis. Along the way, you will find some marvelous theological writing on the virgin birth, the beatific vision, safety, and the use of ekphrastic or vivid writing in the New Testament. I include reviews on a book on Lenten practice, a compilation of writings on hope and trust, and a memoir of the “Log College” that trained many of the eighteenth century American revivalists. You’ll find all this and more in The Month in Reviews for February 2025.

The Reviews

To Gaze Upon God, Samuel G. Parkison. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514007662) 2024. An exploration of the importance of the beatific vision in scripture and church history and its contemporary significance. Review

Lieberman’s Choice (Abe Lieberman Number 2), Stuart M. Kaminsky. Open Road Media (ASIN: B00AYRI5HY) 2013 (first published 1993). A cop kills his wife and the cop who is sleeping with her, and threatens to blow up a city block unless one demand is met. Review

Family Unfriendly, Timothy P. Carney. Harper Collins (ISBN: 9780063236462) 2024. We have a culture that devalues children and makes raising them more difficult, contributing to declining birthrates. Review

Hebrews (Commentaries for Christian Formation), Amy Peeler. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802877383) 2024. A commentary for Christian formation focused on the greatness of Christ, Christian faithfulness, and Christian community. Review

The Challenge of Acts, N.T, Wright. Zondervan Academic (ISBN: 9780310167990) 2024. An overview of the book of Acts in four chapter sections, developing the major themes of the book. Review

Towards Zero, (Superintendent Battle Number 5), Agatha Christie. William Morrow (ISBN: 9780062073549) 2010 (first published in 1944). A house party at Lady Tressilian’s is decidedly awkward when her ward invites both his former and current wives. Review

Opening the Parables, M. D. Hayden. Wipf & Stock (ISBN: 9798385200306) 2024. A study of the parables asserting that the message of all the parables is that compassionate love is all that matters. Review

The City and Its Uncertain Walls, Haruki Murakami (Translated by Philip Gabriel). Alfred A. Knopf (ISBN: 9780593801970) 2024. A young couple falls in love until she disappears to a mysterious city of people without shadows. Review

Conceived by the Holy Spirit, Rhyne R. Putnam. B&H Academic (ISBN: 9781087766317) 2024. A study of the nativity narratives offering a defense of the virgin birth and considering its significance. Review

The Pursuit of Safety (Studies in Christian Doctrine and Scripture), Jeremy Lundgren. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514008010) 2024. A theology of safety as creational good, tempered by what living by faith means in a world never free of risk. Review

Hunger for Righteousness, Phoebe Faraq Mikhail. Paraclete Press (ISBN: 9781640609341) 2025. Drawing upon Coptic and other church tradition, explores how Lent may be personally and communally transforming. Review

The Story of America, Jill Lepore. Princeton University Press (ISBN: 9780691153995) 2012. Essays on American origins from Jamestown and the Constitution to the IOU and Webster’s dictionary. Review

The Log College, Archibald Alexander. Banner of Truth Trust. Biographical sketches of William Tennant and his students, with accounts of the revivals under their ministries. Review

Vivid Rhetoric and Visual Persuasion, Meghan Henning and Nils Neumann, editors. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802883575) 2024. Fourteen scholars on vivid, ekphrastic language in early Christian literature, used to engage and persuade. Review

Anchor of My Soul, compiled by the editors at Paraclete Press. Paraclete Press (ISBN: 9781640609815) 2025. A compilation of readings, quotes, poetry and works of art on the theme of trust and hope. Review

Cargo of Eagles (Albert Campion, 19), Margery Allingham. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781504087292), 2023 (first published in 1968). Poison pen letters, a released smuggler, a murder, a motorcycle gang and a treasure in Allingham’s last Campion. Review

Faithful Politics, Miranda Zapor Cruz. IVP Academic/Missio Alliance (ISBN: 9781514007495) 2024. Ten ways of approaching the relationship between pursuing God’s kingdom and engaging in politics. Review

And There Was Light: Autobiography of Jacques Lusseyran, Jacques Lusseyran, translated by Elizabeth R. Cameron. New World Library (ISBN: 9781608682690) 2014 (first published in 1963). A memoir of a blind hero of the French resistance and Buchenwald survivor. Review

John Lewis: A Life, David Greenberg. Simon & Schuster (ISBN: 9781982142995) 2024. A biography tracing the work of John Lewis from non-violent civil rights activism to Congress. Review

Best Book of the Month

As I said. so many good ones to choose from. But I have to give the nod to David Greenberg’s John Lewis: A Life. Specifically, Greenberg captures Lewis’s commitment to loving enemies through non-violent protest, his integrity, and resilient determination.

Quote of the Month

To Gaze Upon God by Samuel G. Parkison is a wonderful study of the beatific vision, the experience of gazing upon Christ or God in our glorified state. For instance, I appreciated the combination of precise theological writing and the glimpse of the vision of which he writes in this passage:

“Therefore, it seems best to conceptualize the beatific vision as a vision of the divine essence in the person and work of Christ, the incarnate Son, by the illuminating and gracious operating principle of the Spirit as the eternal divine subsistence of the Father and Son’s love. The beatific vision, in other words, is made possible by the inseparable operations of the Trinity, and is therefore a truly trinitarian vision. We shall behold the glory of God in his essence, and we shall behold this glory in the face of Jesus Christ by the unveiling and illumining ministry of the Holy Spirit” (p. 156)

What I’m Reading

As you know, I’ve been reading more poetry. In particular, The Collected Poems of Emily is an introduction to much of her work. Then at the other end of the spectrum, Carola Binder’s Shock Policy is a history of American monetary policy, focusing on avoiding either extremes of inflation or deflation. However, disruptions are unavoidable and Leading Through Times of Disruption is a collection of papers about leading in Christian mission through times of change. In contrast with the practical nature of these papers, Triune Relationality explore the history of the conversation between Christians and Muslims regarding the Trinity and explores the idea of the relations within the Trinity as a distinctive “perfection” of God unaccounted for in Islam. Finally, on the lighter side, listening to my daughter-in-law talk about Richard Osman’s Thursday Murder Club books has encouraged me to pick up the first in the series by the same name and I’m loving it!

In conclusion, this is the eleventh anniversary of my Month in Reviews feature, all of which may be accessed via The Month in Reviews, allowing you to see just about everything reviewed on this blog. Of course, the search box works well if you want to find a review of a particular book!

Introduction

We’re a month into the new year, and already, I’ve read some great books. I finished the last of The Chronicles of Brother Cadfael (I wish this one could go on!). William Kent Krueger’s Cork O’Connor series just gets better. I delighted in Amy Tan’s Backyard Bird Chronicles. I savored the writing and story-telling art of Ann Patchett’s Tom Lake and the very different style and plotting of Gabrielle Levin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow. Deep Reading included reading practices that I incorporated into my Reading Challenge for this year. Nadya Williams’ Mothers Children, and the Body Politic makes the contention that as a culture we de-value motherhood and children. Ed Uszynski, a fellow Buckeye, does a great job of explanation and critique in Untangling Critical Race Theory and Michael R. Licona offers what I think a helpful and clear discussion of the discrepancies in the gospel narratives in Jesus, Contradicted. And I haven’t even mentioned all the good books in the reviews (21 of them!).

The Reviews

Unlikely General: “Mad” Anthony Wayne and the Battle for America, Mary Stockwell. Yale University Press (ISBN: 9780300251876) 2018. A biography of “Mad” Anthony Wayne centered on his successful campaign to defeat Native tribes in the Northwest Territory. Review

The Concept of Woman, Sister Prudence Allen, RSM, edited by Sister Mary Cora Uryase, RSM, foreword by John C. Cavadini. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802883889) 2024. Surveys philosophers and theologians from ancient Greece to today tracing the concept of woman. Review

Plundered: The Tangled Roots of Racial and Environmental Injustice, David W. Swanson. InterVarsity Press (ISBN: 9781514007747) 2024. The tangled roots of racial and environmental injustice. Traces exploitation and oppression of people and land to a common root of greed. Review

The Backyard Bird Chronicles, Amy Tan (text and illustrations). Alfred A. Knopf (ISBN: 9780593536131) 2024. Four years of journals on the birds visiting Amy Tan’s backyard, with sketches and detailed drawings. Review

Brother Cadfael’s Penance (Chronicles of Brother Cadfael Number 20), Ellis Peter. Open Road Media (ASIN: B00LUZNZB0) 2014 (first published in 1994). Olivier, Cadfael’s son from his crusading days, is held hostage without ransom. Cadfael forsakes his vows to save him. Review

Deep Reading, Rachel B. Griffis, Julie Ooms, and Rachel M. De Smith Roberts. Baker Academic (ISBN: 9781540966957) 2024. Practices to grow in attentive reading that subverts distraction, hostility, and consumerism. Review

The Love Habit, Rainie Howard. Broadleaf Books (ISBN: 9781506496740) 2024. Learning to manage emotions, expectations, and relationships through daily habits enabling becoming the love one desires. Review

Tom Lake, Ann Patchett. HarperCollins (ISBN: 9780063327528) 2023. Lara, while cherry-picking with her daughters, recounts her love affair with actor Peter Duke, and how she met the girls’ father. Review

Mothers, Children, and the Body Politic, Nadya Williams. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514009123) 2024. Parallels the Western disdain for mothers and children with ancient Rome, and what early Christians can teach us. Review

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, Gabrielle Zevin. Vintage Books (ISBN: 9780593466490) 2022. Childhood friends, Sam and Sadie collaborate as game developers, in a different kind of love story. Review

The Gospel of Jesus Green, Neil J. Whitehouse. Wipf & Stock (ISBN: 9798385200245) 2024. Weaving scripture, theology, systems thinking, and science, concludes that Jesus is Green and preached a home for all. Review

Seeking the City, Chad Brand and Tom Pratt. Kregel Academic (ISBN: 9780825443046) 2013. A biblical, historical, and political economic argument defending responsible free-market capitalism. Review

Cheaper, Faster, Better. Tom Steyer. Spiegel & Grau (ISBN: 9781954118645) 2024. A climate activist and investor argues we can win the climate war through clean tech and free market capitalism. Review

The Mind Readers (Albert Campion Number 18), Margery Allingham. Open Road Media (ASIN: B08CRRYGK7), 2020 (First published in 1965). When Amanda’s nephews, playing with telepathic devices, are nearly kidnapped, Campion gets involved in a deadly quest. Review

Defiant Hope, Active Love, Jeffrey F. Keuss, editor. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (ISBN: 9780802883919) 2024. What young adults seek in places of work, faith, and community and how churches may respond hospitably. Review

Between Two Sounds, Joonas Sildre (text and illustrations) Adam Cullen (translation). Plough Publishing House (ISBN: 9781636081342) 2024. A graphical biography of Arvo Pärt tracing his faith, musical journey and clash with Soviet artistic censorship. Review

Untangling Critical Race Theory, Ed Uszynski. InterVarsity Press (ISBN: 9781514004814) 2024. By explaining the central assertions of critical race theory, offers constructive and critical assessment. Review

An Essay on Christian Philosophy, Jacques Maritain. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781504081245) 2022 (first published in 1955). Explores what is distinctive about Christian philosophy with notes on apologetics and moral philosophy. Review

Red Knife (Cork O’Connor Number 8), William Kent Krueger. Atria Books (ISBN: 9781416556749), 2008. Cork O’Connor is asked to help end a series of apparent revenge killings threatening a war between the Ojibwe and Tamarack County. Review

Jesus, Contradicted, Michael R. Licona. Zondervan Academic (ISBN: 9780310159599) 2024. Addresses the discrepancies in gospel accounts drawing upon the conventions of ancient biography. Review

A Rare Benedictine, Ellis Peters. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781497671676), 2014 (first published in 1988). Three short stories set prior to the Chronicles, explaining how Cadfael became a monk and his early adventures. Review

Best Book of the Month

There were so many good choices this month! Among these, Joonas Sildre’s Between Two Sounds stands out. This may be the first time I’ve picked a graphic work as a “Best Book.” I loved the portrayal he offers of Arvo Pärt’s artistic journey. The drawing and black and white palette capture something of Pärt’s compositional style. And the publisher’s website includes tracks of several of the most significant works mentioned in the account.

Quote of the Month

David Swanson is a pastor committed to a ministry of racial reconciliation on the south side of Chicago. In the course of his ministry, he has observed the ways racial and environmental injustices are entangled, which he explores in Plundered. Here he describes the patient work that is involved in unraveling these injustices:

“Caretaking in the ruins of industrialized extraction and exploitation is a generational commitment. Who can say how long it will take for a racialized people centered on Jesus and pursuing repair together to find that creation has re-exerted its formational power over them? How long will it take for a people who’ve been severed from the earth to learn to walk humbly and gently among their creaturely neighbors? There is no program for this, no curriculum or metrics. There is only the good and slow work of learning together how to exist as a blessing and a gift.”

What I’m Reading

I’m a bit more than half way through Haruki Murakami’s The City and It’s Uncertain Walls. It is something of a puzzle palace of a work but his narrative style, and the surprising turns he takes have kept me engaged. Conceived by the Holy Spirit is a rich study of the virgin birth of Christ and why that doctrine matters. It makes a great read for Advent and a wonderful resource for any pastor preaching the birth narratives of Jesus. The Pursuit of Safety considers the “safetyism” of our culture and how we might think biblically about safety and risk. Hunger for Righteousness is series of Lenten meditations tied to the fast of Lent, grounded in the Coptic Orthodox tradition–a different world for me. I’m grateful for these chances to learn from Christians outside my “sphere.” Lastly, I’ve just picked up Jill Lepore’s The Story of America, which explores the different ways we tell our national story, seen through the lens of particular figures and events.

It’s Black History Month and I hope to get to David Greenberg’s John Lewis. I deeply admire Lewis as a Black civil right’s leader and politician who sought to live out his faith and live with hope through all the adversity he faced. I’d love to hear if there are works of Black History that have inspired you.

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.

Introduction

Happy New Year to you all! It was a record year at Bob on Books. Over the course of the year I posted 237 reviews, including the 20 that are listed below for December. I retired in August and that has afforded some additional reading time.

This month included some wonderful reads. Taking the last first, Katherine Rundell’s Impossible Creatures is a wonderful new entry in the world of fantasy literature by a john Donne scholar, no less. Why I Am Roman Catholic by Matthew Levering is a wonderful testimony to his faith and reminded me of an amazing conversation we had a number of years ago. I loved Plough’s graphic biography of the life of Jakob Hutter, one of my Anabaptist forebears. Quentin Schultze You’ll Shoot Your Eye Out is a delightful reflection on The Christmas Story, and his relationship with screenwriter Jean Shepherd. Matthew Desmond’s Poverty, By America is a hard-hitting critique of the economic structures that keep people in poverty in the U.S. Meet Me At the Lighthouse is a delightful poetry collection by Dana Gioia.

Finally, I read Georges Simenon’s Maigret and the Wine Merchant at the time of the murder of the CEO of a major healthcare company. Maigret’s murder victim was despicable, and yet it was his conviction that this also was a human being that drove him to seek the killer. It seems to me right to ask whether corporate algorithms that deny needed, life-giving care amount to corporate murder. But Maigret teaches me that nothing justifies murder, nor the valorizing of the murderer.

The Reviews

One, Two, Buckle my Shoe (Hercule Poirot Number 23), Agatha Christie. William Morrow Paperbacks (ISBN: 9780062073778) 2011 (originally published 1940). Poirot seeks the murderer of his dentist, found dead not two hours after Poirot visited him. Review

Orbital, Samantha Harvey. Grove Press (ISBN: 9780802163622) 2024. A day aboard the International Space Station as six people recount their work, weightlessness, and the wonder of earth below. Review

Meet Me at the Lighthouse: Poems, Dana Gioia. Graywolf Press (ISBN: 9781644452158) 2023. A collection of poems reflecting memories of people from several generations as well as the places of Gioia’s life. Review

The Church in Dark Times, Mike Cosper. Brazos Press (ISBN: 9781587435737) 2024. Understanding and resisting the evil that seduced the evangelical movement, drawing on the work of Hannah Arendt. Review

The New Anabaptists, Stuart Murray. Herald Press (ISBN: 9781513812984) 2024. An effort to describe the practices emerging Anabaptist communities embody with three case studies as examples. Review

Lieberman’s Day, Stuart M. Kaminsky. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781480400207) 2013 (first published in 1994). Abe’s nephew is killed and his wife shot in a mugging while a murderer stalks the abused ex-wife Hanrahan is sheltering. Review

Poverty, By America. Matthew Desmond. Crown (ISBN:9780593239933) 2024. An argument that poverty in America is the result of choices made knowingly or not by affluent who benefit as a result. Review

You’ll Shoot Your Eye Out!, Quentin Schultze. Edenridge Press LLC (ISBN: 9781937532017) 2024. Life lessons from the movie “A Christmas Story” from a friend of storyteller and screenplay writer Jean Shepherd. Review

By Fire: The Jakob Hutter Story (Heroes of the Radical Reformation, Number 2), Jason Landsel, Richard Mommsen, Sankha Bannerjee. Plough Publishing House (ISBN: 9781636081434), 2025. A graphic biography of this early leader of the Anabaptist movement, marriage to Katharina, and martyrdom. Review

Answering the Psalmist’s Perplexity (New Studies in Biblical Theology Number 62), James Hely Hutchinson. IVP Academic/Apollos (ISBN: 9781514008867) 2024 (Apollos-IVP UK website). How would God fulfill the promise of an everlasting Davidic throne when the kingship had ended in exile? Review

The China Governess (Albert Campion Number 17), Margery Allingham. Open Road Media (ISBN: 9781504087247) 2023 (First published in 1962). An engaged orphan adopted by the Kinnits hires Campion to find his roots, stirring up a crime spree and a family secret. Review

Thunder Bay (Cork O’Connor Number 7), William Kent Krueger. Atria Books (ISBN: 9781439157824) 2009. A search for Henry Meloux’s son leads to an attempt on Meloux’s life and a love story from the 1920’s. Review

Eight Million Exiles, Christopher M. Hayes (foreword by Robert Chao Romero). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (ISBN: 9780802882394) 2024. How theologians, researchers, and local church leaders teamed up to support Columbia’s internally displaced persons. Review

Good Book: How White Evangelicals Save the Bible to Save Themselves, Jill Hicks-Eaton. Fortress Press (ISBN: 9781506485850) 2023. An argument that evangelicals try to explain away the misogyny and patriarchy that the author finds inherent in the biblical text. Review

Maigret and the Wine Merchant (Inspector Maigret Number 71), Georges Simenon (Translated by Ros Scwartz). Penguin (ISBN: 9780241304280), 2020 (First published in 1970). Maigret investigates the murder of a wealthy wine merchant, a womanizer and a ruthless employer. Review

Pillars of Creation, Richard Panek. Little, Brown and Company (ISBN: 9780316570695) 2024. The development of the James Webb Telescope and what scientists have discovered about the cosmos in its first years. Review

Why I Am Catholic, Matthew Levering. IVP Academic (ISBN: 9781514003145) 2024. A Catholic theologian explains why he is Christian and Catholic and what it means to embrace this tradition. Review

The Way of Christ in Culture, Benjamin T. Quinn & Dennis T. Greeson. B & H Academic (ISBN: 9781087775111) 2024. How those walking in the way of Jesus might live faithfully in all aspects of our cultural life. Review

A Simply Healthy Life, Caroline Fausel. Tyndale Refresh (ISBN: 9781496486905) 2025. A guide to health focusing on our bodies, our homes, our relationships, and our spirituality. Review

Impossible Creatures, Katherine Rundell, illustrated by Ashley Mackenzie. Alfred A. Knopf (ISBN: 9780593809860), 2024. Christopher helps Mal, a young girl who can fly, as she flees a murderer and seeks the reason why the magic is fading. Review

Book of the Month

Reading Richard Panek’s Pillars of Creation was a journey of wonder in learning what we’ve already learned in the first two years of the James Webb Telescope. Our universe, even our own solar system is more wonderful than I imagined. I posted this review on Christmas Day, so if you missed it, take a look. Great science writing!

Quote of the Month

My quote of the month also comes from space. Samantha Harvey’s is a science fiction work based on the observations and thoughts of seven people during a single day on the International Space Station, during which they orbit Earth sixteen times. Many of us have been awed by the aurora borealis in this years night skies. Harvey describes what it is like from space:

“The airglow is dusty greenish yellow. Beneath it in the gap between atmosphere and earth is a fuzz of neon which starts to stir. It ripples, spills, it’s smoke that pours across the face of the planet; the ice is green, the underside of the spacecraft an alien pall. The light gains edges and limbs, folds and opens. Strains against the inside of the atmosphere, writhes and flexes. Sends up plumes. Fluoresces and brightens. Detonates then in towers of light. Erupts clean through the atmosphere and puts up towers two hundred miles high. At the top of the towers is a swathe of magenta that obscures the stars…”

What I’m Reading

Since I preview the coming week’s reviews each Saturday in The Weekly Wrap, I won’t do that here. I’ve always enjoyed the writing of Ann Patchett and she has drawn me into the plotline of Tom Lake. I’m also reading Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, the thirty year story of Sadie and Sam, their fraught friendship and collaboration as game developers. It’s not a world I inhabit, but I’m 80 pages in and drawn into what seems an unusual and exceptionally written story.

Mothers, Children, and the Body Politic by Nadya Williams explores the devaluation of motherhood and child-bearing in our culture, and looks at the countercultural way early Christians valued women and children in a Roman culture that didn’t. Intrigued by the idea. I’d love to know how she deals with the fear of Handmaid’s Tale scenarios. Seeking the City is a big book surveying scripture and western history in defense of free-market capitalism. Finally, The Love Habit is a book on self-care that seems a current version of The Power of Positive Thinking. As you may guess, I’m not that keen on the book but want to give the writer a chance.

I so appreciate you reading with me this past year. Just from the books on my TBR pile, I think I have some great books to talk about in the coming weeks of the new year.

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.

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..