Posts about books that I’ve read.
This is a nicely written distillation of the Roman mindset, drawing on a variety of classical works by the author of The Greek Way (which I think is more famous). The “Roman way” versus the “Greek way” is pretty much what you would expect: the brilliant but sleazy Greeks versus the solid but unimaginative Romans. There’s … [Read more…]
This was an unusual book for me: It was not about apologetics or history or theology or prayer, but about how to evangelize directly to people. Something related that occurred to me as I read the book is that my own faith story is unusual in that it is almost entirely book, rather than person, … [Read more…]
I’ve noted elsewhere on this site other books by this author, all very good including this one. He’s conservative and traditional but not a believer in inerrancy. The book is a summary and critique of the “Third Search,” which includes mostly (but not exclusively) the Jesus Seminar. The author is always evenhanded and fair, but … [Read more…]
This is a very good book by a well-known and acclaimed Christian author today, the first of his I think I’ve read. The first part talks about how life and the universe itself is miraculous (the narrow range of conditions essential, etc.), and the second part is series of modern-day miracles attested to by people … [Read more…]
I read this book in one day, demonstrating that it is both well-written and short (133 small pages). And, while I like Pastor Keller and have read much by him, I have also have to say that this particular book was largely disappointing. Central to the book is a tendentious reading of the parable of … [Read more…]
This book is partly a historical survey of kinds of prayer and ways to pray, and partly a how-to guide on what the author, a Presbyterian pastor in Manhattan and one of the best current Christian apologists and writers, recommends. I would grade it a “B” on both. There’s lots of Luther and Calvin (and … [Read more…]
As the title advertises, this biography focuses on C.S. Lewis’s spiritual life; its method is largely to quote from Lewis’s own words and letters, and there is not a lot of authorial speculation. So the book is straightforward and reliable, but there’s not much to surprise anyone already familiar with Lewis’s life and works. Still … [Read more…]
The author is an MIT physicist and Torah expert, living in Jerusalem; he also wrote Genesis and the Big Bang (1990). The present book is blurbed by Michael J. Behe, author of Darwin’s Black Box, and was published by the Free Press in 2007. An important overarching point here is that Schroeder is a … [Read more…]
This is a really interesting book — two books really, as discussed below. I’ve observed elsewhere that, if you take the New Testament seriously or are thinking of doing so, you’d love to get biographical information of anyone who was both an important author and an important actor in that book, and James (along with … [Read more…]
See the mostly favorable post elsewhere on this site for Mr. Yancey’s The Jesus I Never Knew, which includes some general background information about him. This book is also worth reading — and some of it very much so (see chapter-by-chapter comments below). As with his other book, there is some political correctness here, but … [Read more…]