When People are Big and God is Small - Edward T. Welch

**
This book struck a cord with me, unfortunately not a very happy one. While I agree with most of the principles in this book, it failed to convince me that someone following it's dictums would be less judgmental and more grace-filled than those in my past who would have loved it's proclamations. And although I know he was directing the thrust of his argument against the self-obsessed instant gratification normative we find in our surrounding culture, taken to extreme and without love (as I have seen them in the past) , these teachings can be more alienating and divisive than helpful. I would love to see people embrace his teaching personally, I just hope they don't use it as an excuse to start "fixing" others as if they could discern the inner workings of another persons soul. I would love to see an edition with warnings about falling into the trap of judgmental meddling!

Planet Narnia: The Seven Heavens in the Imagination of C. S. Lewis - Michael Ward

****
Marvelous. This book is a devotional experience. Wards postulation that CS Lewis crafted the Narnia septet to show 7 aspects of God as the 7 planets from pre-copernican medieval mythology is in my humble estimation brilliant and enlightening. As an added bonus reading this tomb is a instant SAT vocab review. After finishing this book I'm a re-devoted Lewis fan and have been inspired to add more of the classic cannon to my reading list... we'll see how that unfolds. I could rave on and on... but if you have the stomach for 250 pages of dense literary analysis definitely attempt it, if not tuck away the title to "drop" the next time you feel out of your league at a party, anyone who has read it will have a new respect for you :)

Sharing Food, Christian Practices for Enjoyment - L. Shannon Jung

***

This book takes a close look at how we as a culture are "practicing eating". Definitely flavored by all the food industry buzz words, this book also delivers an interesting perspective on how to personally enjoy God's blessings and how to share with others, both in your local community and internationally. I came across this book while doing research for my communion devotional. The chapter on communion was interesting but focused more on the community eating than the work of Christ memorialized. Worth reading if you are interested in the the cultural impact of eating and analyzing the generally accepted sociological aspects of how our culture eats.

Passionate Marriage - David Schnarch, Ph.D.

***

Its cover testimonial proclaims its "pioneering" nature. The first of many secular perspectives. But much is to be learned if you can wade through some individualistic and other eastern philosophies. It is surprising how much christian truth is "hiding" behind the secular rationalism. I can't say that this book has as of yet impacted my sex life (see title word: "Passionate"). But it has given me a lot of food for thought in other areas of the interpersonal relationship we call marriage. Maybe that will translate over to the "passion" someday. The main thrust of the book (no pun intended) is the "differentiation" (basically being emotionally independent without God/god) and how that will result in your being able to be good, relational, intimate etc. While I agree that being interdependent, emotionally fused etc. can definitely lead to various "non-good" actions and decrease the likelihood of relational intimacy, I am yet to be convinced it is the one-stop elixir for passion's shortcoming (again no pun intended). While certain more "practical" chapters may eventually merit a re-read, large portions were personal (patient file) anecdotes and traditional psychobabble. Moral of the story: One book, even a 400+ pager, is not going to solve this problem anytime soon.

Amusing Ourselves to Death - Neil Postman

****

Very interesting commentary on the nature of the medium of Television. Written in 1985, Postman's prophetic voice rings true on so many notes. I only wish (this was also my lament after reading Postman's "Technopoly") that he was not around to put in his two cent's in the internet. I would be riveted. It is interesting that Postman's "beef" is not with the vacuous nature of most programing but rather on the presumption of some television programs to the status of a legitimate forum for serious discussion.  His argument (in my layman vernacular) is that Television is a format to entertain, not to logically dialogue in any meaningful, interactive, conclusive manner. 

China, Inc - Ted C. Fishman

***

Great read if you are interested in the global economic balance, which seems to be almost everyone these days. It gave me an inkling of how much I don't know about China and made me wish I had up to date info (this book was published in 2005 - which in our bullet train world seems like centuries ago). I originally hoped that his book would help me decide how seriously to consider a Chinese Language course commitment for our possible future children's academic program. It made me think instead that I should investigate all aspects of their (potential) academic careers ASAP. America is behind the times! 

for Women only- what you need to know about the inner lives of men - shaunti feldhahn

***
More aptly titled "what most women already know about men, but want to pretend they don't" - so they can live their lives the way they want to... okay I'm projecting a little of my own sin nature on the rest of the female gender. I really actually liked this book. I found it accurate but not revolutionary- in that I don't think I learned anything shockingly new about the "inner lives" of men. I wish I had read this however when I was 13 and hadn't an inkling of their inner workings. The book was however convicting as Shaunti was hardly timid with her advice on how we should respond to her "revelations". Yup I've got some more work to do in the "good wife" department.

Humility, True Greatness - C.J. Mahaney

****

Superb. In a world that magnifies self magnification this book has been a greatly needed reminder for me. It is full of helpful, practical suggestions on how to strive toward humility. More than a just composing a treatise on the glory of humility Mahaney strives to remind you of the value God places  on humility and motivate you far from the praising eyes of man. One section I found particularly "humbling" was a section of questions to ask yourself - and others too in the area of humbly seeking correction:

Do I confess my sin consistently?

Do I confess specific instances of sin and not just general categories or general references to sin? 

Do others find it easy to correct me?

Do others know the areas of temptation in my life at present?

Do they know the most pronounced patterns of sin in my life at present?