Book Reviews

The Zimzum of Love: A New Way of Understanding Marriage by Rob and Kristen Bell

July 16, 2026December 26, 2014 by Adam Shields

Summary: A decent (quick) book on the Christian understanding of marriage without a lot of Christian language.

I generally don’t like reviewing books that have a lot of controversy. So I have not reviewed many of Rob Bell’s books (but I liked Velvet Elvis and Sex God). I went to college with Rob and Kristen (they were a year in front of me) so I have paid attention to Rob’s ministry. (I didn’t really know Kristen, but Rob is one of those people that it is hard not to know who he was at college.)

I originally did not have any interest in picking up The Zimzum of Love. There are a ton of marriage books being jointly written by well known pastor couples recently. I tend to avoid book trends because they are often following the trend, not writing good books.

Books and Culture’s parody review of Zimzum of Love did not help my desire to read the book, although I don’t think that the parody was all that helpful and after reading the book I didn’t think it was all that accurate either. (Although it does have a few good points.)

Then I read Richard Beck’s review on his blog Experimental Theology (I am a regular reader). As you might expect, it is like Beck and Jason Hood (the Books and Culture reviewer) had read two very different books. But mostly it felt like Hood was taking issue with Rob as a persona than really dealing with the book as a book.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s “Letters and Papers from Prison”: A Biography by Martin Marty

December 30, 2024December 24, 2014 by Adam Shields

Summary: The history of how and why this Bonhoeffer’s Letters and Papers from Prison spread so widely and became so influential.

At this point I have read far more about Bonhoeffer than by Bonhoeffer. That is not to say I haven’t read Bonhoeffer, but to say I have read a lot about Bonhoeffer, especially over the past several years since writing on him seems to have exploded.

I read Letters and Papers from Prison in college soon after I first read Cost of Discipleship and somewhat before I read Love Letters from Cell 92.

It is actually the now out of print Love Letters from Cell 92 that really humanized Bonhoeffer for me and moved him from abstract theologian to real live human person. About the same time as I was reading Love Letters from Cell 92, I started University of Chicago Divinity School and had Martin Marty as a professor.

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (Movie and Audiobook Review)

July 27, 2026December 19, 2014 by All Old Users

To Kill a Mockingbird is a classic and well-beloved fiction novel by Harper Lee. The novel is from the perspective of a young girl, Scout, growing up in a small town in Alabama during the 1930s. Aside from experiencing some of the usual adventures of a small child during that time, Scout and her brother Jem must navigate life as their father, Atticus, defends a black man who has been falsely accused of raping a white woman. Seen in some way as a story within a story, the trial shows the true character of Atticus and how some bravery and standing up for one’s beliefs and dignity really does matter.

To Kill a Mockingbird is not a perfect novel but it is about as good as it can get. It is my impression that critics of the novel had to really search for problems with the novel. Apart from the social lessons to be learned from the novel, the true beauty of the novel is how wonderfully descriptive and visual Harper Lee makes it. I would credit this aspect in part to the fact that many of the characters and the events in the novel are autobiographical. It is a lot easier to be descriptive about people you know and events that you experienced. I am not sure whether I read the novel or saw the movie first, but, when reading the book this time, I would have sworn that some of the scenes from the book had made it into the movie that didn’t because they left such a strong visual impression when reading them. This might be like the chicken and the egg conundrum where the question is was the book so well-written that it was easy to visualize the scenes as if they were a part of the movie, or were the actors in the movie so adept at portraying the characters of the book that it made it easy for me to visualize them in the scenes from the book.

Unapologetic: Why, Despite Everything, Christianity Can Still Make Surprising Emotional Sense by Francis Spufford

January 1, 2025December 17, 2014 by Adam Shields

Summary: Maybe, at least for some, the right apologetic is not about logic, but emotion and experience.

It would be hard to over emphasize how many people I respect have been fans of this book. It has been reviewed (and I think generally reviewed accurately) in Books and Culture (long), Christianity Today (short), the New York Times, the Telegraph and the Gospel Coalition (critical but appreciative). (Although not everyone likes it.)

The central idea of the book is that given our culture (and Spufford is writing to a secular UK here, not primarily to an Evangelical US) the idea that we should try to prove our Christianity through logic or proof is the wrong move.

As Alan Jacobs says in the opening of his review, apologetics should be more concerned with rhetoric than dialectical tasks, in other words, follow the interest of the listener, not your own desire to be right.

So Spufford is concentrating here on why, for him, Christianity can be an emotionally right choice, even if he can’t prove it scientifically or logically as many of the New Atheists are challenging Christians to do (or vice versa).

Spufford starts with trying to find the shared belief that we all have about this life. That central shared idea is HPtFtU, which stands for the Human Propensity to F*ck things Up (and he abbreviated most of the time.) Christians call this sin, but I think Spufford is right that calling it the HPtFtU feels more accurate. We can debate the reality or transmission method of original sin, but pretty much no one can debate that HPtFtU is real. We all have been a part of it and we all have seen others participate in it.

Witness to Hope: The Biography of Pope John Paul II by George Weigel

December 16, 2023December 16, 2014 by Adam Shields

Takeaway: Regardless of whether you are Protestant or Catholic, John Paul II was important.

Last year, I picked up Witness to Hope for Kindle when it was on sale. But the size and time commitment kept me from actually reading it. As much as I would like this blog to not influence my reading, I often don’t pick up long books because of my attempt to keep up, with assistance from several regular contributors, a 5 review a week schedule.

So, I do not often make room for a biography that clocks in at more than 1000 pages. At the same time, I tend to hate abridged audiobooks. If it was important enough to put in the book initially, it was probably important enough to read later.

But when I noticed that the audiobook of Witness to Hope was in the Scribd audiobook library, even though it is abridged, I picked it up.

The actual content is just under half of the original book. And it feels like an abridgment. The biggest problem with the abridgment is that it focuses too much on the political life of John Paul II as Pope and not enough on the spiritual influence. Spiritual is undoubtedly there, but when you compare the time devoted, it seems less important.

Soul Keeping: Caring For the Most Important Part of You by John Ortberg

July 27, 2026December 15, 2014 by Adam Shields

Summary: It is not a violation of faith in Christ’s work, to pay attention to our own soul.

Lately I have been increasingly frustrated with Christian Living books. Particularly their introductions. I think I first noticed this strongly with James Bryan Smith’s The Good and Beautiful Life, but I have noticed the problem with a number of other books as well.

Maybe it is my problem and not one else need pay attention. But if I have to diagnose a more general problem, it is that for some reason Evangelicals seem to need to over compensate in their introductions for the general feedback that they think they are going to hear. And worse that overcompensation seems to be particularly focused on clichÃ©s. The books that are am frustrated with often have some really good content, once I get past the general introductions. But several times I have been so frustrated with the cliche-ridden introductions that I have had to force myself past them.

Soul Keeping has this problem. I really love that John Ortberg is writing a book that is as much about a tribute to the work of Dallas Willard in his life as it is about soul keeping as a subject. But honestly, I don’t need to be convinced that it is important to think about and work on my own spiritual health. I have been seeing a spiritual direction for over a year now. I read Christian books incessantly. I go to church regularly and while far from perfect, I really do think I am paying attention to my spiritual life for a lot of good reason. And the primary reason I don’t need to hear about the importance of spiritual care is that I grew up as an Evangelical (as would most of the readers).

A Farewell to Mars: An Evangelical Pastor’s Journey Toward the Biblical Gospel of Peace by Brian Zahnd

July 15, 2026December 8, 2014 by Adam Shields

Takeaway: Very few take Jesus seriously when he about having a different type of kingdom.

As American Christians have started looking again at their eschatology (view of the end times) and moving away from dispensationalism, more Christians are starting to see that the implications of their eschatology affect many areas of their Christian life.

For instance, a number of Christians have adopted a more nuanced position on ecological issues after rejecting the traditional Dispensational idea that the physical earth was simply waiting to be destroyed as punishment for the sins of the world. So if the earth was not condemned, then God’s command to be stewards of the earth in Genesis might still be a present command.

Brian Zahnd began re-evaluating his support of war (after originally supporting the first Gulf war and then the wars after 9/11) in response to a new look at Jesus’ words in the Gospels. Repeatedly throughout the book, in one way or another, Zahnd asks, “What if Jesus really meant what he said.”

For Christians that really try to take scripture seriously, this is a deeply disturbing question. It is hard not to think that Zahnd has a real point if you have heard just a few sermons from the Sermon on the Mount. We tend to spiritualize the Sermon on the Mount, not put it into practice.

The Butterfly and the Stone by Dan Mayhew

July 16, 2026December 6, 2014 by Adam Shields

I am reposting this 2011 review because the Kindle edition is $2.99.
The Butterfly and the Stone Summary: Whether you have a prodigal child, were a prodigal child or know a prodigal child, this books on the heart break of loving a prodigal and what it teaches us about God loving us is a must read.

Right up front I have to disclose that I know Dan Mayhew (the author) and his wife Jody. I have been aware of the roots of what this book is talking about for the past decade or so since I first met them. I have not ever met their son, but I have frequently prayed for him and the family.

So maybe I am tainted in my opinion, but the reality of a parent writing about their love of a child, and the corresponding pain of watching a child struggle through bad decisions, addiction, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (after serving in Iraq), homelessness, suicide attempts, etc., is powerful stuff.

Doctor Who: The Writer’s Tale: The Final Chapter by Russell Davies and Benjamin Cook

July 16, 2026December 5, 2014 by All Old Users

I am a big fan of the BBC series, Doctor Who. I usually don’t get too locked into a television series but I quickly fell in love with the Doctor, especially Season 4 with David Tennant and Catherine Tate. Season 4 had everything: excitement, humor, a strong female character, compelling stories, phenomenal acting and a beautiful musical score. So imagine my joy when I discovered Russell T. Davies, Doctor Who’s Head Writer and Executive Producer, had written an inside look on the season I loved the most!

Doctor Who: The Writer’s Tale is a year-long email conversation between Davies and journalist, Benjamin Cook as Season 4 was being written and filmed. The Great Correspondence, as Davies and Cook referred to their communications, is a unique look inside the BBC series. It’s a no holds barred look into Davies life as a he plans episodes, discusses how creative and casting decisions are made, handles budget woes, deals with location and scheduling snafus and a very deep look into the writing process.

Essays on the Church by CS Lewis

July 16, 2026December 4, 2014 by Adam Shields

Summary: Three essays about the church.

I have been working on a two month free trial of Scribd, a Kindle Unlimited and Oyster competitor that offers unlimited access to their library (a Netflix for Books) but also has 30,000 audiobooks. It is the audiobooks I am interested in. Scribe has a far better selection of audiobooks than Kindle Unlimited. And the ebooks selection at Oyster is roughly the same as Scribd’s.

I will post a review of the service in the next week or so. By that time I will have used the service for a month.

Included in the audiobooks is several short collections of CS Lewis’ essays. These are all included in the larger CS Lewis: Essay Collection and Short Pieces, which has 135 essays. That is a little too overwhelming to tackle. But these smaller collections are organized thematically and much shorter. This one on the Church is only 3 essays and 36 minutes long.