Book Reviews

Is the Reformation Over? An Evangelical Assessment by Mark Noll and Carolyn Nystrom

July 16, 2026October 29, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: A very clear and balanced look at how the Evangelical and Catholic churches are moving closer but still have theological issues that hold them apart.

I have read a lot of Catholics (or Evangelicals that have converted to Catholicism) lately. So Mark Noll and Carolyn Nystrom’s book is a different take at Catholicism.

There are some great parts of this book and some weaker parts of this book. The weakest part is the back and forth discussion of the many discussions between Protestant denominations and Catholics. This was interesting, but repetitive; it seemed to just keep going on and on. Many of the issues between Protestants and Catholics keep coming up again and again. However, I do not know a better way to present the data, and it needed to be presented.

The discussion of the Evangelicals and Catholics Together statements were more interesting. For one, there were a number of interviews with the participants. These were mostly high profile and interesting people. I was disappointed that Noll did not speak specifically of his involvement narratively. (He was one of the original signers.)

Allegiant by Veronica Roth (Divergent #3)

March 5, 2025October 28, 2013 by Adam Shields

Short Review: I wanted to like it more than I did. But not nearly as bad as many of the reviews.

Allegiant is the highly anticipated third book in dystopian trilogy. Starting with Insurgent and then Divergent, Allegiant tells the story of a post-apocalyptic Chicago.

Five factions (essentially small tribal groups) formerly to ruled the city. But after Tris and Four released a video at the end of the last book, everyone realizes there is something outside the border, something that is influencing how the factions work.

Tris and Tobias leave the city as part of a larger group to find out what is outside the city.

Early reviews of Allegiant have not been good. As I started writing this review on Friday the 25th, just 3 days after it was released there are already 746 reviews on Amazon, 300 of them are 1 star reviews. (Monday morning the 28th, 6 days after released there were 1311 reviews with only 502 of them being 4 or 5 stars.) The fans that have been waiting more than 18 months for this third installment are not happy.

I think some of the criticism is valid. The beginning was a bit rough. It took me a good quarter of the book to get into the real groove of the story and be invested in the characters again.

Huntress (A Grace Murphy Novel) by Nicole Hamlett

July 15, 2026October 25, 2013 by Adam Shields

Reposting this review because the Kindle version is free. Summary: Romance author, single mom, recent divorcee, Grace just found out she is the daughter of Diana. I like the idea of modern takes on stories of the ancient God and their modern children. Obviously, Rick Riordan has done this recently with his Percy Jackson series, … Read more

Ender’s Game Alive (Full Cast Audioplay)

October 25, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: Interesting as a new version of the classic, but not as good as the full book.

I am not an objective listener to Ender’s Game Alive. I have read Ender’s Game more than any other books (I would guess around a dozen or so times.) I usually say it is my all time favorite book.

So when Orson Scott Card started promoting a full cast audioplay (an old fashioned radio drama) I picked it up. (Of course it was timed to release right before the new Ender’s Game movie which released Nov 1.) Orson Scott Card got his start writing as a playwright. And as a stand alone play, it is well done.

Stefan Rudnicki (who is my favorite narrator) performed and produced the audioplay. So he was a familiar voice (he narrators and produces almost all of Orson Scott Card’s audiobooks.) And there are very good (and familiar) other voices that are a part of the audioplay. The production values are very good, this is just like the best of the old fashioned radio plays.

But there were two things apparent to me almost immediately. First, this is a book that is mostly about children. But all of the voices were adult. I don’t know what I expected. It is not something that I thought was odd when I have listened to the regular audiobook or other children’s audiobooks. But audiobooks are narrated by one or two voices and I don’t have an expectation of hearing children’s voices.

Return to the Willows by Jacqueline Kelly

July 15, 2026October 24, 2013 by All Old Users

To attempt a sequel to one of the most beloved children’s books in the Western cannon might seem audacious at best, arrogant at worst. But with only a few missteps, Jacqueline Kelly manages to pull it off, and the result is a loving continuation of the whimsical adventures of Mole, Rat, Badger, Toad, and a few new friends.

The Rise of Evangelicalism: The Age of Edwards, Whitefield and the Wesleys by Mark Noll

July 15, 2026October 23, 2013 by Adam Shields

Takeaway: Evangelicalism seems to keep having the same battles while trying to achieve the same successes.

I try to read pretty much anything that Mark Noll writes that I come across. So when Intervarsity Press re-released this series in paperback and offered me a copy to review I picked it up. The Rise of Evangelicalism is the first of a four book series by various authors.

The early history of Evangelicalism is not unknown to me. I have read a number of accounts (primarily through biographies or brief retellings as part of other arguments.) But reading all of in together focused on telling the whole story several things rise to the top.

First, the initial revivalism that gave rise to the movement of Evangelicalism was led by very young men (primarily it was men that were the preachers and leaders, but the movement used the religious power of women to influence families and communities to a great extent.) Whitefield, Edwards and the Wesleys were all 30 or less when they were getting started (except for John who was a little older, but still single.) Whitefield traveled throughout the US on a ten month revival tour when he was just 26. Edwards was about the same age when revival broke out in his church.

A Little Book for New Theologians: Why and How to Study Theology

October 21, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: A wonderful little books for young pastors, academics and lay leaders on the importance of theology and the humble advice on how to do theology right.

I am a sucker for books like this. I want to be an armchair theologian (I just am not smart enough to be an academic theologian and even if I were, I don’t have the academic background for it.)

But I highly recommend this book. Kapic thinks very broadly about what a theologian is.

Whenever we speak about God we are engaged in theology. The term “theology” means a word (logos) about God (theos), so when anyone speaks about God, whether that person dropped out of high school or completed a PhD in philosophy, he or she is engaged in theology.

Clouds of Witness by Dorothy Sayers (Lord Peter Wimsey Mysteries #2)

July 27, 2026October 21, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: Lord Peter’s brother is accused of murdering his sister’s fiance and Peter has to find the truth.

Dorothy Sayers is best known as an early 20th century crime novelist. But she was also a well known apologist, one of the intellectual founders of the modern classical education movement (which is popular among many Christian homeschooling groups) and was a friend of CS Lewis, Tolkien and many other better known authors.

Clouds of Witness is the second of the Lord Peter Wimsey books. It can be read as a stand alone books (and it is in the public domain so it can be found for free or cheap in ebook formats.)

Lord Peter is the middle child in an aristocratic family. His older brother is a Duke and a Peer of the Realm. His younger sister is an eligible young woman and engaged to married. Lord Peter has a hobby, solving crimes, especially murders. Being a detective is not particularly encouraged by his brother, but once his brother is accused of murder, it is a needed skill.

The Book of Common Prayer: A Biography by Alan Jacobs

December 30, 2024October 15, 2013 by Adam Shields

Takeaway: English Christianity has been formed, whether you know it or not, by the Book of Common Prayer.

I grew up Baptist. And I currently attend a non-denominational megachurch. But as I have grown in my understanding of the broader Christian Church and its history, I have been intentionally trying to read more about theology and practice outside of my church community.

The Book of Common Prayer is one of those theological objects that I want to understand, but without a guide it is largely a mystery. Alan Jacobs revealed a part of the puzzle in The Book of Common Prayer: A Biography. This is not a book on how to use the BCP, but a history of how it was developed, changed and how how attitudes toward it changed over time.

Alan Jacobs is an excellent writer and his history of the book is both of solid history and readable.

To me, what is most interesting about story of the BCP, is how it was intended as a tool of unity but from the very beginning that was thwarted. Cranmer, who compiled the BCP thought that a single prayer book with a single service was important both theologically and politically to the unity of the Church in England. This was not a simple expedient or politically motivated conscription of Christianity but a different world view on how church and state should relate.

Year Zero: A Novel by Rob Reid

July 27, 2026October 14, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: The universe is listening and may destroy the Earth as a result.

I am a fan of the geek novel. Because I am a wanna-be geek. Not an actual geek, but in another life I would like to think I might actually be able to be a real live geek. (Probably not, but that is another story.)

Year Zero is a geek novel of the best sort. It is science fiction, involves aliens, has a geeky set up (copyright law), lots of cultural references and is still readable and enjoyable for the general public.

The basic story of the book is that the rest of the universe is in love with Earth’s music. Starting in 1977 with the interception of the theme song from Welcome Back Kotter, literally billions of aliens have died of joy listening to Earth’s music.