Scribd – Page 21 – Bookwi.se

The Innocence of Father Brown by GK Chesterton

March 25, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: A series of short stories, originally serialized, about a mystery solving priest.

I am trying to read more old books that have stood the test of time. (And save some money.) So I picked up the Innocence of Father Brown by GK Chesterton when I noticed that the audiobook was only $2.49 when you purchase the Kindle book (which is free.)

I have recently read the biography of CS Lewis and Chesterton is often compared favorably to Lewis. They are very different authors, but both wrote theology/apologetics and fiction. I have read Chesterton’s Orthodoxy in college, but I think that is the only full length book of his that I have read previously.

Chesterton’s Father Brown series is second only to Sherlock Holmes in popularity as a mystery series in Britain. But it is very different sort of mystery series. Sherlock Holmes is about deductive (scientific) reasoning. Father Brown is more psychological and intuitive. He understands the sin that is in people’s hearts.

What is most interesting about these stories is how often Father Brown either explains the crime (but has let the criminal go) or talks the criminal into confessing. It is clear that Father Brown is solving crimes, but his primary interest is in the spiritual health of the criminal.

Living the Resurrection by Eugene Peterson

March 11, 2013 by Adam Shields

Takeaway: Good introduction to Peterson’s idea of ‘practicing resurrection’ through engagement within the church.

I am pretty invested in Amazon’s store infrastructure. I have been a member of Amazon Prime for about two years. Recently in addition to the free shipping that is normally a part of Amazon Prime, Amazon has included free streaming video and the ability to borrow one free Kindle book a month. I am using this free book a month to explore books that I would not normally buy.

This month I borrowed Eugene Peterson’s Living The Resurrection. It is a short book, only three chapters and just over 100 pages in the main text. I would not normally spend $7.99 to purchase such a short book by an author that I have read so much before. If you have Amazon Prime and would like to explore some of Peterson’s theological writing, this is a good introduction.

I appreciate several things about Peterson’s writing. He is biblical, he walks through extended portions of scripture and does not take them out of context to support his position. He also is a story teller. He insures that his point is not only biblical but well illustrated so that it is understandable by a wide range of readers. Third, he has a strong commitment to the church and to Christian community.

Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life by CS Lewis

February 25, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: Memoir of CS Lewis’ early life and how he came to faith.

CS Lewis is an author that you just have to read if you are a Christian. If you have not read the Chronicles of Narnia, then you will have read Screwtape Letters or Mere Christianity (I never have) or his Science Fiction Trilogy or one of his other books. But as a person that considers myself fairly well read, I have not read nearly as much CS Lewis as I feel like I should have.

I picked up the Science Fiction trilogy when it was on sale last year but I have not read it yet. I have tried Mere Christianity a couple times but I have not finished it. I really like Screwtape Letters and the Great Divorce and enjoyed Till We Have Faces. One I have enjoyed more than almost any other is his Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer.

What really moved me to read this is the fact that two books I really like were adapted titles. Carolyn Weber’s Surprised by Oxford was the story of how she came to faith at Oxford and she intentionally modeled the title after Lewis’s book. And Lyle Dorsett titled his biography of Joy Davidson (CS Lewis’ wife) Surprised by Love (first edition of the book was called And God Came In).

I had always assumed that Surprised by Joy was about his relationship to Joy Davidson, but it was written long before he met and married her.

Just Courage by Gary A. Haugen

February 23, 2013 by Adam Shields

Reposting because the Kindle version is on sale for $2.99 right now.

Takeaway: It takes courage to stand up to violence. But Christians should not be lacking in courage when we have Christ. God desires to use us, not to keep us safe.

This was a free book from ChristianAudio a couple months ago. It is a brief book, just over 3 hours in audio version, but it is powerful in its story of International Justice Mission. I have been aware of IJM for a few years. I serve on a committee with a woman that is part of their fund development committee. I have heard news reports about their work releasing people from slavery and sex trafficing for years.

But this was my first real introduction to the work directly. Gary Haugen started IJM about 10 years ago. It is a collection of lawyers, social workers and advocates that work around the world to raise awareness about and free people from slavery, sex trafficking and injustice. Haugen has a particular definition of the work that they do. It is more than just producing justice or alleviating need, it is directly addressing injustice where violence is present. He asserts that when violence is present, people are often incapable of releasing themselves from injustice and require outside intervention. Violence of the sort that is associated with slavery and sex trafficking is exactly the type of work that we as Christians need to have the courage to work for, but often are either unaware of the need or assume it is much smaller than reality.

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

February 5, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: A superb performance by Kenneth Branagh of the modern classic about the decent into madness brought on by the savage heart of Africa.

The Heart of Darkness is one of those book that I feel like I have to read. Even if it really is not all that appealing initially.

Kenneth Branagh has narrated a version at Audible.com and I picked it up for free. So I just did not have any more excuses for not listening to it on audiobook.

I have seen Apocalypse Now, and I knew that Apocalypse Now was loosely based on Heart of Darkness.

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

January 29, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: One of the great classics on grace and the law.

Last spring my wife and I went to go see a student production of Les Mis that her cousin’s daughter was in. It was a very good student adaptation. Then last fall again my wife and I and some friends went to a traveling Broadway production of Les Mis.

It had clearly been updated from the earlier versions that I saw in Chicago. The set and use of video and lights really did make it seems like a new production even though I think it was my third time to see the traveling Broadway show.

Then this Christmas we went to go see the new movie (with the cousin, husband and their daughter that had been in the student version). In spite of some of the problems of the movie (I didn’t like Russel Crowe, but I did like the closeups), I thought it was one of the best presentations of the Christian meaning of grace that I have seen in the theater in a long time; maybe ever.

End of Sexual Identity: Why Sex is Too Import To Define Who We Are

January 17, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: Sexual identity is not the same as full identity, so we need to define ourselves as a person, not a sexual identity.

When I started The End of Sexual Identity, the Louie Giglio issue has not yet come up. But I do think that Paris’ book is a good place to start for people that are uncomfortable with the orthodox Christian response to homosexuality and/or not ready to reject same-sex sex as a sin.

Jenell Williams Paris is an anthropologist. So she starts by approaching sexual identity as a cultural construction. That may seem overly academic, but she writes clearly and gives good examples so that even if you do not have a background in sociology or anthropology her argument is understandable.

Ethan Frome by Edith Wharton

January 14, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: A poor New England man, his ailing wife and her orphaned cousin are trapped together. This is a short book, the paperback is around 100 pages and the audiobook was less than four hours,and about 20 or 30 minutes of that was a quick biography of Wharton. In spite of the shortness, I had … Read more

Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver

January 11, 2013 by Adam Shields

Summary: Three intertwining story lines in a rural Kentucky community

After reading Poisonwood Bible and Flight Behavior at the end of last year I still wanted more Barbara Kingsolver. I really do think she is one of the best living novelist and I wanted more. So I picked up Prodigal Summer because it was on sale for $2.99 on kindle. (Back down to that price)

My wife and I read it together around the time it originally came out. Of the books I have read by Kingsolver it is the lightest. Kingsolver likes to deal with heavy subjects.

The main themes of this book are still heavy, the evolutionary process, what it means to survive when it requires others to die to support us, finding a new place as the world changes around you, etc. But it also is the most traditional romantic story of the Kingsolver books I have read.

The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle by Arthur Conan Doyle

December 27, 2012 by Adam Shields

Summary: A short Christmas themed Sherlock Holmes mystery.

Audible.com gave away The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle as a Christmas gift to its members. I believe it is still available whether you are a member or not. This is a classic Sherlock Homes story. And it confirms why I am not a real fan of the great master of mystery.

Part of the problem of Sherlock Holmes is that he thinks he knows everything. In the more modern incarnations like the new TV show Elementary, Sherlock is brilliant, but frequently wrong because he makes assumptions based on what he knows. As the assumptions are informed by new evidence he makes new assumptions.