Some Books Read Recently

It’s been a while since I posted about some of the books I’ve been reading, so here are a few of the most notable from the last few months. A rather eclectic mix! Devotional, self-help, novel, history . . .

The Other Worldview: Exposing Christianity’s Greatest Threat (Peter Jones)

If you want to understand the world in which we live, and the opposition to Christianity that characterizes so much of society, this is a must-read. I’ve probably recommended books by Peter Jones more than any other author. Although written somewhat from the perspective of the USA, Jones was a missionary and so has a global view that many authors lack.

Keeping the Heart (John Flavel)

This one is from the 17th century. Flavel was a pastor in England. These meditations on the condition of your heart are a tremendous blessing. “As God did not at first choose you because you were high, so he will not forsake you because you are low”.

Steal Away Home: Charles Spurgeon and Thomas Johnson, Unlikely Friends on the Passage to Freedom (Matt Carter and Aaron Ivey)

This is a novel, but it’s based on careful historical research into the real life relationship between Spurgeon, the famous preacher, and Johnson, a slave in the USA. An incredible and often unexpected story.

Unlimited Memory: How to Use Advanced Learning Strategies to Learn Faster, Remember More and be More Productive (Kevin Horsley)

And now for something completely different! Yes, this book is just what it sounds like. But I would consider it one of the better books on the topic.

I’ve often wondered about the different methods out there for “learning” the Bible – not just memorization techniques, but key words, learning outlines, when and why to memorize verse numbers, etc. This book is not written from a Christian perspective, but it has been part of a stream of thoughts I’ve been entertaining about how we can better learn as Christians. Maybe that should be the topic of a future post!

The Trojan Mouse: How Disney Is Winning the Culture War (Samuel Lively)

I really wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this one. Would it be one of those “conspiracy” books about how evil Disney is, without any solid evidence?

Well, it wasn’t that at all. In fact, the author seems to quite like some Disney movies.

In some ways, this book focuses on a long line of brief movie reviews (from the earliest years of Disney to almost the present – actually, even mentioning some movies not out yet), but that is connected to the corporate history of Disney (and also the public’s reaction, or the “Christian” response), and the ebb and flow of ideas, whether intentional or not. I wish he had talked more about Marvel and Star Wars (he did mention them briefly), but the range of movies you’ll probably know well is quite wide.

Agree or disagree with various opinions, this will make you think about one of the most powerful communicators in our culture (and likely in your life). And you probably should take some time to do so!