nonfiction

Book Review: Parks and Rec

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Parks and Rec
by Jennifer Keishin Armstrong

My rating: 2 / 5
Genre: Non-fiction

There was a little bit of interesting information in this book, but it was a slog to get through. Half of the time the author was giving us the backstory of every actor/writer as they joined the show or giving us a synopsis of an episode, sometimes up to a few paragraphs, usually with no reason for it other than to tell us about the next great episode they made. I have seen the show several times, but I am not one who has already read a lot of other books that talk about the show, so in a way, I feel like I’m in the middle of the fandom in regards to knowledge of the show. The explanations of various episodes was completely unnecessary for me, and the background details just didn’t interest me. There were a few tidbits here and there that I appreciated, but it wasn’t enough to keep the book from feeling slow and boring.

Weirdly enough, this book made me question my feelings for Parks and Recreation, a show that I have always liked and rewatched multiple times. I never liked it as much as The Office, though, and I think this book gave me insight into the reasons for that. The show was funny and well-cast, but very liberal (which I am not). Though yes, veiled under a local government trying to be bipartisan and show people from different sides working together, having one libertarian does not cancel out the overall liberal leaning of the show, especially since. I’m used to this from Hollywood, of course (both the people there and what they produce, generally speaking), but this show actually being about government and politics brought all of that more to the forefront. And in this book, the author doesn’t even pretend to be unbiased with her political leanings, praising the Obama era continually, denigrating President George W. Bush, and basically demonizing President Trump. Whatever your feelings on any of these past/current presidents, I really feel like Armstrong crossed a major line. She apparently either assumes that every fan of Parks and Recreation is a hardcore liberal like her or she could not care less about those who aren’t. Being from a rural area in Indiana, the state in which the show is set, and being a Christian (the conservative kind, since there are liberal Christians as well), I was already aware that this show heavily mocks people like me, or to be more accurate, a caricature of people like me, but somehow, this book made it bother me more. I don’t think I’ll rewatch the show anymore after this.

If you are a huge fan of this show, are a liberal, and haven’t already consumed info about how the show was made elsewhere, you’ll likely enjoy this book more than me (though keep in mind that wasn’t my only gripe; if it was, my rating would have been higher). Anyone else…you might want to pass. (I’m currently re-watching The Office (superfan episodes) while slowly going through the book Welcome to Dunder Mifflin by Brian Baumgartner and Ben Silverman. It’s amazing. I was hoping this book would be something at least similar to that. It’s not.)

Thank you to Netgalley and Dutton for providing me a copy of this book to review.

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Book Review: Humanly Speaking

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Humanly Speaking
by Michael Spencer

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Christian nonfiction

Michael Spencer’s heart for the unborn is palpable, and this book expands on the brief seminar he gave at my church a few months ago. It addresses what abortion really is and why we should care as much as most of us believe we would if another terrible event like the WWII Holocaust were to take place. He compares it to various times of major human rights violations in history and rightfully so. And all of this he does with an engaging style—often when I’m reading Christian non-fiction books, no matter how interested I may be in the subject, I have a difficult time understanding some of what’s being said due to the inclusion of large, theological words or even unnecessary pretension. This book has an easy style that is important to make the book accessible for more people.

It’s not enough to just be “pro-life” if you don’t act on it. And I say that as someone who has never acted on it, beyond donating money to a few organizations. While I do wish that there might be more suggestions in this book for how those of us who can’t feasibly make this a full-time campaign can still get in on the fight, it certainly inspired me to want to do something, which I’m praying about and brainstorming about. Michael Spencer calls out the church for being too quiet or lazy on the matter of abortion, and I think every Christian needs to read this book.

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Book Review: The Grasshopper Myth

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The Grasshopper Myth
by Karl Vaters

My rating: 2 / 5
Genre: Christian nonfiction

The idea that small churches and pastors of small churches don’t need to feel that they’re doing something wrong because small churches are just as important as big ones was interesting to me because my husband is currently in the process of becoming a pastor and most likely will end up in a pretty small church. That is mostly because he doesn’t want to pastor a large church, though, so maybe that already makes me/us the wrong audience for this book, which is geared toward helping small church pastors and leaders not feel the need to work unnecessarily toward growing a church that might just not be meant to grow.

Some of the content of the book really is good info, and actually gave me some insight into my current church’s situation. We got a new pastor last fall after our long-time pastor retired, and one of the things that was brought up during our transition period is that we want to grow. Our church has averaged maybe 120 attendees on a Sunday morning for a long time now, though our biggest weak spot was younger people—both young adults and children. I certainly understand a desire to bring in more younger people and even a desire to grow the church (though I’m really not a big-church person personally, but we do have some room to grow before I’d be uncomfortable). But I’m noticing some things that were really highlighted by this book, namely that the new pastor has said and done some things that lead me to believe he thinks that thinking and acting like a “big church” are the key to growth. But big church thinking just feels unnatural in our position, at least to me (I am certain I’m not the only one). I also appreciated a comment made in the book that if a pastor is getting push-back from other leaders or even just regular congregants in regards to something he wants to do or implement, maybe he needs to re-think doing that particular thing, rather than just telling himself that those naysayers aren’t part of the “vision.” I’m feeling that strongly in a few areas right now too.

On other other hand, though, I felt like Vaters doesn’t necessarily believe some of what he’s saying. He venerates megachurches a lot. When he goes on vacation, he finds a megachurch to attend (because he knows he’ll get good stuff there rather than rolling the dice on a small church…more on my thoughts about the “good stuff” at a megachurch later). He talks about how needed they are, how they fill the spiritual needs of many. I was left wondering if he really had come to terms with being “just a small church pastor” or if maybe he was still wishing he could be more. The way that he capitalizes the phrase “Small Church” every time it’s used in the book, which is a lot (and often it’s “New Small Church,” which I don’t even get, because he never really explains what’s “new” about them…unless this is just a way to promote his brand) makes me feel like he’s trying legitimize small churches as being as important as large/mega churches, because his statistics and personal anecdotes aren’t enough.

Vaters basically implies that thinking badly of megachurches or their pastors (in general or even specific churches/pastors) is only ever due to jealousy or an “us vs. them” mentality. A few times he does admit that large and megachurches have some flaws, but overall, they’re good. They fill the spiritual needs of many people. I would have to disagree with most of this. The flaws he mentions sound pretty important to me, not just something to be swept under a rug. If the majority of the people who go to a megachurch sneak in and out just to check off the box that they went to church in the hopes that their checklist will get them into Heaven, but they’re not challenged or convicted by biblical preaching, have no fellowship with other believes who could hold them accountable, and vice versa, and don’t do anything at all to serve God because their services aren’t needed at that huge church and they can live the rest of their week as if God doesn’t exist, what kind of spiritual life can they possibly have. I know I’m generalizing here and that large/mega churches tend to have small groups within the church where those who desire it can get a more personal touch similar to what small churches have, but I have a difficult time believing that large and especially megachurches aren’t more harmful than they are helpful.

Add to that the megachurch pastors that he brings up and quotes and clearly esteems that I know are off-base theologically, even to the point of being false teachers, but it seems like Vaters doesn’t allow for that possibility at all. No, if we don’t like megachurch preachers, we’re just looking for a theological excuse to hate them. I’m sorry, what? The Bible is clear that people will come in God’s name but be speaking lies! (One example: Matthew 24:11) It’s a truism that what is popular is not always right, and sometimes that the more widely liked something is, the more incorrect it is (at least in regards to the Bible and Christianity). In other words, it’s easier to believe in watered down truth or truth that doesn’t force us to change our lifestyles than in a convicting truth that forces us to examine our lives and admit that we might be doing things we shouldn’t be doing, and that, in a nutshell, is a large part of why at least some mega (and even large) churches exist. Again, I’m generalizing, and I’m definitely not an expert, but at the very least, these are things to address, and Vaters just does not.

Now, all of that being said, would I recommend this book for the content that I did find useful? No. To be honest, I started off with higher rating, because of the parts I did appreciate, and then lowered it to 2 while I wrote the above paragraph. Because I realized that, like megachurches in general, this book might be more harmful than it is helpful.

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Book Review: Seven Things I Wish Christians Knew About the Bible

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Seven Things I Wish Christians Knew About the Bible
by Michael F. Bird

My rating: 3 / 5
Genre: Christian nonfiction

In this book, Michael F. Bird explains how the modern Bible came to be, the need to take it in its proper context, and other nitty gritty details about the Word of God. It’s purported to be accessible to everyone, which means the fact that I struggled to understand some portions of it make me feel kind of stupid. Really, though, in a lot of ways it was similar to many other more intellectual, theologically deep books I’ve read, though not all the way through. Still, it makes me wonder why so many reviews talk about how easy it is to read.

As for the content, some aspects of this book were nothing new for me while others were quite new. For example, I’ve never before heard that the apostle John, the author of the 3 epistles named John, and the John who wrote Revelation might not all be the same John. My concern, though, lies in this book being read by new Christians or those who aren’t very strong in their faith. Even I, who 100% believe the complete accuracy of the Bible and the ability of God to protect His Word as it was handed down over the millennia, found myself beginning to question how accurate what I read can be when Bird gets into the details about how we got the Bible. Maybe that’s because he never quite touched on God’s sovereignty, that He had the power to guide the men who wrote, translated, edited, compiled, etc. the Bible and keep it intact to His wishes. On the other hand, He hasn’t stopped some translations and paraphrases from coming out that water down the truth, so therein likes the concern that this book could actually lead some people to question the Bible as a source of truth. His comments about learning about the historical and cultural context of the different parts of the Bible were intriguing though. I have no plans to try to read Josephus now, but there are more accessible options that I plan to look into. Overall, I can see the merit in this book, which my husband, who read a couple of chapters of it for one of his pastoral training classes, recommended to me, but I am not sure I’m the right audience for it. But I’m not really sure who is, since people who are newer to Christianity might not be able to follow some of it or might actually become confused about the authority of scripture and more mature Christians likely already know much of what is contained within.

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Book Review: Stellar English

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Stellar English
by Frank L. Cioffi

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: Grammar guide / sci-fi story

Part grammar guide, part sci-fi novel, Stellar English was a very different kind of read. For a few years after high school I often consulted a grammar guide I was given by my high school AP English teacher, and I definitely only opened it when I needed to remind myself of certain grammar rules while writing. (I guess books like that are pretty obsolete now, when one can simply look online for answers to grammar questions, assuming that one cares enough about their grammar to ask a question.) In some ways, this book reminds me of that guide that I had, but where that guide used sentences from other published works, this guide’s example sentences were written to form a new work of fiction—the story of an alien invasion on Earth.

Understandably, I never read the entirety of the grammar guide I got in high school. However, Cioffi seems to have a strong desire for people, even in our present age of the internet and AI, to have a good grasp of grammar, so the sci-fi narrative throughout the guide is intended to entice a reader to read through the entire book, not just look for info on an as-needed basis. I read the book as intended, though I have to admit to skimming some of the grammar section when the information was something I feel I have a good grasp on. Still, I picked up a few helpful tidbits and felt justified in having ignored the “don’t end a sentence with a preposition” rule that I have long felt makes little sense to follow so strictly anymore. The somewhat conversational tone made the grammar part of the book not as tedious as it might sound.

As for the narrative told in the example sentences, it is easy to follow and overall a brief, somewhat shallow story. Aliens land on Earth, and the focus is more on the human reaction to the perceived invasion than on the aliens themselves. At times the pace is very slow, and at times it jumps ahead quickly. Considering the nature and context of the story being told, I can’t really fault the pacing choices though. The story of the invasion and the aliens themselves were inventive, though a little less exciting in the end than I might have hoped for. And there was some unnecessary political commentary in the story that bugged me a little. Overall, though, the story did its job in giving me a reason to read through the book in its entirety (minus some skimming). Anyone who is interested in improving their grammar or simply in reading a unique take on a grammar guide or a sci-fi story should considering picking up a copy of Stellar English.

I received a copy of this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review.

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Book Review: Framed

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Framed
by John Grisham & Jim McCloskey

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: True crime

This collection of 10 stories of innocent people who were convicted of terrible crimes was difficult to read. Though these incidents mostly happened decades ago and often involved the presence of bodily fluid that couldn’t be tested against suspects due to DNA testing not existing back then, I wouldn’t be surprised to know that these kind of injustices still happen now. After the first 4-5 stories, though, they became a little repetitive. I don’t want to diminish what these people have been through—and some are still going through—but I considered stopping partway through when I could too easily anticipate how the rest of the stories would go. 

Another reason I struggled to read the book was due to the matter-of-fact and graphic nature in which some of the terrible acts were described, particularly multiple sexual crimes, one of a child. So let that be a warning to anyone who is interested in the book but wouldn’t want to read about those kinds of things. I applaud both McCloskey and Grisham, though, for desiring to bring these terrible facts to light and appreciate that people like McCloskey work tirelessly to bring the truth to light. Most fans of true crime will likely enjoy this book, especially if they’re interested in organizations like the Innocence Project or Centurion Ministries (which was founded by McCloskey).

Thank you to Netgalley and Doubleday Books for providing me a copy of this book to review.

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Book Review: No Compromise

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No Compromise
by Melody Green and David Hazard

My rating: 4.5 / 5
Genre: Biography

Keith Green died a few months after I was born, so though his music wasn’t a huge part of my childhood, I do remember my mom liking his music when I was younger. I don’t generally base my rating of a biography on the content, because what the author chooses to provide about his/her (or in this case, her husband’s) life is really their choice. Based only on the writing and style here, the book is easy to read and gives some really interesting insight into the lives of both Keith and Melody Green before, during, and after their conversion to Christianity. She doesn’t sugarcoat their drug use and time spent following New Age or eastern mysticism practices as they both searched for spiritual truth. Lyrics of various songs written by Keith Green (again, before and after he became a Christian) as well as quite a few snatches of writing directly from his hand in the form of journal entries pepper the pages.

I have to admit that I didn’t agree with a lot of his philosophy or his approach to evangelism, but I appreciate how on-fire he was for God. As his own wife noted, when he became a believer, he didn’t hide away somewhere to learn about God before then presenting himself to the world as an evangelist. Maybe he should have, though, because some of the way he treated his audiences, both believers and nonbelievers, may have been more harmful than helpful. Going to a church, for example, and assuming that everyone there was a lukewarm Christian and needed to be confronted from the stage to repent of hidden sins really shocked me. I suppose if there were people in attendance who truly were right with God, they may not have been guilted by Green to confess unnecessarily, but it seems to me that Green made the assumption that every Christian he encountered (except select people he met in person and looked up to) was either a fake Christian or at least an apathetic one, simply because he could see that those types did legitimately exist in Christian communities.

Overall, I’m glad I read this book. Despite my concerns about both Keith and Melody Green’s understanding of God and the Bible, it was an interesting insight into the mind of someone who sought God before understanding exactly what it was he was seeking. Keith seemed to be working out his belief and understanding through his music, which might be a legitimate way to do so, except that by becoming more and more famous, he wrapped others up in his confusion. I do recommend this book to anyone who’s interested in biographies of famous musicians, especially fans of Keith Green, because I think knowing how he thought and believed might be an important lens through which to view his music.

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Book Review: Reclaiming Quiet

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Reclaiming Quiet: Cultivating a Life of Holy Attention
by Sarah Clarkson

My rating: 2 / 5
Genre: Christian non-fiction

Ostensibly, this book is about turning our attention from the world—news, social media, etc.—and quieting our minds to focus more on God. I personally did not find it very insightful in that respect, though, for a few reasons. One is that I think Clarkson and I have a slightly different definition of the word “quiet,” as I found that what she talked about was more a focus on God, even in busy, chaotic times (for example, she has 4 young children, so she’s in a season of life where she doesn’t always have the ability to make or find quiet time in her day). She did, however, talk a lot about not letting her phone take so much of her time and focus. It seems like this is one of her biggest issues in her current life, whereas it is not really what distracts me from taking time to focus on God. It bothered me when she’d mention that she will sometimes only have time to read one verse out of the Bible before getting on with her day, but she seems to make reading poetry or other books a priority. That seems pretty backwards to me, and it’s also a segue to another issue I had with this book—very little scripture is referenced, but a whole lot of other authors are mentioned and quoted. If Clarkson hasn’t found the quiet (i.e. focus) she is looking for, maybe it’s because she’s looking in the wrong places.

I also struggled a lot with Clarkson’s style of writing. It’s often poetic or deep/complex, making it fairly inaccessible to someone like me and thus very difficult to follow. The book is also far more about the author’s personal journey than about giving actionable ideas for the topic at hand. Most chapters started with a page or two of some time in her life when she was really struggling to connect with God or to be content with her life. I usually skimmed those pages to get to the “epiphany moment” that would turn her thinking around, often instigated by reading a poem, book, etc., in the hopes of gleaning something helpful for my own life. I’m not sure that really ever happened, and part of it was due to not fully understanding what she was saying.

I am certain that some of this comes down to the author’s life and background being vastly different from mine. She’s educated in theology and a heavy reader of classics and theological books. She’s from America but lives in England, and her husband is a vicar in an Anglican church. I am quite plain and uneducated by comparison and have been an Evangelical Christian all my life. The traditions and sacraments are a bit lost on me, and I really can’t say I have ever connected much with prayers written by someone else. In the end, then, I think it’s safe to say I was the complete wrong audience for this book. You might be the right audience, though, especially if you can appreciate the following sentence, taken from one of the prayers that the author includes at the end of each chapter of the book: “Help us to nourish our inmost selves, to keep airy and clean that room where our dreams dwell and our hope waits and the doors to all creation are in our grasp. Help us to trust the great stories, to live the great songs, to fight the dragons and keep the feasts, through Christ, the Great Knight of heaven of our yearning hearts, Amen.“

I received a free review copy from the publisher in exchange for my honest unedited feedback.

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Book Review: Made to Be She

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Made to Be She
by Kristen Clark & Bethany Beal

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Christian non-fiction

In today’s culture, lines of gender and sexuality appear to be blurred, but that comes as no surprise at a time when truth is seen as relative and each person is told to follow his or her heart wherever it leads. But there is an absolute authority on truth, including a distinct line between man and woman. That absolute authority is the Creator of man and woman—and the entire universe—and He has given us everything we need to know about life, including the two different genders, in His written word (the Bible). In Made to Be She sisters Kristen Clark and Bethany Beal stand on that firm foundation as they share insight into how to sort through the noise and confusion to get to the truth of the question of what it really means to be female.

The first, and probably most important, thing I want to say about this book is that it is, indeed, completely biblically grounded. I really appreciate the authors’ commitment to the truth, unashamedly taking what will undoubtedly be an unpopular stand about gender, biology, and femininity. I believe this book could be a great resource for Christian women who don’t quite know how to respond to today’s culture or aren’t even sure what they should believe. I do not have any confusion about these matters myself, but I did still gain some valuable insight.

History of the feminist movements over the years is explored, and I found it interesting seeing how it plays a role in our modern culture, even when we don’t realize that some of what we think has its roots in feminism. Particularly fascinating to me was the idea that religion can also skew our view of womanhood, for example the way “purity culture” (a big movement in the 90s when I was a teen) gave young women a mission without a heart change or a biblical understanding of why they were keeping themselves pure. The authors challenge their readers to examine their own beliefs and possible feminist attitudes or ideals they may have without even realizing it. 

The Bible is not silent or unclear on gender or gender roles, and Christian women should not be either. I can see this book being read in church groups or other similar settings, even possibly mothers reading it and discussing it with their teenage daughters—though be aware that the authors go into some depth about sex and sexuality, completely within a biblical context. I considered suggesting it to my daughter and discussing it with her as she read, but as she is only 14, by the time I finished reading the book, I knew I’d prefer to wait a few years on that. With that in mind, I do recommend this book to every Christian woman, especially those who are overwhelmed by today’s tumultuous, truth-denying culture.

I received a free review copy from the publisher in exchange for my honest unedited feedback.

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Book Review: How to Thrive as a Pastor’s Wife

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How to Thrive as a Pastor’s Wife
by Christine Hoover

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Christian non-fiction

My husband picked up this book for me just based on the title, since he’s currently working toward becoming a pastor and I have told him, multiple times, that I don’t feel adequate to be a pastor’s wife. We’re both in our early 40s, and this was a sudden, out-of-nowhere decision on his part, at least initially. What we’ve come to see throughout the journey so far (8 months) is that God definitely put us on this path. And for me, that means that if He put my husband on this path…He must have meant for me to be on it too, since we’re a package deal.

This book definitely addresses more of the traditional pastoring journey—the young couple who are starting their lives together around the same time as the husband is starting his pastoring life—whether the reader is in the early stages of that life or the later, which makes sense, since it’s by far more common than our situation. However, much of Hoover’s advice and discussion about what a pastor’s wife’s life looks like is universal enough to be very helpful for me as I anticipate this future change. She does even mention at least once the very scenario I’m currently living. And actually, some of what she talks about addresses issues I’m having currently as the head of a particular ministry in my church (butting up against people with a different idea of how things should go, dealing with self-doubt and expectations of myself that are too high, etc.). That has actually helped me to step back and re-assess my initial, knee-jerk reactions and think through a better response to differing opinions.

The understanding that, though “pastor” has a pretty specific biblical job description, “pastor’s wife” really has none is a huge help to me, as I did question whether I’d be able to fill the role with my particular giftings. I’m sure many of us have a specific idea in mind of what a pastor’s wife is/does, usually based on a pastor’s wife at a church we attended at some point in our lives, whether one that we respected or perhaps didn’t. I even asked our church’s pastor’s wife about if she ever felt that she was expected to fill a role that she couldn’t (this pastor is retired now, and I asked her about this a few weeks before his last Sunday). She told me that she was blessed to be at a church that let her serve where she was best suited, and this book reinforced the idea that that is really how it should be. We don’t all play the piano, sing well, enjoy working with children, or whatever pastor’s wives might traditionally be thought of as doing well. But that shouldn’t be a source of friction, either on the part of the wife or of the congregation.

I may have spent a lot of my review on that one topic, but this book has so much more insight and useful tools than this. Creating boundaries to protect the home life, for example. The importance of not neglecting our own spiritual health while doing so much to help others with theirs. Not looking for a fellow broken human to fill the role that only God can. And so much more.

I also really appreciate the chapter that Hoover addresses to the pastor himself, the husband of the woman reading this book, giving him insight into what his wife is most likely going through and tips on how he can help her to thrive in her position alongside his ministry by creating boundaries and recognizing her difficulties. I will definitely have my husband read that chapter at some point in the near future as he finishes his schooling, gets licensed as a pastor, and looks for a position in ministry. This book makes it clear that being a pastor’s wife can be difficult but rewarding, and my hope is that going into it with some foreknowledge and a foundation of 25 years of marriage will help me to avoid some of the major pitfalls. Or at least provide tools to navigate them. I have no doubt I’ll revisit different parts of this book in the future as different situations arise, and I can see it being a great help to other women who are married or engaged to pastors or married to pastors-to-be.

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