nonfiction

Book Review: So You Want To Be An Architect

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So You Want to Be an Architect
by Linda Soules

My rating: 5 / 5
Genre: Middle grade nonfiction

So You Want to Be an Architect takes what could be a complicated subject and makes it accessible to kids and teens. But it also doesn’t talk down to them—there are areas younger kids may not be able to follow, but there’s enough context to get the point across well enough, I think. I also think that if something is a little over a kid’s head and sends them to asking someone about it or looking it up, that’s not a bad thing at all. The book goes beyond explaining what architects do and what they need to learn to be able to do it; it also talks about what kinds of interests, innate skills, and even indefinable ways of seeing the world around them that might lend themselves to a potential future architect. There are segments on famous architects and fun facts as well and beautiful, colorful illustrations throughout. (The illustrations are done with AI assistance, as Soules explains at the back of the book.)

I really like how the book talks about both the good and the bad (or at least the difficult) sides of being an architect, as well as the glamorous and more-common “normal” aspects. The book is intended for pre-teens through teens aged 10-14, and I definitely could see it being a great one for anyone in or near that age range, on either side of it.

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Book Review: Four Windows, One Jesus

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Four Windows, One Jesus
by Chad Colter

My rating: 3 / 5
Genre: Christian devotional

Four Windows, One Jesus is a 40-day devotional focusing on Jesus as portrayed in the four gospels. Each gospel is given 10 days (11, if you count the intro to each gospel’s section that is about as long as the daily devotional), with the intention to show the different facets of Christ that are provided by the 4 different gospel writers.

I think many will find a lot to appreciate in this devotional. I wrote down a few nuggets that I gleaned and that made me think about Jesus, myself, or my relationship with Jesus a little differently. The author pushes the reader to not just skim passages that are familiar or even thought of as boring, like the genealogy at the beginning of Matthew, but to slow down and try to focus on the text and why it has been included. As someone who has been a Christian for many years and has read/heard passages from the gospels many times over the years, I appreciate this slower approach. I also like that the reader is tasked with reading a passage for themselves and then reading the devotional about that passage, rather than 1) the devotional covering only a verse or two, which can be done well, but often ends up feeling a little shallow or out of context (though there are a few of these devotionals that cover only a verse or two as well) or 2) feeding you the passage instead of leading you to look it up in your own Bible.

However, I struggled with a few aspects of the devotionals along the way. There is a lot of repetition in each devotional, and the author’s overall literary style is not my preference. He weirdly seems to pit one gospel/gospel writer against another when the day’s passage is one that is also included in another gospel, comparing them in a way that, at least to me, seems to say that the other one has parts to it that aren’t worth thinking about right now (even though the idea here is supposed to be to bring the different views of Christ together). And in the same way, he seems dismissive of the Old Testament and other historical context, as he will vaguely reference something that would give a scene in the gospel more depth and meaning and tell the reader to not let that bog down the reading/understanding. But as my church’s pastor is fond of saying, “There’s no text without context.” Sometimes that context makes all the difference in understanding why what happened in the gospel matters or what it means! There were a few spots I noted that I think he may have interpreted something wrongly, but nothing I felt was theologically wrong.

I am not sure who the audience for this devotional is meant to be. I feel that some of his vague references to context would confuse newer Christians or those who don’t have a decent background with the Bible. More mature Christians might find enough of value here to make the book worthwhile, so I suppose that’s where the correct audience is best found. I could see a case being made for reading this with a group, because good discussion about what is brought up in the text (and even the question about whether or not the reader should ignore the context or whether one angle of an account is “better” in Mark vs. Matthew) could arise.

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

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Book Review: Living Unoffended

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Living Unoffended
by Brant Hansen

My rating: 4 / 5
Genre: Christian living

Radio show host Brant Hansen counters the common opinion that Christians are entitled to “righteous anger,” while also making a case about how learning to let go of our “right” to be offended can change our lives.

I read Unoffendable by Brant Hansen 6 years ago and found that it had a lot to offer; it helped me examine a lot in my life, not only about anger and anxiety but also hypocrisy and self-righteousness. As Brant says in the intro to this book, “We need to keep talking about this stuff.” Brant does a good job here of laying out why righteous anger doesn’t really make sense and how anger and worry mean we’re not trusting God like we should. He uses scripture as well as examples from both Christian and secular writers and thinkers to back up his claims, and he does it all with his signature humor. Brant also offers some practical advice for learning to let go of offense, becoming more humble and Christ-like, and trusting God more fully.

The book is basically a series of short essays, and some of the content comes from at least 2 of Brant’s other books (Unoffendable and Life Is Hard. God Is Good. Let’s Dance.). I haven’t read the 2nd of those books yet, and fortunately I read the 1st long enough ago that it didn’t feel like a repeat to me. However, if you have read either or both of those books, you may not feel the need to read this one. Not that there isn’t anything new here, but I’m not sure how much is new. I do recommend this book, as well all of Brant Hansen’s books, really, for Christians and non-Christians alike.

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

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Book Review: Thinking Things Over

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Thinking Things Over
by Charles Francis Guittard

My rating: 3.5 / 5
Genre: Memoir

There are 3 main styles within this book about two 80-year-olds meeting online and falling in love. First, there is a series of essays written by the author himself, Charles Francis Guittard, who is clearly very interested in history, especially that of his own family. The essays cover Guittard’s time growing up, focusing on what his parents both did to try to make him a well-rounded individual, with some included backstory of his parents’ lives. Then there’s a large middle sections that is a collection of emails between Guittard and his now-wife Nancy Davis Labastida, when they first met and got to know each other, all the way through about a week before their marriage. This covers only around 3 months, but includes a lot of emails. Finally, there’s a section of stories about Labastida’s tiime growing up in semi-interview format—Guittard asking questions for her to answer. The last section of the book is a fictional imagining of someone facing judgement upon their death, so I guess that’s sort of a 4th style, but that and the section about Labastida’s childhood are comparatively short.

Strangers to married in 3 months sounds crazy to most people, but I have to say that the amount of info they shared in their emails does make it a lot more understandable. I can also understand a desire to not wait very long to be with someone you feel so connected to, when you’re in your 80s. The emails read like two teenagers falling in love for the first time, though they had both been married before. There are parts of their romance that I did not connect with, but that’s not to say that made it bad somehow. Overall, I did enjoy the book more than I didn’t.

I question the inclusion of the short story at the end. It’s essentially a courtroom drama where God, Jesus, and the Holy Ghost are sitting in judgement over a man who claims to have lived a good life. There are 2 lawyers questioning making arguments and even questioning a couple of witnesses, but it leaves me really confused about what Guittard understands about salvation and eternity. He includes a lot of church lingo and seems to have a decent understanding of what is important to salvation, but at the same time, he seems confused as well. For one thing, the fictional defendant sort of claims that the Trinity is made-up, which he says to the panel made up of the triune God…so…that makes sense (unless he’s making the theological point that Jesus and the Holy Ghost aren’t God?). But more importantly, he talks about a “come to Jesus” moment vaguely and talks about denominations and baptism and tithing as if those are a big part of whether or not someone is saved. The question is simple: have you repented of your sins and accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord? I think the clear answer here for J. Hiram Harmless (the fictional defendant) is: no.

Though normally, I don’t have a lot of negative to say about an autobiography or memoir, understanding that the author has shared what they wanted to share, whether I wish there was more or less of anything. But, the dip into fiction aside, I will say, there are portions of this book that I had to skim. A lot was included about tennis and bridge, neither of which I’m particularly interested in (or know anything about at all, in the case of bridge). There are other personal details that I also skimmed, but I may just not be the right audience—I have a feeling that people interested in genealogy or personal family histories will enjoy those parts a lot more than I did.

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Book Review: Newsboy

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Newsboy: My Story of Hope and Second Chances
by John James

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

When John James first stepped down as the Newsboys lead singer in the late 90s, I was in high school. I had no idea what had led to this decision, but the band kept making great music, so I was content enough. Then, I remember very well the Newsboys concert my husband, son, and I attended (it had to have been around 2009-2011, since it was soon into the band’s new era), when John James stepped out onto the stage to talk. I’m pretty sure most of the people around us had no idea who he was, but I did. I had been to at least one concert before he left, owned several cassette tapes or CDs of the early Newsboys, and had seen Down Under the Big Top many times (I even had several of his lines memorized from the movie—still do, in fact, and still have the VHS tape). I hadn’t seen him in a long time and was excited he was there! He began to tell his story, talking about his addictions and sinful behavior that had led to his departure from the band. He talked about the moment he thought about killing himself, making a joke about it, and the people around us laughed. I didn’t find any humor in it, though; my husband and I stood there with mouths agape. I’m pretty sure I was holding back tears. I’m really glad I didn’t know about any of that back when I was a teen and the Newsboys was fasting becoming my favorite band (especially since the info circulating at the time was largely worse than the truth), only hearing some of the details after James had allowed Christ’s redemptive work to change his heart and his life.

This book expands a lot on what he shared during that concert over 10 years ago, and James is transparent and vulnerable in the text, not hiding or sugarcoating his choices and downward spiral. He starts with his childhood, a foundation that shows that he wasn’t just paying lip service to Christian tenets when he first started writing songs and speaking on stage as the frontman of the band. But like all of us who are sinners saved by grace, he made wrong choices, which he then compounded with more wrong choices and the decision to hide those choices from friends and loved ones. He talks of danger points, like disconnecting from a local church and neglecting one’s personal time with God, and he ends the book with a very hopeful note. I don’t think I’d call it a “happy ending,” exactly, because he is still suffering some consequences from how he lived for a while. But the major theme here, which is infused throughout the book, is that God can redeem those that are lost and is waiting to do so, if we’ll turn and repent. This book is definitely worth reading for anyone who is a fan of the Newsboys (in any iteration), is interested in stories about the Christian music industry, or is in a position where you believe you’ve fallen too far to be forgiven by God.

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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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