A Bounty of Books

Friend of Sinners: Why Jesus Cares More About Relationship Than Perfection by Rich Wilkerson, Jr. uses the Bible to highlight the fact that while on earth Jesus was more interested in relationships with people than rules and regulations. He is the same today as He was then.

Braving Sorrow Together: The Transformative Power of Faith and Community When Life is Hard by Ashleigh Slater is an introduction to the power of community during times of sorrow. Slater uses both personal anecdotes and stories from friends and acquaintances to discuss the various ways community can provide a lifeline during various kinds of suffering.

Slater discusses how faith, community, and specifically a faithful and consistent community of faith can be life giving during moments of suffering in big areas of life such as health, family, and work. She gives practical ideas of what was helpful to her during a particular season of suffering. If Slater or her family had not experienced a certain trial, she had a friend who has speak to that issue.

There is nothing new or earth shattering in Braving Sorrow Together. Everyone knows that having friends and family or some other kind of support makes the tough times easier to bear. However, there are some good practical suggestions for those looking for a place to start. Those who lead some kind of group or oversee groups for a church may find this book especially helpful.

I received this book free from Moody Publishers as part of their Moody Publishers Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, See Part 255

Reclaiming Hope: Lessons Learned in the Obama White House About the Future of Faith in America by Michael Wear tells the story of one young staffer in the Obama White House. Discussing both personal experience and policy, Wear attempts to put faith and politics, and their relationship to one another, in proper perspective.

Wear worked for both Obama presidential campaigns and worked as a staffer in The White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships during Obama's first term. Wear briefly describes his life before entering the political sphere, before moving on to chronologically discussing events he was involved with in the first campaign and term of the Obama administration. He then covers key policies involving faith and the faith community including abortion and same sex marriage. He then moves on to his involvement in the second presidential campaign and then ends with a broad discussion of how politics and faith can work together.

As a whole, the tone of Reclaiming Hope toward President Obama and his administration is even handed. The first half is almost all positive and almost has a feel of there being no room for criticism, but the second half addresses controversy and legitimate criticism, giving the book as a whole balance. The discussion about faith and politics is constructive and beneficial for any person of faith in America. Recognizing that ultimate hope lies with God, His people still have to engage with the structures of power here on earth. Wear seems to have managed that balance well in his own life, and has made a career of helping others do so as well.

Overall, I'd recommend Reclaiming Hope by Michael Wear to those interested in the faith of President Obama, and/or anyone interested in the intersection of faith and politics in America.

Blogging for Books provided this book to me for free in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255

Blogging for Books provided this book to me for free in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255

Night Driving: A Story of Faith in the Dark by Addie Zierman is the story of the author's two week car trip with her two young sons from Minnesota to Florida and back. Zierman interweaves the events of her trip with her internal struggle of a period of darkness in her faith.

This is Zierman's second memoir. Her first, When We Were on Fire (which I reviewed here) recounts her journey out of the Christian culture bubble from adolescence to adulthood. Night Driving picks up a couple of years later when Zierman finds herself once again sinking into darkness and trying to escape. She can no longer "feel" God and is desperate to avoid the pit she previously fell into. Her solution is to literally escape the dreary winter of Minnesota in exchange for the sunny beaches of Florida, and hope that at the same time her spirit escapes the winter it finds itself in.

Night Driving is just as readable as Zierman's first book. While I didn't find myself personally relating to this one quite as much as I did the first, I still found a familiar story with elements that resonated. It can be a struggle for those who were brought up to believe faith was all about feeling to not get discouraged and depressed with the feelings disappear. It's not only something one learns to deal with as one matures in their faith, but is also something that often requires a deliberate frame of reference mind shift. Zierman's journey through this shift is honest and encouraging for any who may find themselves in the same position.

I would recommend Night Driving to anyone who may find themselves in a "winter" in their faith. It would also be helpful for anyone who doesn't understand how discouraging that can look and feel. Zierman's honesty allows the reader to take what they can, and leave the rest. There is no pretense to wade through. Night Driving is another great addition to the collection of the millennial memoir.

Blogging for Books provided this book to me for free in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255

No Place to Hide: A Brain Surgeon's Long Journey Home from the Iraq War by W. Lee Warren, M.D. is a firsthand account of about four months of the Iraq war from the perspective of an Air Force trauma neurosurgeon. Stationed at Joint Base Balad, Iraq, Warren treated members of the U.S. military, members of the Iraqi National Guard and police force, and Iraqi civilians. Their problems varied from brain tumors to bullet wounds in the brain and varying degrees of destruction from IEDs.

Samson: A Savior Will Rise by Shawn Hoffman is one of the more difficult books I've ever read, because of the content. Most of the novel, which is based on true events, takes place in Auschwitz. Dr. Josef Mengele and his experiments are largely featured and several of the main character's family members are involved in them. The main character, Samson, and his family are amalgamations of people who were actually in the concentration camp at Auschwitz. The story follows Samson and his family from the incident that sends them to the camp, through the eventual demise of many of the characters, and the subsequent end of the war.

Hoffman does a good job of blending fact and fiction. While it is understood that the characters and the circumstances that brought them to the camp are fictional, everything else, including everything that happens in the camp is based on fact. When a particularly hard to believe incident occurs, Hoffman provides documentation that the incident actually happened in the form of a footnote at the bottom of the page. As familiar as I felt I was with the atrocities of the concentration camps, I was not prepared for some of the details of experiments Dr. Mengele performed. I appreciate the fact that Hoffman represented the historical figures with attention to historical detail.

The Holocaust in general, and what Dr. Mengele did in particular are difficult topics to discuss. Hoffman's creation of a fictional family that experiences these things actually helped ground them in reality for me. Some of them are so horrific and beyond human thought that had I read about them on their own, without the association of the narrative, I don't know that they would've had the same impact. Hoffman does a great job of providing historical fact while also telling a compelling story that raises important questions about faith and hope. While it is a difficult read that requires a mature reader, I would recommend Samson: A Savior Will Rise to anyone interested in WWII, the Holocaust, or simply important questions about how faith and hope are shaped among the worst of circumstances.

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255

The Searchers by Joseph Loconte is an examination of faith and doubt using the story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus as the unifying thread of the book. Using examples from history, film, and his own life, Loconte discusses the role of doubt in faith and how the truth and power of the resurrection is the defining event of Christian faith, both then and now.

The Searchers is a good read with some well made points, but I am disappointed with it for two reasons. One is that I feel the description provided on the back cover is slightly misleading. I expected this to be more about the story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus - more of an in-depth historical examination of that time, place, and circumstances. Instead, the story of the road to Emmaus serves more as a common thread that ties each chapter together, in a sometimes tenuous way.

The other disappointing aspect is that the book was somewhat redundant. The first half of each chapter was good and had good information, but the last half dragged and repeated itself. Overall, I don't know that I would recommend The Searchers, but neither would I advise someone not to read it. Perhaps having a better understanding of what it is actually about would improve the reading experience.

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255

I received this book free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishers as part of their Blogging for Books book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255

Empty Promises: The Truth About You, Your Desires, and the Lies You're Believing by Pete Wilson is an exceptional look at the idols that often fill Christian's lives. Wilson defines idols as "look[ing] to something that does not have God’s power to give me what only God has the power and authority to give" (page 5). He establishes the importance of examining these idols by pointing out that, "Idolatry isn’t simply a sin. It’s what is fundamentally wrong with the human heart”(page 9).

Unleashed by Erwin McManus is a re-release of his book The Barbarian Way. Serving as a primer to living a life of what most people would consider an extreme faith, the main thrust is God intended His people to live a wild life of faith, not the tame, safe, institutionalized, often fear based faith that characterizes the majority of American Christianity. Through personal anecdotes from his own life as well as his childrens' lives, McManus illustrates what a life of untamed faith can look like.

A couple of key quotes that sum up the message of Unleashed are: "His [God's] desire is not to conform us, but to transform us. Not to make us compliant, but to make us creative. His intent is never to domesticate us, but to liberate us" (p. 64). "The freedom to love and the freedom from fear make the barbarian an entirely different species within the whole of humanity. This may be the most extraordinary mark of the Spirit of God within the heart of humanity: the freedom to live out dreams greater than ourselves" (p. 102).

Unleashed is a quick and easy read. For anyone searching for a more meaningful faith, or looking to live a life based on absolute faith in the wildness of God and His promises instead of fear, it provides an encouraging example of those who are living that way. It made me stop and think, and re-examine my own life, to see if there were areas where I was letting fear dictate my actions and decisions, instead of the faith I profess.

There were a few things I would've changed about the book. One is that it seems extremely redundant after a bit; it almost seems as though everything could've been conveyed just as effectively in a long essay rather than a short book. Another thing is that the Scripture references are few and far between, and the extrapolations based on those used are a bit of a stretch sometimes. I believe there is truth in what McManus says, and what he proposes can be seen in Scripture, just not necessarily in the ones he picked, or the way he chose to present it.

Overall, I'd recommend this book to anyone who is seeking to break out of the standard mold of American Christianity.

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255