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• The Napoleon of Notting Hill © 1904
• Wordsworth © 1996
• 129 pages

Futurists fall into two categories: those who predict the collapse of civilization (Wells, Orwell, Atwood), and those who anticipate sunshine and lollipops (Kurzwiel, The Jetsons). Chesterton invented a new category. In 1904, he wrote a novel about a future eight decades later where everything remained the same. The only thing that increased was apathy.

The two main characters in the narrative represented two elements that make the world go ’round: extreme humor and extreme seriousness. Their interplay (especially in the last chapter) is fascinating.

This is one of Chesterton’s first novels. It’s not as polished as The Man Who Was Thursday or even The Club of Queer Trades. It is still well worth reading. There are quotable lines on almost every page that mark this as vintage Chesterton.

I’m reading Benson’s little book on liturgical prayer, In Constant Prayer. In it he lays bare the secret to a successful life of prayer.

The secret to a life of prayer, by and large, is showing up.

Awesome.

In this chapter we move from Good Friday to Easter Sunday. Just what is the relationship between Jesus’ death and resurrection? We know that his death is Paul’s most important theme—is his resurrection an afterthought or something more significant?

. . .

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• Isaac Newton (Christian Encounters Series) © 2010
• Thomas Nelson
• 183 pages

Thomas Nelson Publishers has just introduced a series of biographies entitled, “Christian Encounters”. I just finished reading Mitch Stokes’ work on the life of Isaac Newton. While I cannot yet speak for the other books in the series, this volume is a resounding success. Stokes relates the life of Newton in a concise manner that is neither simplistic nor overly complex.

The pacing of the work is great. You will read about all the major events of Newton’s life—not just the famous ones. It’s inspiring to see how his life unfolded. The man who barely escaped the farm became the author of one of the greatest scientific books of all time (Principia). The man who craved solitude ended up managing a workforce charged with replacing the currency of a nation.

I was also pleasantly surprised by the lack of sermonizing. I’m a pastor, but the last thing I wanted to read was a biography that tried to force this historic figure into modern Christianity modes of thought. Newton was clearly a believer, but unlike much of modern Christendom, he didn’t confine his faith to a religious sphere.

Whether you’re a Christian or not, this work is an excellent brief introduction to a remarkable man.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free as a member of Thomas Nelson’s Booksneeze program.

• Eating the Dinosaur © 2009
• Scribner (Simon & Schuster)
• 245 pages

If you’ve ever wondered what makes Klosterman’s books so compelling, the secret is out: he’s honest. In a culture so obsessed with following trends and enjoying things because we’re told to, Klosterman is honest with what he likes and dislikes. That is what makes this collection of essays so compelling.

He covers a lot of ground here: Garth Brooks, Time Travel, Abba, Football, Technology, and the list goes on. He has an ability to compare two seemingly unrelated things to unearth profound connections. I’ll never think about David Koresh without the flannel-clad image of Kurt Cobain in the back of my head again!

The last essay clinched the collection for me. He confessed his belief that technology is degrading our relationships, along with his inability to resist its pull. I’m typing this review on a Dell laptop in a Wordpress interface that will automatically publish it in a month or so. Touché, Klosterman, touché.

Bach’s always been one of my favourite composers. When I stumbled across a two-volume work on Bach by Schweitzer, I couldn’t resist. In the Second Volume, Schweitzer offered some good comments on the role of various arts in the artist.

Every artistic idea is complex in quality until the moment when it finds definite expression. Neither in painting, nor in music, nor in poetry is there such a thing as an absolute art that can be regarded as the norm, enabling us to brand all others as false, for in every artist there dwells another, who wishes to have his own say in the matter, the difference being that in one his activity is obtrusive, and in another hardly noticeable. Herein resides the whole distinction. Art in itself is neither painting nor poetry nor music, but an act of creation in which all three coöperate.

• The Complete Peanuts 1961-1962 © 2006
• Fantagraphics Books
• 325 pages

Schulz penned 17,897 daily comic strips. Fantagraphics is doing the world a great service by collecting and publishing the entire run in a series of books. Here are a few of the things that I loved about this volume:

• Schroeder’s on the cover. The piano player’s getting some front-cover respect!
• Diana Krall wrote a beautiful little introduction.
• I love the long-term development of various themes like the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown’s baseball woes, and Snoopy’s hospitality towards his fine feathered friends.
• There’s an excellent Sunday gag on Linus and the Dead Sea Scrolls. Seriously, look it up!

Like the volumes that preceded it, these two years of the Schulz cannon were engaging and enjoyable. Now on to 1963.

For a while in North American Christendom you had to sport a goatee to be a youth pastor. That trend has been eclipsed by the soul-patch. True, they’ve been trendy for a while now, but in lieu of any other way to trim your facial hair, they’re still tagging along.

Klosterman’s latest book is fantastic. While there’s plenty of wisdom and thought-provoking arguments in the essays, it’s his quips about culture that made me laugh out loud (from Eating the Dinosaur):

His decision to grow a soul patch pretty much said it all: In the ten-thousand-year history of facial hair, no one has ever looked nonidiotic with a soul patch.

• Tithing: Test Me in This (The Ancient Practices Series) © 2010
• Thomas Nelson
• 156 pages

Tithing is the story of 11 different people or couples who find that ancient practice to be an important part of their spiritual lives. The strength of this book lies in the diversity of its subjects. You’ll find everyone from fundamentalists to liberals between these covers, which only lends strength to the book’s main point: tithing is an important practice today. One of the chapters even centers on the tithing practices of a Jewish Rabbi. Since this book series emphasizes the seven practices that Christianity picked up from Judaism, his perspective is particularly valuable.

LeBlanc’s prose is effortless—it takes no time at all to dissolve into the situations you’re reading about. In fact, each chapter reads like a well written magazine article. I just wished there was more to tie the articles together. A survey of the scriptures that speak of tithing, stewardship, and generosity would have been a nice addition. Hearing how the saints throughout history practiced would have been helpful as well.

Unfortunately, the message became repetitive after a while. You can only hear so much, “I was poor, but God convicted me to tithe, and now I’m better,” before you crave something a little more substantial. Does this message work, worldwide? How does the persecuted church, or the third-world church practice tithing?

All that said, this book is a good motivational tool to start people on their tithing journey.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free as a member of Thomas Nelson’s Booksneeze program.

• The Final Empire (Mistborn, Book 1) © 2006
• Tor
• 657 pages

After reading Sanderson’s treatment of Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time, I knew I had to read more. Fortunately, The Owl Pen (my local second hand bookstore in Bracebridge, Ontario) had a used paperback in stock.

The Final Empire (or: Mistborn) is a story with great mechanics that lacks a little polish. Sanderson invented a magic system that is believable and compelling. He cleverly foreshadows plot twists that will leave you with a sense of satisfaction when it all plays out.

Unfortunately, the characters are a little too stereotyped to be wholly believable. Also, some of the interplay between characters became ponderous. I found myself skimming some of the dialogue to get to the next bit of action. That said, the pace was great and the plot was interesting enough for me to pick up the following volumes of the trilogy.

It’s clear that Sanderson is honing his craft with these books. I expect him to be a major force in the epic fantasy genre.