• Lost in the Barrens © 1956
• M&S Paperback (McClelland & Stewart) © 1989
• 244 pages

This is juvenile fiction at its finest. Mowat used his experience of life in the Barrens of Northern Canada (see: People of the Deer & The Desperate People) to tell an adventure story about a white city-boy and a young Cree making big decisions and surviving off he land.

The pacing is perfect, and the content’s meaty enough to enjoy this book even as an adult. I dare you to read it without imagining yourself in those situations. The book certainly deserved its 1958 CLA Children’s Book of the Year award.

As I read it I had this vague sense of déjà vu. I suspect one of my grade-school teachers might have read this to our class. I can hardly wait until my three-year-old son is old enough to enjoy it when I read it to him.

• Beyond Opinion: Living the Faith We Defend © 2007
• Thomas Nelson
• 360 pages

Beyond Opinion is a collection of essays on defending the faith. While Ravi Zacharias only wrote 4 of the chapters (including the introduction and conclusion), almost every other author is a member of his ministry (RZIM).

The book is divided into two sections:

1. Giving an Answer [traditional apologetics]
2. Internalizing the Questions and Answers [how our lives can line up with our words]

The second half of the book is the most valuable. Jeyachandran’s meditations on the Trinity were especially thought-provoking. I found it interesting that the second half of the book is the part that lined up with the entire volume’s subtitle, “Living the Faith We Defend”.

The first half was a mixed bag. When the author respected the challenger (e.g. Alister McGrath on Atheism, or Jeyachandran on Eastern Religions), there was a lot of insight and apologetic information. On the other hand, when the author disdained the challenger (e.g. Amy Orr-Ewing on Postmodernism, or Sam Soloman on Islam), the tone was arrogant and off-putting.

This book is a hearty read. The 360 pages are packed with fine print. That said, if you’re a Believer interested in defending your faith by both your words and your lifestyle, this book is an excellent read.

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

• The Age of Fable © 1855
• The Heritage Press (with additions © 1942)
• 369 pages

Bulfinch’s Age of Fable is a classic reference work that lives up to its reputation. The book is packed with anecdotes of deities, monsters, and heroes, some of whom I had never heard of before. Thanks to the “Index of Names”, it will be my first reference when I come across an unfamiliar character (okay, my second after Wikipedia).

The book attempted to do two things: acquaint the reader with the legends, and show how they are alluded to in poetry. While the legends were terse and informative, I found the poetry references tedious and arbitrary.

I was also confused by the scope of the book. The contents are overwhelmingly stacked toward Greek and Roman mythology, but there’s also chapters on Egyptian, Norse, and even Eastern myths. These chapters felt like unnecessary additions that didn’t do justice to their subject matter.

I should also say that my edition (I scanned my own cover, above) is beautiful. The fabric wrapping on the hardcover is embossed. The maps inside both covers are printed in two colours. Even the pages themselves are printed on high quality paper. Unfortunately, this edition isn’t in print—the link directs to a mere Dover Thrift edition.

• The Crucible (Penguin Classics) © 1952
• Penguin
• 152 pages

There’s something refreshing about reading plays (something I don’t do nearly enough). It takes some serious literary wizardry to tell a compelling story within a mere few hours of dialogue.

Dialogue is (obviously) the foundation of any play, and Miller’s is snappy and engaging. It doesn’t take long to lose yourself in a mental picture of the ongoing discussions, arguments, and commiserations. Many of the lines are quote-worthy, especially this one.

The historical setting is the Salem Witch trials—a dark and tragic era of American history. The fourth act in particular brings this depravity to a head. I could almost hear the fifth movement of Berlioz’ Symphonie Fantastique echoing in the background while I read it.

You can’t go wrong with Arthur Miller.

• Following Jesus © 1994
• Eerdmans
• 114 pages

I bought this book from Amazon.com under the mistaken impression that it was published in 2009. There’s still nothing to indicate different on the website. Just to be clear, this collection of sermons which was loosely transformed into a book was first published in 1994. The Eerdmans paperback version selling on Amazon was printed in 2009.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get to the book. It’s divided into two sections. The first six sermons take one whole book of the Bible per message and speak about the main point the author is trying to get across. The messages are okay, but they’re nothing special.

The second six sermons really shine. They’re written on classic N. T. Wright themes: resurrection, mind, temptation, hell, heaven, and new life. These messages were filled with excitement and challenge. You can really tell which themes Wright was passionate about back at the genesis of his Christian Origins series.

Buy the book, but feel free to skim the first half!

• The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: Travels Through My Childhood © 2006
• Black Swan © 2007
• 403 pages

This book chronicles the early years of The Thunderbolt Kid: Bryson’s childhood alter-ego who terrorized anyone who annoyed him. It’s Bryson at his absolute finest. Even though his childhood happened in the 50s, I had no problem identifying with his experience.

Bryson is laugh-out-loud funny. I don’t mean that in the watered-down LOL variety, either. I actually laughed out loud a number of times. (It made it difficult to read in bed while my wife was trying to sleep.)

Some of his other books suffered from too much filler, not enough killer. Fortunately, that was not the case here. Although the volume’s 400 pages, the font-size is relatively large. This is a compelling joy-ride through 1950s Americana. Every chapter is a gem.

• Shadowrise: Volume Three of Shadowmarch © 2010
• DAW
• 564 pages

He did it again. Williams took a nice traditional trilogy and spun it into four books. (Douglas Adams would be proud.) It’s difficult to be frustrated with him, though, since this series is so riveting you don’t want it to end. All the elements that made this series great (angry fairies, the half-sane king who believes he’s a god, tunnels under the castle and their inhabitants, life behind the shadowline, legends coming to life) get more interesting in this book.

My only frustration is with Princess Briony. Her storyline wasn’t boring so much as irritating. When it was getting late and I needed to put the book down, I invariably closed the covers when the next chapter began with her. Her plot-line better pay off in volume four!

Shadowrise truly is half of the third book in the trilogy. Unlike how Brandon Sanderson retooled Jordan’s final work to make three semi-self-contained volumes, Williams just ended the book half-way through. Thankfully we will not have to wait long for the last final installment.

• The Faces of Jesus: A Life Story © 1974, 2005
• Paraclete Press
• 97 pages

The Faces of Jesus is Buechner’s brief survey of Jesus’ life. He takes the reader through the important moments of Jesus’ life with a poet’s eye for beauty.

Unfortunately, the style of writing that so amazed me in Now and Then seemed largely absent here. It could have been my familiarity with the subject matter, but this book left me largely unmoved. To be sure, there were moments of poetic brilliance (this is Buechner we’re talking about!)—but they seemed few and far between.

I must add that Paraclete Press didn’t do the book any favors by selecting different sized fonts seemingly at random. It almost felt like they were stretching the material to make (almost) 100 pages.

I’ll keep reading Buechner, but my prior enthusiasm has been slightly dampened.

• Prayer (50th Anniversary Edition) © 1952
• Westminster Press
• 78 pages

I’m no expert on Barth. I have, however, read Luther and Calvin on the Lord’s Prayer. This book was a nice little survey of their thought set in a devotional tone. It’s actually the translation of an adaptation of three lectures Barth gave at Neuchâtel.

This is the sort of book that packs a lot of meaning into a few words. Don’t let its 78 pages fool you into thinking it’s a lightweight. The words of the translation (by Sara F. Terrien) are carefully weighed and full of beauty.

Take this little book on your next paddling trip and meditate on the Lord’s prayer as you go.

• Mission in the Old Testament: Israel as a Light to the Nations © 2000
• Baker Books
• 101 pages

Israel had a purpose before the days of Jesus that was more than simply living contentedly in their Country and hurling prophetic judgment at foreigners. There is a consistent theme running through the Old Testament that God’s choice of Israel was intended to benefit the world. Kaiser takes this theme seriously and points out a number of places where we see it come to light.

This book is no where near comprehensive. In fact, I was a little disappointed that even the scriptures he chose to focus on seemed quite random. If you’re interested in this theme, Kaiser’s little book will whet your appetite.

I was unpleasantly surprised by one of his theological assertions. He suggested that Nahum wasn’t genuinely converted. Here’s Nahum’ words:

Now I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel. (2 Kings 5:15, NRSV)

I’m not sure whether we should understand that as conversion or not, but what bothered me was Kaiser’s criteria for conversion in the Old Testament. Building on the New Testament theme that there is salvation in no other name but Jesus, he teaches that conversion in the Old Testament required a belief in the seed of Abraham that would come to eventually crush the serpent’s head (read: Jesus). That argument seems anachronistic and nit-picky to me. Is not faith in YHWH enough in the Old Testament? Do not the forms of worship foreshadow the sacrifice of Jesus?

This book got me thinking about an important theme—Old Testament mission—but left me searching for more.