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2017

Book Reviews 2017
January 14, 20202017I first discovered Lesley Hazelton from the book “After the Prophet,” which discusses the Sunni-Shi’a split in post-Muhammad Islam. I couldn’t help but to read this book after enjoying “Prophet” so much. Jezebel was the Queen married to Ahab in ancient Israel where the Bible tells us a significant amount. She was foreign and not a Jew, a sin Ahab would pay dearly for. The Bible tells us she also had to deal with the pesky prophets Elijah and Elisha. With this information, Hazelton tries to convince us that Jezebel, despite what the Bible may convey to us, that Jezebel has been unfairly demonized. She wasn’t a “harlot” queen as they like to say, at least Hazelton argues. While the perspective is interesting, I believe where Hazelton goes too far is to assume that 21st century ethics and morals are embodied in an ancient peoples. For example, Hazelton argues that Jezebel was actually a powerful woman who acts and looks like CEO Cecil Richards who is being unfairly oppressed by the evils of a crazed religious man. Elijah, to Hazelton, is the enemy in this revisionists’ history; his weird dietary habits and uncouth clothing leave the reader thinking he was a crazed man who hears voices and not as much a prophet of God. I think Hazelton has an interesting perspective, but I ultimately think it is wrong. Hazelton does too much to personify the 21st century woman and in turn, does a disservice to the ancient peoples. [...]
January 14, 20202017According to Amazon, “Hillbilly Elegy” was rated as the #1 New York Times Bestsellers on books that explain Donald Trump’s incredible upset in the Presidential Election this year. I’m not sure I’d go that far, but that information is indicative of what kind of book this is. First of all, it’s a memoir. J.D. Vance grew up in Kentucky but moved later to Ohio. His family consists of “hillbillies” including Mamaw and Papaw (that’s grandmother and grandfather for those of you not fluent in hillbilly). The story starts with unprecedented optimism: the post-war world gave rise to a strong economy and most importantly, a strong middle class. But as time passed, jobs became scarce. Particularly in the “rust belt” of places like Ohio. The middle class shrunk and dysfunction abounded. The nuclear family took possibly one of the hardest hits, something that Vance constantly speaks about. Because J.D. Vance’s parents were divorced. He lived with his mom and didn’t see his dad consistently until early in his teen years. His mom’s relationships were, to say in the least, dysfunctional. Marriage and divorce, boyfriends and dating, were commonplace for her throughout J.D.’s childhood and into adulthood. The strongest foundational part of J.D’s life was his Mamaw and Papaw who, through most of his life, lived close by and even next door. Whenever his mom went through some emotional crisis, J.D. could count on his grandparents to host him through the fight. They dealt with their own demons as well. Papaw was an alcoholic for some of J.D’s early childhood. Mamaw had a colorful vocabulary and a no nonsense attitude that could bring even the most hardened man to his knees. J.D. Vance joined the Marine Corps to get away from his family life. And he went on to be very successful. After a four year tour in the Marine Corps as a Public Affairs Marine at Cherry Point, he went to Ohio State University and then transferred to law school at Yale. This book is more than a memoir. It is a sad critique on the decline of the middle class. But even more, it says so much about the loss of the family. I was struck about a few things Vance says that are so profound. He says that he goes to the gym, shops at Whole Foods, and enjoys a fulfilling and lush life. And there’s nothing inherently wrong about any of those things. But what J.D. points out so eloquently through his rags-to-riches life story is that the rich and powerful don’t really understand what being poor means. There are so out of touch with how most people live. And that, I think, is the real message behind this story. There’s humor, there’s pain, a little bit of everything for everyone in this little book. [...]
January 14, 20202017Peter Enns is a controversial figure. And this book is probably controversial too. Although what is not controversial is Joe Barrett, the narrator for the audiobook version of this book. While there is no small amount of controversy that even stems from this book (for example, the Amazon reviews feature Rob Bell and Brian McLaren), I try to keep an open mind about such things. Which is why I read this book. I wanted to hear Peter Enns’ arguments. And now that I’ve heard them, I’ll take some things and leave others. And that’s probably what has stymied my book reviews up until now. As of May, I’ve read over 35 books. But every time I come back to review this particular book, I find myself lacking the clarity to properly review it. It’s a dread that has made me cease to want to write about the controversy. But I figure I’ve waited long enough. Here are some thoughts: Peter Enns believes that Evangelicals have spent so much time defending the Bible to “protect” it, they have inadvertently quashed its meaning. What this means is that we are so concerned with our interpretation of the Bible being the correct way, we have pushed anything outside of that periphery to heresy. Enns, I believe, means well. He argues that there are some things we do not wish to accept about the Bible. One of the chapters, he focuses on how the ancient Hebrew people were warriors who lived in a society of barbarism. It would only make sense that their perception of God would be in that same vein. This is perhaps why the Bible contains what we feel is out of touch with our Western sensibilities in Exodus and Joshua with the slaughtering of thousands in a type of crusade. I think there is some merit to this conclusion, but I think Enns goes too far in some regards. I definitely agree with the main premise: there are times where Evangelicals won’t accept the cultural and historical background to understanding and interpreting the Bible. But I think we must be careful on this spectrum. I believe that Enns goes too far in his various interpretations of scripture that relies perhaps too heavily on evidence. For example, he believes since there is no archeological evidence of a mass exodus of people in the wilderness outside of Egypt, it perhaps didn’t happen. He also believes that Jesus radically manipulated Old Testament scripture to fit a very slim, or perhaps farfetched, interpretation. Here are some examples where I think Enns is off the mark. However, I believe he is on point with some things. For example, I think it’s reasonable to assume, and within orthodoxy, to understand the perspective of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in their writings of the Gospel. They were writing down history as they understood it. They probably paraphrased and recalled certain events in a strange order or in a different way. These imperfections do not necessitate that the Bible is flawed or wrong; rather, they recorded history in the way they understood it. That’s something I feel Evangelicals miss a lot in a day and age where we are obsessed with defending the veracity of the Bible. If this book has taught me anything, it is that we can have a high view of the Bible while understanding it in the culture and context it was written in, and more importantly, who it was written to. Crucify him (figuratively) or love him, Peter Enns is controversial. But I’m glad I read this book that gave me a unique perspective on these topics. [...]

Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City

C. S. Lewis’s “Mere Christianity”: A Biography

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2017)

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2017)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2017)

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: Parts One and Two

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis

The Bible Tells Me So: Why Defending Scripture Has Made Us Unable to Read It

Bop Apocalypse: Jazz, Race, the Beats, and Drugs

We Are Legion (We Are Bob) (Bobiverse #1)

Star Trek the Next Generation: Headlong Flight 

After the Prophet: The Epic Story of the Shia-Sunni Split in Islam (2017)

Silence

Star Trek: Prey: Hell’s Heart 

Sleeping Giants (Themis Files #1)

Jonathan Edwards

Columbus Day (Expeditionary Force Book #1)

Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity

Inside Delta Force: The Story of America’s Elite Counterterrorist Unit

SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome (2017)

SpecOps (Expeditionary Force Book #2)

A Confederacy of Dunces (2017)

Waking Gods (Themis Files #2)

Bloodlines: Race, Cross, and the Christian

Star Wars: Thrawn: Thrawn

Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy: Heir to the Empire

Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy: Dark Forces Rising

Star Wars: The Thrawn Trilogy: The Last Command

Jezebel: The Untold Story Of The Bible’s Harlot Queen

Agnostic: A Spirited Manifesto

The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad

Star Wars: Aftermath

Star Trek: Prey: The Jackal’s Trick

12 Way Your Phone Is Changing You

Star Trek: Hearts and Minds

Six Days of War: June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East

Steve Jobs

Wine. All the Time.: The Casual Guide to Confident Drinking

Huế 1968: A Turning Point of the American War in Vietnam

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking

Outliers: The Story of Success

iGen: Why Today’s Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy–and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood–and What That Means for the Rest of Us

Leonardo and the Last Supper

Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling

Ranger Games: A Story of Soldiers, Family and an Inexplicable Crime

Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games Are Made

The Maltese Falcon

The Interdependency: The Collapsing Empire

The Fold

Paradox Bound

Escape from Reason: A Penetrating Analysis of Trends in Modern Thought

14

Leonardo Da Vinci

An Exorcist Tells His Story

The Storm Before the Storm: The Beginning of the End of the Roman Republic

The Swerve: How the World Became Modern

Einstein: His Life and Universe

Artemis

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