Here’s a review of my reading material during 2023.
Absolutely outstanding *****
Very good ****
A decent read ***
Hmm, OK **
Don't bother *
The Litigators (John Grisham) ***
Small town street lawyer partnership representing a motley collection of individuals takes on huge, rich, ultra-smart legal firm defending big pharma in litigation over a cholesterol-reducing drug that supposedly causes heart conditions. The potentially lucrative case collapses when a series of independent studies show the drug to be perfectly safe. There are a number of sections that make you laugh out loud when the sheer ineptness of the plaintiff’s case sinks to Basil Fawlty and Manuel levels of incompetence but there is no late twist and therefore no surprise about the verdict. The story wraps up with a happy ending when another plot thread suddenly accelerates to a conclusion, but most readers will have seen that coming. All in all, not your absolute classic John Grisham.
Straight to the Heart of Genesis: 60 Bite-Sized Insights (Phil Moore) ***
I don’t think this is the best book in this series, but it is still a pretty good read. Overall, this book does not get bogged down in faith v science discussions and Phil tends towards a literal six 24-hour day creation. Arguably the text reads most naturally that way so I never belittle this view, but it’s not my own and I don’t think it is an indisputable interpretation of Genesis 1 and 2. I love the way Phil Moore sees pointers to Jesus throughout the Old Testament and there are perceptive insights all the way through this book on how it is all about a Messiah, particularly one who would save through blood sacrifice.
I’d Like You More if You Were More Like Me (John Ortberg) **
I love John Ortberg; he usually writes with penetrating spiritual insight, self-deprecating and clever humour, and quirky originality. But this book about Intimacy mostly just bored me. In fact, I struggled to finish it. If you want a good John Ortberg book, go to If You Want to Walk on Water You’ve Got to Get Out of the Boat, When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box, God Is Closer Than You Think and Who Is this Man? Don’t bother with this one is my advice.
Straight to the Heart of Moses: 60 Bite-Sized Insights (Phil Moore) ***
Moses covers Exodus to Deuteronomy so it walks through long and detailed descriptions of the tabernacle, exhaustive legislation on sacrifice, bodily emissions and mildew besides comprehensive genealogies and censuses. Phil’s guiding thought throughout is that these books are about making the invisible God visible. Sometimes the passages covered in one chapter of the book are a dozen or more chapters long so it can be a bit of a stretch if you’re reading it in a month, but there is enough here to keep you engaged in what, for many 21st Century Christians is one of the more impenetrable and baffling blocks of Scripture.
The God I Don’t Understand: Reflections on Tough Questions of Faith (Christopher J. H. Wright) *****
This is really excellent. I picked this up at a time when my church was reeling from the deaths of two women in their thirties within the space of 6 months. Wright is a good Bible scholar, successor to John Stott at the Langham Partnership, so sound as a pound. He covers the theme of suffering generally, and the extermination of the Canaanites particularly as perhaps the most disturbing narrative in Scripture for followers of the Prince of Peace. He also looks in depth at the cross; why would God do that for me? Is it just and right that God’s terrible wrath falls on his innocent Son? The book ends with some eschatological questions on Christ’s return, judgement, the end of the world and the new creation. Really well written and very helpful for making sense of some bewildering puzzles in the life of faith.
Is Easter Unbelievable? Four Questions Everyone Should Ask About the Resurrection Story (Rebecca McLaughlin) ***
A very short ‘giveaway’ book, ideally at Easter outreach events. I liked it; it’s well-designed, interesting to read, strong on contemporary illustration (especially cinematic) and theologically sound. Probably best suited for a middle-class readership (it’s got a Radio 4 feel to it), it’s intelligently thought through and clearly explained.
Straight to the Heart of 1 and 2 Kings: 60 Bite-Sized Insights (Phil Moore) ***
The theme of this Straight to the Heart book is ‘the story behind the story’ where Phil Moore tries to trace the big picture narrative - what God was doing to prepare his people for their Messiah - behind the rising and falling of the two monarchies of Israel and Judah from King Solomon to the Exile in 587 BC. His grasp of history, especially the way the prophets interact with the monarchy and society, is a real help, as is his commentary on the way 1 and 2 Kings features Elijah and Elisha right in the middle of the book (it was originally one volume with space for it all on one scroll in Hebrew, written without vowels, but when translated into Greek had to be divided in two due to the extra space required by an alphabet with vowels.)
Behind the Songs (Graham Kendrick with Clive Price) **
I have often been thankful for Graham Kendrick’s song writing, especially from the mid-1980s to mid-1990s which I think was his golden era. This coffee table book, including lots of photos, was put together in 2000 and is a selection of his songs with a commentary on why they were written and occasionally how they were received. There are some interesting insights into the song writing process, the changing environment of the UK Church in the decades leading up to the millennium, and the ins and outs of his career between writing, recording and performing. One personal disappointment; most of my favourite Kendrick songs didn’t feature in the book and quite a few did that I’d never heard of.
1 Corinthians for You: Thrilling You with How Grace Changes Lives (Andrew Wilson) ****
Andrew’s doctorate was on 1 Corinthians so he knows his stuff and digs down into the letter in a very helpful way. Every chapter comes in two halves, with study questions at the end of each. I read this about the same time as Phil Moore’s Straight to the Heart and found this to be a better book, though it only covers 1 Corinthians. But there’s a lot in that first letter. As Andrew says, it starts with the cross and ends with the resurrection. In between, it’s packed with soap opera issues like factions, incest, scandal, lawsuits, idolatry, homosexuality and drunkenness. In addition, there are rows about spiritual gifts and confusion over essential doctrine. It’s all covered intelligently in this study guide.
The Guardians (John Grisham) ****
John Grisham is a board member of the Innocence Project, which advocates and campaigns to exonerate wrongly convicted prisoners on the basis of DNA evidence. This book is about a fictional non-profit called The Guardians who do similar work, a handful of cases at a time due to lack of funds, and it focuses on two cases in particular. As they investigate the case of a black man, 22 years in jail and on death row, the real baddies get wind of it and will stop at nothing to shut down the investigation and leave no trace.
The Judge’s List (John Grisham) ***
A classic Grisham with a brilliant plot. There’s a seral killer on the loose. A daughter of one of his first victims works in the shadows to try and identify a common denominator between all the murders and it turns out to be a High Court judge. His list is of people who have slighted him, jilted him, passed him over for promotions and so on. The thing is, he is very, very clever, knows all about forensics, computer hacking, police practice and security measures, and he leaves no trace. And, being in the justice system, he knows when someone is onto him. And he works out who it is. What should have been a nail-biting ending turns out to be pretty lame though. This could easily have been a five-star, one of Grisham’s very best, but for the damp squib conclusion, I’m going with three. And I’m feeling generous today.
The Hard Way (Lee Child) ****
My first Jack Reacher book; I had heard a lot about them and found this on a used books shelf on holiday in Hungary. (Fortunately, it was in English). This one is about the kidnap of a rich man’s wife and Lee Child does a great job of keeping the plot moving and keeping you guessing. The rich man also happens to be a shady arms dealer with plenty of firepower at his beck and call. It starts in New York City and ends with a shoot-out in rural Norfolk and, as in any Hollywood blockbuster, the good guy comes out unscathed. He has, after all, another big adventure ahead of him where he will doubtless solve a mystery, outthink everyone else with almost supernatural prescience, beat up some more villains and have a steamy night or two with the main female character whom he will instantly forget. I did not warm to Reacher as a character as many do, but the plot for The Hard Way is a well-worked thriller.
Kevin DeYoung - What Does the Bible Really Teach About Homosexuality? ****
You know what you’re going to get from someone associated with The Gospel Coalition on this subject and there were no surprises as to where this ends up as an argument. What is surprising is where it starts; the Garden of Eden, reminding us that the default attitude of human beings is rebellion against God and choosing our own ways over his. DeYoung goes on to discuss in the first half of his book all the passages in the Bible that address same-sex sex with his customary theological clarity and rigour. The second half gives a response to some of the most frequently raised contemporary questions, given scripture’s unambiguous and unequivocal message on the subject. At 160 pages, this is not the last word in the subject, but it is a pretty useful summary of theauthentic Christian reply to the question on the cover of the book. DeYoung articulates succinctly why in 2018 I decided the Church of England could no longer be home.
What Does It Mean to Fear the Lord? The Surprising Good News of the Fear of the Lord (Michael Reeves) ****
When you consider that the Bible says several times that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, it is surprising how few books there are on the subject and how little interest there is in it from preachers. I mean, when did you last hear a sermon on fearing God? Have you ever heard one? Michael Reeves’ profound little book is a delight. He very helpfully clarifies how similar-sounding words like “awe” and “reverence” do not quite do justice to what the fear of the Lord is and how the fear of the Lord is beautifully completed in Christ. One to read slowly and savour.
Night School (Lee Child) ***
When on holiday in Norfolk following Ben’s wedding, I thought I’d take a second Jack Reacher and this one was being given away so it was free. I think it will be my last. It’s not that the plot was poor or the pace was slow or the prose was laboured. It ticks all the boxes of an international best-seller. This one, set pre-911, has a radical islamist sleeper cell in Hamburg hatching a nefarious plot. That in itself is a great idea. Will this be a ‘what-if?’ I won’t give away any spoilers. I’ll just say that our hero emerges unscathed. He has, after all, another big adventure ahead of him where he will doubtless solve a mystery, outthink everyone else with almost supernatural prescience, beat up some more villains and have a steamy night or two with the main female character whom he will instantly forget. I really don’t like Jack Reacher as a hero and I don’t want to read about him anymore.
Straight to the Heart of Jeremiah and Ezekiel: 60 Bite-Sized Insights (Phil Moore) ****
Jeremiah and Ezekiel are among the two books in the Bible that I have had most trouble getting a grasp on over the years, so I was eager for a guided tour from the Straight to the Heart series. Reading through Jeremiah and Ezekiel (and Lamentation) there are occasional shafts of light (the new covenant, ‘I have plans to prosper you’, the valley of dry bones and the ever-deepening, life-giving river) but these books are long, mostly about terrible, inescapable doom, and occasionally baffling (strange apocalyptic visions, Gog and Magog, and 7 long chapters on a temple that has never been built, anyone?) Phil Moore’s overarching theme for these prophetic books, which relate to each other because they overlap in time, is that only radical surgery can save the desperately sick patient that is Judah in its final sordid years leading up to God’s judgement - its destruction by Babylon. It really helped me get a grip on the meaning in context of these prophets and their abiding value for a decadent Western church seemingly as much under God’s wrath as Judah was in the late sixth century BC.
Surprised by Jesus: Subversive Grace in the Four Gospels – Dane Ortlund *****
Dane Ortlund is fast becoming one of my favourite authors. This book is a real feast. It shows brilliantly how Jesus utterly upsets and confounds expectations in four different ways as portrayed in the four Gospels. In Matthew, Jesus castigates the self-congratulating morally scrupulous but leaves the door open to the morally broken, showing categorically that religion is not the answer. In Mark, Jesus is rightfully crowned king but by descending to the depths of a condemned criminal. In Luke, Jesus creates a community where the insiders are excluded, and outsiders are welcomed in. And in John, Jesus’ identity - his very person - blows everyone’s mind as the mighty creator of all walks our world in flesh and blood. Surprised by Jesus is packed with stunning insight and healthy, sound doctrine. Absolutely my kind of book.
Straight to the Heart of Daniel and Esther: 60 Bite-Sized Insights (Phil Moore) ****
Daniel is God’s man in Babylon and Esther is God’s woman in Persia, both faithful Jews outnumbered and tested in a foreign and hostile environment. In both cases (and for beleaguered Christians in an increasingly antagonistic Western culture) the message is ‘God has put you here.’ This is an excellent accompaniment to these two roughly contemporaneous books.
Is Christmas Unbelievable? Four Questions Everyone Should Ask About the World's Most Famous Story (Rebecca McLaughlin) **
Like the Easter book (see above) this is a very short ‘giveaway’. Personally, I found this one a little harder to relate to, partly because it starts and keeps returning to a scene from Doctor Who as a way into the Christmas story. Unfortunately, I care very little for Doctor Who. This is also for a Radio 4 readership but I don’t think many starting out sceptical would be convinced by this book which is too brief to deal with serious objections.
The Bible (NIV) *****
Once again, I saw wonderful things I had never seen before. This year, I was struck by the stark and numerous parallels between the warnings of Old Testament history/prophecy for wayward Israel and the decline so apparent in the church in the West. I marvelled once again at how the Bible is the only book in the world that tells us not only about what used to happen, but what always happens! I found the Gospel of John unusually vivid and clear this time round. And in the year I was asked to be an elder in my church, I paid particular attention to the teaching about leadership in the New Testament epistles and found it had special resonance for me.
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