I love books. I love to read, listen to, and collect books. Books make us better humans. What you’ll find here is a current list of the books I’ve completed thus far in 2021. I give you the title and author of the book, as well as a personal rating out of 10, and perhaps a quick comment about the book. I’ll also add that previous few years.
2021 List
1. A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens, 8/10 (“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…”)
2. 1984, George Orwell, 9/10 (Haunting. WAR IS PEACE. FREEDOM IS SLAVERY. IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH.)
3. The Makers Versus the Takers: What Jesus Really Said About Social Justice and Economics, Jerry Bower, 10/10 (Excellent.)
4. Why Children Matter, Douglas Wilson, 8.5/10 (Read/ with the wife.)
5. The Greatest Fight in the World, Charles Spurgeon, 8/10
6. Killing Floor, Lee Child, 6/10
2020 List
| 1. The Magician’s Nephew, C.S. Lewis, 10/10 | |
| 2. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis 9/10 | |
| 3. The Horse and His Boy, C.S. Lewis, 10/10 (best one in the series) | |
| 4. Prince Caspian, C.S. Lewis, 8/10 | |
| 5. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, C.S. Lewis, 9/10 (Adventure – can’t wait to read to my children) | |
| 6. The Silver Chair, C.S. Lewis, 9/10 | |
| 7. The Final Battle, C.S. Lewis, 10/10 (What will heaven be like? The last few chapters of this book give us a good idea) | |
| 8. Plodactivity: A Pracitcal Theology of Work and Wealth, Douglas Wilson, 8.5/10 (Ploductivity: a) the practice of plodding away at a pile of work, instead of frantically trying to sprint through it all b) being stable and graceful, like a buffalo upon the plains, not frantic like a prairie dog of roadrunner) | |
| 9. Christian WV Series: The Illiad, Dr. Louis Markos, 8/10 | |
| 10-11.Mere Fundamentalism, Douglas Wilson, 9.5/10 (Great summary and implications of the Apostles Creed-read twice) | |
| 12. How to Multiply and Sustain Life Giving Groups, Jeremy Linneman, 8/10 | |
| 13. Cosmic Trilogy 1: Out of the Silent Planet, C.S. Lewis, 9/10 | |
| 14. Cosmic Trilogy 2: Perelandra, C.S. Lewis, 10/10 | |
| 15. Cosmic Trilogy 3: That Hiddeous Strength 11/10 (Amazing. Lewis’ thoughts about secularism and materialism in novel form. Unforgettable.) | |
| 16. Man of the House, CR Wiley, 10/10 | |
| 17. The Fellowship of the Ring, J.R.R Tolkien, 10/10 | |
| 18. Children’s Ministry That Nourishes,. Jana Gruder | |
| 19. The Illiad, Homer, 8.5/10 (Tons of Greek names and very specific battles scenes. Great speeches and demonstrations of heroism) | |
20. Hamlet, William Shakespeare, 9/10 (“To be or not to be? That is the question”)
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| 22. Future Men, Douglas Wilson, 9/10 (“If boys don’t learn, men won’t know) | |
| 23. A Grief Observed, C.S. Lewis, 7/10 | |
| 24. Vindiciae Contra Tyrannos: A Defense of Liberty Against Tyrants, Junis Brutus, 9/10 (Kings govern by the consent of the people; once a king breeches that contract, he becomes a tyrant. Timely.) | |
| 25. The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis, 8.5/10 | |
| 26. Present Concerns, C.S. Lewis, 9/10 (A compilation of Lewis’s essays. Many of his insights are excellent and he writes as if he wrote 80 minutes ago, not 80 years ago.) | |
| 27. The Aeneid, Virgil, 10/10 (The foundational mythic poem of the Roman people. A great work.) | |
| 28. The Serpent and the Serpent Slayer, Andrew Naselli, 10/10 (Excellent. A biblical theology on the theme of serpent. The amount of references to serpents surprised me.) | |
| 29. The Brothers Karamazov, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, 10/10 | |
| 30. The Lord’s Supper as the Sign and Meal of the NC, Guy Prentiss Waters, 8/10 | |
| 31. Candide, Voltaire, 7.5/10 | |
| 32. The Weight of Glory, C.S. Lewis, 9.5/10 | |
| 33. The Prince, Niccolo Machiavelli, 8/10 (Interesting and infamous work. Notable quotes: “A prince must never take it easy in times of peace, “Therefore if a prince wants to maintain his rule, he must be prepared not to be virtuous,” “It is far better to be feared than loved if you cannot be both,” “One must be a fox in order to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten wolves.”) | |
| 34. The US Founding Documents – The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States | |
| 35. Slaying Leviathan: Limited Governement and Resistence in the Christian Tradition, Glenn Sunshine, 9/10 | |
| 36. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling, 10/10 | |
| 37. A Learned Treatise of the Plauge, Theodore Beza, 5/10 | |
| 38. Rules for Reformers, Douglas Wilson, 8.5/10 | |
| 39. The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fritzgerald, 5.5/10 (Weird book.) | |
| 40. The Pocket Guide to Self-Reliance, Kyle Eschenroeder, 8/10 | |
| 41. 100 Cupboards, N.D. Wilson, 9/10 | |
| 42. The Odyssey, 15/10 (Incredible. Moving. Gripping. Inspiring. Probably my all time favorite story.) | |
| 43. Orthodoxy, GK Chesterton, 10/10 (So many one-liners, paradoxical statements, and great connection of ideas – a masterpiece I’ll never plumb the depths of) |
2019
| Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, J.K. Rowling, 8/10 |
| Why Small Groups, C.J. Maheny, 8.5/10 |
| Family Worship, Don Whitney, 9/10 |
| Christian Worldview: A Students Guide, Philip Ryken, 10/10 |
| Small Groups with a Purpose, Steve Gladden, 6/10 |
| The Magician’s Nephew, C.S. Lewis, 10/10 |
| The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis, 9/10 |
| Prince Caspian, C.S. Lewis, 8/10 |
| The Horse and His Boy, C.S. Lewis, 11/10 |
| The Voyage of Dawn Treader, C.S. Lewis, 10/10 |
| The Silver Chair, C.S. Lewis, 9/10 |
| The Last Battle, C.S. Lewis 10/10 |
| Women’s Ministry in the Local Church, Ligon Duncan and Susan Hunt, 9/10 |
| Lectures on Calvinism, Abraham Kuyper, 10/10 (Worthy of another read) |
| How to Read Proverbs, Tremper Longman III, 9/10 |
| Biblical and Theological Studies |
| Lectures to my Students (Abridged: Lectures 1-10), Charles Spurgeon, 9/10 |
| All Things New: Rediscovering the Four-Chapter Gospel, Hugh Wenchel, 8.5/10 |
| You Are What You Love, James K.A. Smith, 9/10 (Our desires and loves shape our habits, character, and life according to Augustine and Aristotle.) |
| 8 Hours or Less: Preaching Faithful Sermons Faster, Ryan Hugley, 7/10 |
| The Disciple Making Church, Bill Hull, 8/10 |
| Memory Man, David Baldacci, 10/10 (Amos Decker, the main character, has the most interesting back ground and set of skills of almost any character I’ve ever read.) |
| The Fix, David Baldacci, 8.5/10 |
| The Fallen, David Baldacci, 8.5/10 |
| Redemption, David Baldacci, 8.5/10 |
| Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix, J.K. Rowling, 11/10 (Best in the series.) |
| Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince, J.K. Rowling, 10/10 |
| Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, J.K. Rowling, 10/10 |
| East of Eden, John Steinbeck, 10/10 (Perhaps my favorite novel of all time.) |
| The Whipping Boy, Sid Fleischman, 10/10 (Reminds me of grade school.) |
| Heretics, G.K. Chesterton, 8/10 |
| Growing True Disciples |
| Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck, 8/10 |
| Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand, 10/10 (All her philosophy about economics and the entrepreneurship in novel form. Even without the philosophical principles, the story is great. Very long.) |
| Man of the House, C.R. Wiley, 15/10 (My favorite book of all time. A ‘how to’ in establishing an ancient household in the 21st century. I can’t overstate the impact this book has had on my life.) |
| Orthodoxy, G.K. Chesterton, 10/10 |
| Romeo & Juliet, William Shakespeare, 9/10 |
| The New Testament – ESV, 20/10 |
| The Pocket Guide to Action, Kyle Escheneroeder, 9/10 (Meditations to get your feet moving.) |
| Political Thought: A Student’s Guide, Hunter Baker, 9.5/10 |
| Great Books of the Western World – Vol. 1 – The Great Conversation, 8.5/10 |
| Crime and Punishment, Fyodor Dostoevsky, 11/10 (Perhaps my 2nd favorite novel of all time.) |
| Economics: A Student’s Guide, Greg Froster, 8/10 |
| Brave New World, Aldous Huxley, 9/10 |
| Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Lewis Carroll, 9/10 |
| Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, J.K. Rowling, 9/10 |
| Gospel and Kingdom, Graeme Goldsworthy, 9/10 |
| A Middle Earth Traveller, |
| Short Studies in Biblical Theology: From Chaos to Cosmos, Sidney Greidanus, 10/10 |
| Eve in Exile and the Restoration of Femininity, Rebekah Merkle, 10/10 (An absolute must read for women.) |
| Short Studies in Biblical Theology:The Son of Man and the New Creation, Graeme Goldsworthy, 8/10 |
| Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J.K. Rowling, 9/10 |
| The Old Testament – ESV, 20/10 |
| Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, J.K. Rowling, 8.5/10 |
| Short Studies in Biblical Theology: The City of God and the Goal of Creation, T. Desmond Alexander, 9.5/10 |
| The Masculine Mandate, Richard D. Phillips, 9/10 |
| How to be a Responsible Man, Jim Wilson, 9/10 |
| Emblems of the Infinite King, Ryan Lister, 8/10 |
| Short Studies in Biblical Theology:The Kingdom of God and the Glory of the Cross, Patrick Schreiner, 8/10 |
| The Household and the War for the Cosmos, C.R. Wiley, 10/10 |
| Short Studies in Biblical Theology: Work and Our Labor in the Lord, Jim Hamilton, 9/10 |