Continuing with the list of twelve best books I read this past year...
The Everlasting Man, G. K. Chesterton (1925). I studied this work with a reading group I attend. In his unique way of thinking and writing, Chesterton deals with how Christianity, and Jesus in particular, is the fulfillment of the religious hopes of philosophers and pagans down through history. It's a very winsome presentation of historic Christianity. This book was instrumental in moving C. S. Lewis from atheism to faith. Lewis wrote, "I read Chesterton's Everlasting Man and for the first time saw the whole Christian outline of history set out in a form that seemed to me to make sense..." Enough said.
The Pacific Crucible: War at Sea in the Pacific, 1941-42, by Ian Toll (W. W. Norton & Co., 2012). And I'll add to this the second of his trilogy,
The Conquering Tide: War in the Pacific Islands, 1942-44 (Norton, 2016). These are riveting narratives of the war against Japan in the Pacific from 1941 to 1944. Toll does not get lost in the details, though there are plenty of footnotes for those who want more. He gives excellent background and color to the characters and cultural currents of this period. Excellent, I could not put them down.
A Good Old Age, by Derek Prime (10Publishing, 2017). Getting older is not for the faint of heart! Alistair Begg recommended this book by his mentor at Charlotte Chapel (Edinburgh). Prime, now in his 80s, takes an A-B-C topical approach to issues faced in aging. My wife and I are reading this together when we are able to have morning coffee together. [Note: she is not aging, not at all, that would be me.] This might be considered light reading, but it's biblical, pastoral, and very practical.
Rediscovering Humility: Why the Way Up is Down, by Christopher Hutchinson (New Growth Press, 2018). Disclaimer: I have not finished reading this book, but it is excellent and I am including it in my 2018 reading. I have consistently avoided books on humility for one of two reasons: a) I don't think I need any more humility (as if), or b) I didn't think the person writing the book (often a celebrity pastor) really knows anything about being humble. Well, in fact, I think I do need to know more about humility, and Chris (whom I know) is a qualified person to write on this. (Maybe not, after he reads this.) This is a book of real substance and thought, not to be read quickly. Very helpful: he deals with corporate humility, that is, how we as churches and communities need to live and relate to one another in humility.
Four more to go, stay tuned.
Here's Part 1
Here's Part 3
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