My Reading List | July through September 2022
Hello, everyone:)
So, I truly think my reading list is going to outlive me. It’s unending. It doesn’t help that I work in a bookstore, and so see really cool stuff every day that I don’t always have time to read. Prioritizing is key- I have to read what is relevant to me in the moment and what is top-of-mind, otherwise I won’t pay attention like I should and won’t glean from it what I hope. Not everything I want to read I want to read right now.
Anyway…here’s what I finished these last three months. I’m trying to intersperse more fiction in here and there because I really enjoy it, and can read it faster without missing details like can happen with nonfiction.
To Kill A Mockingbird | Harper Lee
When someone asks me what my favorite book is, this is the one I name. I remember reading it in high school for an english class, and it’s the only one that I’ve enjoyed enough to read again and again every couple years since. I love the character development, the whole atmosphere…something about the way the story spans a few years, but still highlights the growth and understanding of the characters in a way that allows you to feel you know them. It’s a romantic story in the sense that it’s idyllic- taking place in a small southern town, during a time that allowed for a slower pace of life, and following Jem and Scout Finch as they live out their childhood but also face some harsh realities of life, all while trying to get their elusive neighbor Arthur (Boo) Radley to come out of his house. The scene set in the beginning chapters creates an atmosphere of comfort and takes you back to your own childhood of playing outside within the invisible boundaries of certain houses, until the streetlights went on, and making up stories and games with friends…there are many subtle but profound lessons to be learned within this story. If you think you don’t like it, I will read it to you- out loud- to try and change your mind.
The Grand Design | Owen Strachan and Gavin Peacock
“In a secularist culture, many people today are confused about what it means to be a man or a woman. Even the church struggles to understand the meaning of manhood and womanhood. In The Grand Design, Owen Strachan and Gavin Peacock clear away the confusion and open up the Scriptures. They show that the gospel frees us to behold the unity and distinctiveness of the sexes. In Christ, we have a script for our lives. Doxology, we discover, is in the details…”
from the back cover
I really appreciated this book. It focuses on biblical complementarity and the facets of biblical manhood and womanhood while prioritizing and honoring the text of Scripture, and is more thoughtful than many other books that only graze over the surface of this theme. Overall, this book really encouraged me to continue growing in my understanding and appreciation of my identity as a woman- in Christ- and the role and responsibility I hold as such, and that this is something to value greatly and teach others to value and embrace as well. A theme I noticed, and appreciated, was one that mirrors sentiment held by Elisabeth Elliot: “…the more womanly we are, the more manly men will be and the more God is glorified…” Living out our God-given identities will encourage others to do likewise; by embracing my womanhood, I am encouraging the men in my life to embrace their manhood, and vice versa. What a beautiful image. We need men to be men, and women to be women.
The authors use the text of 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 ( “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.”) to breakdown the qualities of manhood, and the leadership and responsibilities required with it, later reminding readers that men need to spiritually lead themselves before they lead a wife and children, among many other things.
For the ladies, we are reminded while men and women hold equal value, we maintain different roles/functions: “Equality of personhood doesn’t demand uniform sameness. The Bible explains that equality of value does not mean unlimited equality. God purposefully made distinctions between men and women that were not just biological…” (pg. 70). We are reminded that a wife submits to her husband’s leadership primarily because of his divinely appointed position, not simply because his capability; that the roles of husbands and wives aren’t interchangeable because the roles of the Bridegroom (Christ) and His Bride (the Church) are not interchangeable- submission to headship is a portrayal of the gospel; and that within marriage, submission involves an inner attitude, not just an outward agreement.
One very interesting point that was made in a later chapter regarding transgender ideology and the statistic that for every one woman who “transitions” to manhood, there are three men who “transition” to womanhood, was that “men, it seems, are negotiating in a feminist world with little traditional knowledge. Faced with the prospect of female dominance, many seem to be choosing to become women rather than compete with them (as a secular order encourages)”. I had never considered that idea before, but it makes a whole lot of sense- and really emphasizes the need to embrace and encourage the God-given identities of each person, as mentioned in the initial paragraph above.
This is a short book, but it packed with valuable information. I’d highly recommend.
Meet Me In the Margins | Melissa Ferguson
This book was so cute. I’ve been looking for some light, happy fiction and this hit the spot. I read this author’s first book, The Cul-de-Sac War, last summer and enjoyed it as well. She has one more, the Dating Charade, that I’ve yet to read but will soon, and we’ll see which I like best. This book was a nice clean romance involving an editor who’s an aspiring author and her own secret editor who’s leaving revisions and notes in the margins of her manuscript. The plots of both of Ferguson’s books I’ve read so far are definitely predictable- which I don’t usually like, but don’t mind in these cases. (There’s only so much variation that can happen with romance- whether it’s in a movie or a book, as soon as both a male and female character are introduced, you know there’s going to come some sort of relationship.) The stories are a little cliche but not in an annoying way- maybe because with romance we know how we like it to end and so don’t mind when we’re right (as opposed to suspense/mysteries, where if you can figure out the ending too soon it’s no fun). Cute, clean, and wholesome, this story is a great choice if you’re looking for an easy read or need a distraction.
The Dating Charade | Melissa Ferguson
This book is so cute, you guys. Don’t let the title or the cover design fool you- the story is heartwarming. Kind of like a Brady Bunch remix, it involves Cassie and Jett who’d gone to high school together, but have been reintroduced by way of online dating. Circumstances throw them both into situations that suddenly require caring for three children- a problem, considering they both believe the other doesn’t want kids at all. Complete with conniving little old ladies, and a drive-through wedding (I didn’t even know that was a thing!?) this story will keep you grinning throughout. Of Melissa Ferguson’s three books so far, I’d rank this one the best. I do think that there is room for some more in-depth character and relationship development in all three stories; this one, I noticed, moved a bit too fast in a few spots when there could’ve been some really good content added. All in all though, I really enjoyed it. If you’re looking for something light and happy, check this one out!
Chosen by God | R.C. Sproul
This is my second time reading through this book, this time with a group of ladies at our church, and I enjoyed it just as much as I did the first time. If you’ve never read Sproul, I highly recommend his writing. He takes what can be very complex topics of doctrine and theology and presents them in such a way that’s easy to digest and understand. This particular book is on the doctrine of grace and election/predestination. Whether you already know your stance on these topics or are just curious to learn more, this book is a great place to start. There are also corresponding videos that you can find on Youtube, or on Sproul’s ministry site, www.ligonier.org.
The Unhoneymooners | Christina Lauren
This was such a fun book. I was grinning throughout much of it. The gist of the story is that the primary character’s sister is getting married, but she and the entire bridal party and guest list come down with food poisoning- at the wedding. Olive, maid of honor (and twin sister), and Ethan, best man (and Olive’s perceived arch nemesis), are the only ones spared, and they end up taking the contest-won honeymoon trip in place of the bride and groom. Well, it’s not hard to figure out what happens over the course of that trip, but how it plays out is cute. The part I found amusing was Olive’s running inner-dialogue through the story, and how nothing she thinks is necessarily profound, but that they’re thoughts many of us have had in real life but probably never shared out loud. I liked how the plot was continued beyond the scope of the trip, and thought the authors did a nice job of leaving no glaring loose ends. A heads up for you: this isn’t a Christian book, so there is some language throughout and some sex; use your discretion, and flip a page or two if needed.
For the Children’s Sake | Susan Schaeffer Macaulay
This book was one that walked through the major tenets of the Charlotte Mason philosophy of schooling/homeschooling. The perspective and attitude was very refreshing, and definitely one that is foreign to the modern way of education. Very much a Christian worldview of education, readers are told, “Christians can’t develop a Christian view of education by accepting the usual aims and views of our society and then adding a “Christian message” or interpretation.” That’s a similar premise to that presented in When We Rise Up by Sproul Jr. that I shared in my previous post. Much of what’s advocated for in this methodology of education is based on the idea that much of the content presented to children today is “twaddle” that is insubstantial and dull for the developing minds of children, where we fit them into a certain mold of teaching/learning rather than modifying our teaching to fit the personality, skills, strengths/weaknesses of each individual; teachers are responsible for finding what works for the child.
There is very much emphasis placed on play and reading. Play because so many children are fit into the streamlined schedules of their parents so that parents can cope with their pressures; to allow time and space for the kind of play children need, parents need to make time in their own life, and their children have to matter more than work or a clean house- but the details of this will look different from family to family. Reading, out loud for the initial years, and individually as the child grows, to challenge the mind and encourage deep thinking and imagination; parents are reminded that children will thrive on this more when the adult also enjoys and understands the content covered. ‘Knowledge of God, of man, and of the universe’ is the foundation of this perspective, because when we don’t have a worldview shaped by God, nothing else will last.
Get the Girl | Douglas Wilson
Why am I reading a book so obviously written for men? First, I work in a bookstore and so like to know what titles to recommend (or not) to customers. Second, I’m finding that reading books written for men is a decent way to gain better insight and understanding into what Biblical manhood/masculinity should look like (so long as the author and the content is sound). Finally, I’m finding that I learn a good bit about myself by doing this; by reading content offering a different perspective than I hold as a female, my attitudes and understanding are challenged, and then I can correct or change them accordingly.
I quite enjoyed this book. It helped to solidify some very counter-cultural, but Biblical, teaching I have received over the last couple years, and confirmed some ideas I can’t totally wrap my mind around as a female. Men and women are different by design, on purpose, in order to harmonize rather than compete, when we are walking within the Lord’s created order; this harmonizing doesn’t mean we’ll understand each other though, and that’s okay.
When it comes to our masculinity and femininity, the culture has bombarded us with false and harmful attitudes that aim to make us all androgynous, submissive, and to erase the qualities that make us distinct- this is very dangerous; we’re told to suppress the very drives and behaviors that make us male and female. Woman wants man to “sandpaper off the rough edges of his masculinity” because she’s been taught the standard of appropriate smoothness is set by her femininity; but then these “liberated” women are miserable and supressing their femininity by not living like women because they’ve been “badgered into aspiring to things they never really wanted in the first place”. Men are conditioned to be docile and submissive and weak.
But this has also influenced how the Church has taught Christians to live as men and women, husbands and wives- it’s subtle, but it’s harmful. It’s a result of poor teaching, and I pray that we can all unlearn and relearn so that we may thrive within God’s design. Men are primarily designed to serve by leading, rather than to lead by serving- when this gets mixed up and everyone is serving and no one is leading, then nothing gets done.
Wilson explains that “if masculinity is to be constructive, it must be assigned responsibility and honored for taking up that responsibility. If you do what our generation has done, which is to revile all men who take up such responsibility, then you will drive a number of them into destructive forms of masculinity, and drive the remaining responsible men into hiding”; within the framework of God’s design for people and civilization, men can harness the drive provided by the abundance of testosterone in their body (men have 10-15x more than women) and build and contribute to constructive societies.
Wilson discusses many things in this book, all to combat the destructive, effeminate ways our boys are being raised and taught in the world today. He walks through the creation design, headship and authority, love and respect…and while this book is written for the guys, there’s good insight here on/for girls as well. There’s a lot I could expand on, but this is already a bit lengthy. I don’t know if I agree with all the ideas presented, but the overarching message is solid. If you want to be challenged to think and live in alignment with the roles and responsibilities outlined for men and women in Scripture, which is very countercultural, this book will do just that.
Bird by Bird | Anne Lamott
I enjoyed this book. I’d say I liked it, didn’t love it. There was a lot of good writing advice within the pages, some of it was new to me and some of it I’m already familiar with. I recall learning some of the ideas in a writing class I took during college, where I recall my professor pulling a lot of content from this book (as she really liked it). Here are some of the main things I took from it: the best way to get better at writing, and to refine anything you’re working on, is to write- something, anything, just write; as you are writing and you fill however many pages with content that’s not “usable”, “you are learning what you aren’t writing, and this is helping you to find out what you are writing” (pg. 9); allow yourself room for crappy (she uses another adjective;) ) first drafts and don’t allow perfectionism to keep you from these. Throughout the chapters Lamott interweaves touching and humorous stories and memories from her own experiences, intended to encourage readers to, I believe, trust the process- whatever “the process” is. Know there is some language throughout this book, if you’re sensitive to that. Overall I enjoyed it, and really liked Lamott’s voice and writing style- I’m curious to read some of her other works and see if they are as enjoyable.
If you’re curious, the books I share here are ones that I both start and finish. If I don’t like a book enough to finish it I don’t typically share it. I may start incorporating some of those items in coming posts, but I typically know what I will enjoy reading when I select it, and so finish 95% of what I start.
If you have read any of these, or are going to pick one out to read yourself, let me know and we can chat about it! 🙂