February Reading
Some Books for the Month of Love
Writing at the Widdershins has been slowed this year, as you have probably noticed. My family and church are going through some changes at the moment, and well, we have been busy. Not only have I not had time to sit and write, my reading time has been limited as well. All for good reasons.
Our church purchased some land, with a building on it, and the building happens to be larger than our previous church building, and we need the space…so we moved. Moving a church, particularly my office with over 1,300 books, takes some time. The members chipped in a worked hard getting every over and ready for our first Sunday in the new-old building on March 1st. It was great, and I am very thankful to be the pastor of such a wonderful group of Christians.
My family is also going through a process of remodeling the entire first floor of our home. Remodeling your home, and moving the church from one building to another, makes for a full schedule. We have had no kitchen at home for about a month, and that brings about its own difficulties, but my wife has been stellar in keeping us organized and fed. The church has been incredible with hospitality as well. I have lost count of how many times we have been invited into homes for dinner. Truly special.
The move from one building to another is done, and the remodel at home is nearly done. With all of the activity going on at the end of January and all through February, my reading time has been cut down, but I was still able to squeak in a few books.
After reading Tim Power’s book, Declare, I was in the mood for another spy novel and I picked up Ken Follett’s Eye of the Needle. There is a German spy who has been living in London and has been sending information back to Hitler. His code name is Nadel, the Needle, because his favored weapon is a stiletto blade. He has come across information about where the allies are going to invade, namely, Normandy and he must get the information back to Hitler. English counter-intelligence is aware that Nadel has the information that could spoil the invasion, so they must track him down and stop him from getting the information to the Germans. Nadel leaves a trail of bodies behind him as he attempts to escape England. A tight, fast-paced thriller. I enjoyed it. There is an older movie based on the book, but I have not seen it.
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig is a recent novel and it has high acclaim in all the right reviews, but it is a sad display of the aimlessness of modern man to find meaning in life apart from God. Nora Seed commits suicide because her life isn’t what she hoped it would be, and goes to the Midnight Library where the shelves are filled with all her parallel lives if she would have made any decisions differently. The book tries to explain why your life as it is is worth living, but fails to offer any objective truth, goodness, or beauty. Many find it uplifting, but in reality it is a heartbreaking tale of the self-centered atheistic attempt to add beauty and value to life without a Creator and Redeemer. It’s a Wonderful Life already addressed this kind of story and did it far better.
David Edginton is a pastor who has made a platform for himself dealing with reviling wives, a very real problem in the church. His most recent book, White Knights and Reviling Wives shows the failure of pastors and churches in holding women accountable for sins. We are good at poking men in the eye, but rarely do churches address the sins of women, and the White Knights end up defending all women, even sinful ones, and blaming the men, even the innocent ones. A good book overall, but I take issue with some of his exegesis.
One of my favorite living authors is Robert McCammon. Swan Song and Boy’s Life are fantastic. I have been reading through his Matthew Corbett novels, and I finished the fourth, Providence Rider. Matthew Corbett is a young detective in early New York City. The year is 1703 and the revelation of a criminal mastermind, Professor Fell, behind the rise and fall of nations has come to Matthew’s attention. Like Sherlock, but with more action. These have been fun historic thrillers.
James Jordan’s works are indispensable, and the most recent work I have read from him is The Law of the Covenant. This commentary on Exodus 21-23 is necessary reading for understanding and applying the Law of God to our lives today. Great stuff.
There you have it. Five books for February!