BOOK LOOKS

Photo by Chris Brown
I'm not sure where these books came from.  My parents had these and the book ends as long as I can remember.  Each book is a classic such as "Fifty Best Poems of England."

 I hope everyone had an enjoyable Christmas.  Maybe you are ready to do some reading.  I have jotted down some of the books I read in 2017.  I enjoy reading fiction but have realized I can’t read many authors today.  The rough language and the immorality of the characters do not make a book enjoyable for me.  Listed are some of the authors I appreciate reading.  I was able to check these out from the library on my Kindle. 

My favorite novel of the year was:

“Where We Belong” by Lynn Austin—I liked the flash backs and the flash-forwards.  It kept my interest.

Some other enjoyable fiction included:

“Rhineland Inheritance” #1

Gibraltar Passage” #2

Sahara Crosswinds #3

Berlin Encounter #4

Istanbul Express #5.  All by T. Davis Bunn

I also liked the following series, which is set in Botswana.  Reading these novels is a good way to learn about their culture:

“The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency” #1

“Tears of the Giraffe” #2

“Morality for beautiful girls” #3

“The Kalahari Typing School for Men” #4. These are all by Alexander McCall Smith.  The series continues on with at least 16 more books.

My favorite non-fiction book I read this year was:

“Boys in the Boat” by Daniel James Brown—I identified with the Seattle area where the main protagonist lived and rowed for the University of Washington.  I also identified with the women who he eventually married as she didn’t like housework.  Because she loved Joe Rantz she kept house for a rich employer so she could be near Joe.  When they married she kept house for Joe, as she wanted him to have a good home life.

Other non-fiction:

“When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor and Yourself” by Steve Corbett. I liked his point that if a community can help their own this will encourage them.  If someone comes in, gives them money, and makes all the communities decisions for them they become discouraged.

“3 Minutes to a Pain Free Life. The Groundbreaking Program for Total Body Pain Prevention and Rapid Relief.”  By Joseph Weisberg. I’m trying this for a year.  I’ll let you know if it works.

“Martin Luther: The Man Who Rediscovered God and Changed the World.” By Eric Metaxas.  This was a little too detailed for me.  I skimmed some of it.

“42 Faith: The Rest of the Jackie Robinson Story.” By Ed Henry.  It was eye opening for me.  I couldn’t believe that Jackie and his wife would have such a time with public transportation from California to the east coast in the 50’s.  His wife was wearing an ermine coat.  That should have counted for something!

“Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy” by Eric Metaxas.  I enjoyed this book.  The details were interesting to me.

“In the Presence of My Enemies” by Gracia Burnham.  It was engrossing to see how much the captives suffered but then God made some good come out of the harrowing experience. In the end Gracia had a house given to her, she makes a living by giving speeches, and the CIA checks with her often about certain terrorists with which she had to deal.

"Forgotten Girls: Stories of Hope and Courage" by Kay Marshall Strom.  All over the world there are young girls who are abused and killed for being girls.  Strom tells their stories.  Some of the girls are rescued out of horrible conditions.  She has also written about women who have become Christians in cultures where they are persecuted for their faith.  "Daughter of Hope: Stories of Witness and Courage in the Face of Persecution" was written in 2003.  I expect times are even worse for these women.  This one isn't on Kindle.  

Devotional books I like:

"Diamonds in the Dust" by Joni Eareckson Tada
"Behold Your God" by Myrna Alexander
"365 Bible Promises for Hurting people" by Alice Chapin

What books would you recommend?