Books Read in 2010

Your God is Too Safe by Mark Buchanan – A well-written book about Christian living. Dare to believe in a God who is not about rules, whose way is not comfortable or easy or popular. Practice His presence. Wait on Him and don’t give up, taking matters into your own hands. It took me a while to read this book. But every time I picked it up, it echoed the very lessons God was driving home in my lived-out life.


The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning – All about grace. And grace is always good. I knew before I read it to be wary of some of Brennan Manning’s ideas, so that didn’t hang me up. Even when I disagreed, I talked to my Jesus about it, and *that* made my week.


Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Beth Pattillo – Was not a great story, not great writing, and not a great ending. But I read it anyway, my first venture into Austen fan-fiction. The title was the best part. (To be Austen purist, I am pretty sure the author mis-identifies the inhabitants of Mansfield Park. She should have said Bertram, but she said Rushworth.)

The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky (see full review)


Castles in the Sand by Carolyn A. Greene - A novel about the subtle ways pagan spirituality and eastern mysticism are becoming accepted in evangelical Christian organizations.  Focuses on the teachings and life of Teresa of Avila.  


Annotated Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen and David M. Shapard - The classic Jane Austen novel with lots of extra commentary as well as notes about history, economics, and fashion.  I liked it a lot!


Chosen by God by R.C. Sproul - Explanation of Calvinism especially versus Arminianism.  Focuses on the doctrine of predestination.  


Tristan and Isolt, A Play in Verse by John Masefield - A short play telling a story of thoughtless love leading to tragedy.  What is real love?  How does Destiny figure in?



Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart by Beth Patillo - Another adventure in England with the Formidables, this time featuring a codependent heroine who has the chance to reinvent her life for a couple weeks without worrying what anyone needs her to be.  The exercise reveals her insecurity and causes her to confront her life choices.  Can a woman build a life on other people?  


Green by Ted Dekker - Book 0 of the Circle Series, the beginning and end of the Thomas Hunter story.  I haven't read any of the other books in the series, which Ted Dekker says is ok.  But it was confusing.  And I don't think I like reading the end before the beginning.  I did like all the talk about hope.  And remembering that spiritual realities are real, even if they are unseen.  


Miniatures and Morals: the Christian Novels of Jane Austen by Peter Leithart - A wonderful look at the beloved authoress' use of satire, contrast, irony, and very good story-telling to communicate a morality originating in a deeply Christian worldview.


The Ring of Words: Tolkien and the Oxford English Dictionary by Peter Gilliver, Jeremy Marshall, and Edmund Weiner (see full review)


Why Pro-Life?  Caring for the Unborn and their Mothers by Randy Alcorn - A short summary of the major points of pro-life Christianity.  Pro-life is also pro-woman.  The "choice" is a moral one.  Preborn babies are people, too.  Pro-life ministries also help women after the babies are born.


That Hideous Strength by C. S. Lewis (see full review)

To God be all glory.