Nothing like a good book!

Summer is a season for a good book. If you’re searching the bookstore shelves for an enriching read, here are four that I would suggest:

The Year of Living Biblically: One Man’s Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible – A.J. Jacobs

This book is a hoot! Jacobs is an agnostic who describes himself as Jewish “in the same way the Olive Garden is an Italian restaurant.” He decides to live for twelve months as the Bible instructs. As his hair grows long, he tithes away ten percent, avoids mixed-fiber clothing, and attempts to love his enemies. Along the day he develops a reverence for life

Schulz and Peanuts: A Biography – David Michaelis

Out of sadness can come great creativity and deep insight. That’s the central message that I take away from this wonderful biography of cartoonist Charles Schulz. As many suspected, he expressed a good bit of his personal life in his hundreds of Peanuts strips (his ex-wife, for instance, sounded like Lucy Van Pelt -- or vice-versa). Yet his perspective on the daily foibles of human life transcended his own situation. To read the story of his life is an invitation to understand our own lives more deeply.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle – Barbara Kingsolver

We are what we eat. The problem, claims novelist Barbara Kingsolver, is that most of us have no clue where our food comes from. Is that tomato from Guatemala or Newton Township? Was the beef raised in Wichita or Patagonia? What did it cost to transport it to our table, and how healthy is it? And how does the disconnection of source and consumer affect us? These are some of the questions that prompt her to pay attention to a year in the life of her table. It’s a fascinating take on an increasingly important global issue.

The Jesus Way: Conversations on the Way That Jesus is The Way – Eugene Peterson

The latest book by Peterson is one of his simplest and best. It is not enough to say Christian words, he claims; you have to live the Christian life in Christ-like ways. The bulk of the book is spelling out what that looks like. Gene describes the clues we gain by watching major Biblical characters like Abraham, Moses, David, and Isaiah, as well as Jesus himself. He counters most of the predominant “scripts” of our culture (consumerism, individualism, celebrity worship) with a compelling invitation to live as Jesus lives.

A good book can expand our worlds, sharpen our commitments, and deepen our faith. Hope you can find something worthy to read – as I also hope you’ll share some good titles with me!