What I Read October - December [from the book pile 2019]
The list is pretty short for the final three months of 2019! The combination of moving into a new house and focusing on the launch of my new Patreon site, my reading life suffered a bit. Still, the books I did complete carried a lot of weight for my overall reading life last year. I hope you enjoy this list!
What've YOU been reading lately? Drop me a comment below!
Moving into our new house is One of the main reasons I didn’t read much the last three months of 2019. But look at all the space I have now for books!
You can see my 2019 reading list here. | You can see all my reading lists since 2006 here.
One other note: A couple years ago I began using Amazon affiliate links as a way to bring in some pocket change from the books I share on the blog. I was challenged by an independent bookseller to reconsider this strategy as Amazon has a horrible reputation in its dealings with authors and other members of the book industry. I want to champion local business and humane working relationships and so I've included an IndieBound link that will direct you to purchase any of the following books from an independent bookseller near you. I've also included the order link for one of my new favorite booksellers, Hearts and Minds Books. Using the link I've provided you can order any book through heartsandmindsbooks.com, a full service, independent bookstore and receive prompt and personal service. They even offer the option to receive the order with an invoice and a return envelope so you can send them a check! Brian and I've been delighted with the generous attention we've received from owners Byron and Beth Borger. We feel like we've made new friends! (I also highly recommend subscribing to Byron's passionately instructive and prolific Booknotes posts.)
Mysteries
44. The Beautiful Mystery (a Chief Inspector Gamache novel, Book 8)
By Louise Penny (Minotaur Books, 2013. 400 pages)
Amazon | IndieBound | Hearts & Minds Booksellers
"No outsiders are ever admitted to the monastery of Saint-Gilbert-Entre-les-Loups, hidden deep in the wilderness of Quebec, where two dozen cloistered monks live in peace and prayer. They grow vegetables, they tend chickens, they make chocolate. And they sing. Ironically, for a community that has taken a vow of silence, the monks have become world-famous for their glorious voices, raised in ancient chants whose effect on both singer and listener is so profound it is known as "the beautiful mystery."
But when the renowned choir director is murdered, the lock on the monastery's massive wooden door is drawn back to admit Chief Inspector Armand Gamache and Jean-Guy Beauvoir of the Sûreté du Québec. There they discover disquiet beneath the silence, discord in the apparent harmony. One of the brothers, in this life of prayer and contemplation, has been contemplating murder. As the peace of the monastery crumbles, Gamache is forced to confront some of his own demons, as well as those roaming the remote corridors. Before finding the killer, before restoring peace, the Chief must first consider the divine, the human, and the cracks in between.
The Beautiful Mystery is the winner of the 2012 Agatha Award for best novel, the 2013 Anthony Award for best novel and the 2013 Macavity Award for best novel.
Micro Review: You know I’m going to enjoy a good murder mystery set in a monastery! I loved the substory of Gregorian chant and monastery architecture. I loved the light and darkness motif and could visualize so well each scene. Thank you, Louise Penny, for inviting us into unexpectedly beautiful worlds - even those that include a dead body!
History / Biography
45. The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics
By Daniel James Brown (Penguin Books, 2014. 416 pages)
Amazon | IndieBound | Hearts & Minds Booksellers
The #1 New York Times–bestselling story about American Olympic triumph in Nazi Germany and now the inspiration for the PBS documentary “The Boys of ‘36'.”
For readers of Unbroken, out of the depths of the Depression comes an irresistible story about beating the odds and finding hope in the most desperate of times—the improbable, intimate account of how nine working-class boys from the American West showed the world at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin what true grit really meant.
It was an unlikely quest from the start. With a team composed of the sons of loggers, shipyard workers, and farmers, the University of Washington’s eight-oar crew team was never expected to defeat the elite teams of the East Coast and Great Britain, yet they did, going on to shock the world by defeating the German team rowing for Adolf Hitler. The emotional heart of the tale lies with Joe Rantz, a teenager without family or prospects, who rows not only to regain his shattered self-regard but also to find a real place for himself in the world. Drawing on the boys’ own journals and vivid memories of a once-in-a-lifetime shared dream, Brown has created an unforgettable portrait of an era, a celebration of a remarkable achievement, and a chronicle of one extraordinary young man’s personal quest.
Micro Review: Brian first read this sweetly-detailed history of the University of Washington’s underdog eight-oar crew and cried actual tears at the story of rowers’ perseverance from the rugged Lake Washington to beat ivy-league perennial crews in the Northeast and on to win the Olympic Gold under the gaze of Hitler. Told through the hardscrabble lens of one of the crew, Joe Rantz, I was totally invested in his tenacity which seemed to follow with goodness all the days of his life.
Spiritual Non-Fiction
46. The Stories We Live: Finding God’s Calling All Around Us
By Kathleen Cahalan (Eerdmans, 2017. 150 pages)
Amazon | IndieBound | Hearts & Minds Booksellers
"Christian vocation," says Kathleen Cahalan, "is about connecting our stories with God's story." In The Stories We Live Cahalan rejuvenates and transforms vocation from a static concept to a living, dynamic reality.
Incorporating biblical texts, her own experience, and the personal stories of others, Cahalan discusses how each of us is called by God, to follow, as we are, from grief, for service, in suffering, through others, within God. Readers of this book will discover an exciting new vocabulary of vocation and find a fresh vision for God's calling in their lives.
Micro Review: Our church small groups read this slim but substantive book together through the fall. It was a re-read for me and an interesting exercise to read along with the two women in my group who gave the book mixed reviews. This is definitely not a book for those who’d prefer an inductive Bible study or theologically rigorous treatment about the meaning of vocation and calling. However, if you find listening to other people’s experiences of discovery and learning meaningful and you’d like to cultivate a more nuanced understanding of vocation and calling, this is an excellent read.
Apostles Reads Selections
47. Half the Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity For Women Worldwide
By Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn (Vintage, 2010. 320 pages)
Amazon | IndieBound | Hearts & Minds Booksellers
"From two of our most fiercely moral voices, a passionate call to arms against our era’s most pervasive human rights violation: the oppression of women and girls in the developing world.
With Pulitzer Prize winners Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn as our guides, we undertake an odyssey through Africa and Asia to meet the extraordinary women struggling there, among them a Cambodian teenager sold into sex slavery and an Ethiopian woman who suffered devastating injuries in childbirth. Drawing on the breadth of their combined reporting experience, Kristof and WuDunn depict our world with anger, sadness, clarity, and, ultimately, hope.
They show how a little help can transform the lives of women and girls abroad. That Cambodian girl eventually escaped from her brothel and, with assistance from an aid group, built a thriving retail business that supports her family. The Ethiopian woman had her injuries repaired and in time became a surgeon. A Zimbabwean mother of five, counseled to return to school, earned her doctorate and became an expert on AIDS.
Through these stories, Kristof and WuDunn help us see that the key to economic progress lies in unleashing women’s potential. They make clear how so many people have helped to do just that, and how we can each do our part. Throughout much of the world, the greatest unexploited economic resource is the female half of the population. Countries such as China have prospered precisely because they emancipated women and brought them into the formal economy. Unleashing that process globally is not only the right thing to do; it’s also the best strategy for fighting poverty.
Deeply felt, pragmatic, and inspirational, Half the Sky is essential reading for every global citizen.”
Micro Review: We read this with our church’s reading group (Apostles Reads) for Ordinary Time. It’s at times a brutal read. Somehow the authors manage to give specific descriptions of atrocities committed against women and children (and men as well) around the world and we still came away with hope for the work that is being done. Since the authors aren’t (as far as I know) persons of faith, I was pleased how often they included details of Christian mission work as an asset in freeing, healing, and protecting the most vulnerable citizens across the globe. While there were a few recommendations the authors made for Western involvement in bringing aid that concerned me, I still would recommend this book for its scope and scale.
48. Joshua: A Parable For Today
By Joseph F. Girzone (Scribner, 1995. 288 pages)
Amazon | IndieBound | Hearts & Minds Booksellers
"Rooted in a scrupulously accurate reading of scripture, Joshua is a profoundly moving, deeply inspiring book that no reader will ever forget.
Sometimes it happens. After two thousand years, the human race may be given a second chance.
When Joshua moves to a small cabin on the edge of town, the local people are mystified by his presence. A quiet and simple man, Joshua appears to seek nothing for himself. He supports himself by working as a carpenter. He charges very little for his services, yet his craftsmanship is exquisite. The statue of Moses that he carves for the local synagogue prompts amazement as well as consternation.
What are the townsfolk to make of this enigmatic stranger? Some people report having seen him carry a huge cherry log on his shoulders effortlessly. Still others talk about the child in a poor part of town who was dreadfully ill but, after Joshua’s visit, recovered completely.
Despite his benevolence and selfless work in the community, some remain suspicious. Finally, in an effort to address the community’s doubts, Joshua is confronted by the local church leaders.”
Micro Review: One of our group members recommended this title and I thought it fit well for our Advent selection. Several of the group had already read the book years ago and I enjoyed hearing their experience reading it then and now. (Some beautiful stories!) Joshua, the Christ-figure, is as deeply compelling to me, the reader, as he is to the townfolk surrounding him in fictional Auburn. Add to that the plotline about befriending his neighbors in the local synagogue and this was the perfect read for our congregation right now.
Go to my reading lists page to see my reading lists from 2018 and previous years.
Here's my Goodreads page. Let's be friends!
Linking up with another good reading resource: Modern Mrs. Darcy's monthly Quick Lit post.
p.s. This post includes affiliate links in this post because I'm trying to be a good steward, and when you buy something through one of these links you don't pay more money, but in some magical twist of capitalism we get a little pocket change. Thanks!