Category: Book Review

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#BookReview: Jesus Called – He Wants His Church Back by Ray Johnston

Interesting Concept, Not Much Substance. I went into this book expecting a great discussion calling the American Church back to Jesus Christ. What I got was a couple of decent points and a lot of sermon promoting the status quo for the American Church. To say I was disappointed would be an understatement. So much promise, so little delivery.

If you’re in the American Church and wondering why so many people despise you – you won’t find many answers here.

If you’re a former member of the American Church that is begging for someone to call it to repentance – you won’t find that here.

If you’ve never been part of the American Church and you’re desperately seeking any acknowledgement at all of your problems with it – you’ll find here that some of them are mentioned… and quickly dismissed and yet again, you are to blame, according to the author.

What you *will* find here is more proof-texting (taking Bible verses out of context in service of whatever contrived point the speaker is attempting to make), more victim blaming, more The-Spirit-Of-God-Compels-You level berating, more scare tactic “evangelism”, and more trite Churchisms about how everyone else is the problem.

But there are *just* enough good or at least decent points to keep this out of Gold Mine level (tons of detritus for a few scarce flakes), so there is that at least.

This review of Jesus Called – He Wants His Church Back by Ray Johnston was originally published on October 20, 2018.

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#BookReview: Born With Teeth by Kate Mulgrew

Interesting, But Flaky. In this memoir, Kate Mulgrew – known best, depending on age and interest, for 70s era show Ryan’s Hope, 90s era show Star Trek: Voyager, or 2010s era show Orange Is The New Black – describes her life from being literally born with teeth up until around the turn of the Millenium, when she was still filming Voyager.

And she does a remarkable job of keeping the reader interested in what happens next. Her prose has the qualities of the poet she once wanted to be.

But she plays with the timeline too much, often skipping around or losing threads entirely, only to pick them up later with no explanation. And what she makes seem in the book as merely days in some cases appears to have actually been years.

But the biggest sin, and the reason this 2015 memoir feels incomplete, is the abrupt ending. Wherein she sets up a particular meeting that had been years in the making… and then ends with a literal closed door, never revealing anything beyond the moment she stepped into that particular room.

This review of Born With Teeth by Kate Mulgrew was originally published on October 20, 2018.

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#BookReview: One Nation Under God by Kevin Kruse

Intriguing But Incomplete. The central premise of this book is that “Under God” and “In God We Trust” were created by a cabal of corporate and religious interests opposed to the New Deal in the 1930s, and indeed the roughly 30 year period from the mid 1930s through the mid 1960s is where the bulk of the text concentrates. For example, the 30 year period from 1980 – 2010 is encompassed only in the epilogue, the 2nd shortest of the chapters of this book, and the period before the mid 1930s is barely mentioned at all. And therein lies where the book is incomplete. It should have built the case that pre-New Deal, religious references were scant in American politics. I believe that case can be made, based on my own knowledge of the history, but I’d like to see the efforts of a more trained historian on the matter. Instead, Kruse zeroes in on the New Deal opponents. But within the framework that he creates, he actually does do a solid job of showing how their efforts led to the increased religiosity of the Eisenhower Administration and from there directly to the Culture Wars as we know them now – though Kruse never uses the term “Culture Wars”. Even with my own better than average knowledge of the relevant events, I learned quite a bit here and had at least a few attitudes shifted. Highly recommended reading for anyone actually interested in the subject from any side of the issue.

This review of One Nation Under God by Kevin Kruse was originally published on October 14, 2018.

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#BookReview: Talking As Fast As I Can by Lauren Graham

Fast and Funny. In this memoir, Graham talks about her life in general and some of her more famous/ long-lasting projects: Gilmore Girls and Parenthood. And she does it in what seems to be her style on the shows – fast and hilarious. The chapters are short, and the book overall is a very quick read. If you’ve ever seen any of her projects at all, this is a very worthy read. And if you haven’t, you’re probably not interested in this book anyway – but if you haven’t seen any of her work and *are* interested, go ahead and pick this up. If nothing else, you will be entertained.

This review of Talking As Fast As I Can by Lauren Graham was originally published on October 9, 2018.

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#BookReview: Apollo 8 by Jeffrey Kluger

Kluger does an excellent job with writing the narrative of this distinctively NON-fiction story with the skill of a solid thriller author. While Apollo 11 would eventually overpower 8, and one of 8’s crewmen would become far more famous for Apollo 13, neither of those missions happens without someone being the first to actually get to lunar orbit and make sure their spacecraft can survive the trip. And Kluger does an excellent job of revealing all of the people invovled and putting them in the proper context while showing both the very real perils and how the various people handled those perils. If you’re interested in man leaving the planet at all, this is a must read book.

This review of Apollo 8 by Jeffrey Kluger was originally published on October 7, 2018.

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#BookReview: NeuroTribes by Steve Silberman

Mostly History with a dash of future. I am Autistic, and this look at the history of my people was more fascinating and horrifying than even I already knew. In this book, Silberman shows several people from history that were fairly clearly Autistic, progressing from early accounts to newest and from there into the histories of the two men that “co-discovered” Autism in the 20th century. The vast bulk of the book is spent inside the 20th century, with only the last chapter or two in the 21st, but even then it truly is fascinating and horrifying. Absolutely recommended for all, particularly those with Autistics in their lives.

This review of NeuroTribes by Steve Silberman was originally published on October 5, 2018.

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#BookReview: Jurassic Dead 2 by Rick Chesler and David Sakmyster

Zombie Dinosaurs Attack Washington DC. Seriously, what more do you need to know, particularly in the modern political climate? This book continues shortly after Jurassic Dead left off and ups the ante even more than the “zombie dinosaurs exist” premise of the first book. Read Jurassic Dead first, but you’re going to want to start this book immediately following it!

This review of Jurassic Dead 2 by Rick Chesler and David Sakmyster was originally published on September 30, 2018.

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#BookReview: Jurassic Dead by Rick Chesler and David Sakmyster

Zombie. Dinosaurs. Read it for that premise alone! Seriously, what more do you need? Do you want me to tell you that this was a very fast paced, easy read full of action? It was. Do you want me to tell you that there was enough resolved here to make it feel like a complete story? It was. Do you want me to tell you that the authors left enough open to continue the overall story arc? They did. Now, quit reading this review and go pick up this book!

This review of Jurassic Dead by Rick Chesler and David Sakmyster was originally published on September 28, 2018.

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#BookReview: Facing the Music by Jennifer Knapp

Unapologetic – In all the best ways. In Facing the Music, former contemporary christian music star Jennifer Knapp tells her story, from her earliest memories growing up as a twin in rural Kansas through college into her public years as a turn-of-the-Millenium CCM star to her retreat from that life and its special hell of a rat race and ending with her triumphant yet messy return. And through it all, she maintains her honesty and integrity. Utterly captivating and soulful, just like her music. And in the end in particular, resonating very much with where this reviewer is himself right now. If you like memoirs generally, musician memoirs a bit more specifically, or were around the CCM scene at the turn of the Millenium in any capacity – or even just a generic Christian now- you’ll want to read this book. Knapp has a very powerful message that we all need to hear.

This review of Facing the Music by Jennifer Knapp was originally published on September 30, 2018.