Rediscovering the Church Fathers: Who They Were and How They Shaped the Church by Michael A.G. Haykin
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

There is a wrong way to read this book, and that is to read it as a collection of biographical sketches. Instead, it should be read as a collection of lessons pertaining to specific points of orthodoxy as they were understood and taught by church fathers. This structure works well if you identify it before you read – which I did not. Accordingly, extra care should be taken to determine the thesis of each chapter ahead of reading. While the theses are clearly stated they are not necessarily conspicuous if you are not looking for them.

Haykin’s mastery of the subject-matter is clearly demonstrated in how he is able to teach church history while edifying the Christian at the same time. While this book is not a “page-turner,” it is exceedingly readable for someone who is “rediscovering” (or even discovering, as I was) the Church fathers. It works well as a true introduction to patristics.

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Bryan Garner on Words by Bryan Garner

Bryan Garner is an lexicographer and authority on English-language grammar and usage. He is the editor of Garner’s Modern English Usage which is in its fourth edition and is the author of a number of books including this one which he co-authored with the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. His monthly article published by the ABA Journal is excellent and will benefit everyone, not just professional writers. Articles include , “The Question of Voice: How to bring a more conversational style to your writing and Parenthetical Habits: On the use and overuse of parentheses and brackets. Even if you only write emails, you should read Garner. He’s a great twitter follow as well.

Marginal Revolution by Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok.

Marginal Revolution is an extremely popular economics blog co-authored by Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok, both of whom are professors of economics at George Mason University. Posts are mostly brief, usually containing an excerpt from an article or blog post published elsewhere with a brief comment from Cowen. It’s a economics focused blog but everyone will find something they like. Cowen’s “Assorted Links” posts contain a smattering of interesting links from the day like this one explaining why trees don’t want to touch each other and and this article on the National Valet Olympics. Also, the comments section isn’t completely useless.

I read 32 books in 2017 which are logged on my goodreads page. You can go there and see my ratings for each and my reviews of some. If you don’t use goodreads to log and review books I highly recommend it especially for those of you who have a resolution to read more in 2018. Here, I’d just like to highlight three of the better books I read in 2017 in no particular order.

1. The Great Divorce by C. S. Lewis

“If we insist on keeping Hell (or even earth) we shall not see Heaven: if we accept Heaven we shall not be able to retain even the smallest and most intimate souvenirs of Hell.”

The Great Divorce is the story of a man who dies and finds himself on a journey into Heaven. Along the way he overhears many conversations between others on the same journey who are struggling to let go of their sinful pride and earthly desires in order that they may continue on the journey. The style of this book is very similar to The Screwtape Letters and will similarly convict and humble the reader. It has become one of my favorite C. S. Lewis books. I highly recommend the audiobook version produced by Blackstone audio.

2. Still Life by Louise Penny

“Three Pines wasn’t on any tourist map, being too far off any main or even secondary road. Like Narnia, it was generally found unexpectedly and with a degree of surprise that such an elderly village should have been hiding in this valley all along. Anyone fortunate enough to find it once usually found their way back.”

Still Life is the first book in the Chief Inspector Gamache series. The series follows Chief Inspector Armond Gamache of the Sûreté du Québec (Quebec Provincial Police) as he solves crimes in the small village of Three Pines. The setting is cozy and idyllic and the handful of unique characters are developed well throughout the series. If you like mystery novels, you will love this series.

3. As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride by Cary Elwes

“For safety purposes, both to protect him and any passersby, they decided to place a small velvet rope barrier around André, who was by now snoring loudly enough to shake the lobby walls.”

If you love The Princess Bride then you should read this book. It is written by Cary Elwes who played Wesley and it provides an extended behind the scenes narrative of the making of the movie – including Elwes’ account of extensive sword training and bar hopping with Andre the Giant. The audiobook is read by Cary Elwes and contains some guest readings by many of the actors along with director, Rob Reiner.

Carry on, Jeeves: (Jeeves & Wooster) by P.G. Wodehouse

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Delightful.

I’m sure there’s nothing to say about Wodehouse that hasn’t already been said so I’ll just remark on the nature of this specific book. Each chapter is a stand alone sitcom starring Bertie and Jeeves. There are a few references to previous story lines which make for some really good character development.

If you are looking for a book to introduce you to Wodehouse, this is a good option.

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Lit!: A Christian Guide to Reading Books by Tony Reinke

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Lit! is divided into two parts: “Part 1: A Theology of Books and Reading,” and “Part 2: Some Practical Advice on Book Reading.”

Part 1 contained a lot of solid content but seemed a bit disjointed and came across more like a series of Christian-worldview blog posts retrofitted to apply specifically to literature. It addressed a lot of questions to which I already had answers without providing much new to consider. I was looking forward to Part 2 and considered skipping the rest of Part 1 after about fifty pages (ironically, this is exactly the approach to book reading that the author recommends in Part 2).

Part 2 was closer to what I expected from the book. Chapter 7 was an especially helpful discussion on the importance of prioritizing what you read in light of the fact that there just isn’t time to read everything. Chapters 8, and 12 were also especially beneficial.

Overall, Lit! was shorter on practical advice than what I had anticipated. If you are a Christian who already shares the author’s worldview, as I am, you may find that your time is best spend only on Part 2.

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Writing simply is something I’ve been focusing on lately. And while I don’t claim to have mastered the art of writing simply I have gained some ability to recognize writing that is not simple. If you have the unfortunate opportunity to read old legal opinions you will find no shortage of writing that is not simple. Here is an example of a judge detailing a train accident:

On January 21, 1903, John Reed walked along and upon said tracks, and in so doing his foot became caught and held in said opening, negligently, as aforesaid, left open between said rails. That he never could or was able to extricate himself or his foot from said opening. That while he was so held and caught, the appellant learned and became aware of all the facts aforesaid, and, knowing the same, did negligently, at an unlawful high rate of speed, and without any warning or ringing any bell or sounding any whistle, ran a locomotive engine and a number of railroad cars and train along and on and over said tracks against, upon, and over said John Reed, then and there and thereby injuring him in such manner and extent that his death was thereby caused.

Pittsburg, C., C. & St. L. Ry. Co. v. Reed, 44 Ind. App. 635 (1909). You could not obscured and dehumanized an event more if you tried. Let’s simplify:

John Reed was walking along the train track when his foot became stuck in a gap between the rails. The train engineer should have seen John and stopped the train but he was driving the train faster than the law allowed and was therefore unable to stop. The train ran over John, killing him.

Nathaniel Hawthorn said “easy reading is damn hard writing,” I think he’s right. However, every once in a while you get the chance to write something simply that’s actually not that “damn hard” to write. Take those opportunities.