2017 Reflection and Wrap Up

I read more books in 2017 than in any other year in my life. My goal at the outset of the year was to read 50, but I soon found that I would reach 50 well before the end of the year and upped it to 100. I completed the 50th book on June 28 (I think it was ABC-3PO) and the 100th book on November 30 (The Story of Music). Only 7 out of the 109 were books I had read previously. I also read much, much more fiction than I have in a long time; over 40 books were fiction, an unprecedented number for me! 

I had many revelations and takeaways throughout the year, but one that stood out to me as 2017 comes to a close was the knowledge that I pursued this singular goal nearly every day this year. I wonder what else I could accomplish if I worked the next 365 days on a single goal? It is exciting to think about. In fact, I do have several new challenges for myself in the coming year, which I will share soon. For now, here are the stats and the books that made 2017 for me.

Books completed: 109
Books abandoned: 2 (The Sister by Louise Jensen, and BioShock: Rapture by John Shirley)

Pages Read: 25,304

Shortest Book: 18 pages (Practical Guide to Riding Your Bike)

Longest Book: 1,120 pages (Adolf Hitler: The Definitive Biography)

Most-read authors: J. K. Rowling (7), Francis Schaeffer (5), Arthur Conan Doyle (4)

The Books, Ranked from Worst to Best (bottom 10 and top 20 in bold)

109. Practical Guide to Riding Your Bike, Unknown

108. How to Talk to Anyone, Leil Lowndes

107. English Hymns and Hymn Writers, Adam Fox

106. The Day After Roswell, Philip Corso

105. Cliches, Nigel Fountain

104. Harry, A History, Melissa Anelli

103. If You Give a Pig A Pancake, Laura Numeroff

102. The Curious Case of the Missing Mammoth, Ellie Hattie

101. The Night Circus, Erin Morgenstern

100. Worldwide Effects of Nuclear War, Various

99. The History of Music in Western Civilization, Various Authors

98. 10 Little Rubber Ducks, Eric Carle

97. Weight Loss Motivation Hacks, Derek Doepker

96. 101 Amazing Harry Potter Facts, Jack Goldstein

95. Art of War, Sun Tzu

94. How to Manage Your Money When You Don’t Have Any, Eric Wecks

93. Till We Have Faces, C. S. Lewis

92. The Story of Music, Howard Goodall

91. Laptop Millionaire, Mark Anastasi

90. Murder on the Orient Express, Agatha Christie

89. Money Management Skills, Michael Finke

88. The Last Juror, John Grisham

87. The President’s First Year, Douglas Cohn

86. The DaVinci Code, Dan Brown

85. The Art of Eric Carle, Eric Carle

84. The Time Machine, H. G. Wells

83. A Christian Manifesto, Francis Schaeffer

82. Blood and Smoke, Steven King

81. The Adventure of the Cardboard Box, Arthur Conan Doyle

80. The Hound of the Baskervilles, Arthur Conan Doyle

79. Jonas and Daphne, Silver Lamb

78. A Natural History of the Piano, by Stuart Isacoff

77. Bartholomew and the Oobleck, Dr. Seuss

76. Draw Me A Star, Eric Carle

75. An Edible History of Humanity, Tom Standage

74. 21 Success Secrets of Self Made Millionaires, by Brian Tracy

73. Creating the Constitution, Christopher Collier

72. The Cardinal of the Kremlin, Tom Clancy

71. If I Ran the Zoo, Dr. Seuss

70. Big Agenda, David Horowitz

69. 80 Proven Ways to Become a Millionaire, Paul Demazo

68. Little Blue Truck Leads the Way, Alice Schertle

67. Put Your Heart on the Page, Anne Perry

66. The Music Teacher From the Black Lagoon, Mike Thaler

65. 8 Traits of the Greats, Stan Munslow

64. I Wish My Teacher Knew, by Kyle Schwartz

63. A Good Marriage, Steven King

62. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams

61. Next, Michael Crichton

60. Practice Music Like a Pro, Stan Munslow

59. Animal Farm, George Orwell

58. Zen Shorts, Jon Muth

57. ABC-3PO, Calliope Glass

56. Goodnight Darth Vader, Jeffery Brown

55. Crazy Love, Francis Chan

54. Quiet, Susan Cain

53. The Symphonies of Beethoven, Robert Greenberg

52. Selected Short Stories, Anton Chekhov

51. Smart Fat, Steven Masley

50. A Time To Kill, John Grisham

49. World in Balance, Robert Crease

48. The Wrecking Crew, Kent Hartman

47. The Remarkable Farkle McBride, John Lithgow

46. Miles, Miles Davis

45. 1776, David McCullough

44. Narconomics, Tom Wainwright

43. The Fault in Our Stars, John Green

42. One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, Dr, Seuss

41. The Abolition of Man, C. S. Lewis

40. How to Make It in the New Music Business, Ari Herstand

39. Write Songs Right Now, Alex Forbes

38. Nazism and War, Richard Bessel

37. Helping Children Succeed, Paul Tough

36. A Study in Scarlet, Arthur Conan Doyle

35. A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens

34. The Speckled Band, Arthur Conan Doyle

33. 9 Presidents Who Screwed Up America, Brion McClanahan

32. How Children Succeed, Paul Tough

31. Why Don’t Students Like School, Daniel T. Willingham

30. Little Blue Truck, Alice Schertle

29. Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell

28. Band of Brothers, Stephen Ambrose

27. Seizing the Enigma, David Kahn

26. What Teachers Make, by Taylor Mali

25. The Mark of the Christian, Francis Schaeffer

24. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, J. K. Rowling

23. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, J. K. Rowling

22. The Hobbit, J. R. R. Tolkien

21. Exploring J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit, Corey Olsen

20. Between Heaven and the Real World, Steven Curtis Chapman

19. He Is There and He is Not Silent, Francis Schaeffer

18. Extra Virginity, Tom Mueller

17. Art and the Bible, Francis Schaeffer

16. Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck

15. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, J. K. Rowling

14. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, J. K. Rowling

13. I Want My Hat Back, Jon Klassen

12. A History of the World in 6 Glasses, Tom Standage

11. The Secrets of Story, by Matt Bird

10. Make It Stick, Peter Brown

9. The God Who Is There, Francis Schaeffer

8. The Courage to Teach, Parker J. Palmer

7. The Song Machine, John Seabrook

6. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, J. K. Rowling

5. How Star Wars Conquered the Star Wars Universe, Chris Taylor

4. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, J. K. Rowling

3. What If?, by Randall Monroe

2. Adolf Hitler, John Toland

1. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, J. K. Rowling

109, Seven Short Stories

Seven Short Stories
by Anton Chekhov

I like short stories. They get in, tell a snippet of a life, and get out. They don't have time for lengthy descriptions or digressions or too many characters and sub plots. I've never read Chekhov before, but he was, apparently, a prolific short story writer. The stories in this collection were varied and poignant. The only thing that connected them was a sad, modernist metaphorical narrative of alienation. The characters in these stories do not know themselves, nor others--indeed, they are incapable of knowing or being known. Chekhov tells us that man is essentially and whole alienated from other people and even himself, an existential vacuum. He exists, as Francis Schaeffer put it, "beneath the line of despair," disconnected and lost; though he yearns, as the bereft cabbie in "Misery" does, to connect to others, ultimately, to Chekhov, such yearning is a hopeless endeavor.

#104, "A Christmas Carol"

A Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens

Though I've seen and known this story many, many times in various media (film, stage, radio), I realized this year that I'd never read the book before. Well, that is now taken care of. I enjoyed it very much. I'm not sure why, but I really like the style in which Dickens writes. It might be that I've read so many books of that period that I associate it with good writing. Whatever the reason, he has a clear voice and a moment-by-moment progression that works wonderfully in this classic story. There seems to be some debate as to whether it is merely a cautionary tale, or a full allegory. I lean toward the former, personally--though the fantastic elements are boldly drawn, I didn't read it as anything other than the story of a transformation. I do advocate reading meaning into a text, however, to speak to your own world and circumstances. Overall, it was a worthy read.

103, "The Wrecking Crew"

The Wrecking Crew: The Inside Story of Rock and Roll's Best-Kept Secret
by Kent Hartman

The Wrecking Crew was an extraordinary group of musicians who provided the largely-uncredited musical backdrop for thousands of pop and rock songs in the 1960's and 1970's. It was an unofficial collection of roughly 20 drummers, guitarists, horn players, bassists, and others, including drummer Hal Blaine, guitarist Glenn Campbell, and bassist/guitarist Carol Kaye (whose careers the book highlights in particular). This book is a mostly chronological collection of anecdotes, stories from the studios and the road, that tell of the origins of the "group," the development of pop-rock in the early 60's, the explosion of Top 40 hits and its contribution to the expanding importance of session musicians in entertainment centers such as LA, the heyday of the Wrecking Crew, and finally its decline in the mid 70's with the turns in recording technology and techniques and changing public taste. People like Phil Spector, Sonny Bono, Brian Wilson, and others are introduced, along with their innovations to the cutting-edge of recording technology at the time. The group and the times are fascinating, all the more so when compared to how different the music business is today, or even when comparing it to my most recently-read book on music.

Hartman writes very colloquially, which is fine most of the time, though I couldn't help but notice he uses a lot of cliches. The depth of research into such an obscure and little-known portion of the music of the 20th century is impressive and is presented pretty well. Great reading if you're into music recording history.

The Remarkable Farkle McBride

I didn't know John Lithgow was an author of picture books. This is a story of a musical prodigy who, after seeing and discarding different instruments, finally finds his true calling as a conductor. I loved it. The story is cute, the illustrations are excellent, funny and singular, and--well, I love stories about kids who love music. Great book.

#101, "The Song Machine"

"The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory"
by John Seabrook

"The Song Machine" is a truly outstanding book on the history, mechanisms, and backstory of modern pop music. I enjoyed the heck out of reading it and place it in the top 20 of my favorite books of 2017. Seabrook starts in the 1980's and traces the development of pop music through the stories of producers, songwriters, singers, technologies, and businesses through about 2015. The story begins largely in Sweden, where a collective of DJs started combining early hip hop, reggae influenced electronic music, and dance with Swedish production and sensibilities. From there, the confluences grow bit by bit, each group and artist influencing and streaming into the next. Many of the biggest bands and stars of the last 30 years are included in the history; how the success of New Kids on the Block inspired a blimp-owning millionaire, Lou Perlman, to create the Backstreet Boys from scratch; how Britney Spears and *NSYNC got their careers started and/or derailed; how the landscape of music changed with the hits of the last half of the 1990's. Hitmakers and gamechangers like Denniz Pop, Max Martin, and Dr. Luke are examined, their methods of production and writing explained. One of the most interesting parts of the book was on the technical aspect of modern songwriting. In "song factories," classic techniques of songwriting, such as one songwriter coming up with the music and words, or perhaps a composer and a lyricist working together, are now splintered into as many as 6 (or more) different jobs: track maker, hook creator, lyricist, topliner, bridge or vibe guy, producer, artist/singer, and so on. Instead of developing the classic combination of words and melody, current techniques are closer to track-and-hook: the track provides a bed of sound, usually simple chord progressions and a beat, and the hook (or, more likely, hooks) is layered over the top, either in an instrument or in the vocal.

Seabrook even goes into the artist-song-making machines of South Korea, which have multi-million dollar corporations creating artist careers from childhood, using a construct called "cultural engineering" to devise musical products that will hit the most people. This last note is something that runs, rather disturbingly, through the entire book: the commoditization and productization of music. Modern pop songs are hybrid creatures that are curated, compiled, and created in the mad scientist lab of the studio, each note and beat carefully plotted with the help of data, demographics and figures, and always with the goal of a million-dollar "hit" in mind. Artistic intent is secondary--possibly tertiary--to producing a well-packaged product that will sell. Of course it would be irresponsible and ignorant to suggest that that process, the commercialization of art, is new. No, it's been around probably as long as art has. It is, in many ways, the most difficult of all philosophical hurdles an artist must clear: the dilemma of creating something true and from the heart (pure, to use a word of dubious worth), that also manages to satisfy public tastes and get the artist paid. It is very difficult to satisfy both of those criterion, and thus we have broke but brilliant musicians and millionaires making mediocrity.

My philosophical reflections on artistic integrity aside, stories of people making music are always exciting and inspiring. The story of modern pop is, by definition, constantly changing--popular music this year will be out-of-date by next Christmas--and modern hits will, in one way or another, always be with us. Someone has to do it; it may as well be the song machine.

#100, "The Story of Music"

The Story of Music: From Babylon to the Beatles
by Howard Goodall

This book was not written for professionals, which made it surprisingly difficult to maintain focus as I read. He took what seemed to be a long time to explain such foundational things as the harmonic series, triads, and serialism, among other more or less technical aspects of music, that slowed down the continuation of the history. Even worse, these concepts seemed to be rather poorly or confusingly described. Maybe it just was that way to me because I came to the book with prior understanding, but I think it is equally possible that for Goodall, an accomplished composer himself, wiring about basic elements of music is more difficult than writing about the complicated ones. As a teacher, that is a problem I deal with regularly. When we know something because we have done it every day for years, it becomes particularly difficult to break it down effectively for those who don't know it already. In my opinion, he did not succeed in that breakdown. The historical parts of the book ranged from interesting to rather controversial. He spent a lot of time on Wagner, which I suppose is his call. I have two main and unforgivable complaints. One, he referred to Indiana Jones as a bounty hunter. Um, what? And two, he did not mention Rachmaninoff a single time. I did enjoy his analysis of the minimalism of the 1980's. I can't say I enjoyed the majority of the book very much.

#99, "What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions"

"What If? Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions"
by Randall Monroe

One of the most enjoyable books I've read all year. Monroe looks at the craziest scenarios and attempts to answer each in incisive and complete detail, usually to a disastrous end. His style is hilarious and very readable, as befits a scientist-turned-webcomic. The book was read by Will Wheaton, as well, which made it even better. This one is going to end up near the top of my favorites from the year.

98, "Murder on the Orient Express"

"Murder on the Orient Express"
by Agatha Christie

This is the first book from Agatha Christie I'd ever read. I was happy that this one was another that my wife Jessica read along with me. The version we had was an excellent reading by Kenneth Branagh, who stars in the new film adaptation (which I have not seen). Branagh's performance is truly awesome, and in some ways was more impressive and compelling than the actual material from the book. The mystery is pretty good, however, with a decent build of odd and seemingly unrelated happenings that come to a head at the conclusion well enough. I don't think it is a perfect novel. The conceit behind the final reveal is, to me, a little far-fetched, and I didn't buy it one hundred percent. Jessica guessed the ending, more or less, about halfway through. It was enjoyable, though--in no small part due to Branagh's performance, as I said--and I am glad to have finally gotten around to reading Agatha Christie.

#whatIreadin2017

#97, "What Teachers Make"

"What Teachers Make"by Taylor Mali

This book is an expansion of a now-famous poem by the same author, Taylor Mali. By expansion, I mean that he takes a line or two of the poem (you can see Mali perform it live here) and talks about the circumstances in his teaching career that precipitated the concept behind it. The poem itself is galvanizing for teachers, a call-to-arms, a demand for respect and recognition of one of the most impactful and important professions on the planet. The book is just as excellent, challenging, insightful and inspiring. Teachers--good and bad--really do make a difference, and Mali does a great job of explaining some reasons why.

#whatIreadin2017

#96, "How to Manage Your Money When You Don't Have Any"

"How to Manage Your Money When You Don't Have Any"
By Eric Wecks

What a slog. The majority of the book is concerned with the perils of consumer debt (duh) and what not to do, including ridiculous examples (don't spend $1,200 a month on shoes if you want to keep your home!). The few practical tips are generic and do not break new ground. He makes a good point about looking at a budget in terms of what you value--that is, you spend money based on your value system and should budget accordingly or change your values--but other than that Wecks does not have much that mattered to me. This one is definitely going near the bottom of my list for the year.

#91, "The Curious Case of the Missing Mammoth"

"The Curious Case of the Missing Mammoth"
by Ellie Hattie

Beautifully illustrated! The artwork is truly amazing and wonderful. The story is about a boy and a magical mammoth searching for the baby mammoth in a museum that has come alive. The story is fun, and there are lots of flaps with both story elements, as well as--slightly confusingly--trivia about the animals, art, and people that the characters find in the museum. I didn't care for the non-story parts, like the trivia, as it seemed that the book didn't really know whether to be educational or a magical mystery. One or the other would have made for a better, simpler and cleaner book. Fun reading it, though. And, again, the artwork is fantastic.

#89, "I Wish My Teacher Knew"

"I Wish My Teacher Knew: How One Question Can Change Everything For Kids"
by Kyle Schwartz

This book was inspired by a simple question in the author's 3rd-grade class, a question initially intended to get to know her class. She asked her students to finish the sentence "I wish my teacher knew...", and the results were funny, sobering, and occasionally shocking. Apparently the idea of the lesson went viral a couple of years ago. I had not heard of it before. The book has only a little to do with that lesson in particular. Instead, it uses the idea of things that students wish they could say but can't or don't and explores the different kinds of pain, turmoil, or abuse that children undergo. She talks about students who change schools, due to financial or family problems, deportation, military moves. She talks about students who live in such poverty that their only meals are from their schools. She talks about students who suffer abuse. She also talks about students who lift themselves and their classmates from their challenges, who meet and overcome obstacles through their own wills and with the help of their classroom community and, often, the love and support of a caring teacher. Real learning can happen in spite of terrible circumstances when children know there is at least one place they are safe, loved. The book isn't what I would call brilliant, but it is a forceful reminder of the importance of the classroom teacher, the impact--true, real, lifelong, everyday, life and death impact--that we as teachers can and do make when we make our classes safe places for children who need help, who need strength, who need community. Every child deserves love, deserves a chance to live and grow and learn. That is really the foundational object of teaching, and something I hope to cultivate in my own classroom every day.

#88, "The Courage to Teach"

"The Courage to Teach"
by Parker J. Palmer

This is a beautifully written book. Palmer has invested a substantial amount of thinking in the topics he talks about, and his depth of scholarship and carefully considered language is reflected in every weighted sentence. The text is part memoir, described in encounters, failures and successes along his career as an educator, and part prescriptive guide for teachers to rediscover their identities as humans and teachers, and ultimately for reforming the state of modern education for the good of all.

Palmer addresses three entities, each larger than the last: the teacher, communities of teachers, and finally teaching institutions. Teachers, he says, must connect, or reconnect, with themselves in order to really fulfill their identities as teachers. There is quite a bit of mystic and Buddhist terminology here, as he exhorts us to "listen to the inner teacher" and "find your truth." From a Christian perspective, I found that once I filtered his terminology into true statements, it made more sense for me. I agree with his premise, that we must live, or strive to live, "undivided" lives, though I think we disagree on what that means. I think, too, that once we--teachers especially, but really all humankind in general--once we have found our identities, we ought to live in community with others, and that real progress can be made once honest, open community is established. He ends by examining some aspects of educational reform, and presses the reader to live with integrity for what is right, even at the cost of prestige, power, or paycheck; a sentiment I stand behind myself. When integrity is gone, from the classroom, the pulpit, the home, we have become hollow men and hollow women. Anyway, I will not philosophize, even though the Mariana-level depth of the thoughts and writing in this book make it hard not to reciprocate with philisophication.

#87, "The Time Machine"

"The Time Machine"
by H. G. Wells

This book was published in 1895. I love the old-timey writing (most of the time). Wells has a fairly good sense of character and realism of tone, though the pacing and the propulsion of the book I felt was lacking. It is short enough that you can just hash through the story fairly quickly, as there is no character development, no subplots, and is realistically written as if some guy was telling a tale to his colleagues of something he just did. I suppose that's what Wells was going for. As a thought-experiment, then, it is interesting, but as a novel, it is not particularly compelling once you get past the time travelling bits. My favorite part of the novel was when the Time Traveller went 30 million years into the future. It's one thing to think about what the world will look like a hundred years from now, or even a thousand...but 30 million years! It would be a different place altogether. There is a lot of speculation on human development, a lot of evolutionistic theory and talk--though the Time Traveller admits that most of his theories end up being dead wrong and we aren't given any resolution as to what actually happens, which keeps the book from being preachy or prophetic, as you might expect from such a book today. It is low on plot and explanation. A fine read, but not a favorite, and, if I compare it to other of Wells' stories, certainly less compelling than The War of the Worlds. However, as I say, it is a worthy thought-experiment and in that it succeeds quite well.

#86, "Outliers"

"Outliers"
By Malcolm Gladwell

I have wanted to read this book for a few years now, though I'm not sure where I first heard of it. "Outliers" is about the concept of success; why some people find success and others do not, its accompanied complexities, and the hidden and sometimes surprising factors that influence a person's success. He looks at several groups in order to unpack and examine what contributes to success; Canadian hockey players, Korean pilots, Silicon valley executives, 1830's millionaires. His primary point is that success is based on factors out of our control as much, or more, than factors within our power. The place, the year, even the month we were born, the social class of our fathers, the power distribution of our cultures, all things that we have no influence over, have real and lasting impact on the paths our lives take. Success is a mixture of predetermined conditions, innate talent (though this is less important that we are often led to believe), hard--like, crazy insane hard--work, and opportunity. No one just falls into success. Gladwell's perspectives are fresh and insightful and are written in a great style that encourages one to continue reading. I really enjoyed the unusual settings of his examples, and even more how he tied each unusual example back into the larger picture. A masterful book on a subject I think most of us are interested to know more about.

Didn't Write Reviews, But

I finished two other books this month:

#84, "Creating the Constitution," a quick account of the circumstances and some of the debate surrounding the writing of the US Constitution
#85, "A Good Marriage," a Stephen King novella about the wife of a serial killer who must decide her future after she learns of her husband's deeds (the title is ironic)

The former was good but not exhaustive--bullet points only--which left me wanting more. The latter was also good, in the sense that it is well-written, but a little reaching in terms of plot.

I have been wanting to read a book called "Bioshock: Rapture," which is the pre-story to one of my favorite video games, for years, and I finally started it on Monday. Sadly, I stopped reading it after the first chapter, as both the writing as well as the narration were horrible. I don't have time to spend with mediocre material, really, and have moved on to H. G. Wells' "The Time Machine."

#83, "A Christian Manifesto"

"A Christian Manifesto"
By Francis A. Schaeffer

This was a bit of an odd book. Like the last one I read, it is very short and I finished it in just a day or two. I say it is odd because, though I've read a lot of Schaeffer, I've never read anything of his that was so political and that I wrinkled my nose at quite as much. I think it is important, vitally, crucially important, to read critically; even--maybe especially--when you read something by an author you respect. And by critically I don't mean "as a critic," reading only because you want to say something about the work, but "critically" as in "thoughtfully," considering the merit of the ideas presented on their own terms and deciding whether they are valid or invalid. When the author is one whom you are familiar with, this process becomes the more important because no man is perfect. There is always something to disagree with between any two people, and I think there can be value in disagreement. Disagreement shows me better who I am, what I think. It shows me that I think for myself, that I am not a mere robot copy-and-pasting ideas that others have, but that I have my own ideas about how the world works. Even so, it feels strange to read a book by Francis Schaeffer, one of the greatest Christian minds of the 20th, and have some reservations about what he says.

"A Christian Manifesto" is a response, of sorts, to documents published earlier in the 20th century titled "The Humanist Manifesto" (1 and 2). Schaeffer describes humanism as a worldview diametrically opposed to Christianity--which is quite right--and warns against that worldview becoming mainstream, the "normal." Of course, when this was written in 1982, there was still hope (?) of humanism's downfall and a return to the values of truth as defined by true Christianity. As we know, this hope has been torn to pieces. Schaeffer's worst fear, humanism as the modern standard, has largely come true. Modern man no longer accepts the answer that there is only one true truth--I daresay that even many who call themselves "Christians" would hedge on this point and say there are ways for each of us to find our own path to heaven. It seems to me that humanism is winning the "culture war" and Christianity, at least as it appears in the United States, is largely impotent to curb the widespread change in ideology.

Schaeffer is not at his best here. His points on religion and worldview are as sharp as ever and always on point, but when he gets into politics he loses focus. Perhaps, as I mentioned above, my own view is skewed as a result of growing up and living in what I consider post-Christian America. Even so, he is not a political scientist, but a philosopher and pastor. I can't really pin down what exactly he wrote that made me wrinkle my nose, but, for me, this book missed the mark as a response to humanism--of course, for Schaeffer, even missing the mark still leaves us with excellent thoughts and mindful commentary.

#82, "The Mark of the Christian"

"The Mark of the Christian"
By Francis A. Schaeffer

This short book--essentially an extended essay--is an examination of Jesus' words from John 13:35: "By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” This love must exist both within and without the Christian community. That is, true Christians must love each other; but at the same time true Christians must love the unbeliever. Schaeffer writes that this love is the "mark" that distinguishes the Christian as set apart, and, further, is the visible testimony that Jesus came from the Father. If Christians cannot love one another, then the non-Christian has every right to doubt the truth of our claims. Love is the ultimate command: first, love toward God, then love for every one of our fellow humans, Christian and non-Christian alike.

This message was especially relevant to me this week, as I was talking with my wife just last weekend about a misanthropic streak that has grown in me as I've gotten older. This cynical and often downright antagonistic feeling is, of course, completely wrong. If I respond to human failure by myself failing, I do not complete Jesus' commands but, in my actions, reject them. I cannot make other people more loving, but I can and must love others better in my own words and deeds, and ask forgiveness daily for my own lack of love. Jesus won't judge me based on other people's actions, but my response to them. This is made all the more important for, as Schaeffer deftly explains, this response, the response of love, is what ought to separate me as a Christian.

#81, "Adolf Hitler: The Definitive Biography"

"Adolf Hitler: The Definitive Biography"
By John Toland

This is by far the largest book I have read this year; probably it will remain the largest as I go through the remainder of the year. Toland tells the story, year by year, month by month, day by day, and occasionally hour-by-hour, of Adolf Hitler: his origins, his childhood, his formative teenage years, experiences in the First World War, his pledge to join politics, his rise to power as head of the National Socialist Party, his leadership of Germany as chancellor and Fuhrer, the actions that he took to lead to the Second World War, and finally the inevitable defeat of Germany and his suicide in the final year of the war. The amount of information is staggering, as is Toland's exquisite attention to detail. He leverages historical documents, public domain as well as personal interviews, photographs, personal letters and government paperwork to bring every point of Hitler's life to light. There is almost no editorializing, speculating, or prescribing. Toland is a pure scholar, and faithfully reports facts. You can really feel his painstaking devotion to presenting each moment as an artifact, without allowing his subjective opinions to color it. He achieves this scholarly aim as well as any historian can. In fact, occasionally you think, "Good God, he has to have a comment on THIS insanity." But he rarely comments at all. I think that puts the burden of opinion, on analysis and critique, on the reader. You aren't told how to think. You are given facts, and expected to come to your own conclusions. That makes for a great history.

Hitler was fanatical. That word is used over and over again in the book to describe his thoughts, motivations, and deeds. Once he had decided the path his life would take, he followed it with incredible, unyielding passion and drive. The result is that his life is, arguably, the most influential single life that existed in the 20th century. Without Hitler, Germany would have taken much longer to recover in the aftermath of World War I. Without Hitler, National Socialism would have been just one of hundreds of insignificant political parties in the 1920's and 30's that sought to reclaim Germany's former glory and re-establish her place in the global community. Without Hitler, the names Goering, Goebbels, and Himmler would all be standard German names, without their modern historical weight. The United States as it stands today would not exist, as its current status as a superpower was born in the destruction of the WWII. Paradoxically, as Toland points out, the Jewish state of Israel would probably not exist without the turmoil brought on by Hitler's extreme antiSemitism and the Holocaust. These things, and a thousand others, mark Hitler's life as one of distinction. He changed the course of history. Persistence makes a difference, and I think there must be some lesson in the unrelenting doggedness of his fanaticism. If only those who seek truth, justice, goodness, righteousness were so unmovingly driven! What might be done in such a life? As it was, his crusade was one of death, of suffering, of horrifying tragedy at every level. The dangers of fanaticism are as clear to see as the benefits.

I had so many thoughts as I read this book and learned about this man, possibly the most reviled name in any tongue and in any history. One thing I wanted to say that stood out to me was on the nature of national pride. Today, we hear lots of talk of patriotism, of being proud of our country and our heritage. Proud to be an American, we say. I see in the life of Hitler the dangerous extreme of nationalism, an extreme that, as I analyze the world day by day, becomes more and more normalized in America. We should--no, we must make ourselves cognizant of where national pride can lead to if not held in check. Hitler thought first and only of his people; their racial purity and supposed superiority to other peoples, their economy and borders at the expense of other nations, Germany-first, Germany-only. His message of victimhood resonated with the common people of Germany in 1924. His party, rooted in Germany pride, went from less than a dozen people to over half of the country in less than ten years. It then devastated the entire world. National pride can bring us community and common goals. It gives us protection, and it recognizes the sacrifices made in order to bring us to where we exist today. Yet when it brings a nation to the point of despising other peoples, it cannot anymore be legitimized. In this time of flux and continuous change, we are not merely citizens of one nation. We are truly citizens of the world. We must take the lessons of Nazi Germany--the lessons of history--and apply them to our our times, or else we fall in danger of following in similar paths. National pride is shameful if your nation exists only to belittle, subjugate, and control others. Therefore be wary of being too proud of your nation. I say this especially as a Christian, and now I write to the Christian reading this: We are first citizens of heaven, not of any arbitrary borders written by man. Do not allow blind nationalism to distract you from your true citizenship. Hitler wanted to rekindle Germany's greatness after being "betrayed" by world. His nationalist spirit controlled his every move, and led to horrors the earth has yet to recover from.

The Eve of War

I am a little over halfway through this biography, and am now just to the events of summer 1938 to August 1939--those leading to the very edge of what would become the most destructive war in human history. I am struck by Hitler's success in essentially blackmailing the world, in order to annex first Austria, then the German-Czechoslovakian territory of the Sudetenland, and then Czechoslovakia itself, all in the space of less than a year. The European nations were so afraid of another war, such as what they endured in 1914-18, that they sought appeasement at nearly all costs. The result, of course, was only to strengthen Germany's position and truly set the stage for the next conflict.

I think there's a lesson there.

Hitler Biography

I've begun a large and long biography of Adolf Hitler, by Pulitzer Prize winner John Toland. It's an extraordinary book. It is subtitled "The Definitive Biography," and with good reason. Nearly every year of Hitler's life is given detailed attention--in the audio version I'm listening to, each year is roughly an hour long (more or less). I think I will give periodic reflections during the course of the book, and one final review at its conclusion, in order to capture my thoughts along the way.

Hitler, I'm finding, was a truly remarkable man. Very little about him was ordinary, even from childhood. I knew previously that he was a painter, but I didn't realize that art and architecture were his passions as a boy and a teenager. He nearly went to a fine arts academy, but they rejected him. He spent his late teens in abject poverty, splitting profits as a street painter 50/50 with a Bohemian who hawked his art to rich tourists. He joined the Bavarian army and volunteered consistently for the hardest and most dangerous missions. He is described over and over in the book as "fanatical," an extreme German nationalist whose goals were always with Germany and Germanness at the head. He hated Marxism, Communism, and Jews; a trio that he frequently conflated together, and whom, along with many Germans in the aftermath of the first World War, he blamed for the humiliating defeat and post-war national turmoil that engulfed the country. You can start to see the threads coming together to form the man who, arguably, was the most influential person on the century.

#80, "The Night Circus"

"The Night Circus" Erin Morgenstern

This is Morgenstern's first (and to date, only) novel. It began way back in the ye-olden-days of 2004, as a project through NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I think it is pretty cool that an on-again, off-again writing project by some random person grew into a full length published novel, which went on to win several awards and get optioned to become a feature-length film. That is a great story of persistence, hard work, and do-it-yourselfness that, I think, exemplifies what being an artist in the 21st century is all about.

Unfortunately, the result of all that persistence, hard work and do-it-yourselfness is a middling book with a superficially interesting concept that doesn't really pay off, half-drawn characters who speak in an odd and unreal fashion, poor pacing (including a confusing and unexplained jumping back and forth between past and future), and lots and lots of nice adjectives that describe very odd things. The central tension of the book centers on a strange and mostly unexplained wager made by a pair of old wizards/magicians/enchanters/gods? who use mortals in their neverending game of whose-is-better. This wager binds two souls together, who then must work against each other in an undefined and brain-twisting competition until it runs its course (the conclusion of which I will not bother you with). Naturally this means that the two people fall in love and are then torn between their destinies, chosen for them by their teacher/mentor/evil-Yoda-figure, and their love for each other. Oh, and there's a circus. That's the setting of this duel, the main location for the novel. There are many uncertainties surrounding the circus. I'm not sure where it came from. It was created for the duel exclusively, or possibly it existed before and was twisted by the duellers--duellists?--to fit their schemes against each other. It is very strange. Overall, I think it is one of the strangest books I have ever read.

Besides the mind-bending plot, which is tough enough to swallow, I confess that at least a part of my problem with the novel was caused my own biases. For example, I do not usually enjoy books written in the present tense. The present tense is intended to make the reader a part of the action, directly involved in the moment-to-moment happenings of the book. When used from the first person, it evokes a journal entry, or admits access into the immediate thoughts of the character. It mostly works in a book like "The Hunger Games," which is written expressly from Katniss' point of view, and exists in real-time as you read. It is still jarring to me as a reader, for the simple reason that I am not Katniss. It actually takes me out of the experience. When the present tense is then coupled with a third-person style, it presents an even more uncomfortable sensation, and it is made worse by the dates given at the start of each chapter, which present an instant friction for me as a reader. It is not October 1902, it is August 2017. The assertion of the book (this is happening now) against my reality (no it's not) throws me out of the experience of reading. I admit, though, that is something that I bring to the book, so that is not exactly a fault of the author, even if I disagree with the choice.

Undeniably, Morgenstern writes in an extremely visual way, and you can often grab onto her descriptions of places and things for a while to tie you from event to event, scene to scene. Maybe it would make a better movie than a book, especially if a quality screenwriter got ahold of some of the worse dialogue. Good lord, the dialogue. It is sometimes ok, but most often has a quasi-old-fashioned feel that doesn't ring true. The best way I can describe it is that the characters talk as a writer thinks people talk, not as they actually talk.

In the end, I say good on Morgenstern for getting a novel out. I am all for people creating and sharing their work. What do I know? I don't have a published novel. But I didn't like this one. #whatIreadin2017

#79: "Band of Brothers"

"Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest"

Stephen Ambrose

For me, Ambrose is the premiere American historian of World War II. I distinctly remember borrowing a huge WWII book by Ambrose from the library when I was young, poring over the pictures, trying to make sense of the stories. The battles, the heroes and villains, the technology, the different and evocative locations, the world-changing events all tied together by a master scholar made for a defining moment in my education and life. This book follows a particular story: the path of a single paratrooper company, Easy, from its inception in 1942 to its disbanding, almost exactly 3 years later, in 1945. In that time, the men underwent training as an experimental parachute infantry company, waited for their premiere in Britain in the early part of 1944, were part of the invasion force at Normandy, participated in campaigns in the Netherlands, in Belgium at the Battle of the Bulge, and at the end of the war were part of the occupying force in the German mountains. In those 3 years, and especially in the year of active duty starting in summer 1944, the men saw war and overcame challenges that few others can boast to. They were an integral and consequential part of the final push to victory. I wonder how many other companies had stories like that of E Company, 506th Regiment, that haven't been told. I also suspect that in hearing this singular story, we gain a partial, fractional glimpse into those of others.

The book is easily read. Ambrose has a conversational style, and a historian's objectivity, carefully framing each event like a filmmaker. He focuses on the people in each moment, their relationships and actions. There is less emphasis on the larger picture; that is not the point. He presents E Company as it was, in its heroic moments as well as its mistakes. We are not meant to consider this an angelic group, but as a brotherhood that fought for each other despite its weaknesses. #whatIreadin2017

#78, "Helping Children Succeed"

"Helping Children Succeed: What Works and Why"
Paul Tough

In the summer, I read Tough's first book, "How Children Succeed" (my Goodreads review here), which was an examination of why developing character traits such as determination, grit, conscientiousness, and optimism in students is as important as teaching them reading and writing. This follow up is a response to the question that has been asked of him ever since that book was published: "What do we do now?" That is, how do we take the concepts of character and interleave them into our educational policies and classrooms, especially in order to close the achievement gap and make a difference for disadvantaged children? This is a very tough subject, because there are so many theories, ideas and studies that seek to answer that very question. Again, Tough takes the role of a journalist, a reporter, parsing the data and filling in the blanks between.

Educators will not be surprised to hear Tough report that this battle is begun at home. Home environment has an enormous effect on the well-being and future success of children, starting almost from birth. The nurturing, loving interaction of an adult in the first 3 years of life can make an impact that gives a child psychological and cognitive strength that lasts a lifetime; the absence of this starts a child's life behind, sometimes devastatingly. For teachers, with whom most schoolchildren spend more time than their parents, the establishment of a healthy, nurturing, ordered and sensible environment is of utmost importance. Tough stresses (like Dweck, Brown, and Willingham) the importance of having and encouraging a growth mindset: the belief that, through hard work and perseverance, one can become smarter. Children need to believe that hard work makes a difference, even in adverse conditions. That can be the difference between catching up, getting ahead, and falling behind--both in school and in life.

Overall, the book is clearly written. Tough doesn't always nail his ideas perfectly, but the bulk of the material is good. The tricky part about writing on psychological research is that there are so many studies, you can nearly draw any conclusion you wish if you aren't careful. That being said, as Tough's conclusions have been echoed in different ways by so many others, I think his large points are salient and important. #whatIreadin2017

#76, "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"

"The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy"
Douglas Adams

I read this book when I was a teenager. I have friends who used to quote bits of it to me, and many moments in it have become a part of my regular lexicon. It has so many memorable parts! That being said, coming back to it 15 years later, I did not enjoy it as much as I thought I remembered. The jokes are still pretty good, although I think some of my grins were partly due to nostalgia bias. I tend to enjoy British humor, which is characteristically dry. Adams is drier than most, and gives his nonsensical phrases in absolute and unbroken deadpan. He'll pop off with something completely out of the blue and then just move on like it was nothing, and that is the key to his style. It's pretty good, as far as it goes. The story is quite wandering. Adams is not concerned with drafting a perfect archetypal story of rising and falling tension, good and evil. He needs none of that. The story just goes until it is over, almost but not quite like a stream-of-consciousness narrative, with many detours and odd asides. That's just how he writes.

The philosophy behind this book was my big takeaway, however, much more than the jokes. Adams was, in his words, a "radical atheist." I see this on almost every page of this book. His militant and piercing hatred of Christianity, his scorn for God and even the concept of God are plainly seen, and intentionally threaded into the story. Absolute meaninglessness is, in fact, the main theme of the book. The phrasing, the words, the non sequiturs--yes, they are funny, but they are also calculated to lay a foundation of meaningless nothingness (if that sentence is syntactically possible). An obvious example of this nihilistic worldview is the central joke of the book: the search for The Ultimate Answer to Life, The Universe, and Everything. The answer, given after 7.5 million years of calculation by the supercomputer Deep Thought, is, of course, "Forty-two." Such an absurd "answer" is a wonderful joke, we think. What a foolish way to spend 7.5 million years. We discover that the Earth was actually a giant computer constructed to calculate The Ultimate Question, the Question that corresponds to the Answer already given. It is at this point that the joke stops being funny, and we realize in Adams' two potential Questions that the implications are deadly serious: either "How many roads must a man walk down?" or "What do you get when you multiply six by nine?"Both of these are nonsense.  That is the point. The answer to the universe is meaningless. The question is meaningless. Everything is absurd and random. Chance is god, impersonal and uncaring.

As Ford Prefect says, "Drink up. The world's about to end."A paraphrase and thematic twisting of 1 Corinthians 15:32. But if the world does end, Adams will tell us that no one cares. It does not ultimately matter if the world exists or if it, and everything on it, vanishes in the next five minutes. There are no answers, no questions, no reasons, and no meaning. That is not funny. It is heartbreaking.

#75, "Make It Stick"

"Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning"

Peter C. Brown, 

How can you get surface learning into durable, easily retrieved memory? That is the central question behind this book, co-written by two psychologists and one self-described "storyteller." The authors explain, examine, and analyze an impressive array of studies describing how the mind works, study habits that foster durable learning, as well as those that are statistically meaningless, and 

The best way to learn, the authors tell us, is to enable memory retrieval. That is, learning occurs best when I hear or read something, then later try to recall it. When we first study something, say, a textbook, the information is immediately placed into "working memory," the frontline of cognitive function that deals with moment-by-moment comprehension, decision-making and instinct. Because so much happens in working memory, information tends to be shuffled to the back of the mind, or long-term memory, when it is not in use. That makes sense. Retrieval practice is therefore used to strengthen the connection between immediate working memory and long term memory. The effort to remember a thing builds that connection better than the standard study technique of cramming or rereading. Flash cards are a good example of a way to foster this kind of memory retrieval. This powerful practice, coupled with other techniques such as chunking (grouping small pieces of information into larger groups), interleaving (learning a thing in the context of another thing), using mnemonics and "memory palaces," spacing retrieval practice, and varying practice all add up to significant improvement in retention and  durable, sustained long term memory.

It also ties in very well to another book I read recently, nearly point-by-point in some areas. Both books tell of the importance of developing and maintaining a "growth mindset," a concept picked up from Carol Dweck's work. Both take time to discount the pervasive notion of learning styles (kinesthetic, auditory, visual). It is interesting to see similar material presented in different ways, but often in terms that I've now become familiar with. I think that has increased my understanding of the material, as I am coming into a topic with some background knowledge (another thing that both books talk about at length).

The authors also look at what they call "illusions of knowing," which they tie to the short-term gains that we seem to have when we reread a text. This illusion manifests initially in the ability to recall facts and bullet points, but often belies the truth that we are ignorant of foundational concepts or key ideas, which we are unable to retrieve beyond the short-term. Again, they stress that for long-term, deep and rounded learning, this surface-level "understanding" is best bolstered by the techniques mentioned above.

It is fairly easy to read, as long as you maintain focus--I had to go back in the middle of the section on chunking because I spaced out and missed an important concept--and has implications for both students (of all ages) as well as parents and teachers. As I am all three of these, I found it relevant, enlightening and engaging. #whatIreadin2017

#74, "The Art of War"

"The Art of War"
Sun Tzu

I have been wanting to read this for years. When I was a teenager, I saw it somewhere--maybe the library--and the idea of an ancient text that offered knowledge and wisdom and pro tips on battle and war was enticing. It seemed cool, in a word. Plus I heard that businessmen and politicians had referenced it for their endeavors, something that I didn't think all the way through philosophically at the time and had no problem with.

Now, fifteen years later, I can say that it is fairly dull. I don't know much about modern military tactics, but I don't think the ability to read enemy movements by watching dust on the horizon is up to the standards of the 21st century. Of course I joke here. There is interesting content, especially when you consider the age of the writings--according to Wikipedia, there were compiled about 500 BC--that I suppose can have implications for modern military or business people. The opening section, which outlines basic foundations for warfare, is great stuff when applied to debate, to politics, and to a general understanding of warfare. I reckon some people employ these tactics in relationships, too, though I wouldn't say that is a great way to win friends. As the tract progresses, the prescriptions become less practical and more inconsequential. Overall, the effect is much like any self-help book: take what seems to apply to you, and ditch the rest.

My biggest takeaway is that Sun Tzu is pronounced, "shinswuh". So now at a dinner party you can correct the ignorant savage who says, "Ever read that book by Suhn Zoo?"

#73, "Nazism and War"

"Nazism and War"

Richard Bessel

"Nazism was inseparable from war." Bessel begins with this statement, one that ties every page of the text to the next, unified in perspective and goal. The book is made of four essays that trace, in turn, the development of Nazism following the First World War, the sudden growth of the ideology and its rapid and unfaltering advancement toward war, the brutal and bloody cost of Nazism in the course of the Second World War, and finally the aftermath of the war, especially in Germany. It is an exhausting, draining book--mentally and emotionally tiring to read the descent into insanity and evil that engulfed the world, and to consider the terrifying way it all began. Hitler vowed revenge from his cell in 1918, at the end of WW1, writing in his manifesto/autobiography "Mein Kampf" of Germany's vengeance upon its enemies, especially "international Jewry". This pledge carried him and his ideals to their conclusion.

Bessel is an excellent writer and an extraordinary scholar. I was astounded, for one thing, at the depth and breadth of his citations--hundreds and hundreds of end-of-text notes, in perfect detail and with full references to sources. His work is enviably well-researched. I have read some criticism of his writing style, which occasionally indulges in lengthy and wordy sentences and paragraphs. However, I found his writing fresh and very readable, as long as I was concentrating.

In the end, my biggest takeaway from this book was that Nazism, whose beginning and end was racist war, was not forced upon those who wore the swastika. It was insidiously embraced by the people, who voted--actually freely chose--to give up their freedom, dissolve the democratic system, and assume a position and take a path that led to the murder of millions. We must learn the lessons of history, 70 years later. We must be wary of charismatic but characterless leaders who hide poisoned tongues with words of honey. We must guard our freedom jealously, and seek to bring freedom to others. It is our lot to protect the weak, to decry violence, to celebrate goodness and stamp out evil. To do otherwise is to open ourselves again to horrors too many have seen.

#whatIreadin2017

#72, "Why Don't Students Like School?"

"Why Don't Students Like School?: A Cognitive Scientist Answers Questions About How the Mind Works and What It Means for the Classroom"

Daniel Willingham

I was surprised by this book. The title suggested to me a work that talked primarily about student attitudes about school and learning, and possibly ways to solve related problems that arise. That is not the case, however. The answer to the question posed by the title is given in the first chapter, in the first few paragraphs. Students don't like school because school requires thinking. Thinking is hard, so students dislike school. Of course, the title and these answers are purposefully general--not every student dislikes school, after all--and they instead serve as seeds that lead to a deep, thoughtful, and thorough examination of topics including the mind, thoughts and thinking, learning, memory, and teaching. The author relies on a massive (and occasionally overwhelming) trove of studies and works to make his points, the combination of which lead inexorably to his foundational and sober conclusions, all of which are then directly and practically related to the modern classroom.

Willingham has fascinating ways of describing thinking and memory, most of which I had never heard or had not heard in this way. As I mentioned above, his primary argument is that the human brain does not like to think. Thinking takes time and energy, and the brain therefore does whatever it can to streamline, organize, minimize, and even cheat at receiving and processing information in order to conserve time and energy. This requires the use of two types of memory: background knowledge (the library of information available in your mind) and working memory (the instantaneous retrieval of information that pertains to your moment-by-moment needs). The interaction between these two types of memory, including the importance of factual knowledge as well as abstract thought, comprise the "intelligence" of a mind. He goes on from talking about the mind to a psychological perspective on "fixed" versus "malleable" intelligence, with the conclusion that students perform best who believe that intelligence can be increased with hard work, not just through genetic "smartness".

There's much, much more, and all of it has direct power in our everyday interactions with students in the classroom. The mind is a wonderful, terrible, incredible thing. Mine could barely keep up with this excellent book, but I think enough seeped in to make a difference.

#whatIreadin2017

#71, "Animal Farm"

"Animal Farm"

George Orwell

Though this is a book generally assigned in high school, it somehow slipped by in my adolescence. Oh, that's right, it's because I chose my own reading lists and opted for philosophy, The Lord of the Rings and Star Wars. Anyway, I finally got around to it. It is a shortish work (one of the characteristics of many books I like), often funny with mercilessly dry remarks, and pretty good as a political satire. I guess by now just about everyone knows both the plot of the book and the intent of the author in writing it. I feel that, though the novel was specifically constructed around the Bolshevik revolution and the ensuing rise of Stalin, its themes--of the danger of totalitarianism, of a community accepting dictatorship with little real questioning--ring true for all eras, and not least our own. While madmen lead nations once again, the allegory of a self-inflicted downfall is a sobering one. A well written, thoughtful, and stimulating (in the sense of engaging our minds to compare the past with our present) novel.

#whatIreadin2017

#68, "The God Who Is There"

"The God Who Is There"

Francis Schaeffer

A part of Francis Schaeffer's great trilogy of Christian philosophy and apologetics, "The God Who Is There" is focused on contrasting the Christian system of thought with modern humanism (also labeled rationalism). The contrast is described through an examination of presuppositions, the historical radical change from a basic understanding of antithesis to that of synthesis, which formed the basis of modern rationalism, and finally by an overview of the Christian answer to modern humanism's existential problem.

As I've written before, Schaeffer is easy to read, but rather more difficult to comprehend. He uses simple phrases, but often in unconventional ways, which simply means if you aren't paying attention you can easily become confused. This isn't casual reading. You have to invest a bit in order to understand what he is driving at. Yet when the pieces come together, his thinking is filled with power and clarity. I especially appreciate his compassionate spirit and his urging to other believers to use Christian thought not as a weapon, but as a tool in order for them to see their eternal crisis and to turn to the only one who can save them. That is clearly seen in this book. Every page practically shouts the author's caring for the souls in despair that he writes about. If every Christian uses his or her mind and heart like Schaeffer, I wonder what a different world we would live in.

#whatireadin2017

#69, "A Study in Scarlet"

"A Study in Scarlet"

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

A good mystery, and a fine introduction to both Sherlock Holmes and the narrator of the story, Dr. John Watson. The book is, as you know, the first of the Sherlock Holmes mysteries by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and is concerned with a murder that continually increases in complexity as the story progresses. There are memorable characters, but of course the primary focus is on the eccentric and brilliant detective Holmes, and on the narrator Watson. The main mystery is fine. The section that goes back in time and to America, nearly 2/3 through the book, was very jarring and strange initially. It became apparent after a while how it fit with the rest of the story, but I wonder if would be more seamless transition if it had been advertised a little better what the deuce was happening. Anyway, it was a good crime story, if not the best of the best of the Holmes tales.

#whatIreadin2017

#66, "The Art of Eric Carle"

"The Art of Eric Carle"

Eric Carle

Eric Carle is a wonderful illustrator, one of the most creative and original artists in the realm of children's literature of any era. This book is part-biography, part-autobiography, part-survey of his life, style, and influence. It is comprised mostly of essays about the artist and his work by his editors, publishers, and others who have journeyed with him, though Carle himself writes a rather lengthy life-story as well as a rambling transcription of a talk he gave about creativity and inspiration.

The essays are good, not great. The best parts of the book are Carle's autobiography, which is witty, informative, and traces parts of his life that, maybe, some less brave might not include (such as his experience as a child in pro-Nazi Germany prior to the 2nd World War) through to his entry into the career of a children's book author and illustrator. I also was very interested to get an inside view of how he creates his illustrations. I enjoyed the story of the origins of "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" the first time; it was shared several more times after that, making me wish that some other stories had been told. There are needless repetitions throughout, though I suppose that might be a function of the compiled essay format--each author just thought to include the same thing, perhaps. Fortunately, they are all well-written. Even better, Carle's vibrant and engaging artwork is showcased throughout--the real standout of the book. The final quarter is entirely selections of his 50+ year career as a professional illustrator, and brilliantly demonstrates his one-of-a-kind style. Overall, a fine read for fans of Eric Carle's work.

#whatIreadin2017

#65, "The Hound of the Baskervilles"

"The Hound of the Baskervilles"

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

I've read this book before, years ago, and did not enjoy it quite as much as when I was younger. It was lengthier, for one thing, than I remembered, with a large introductory portion. The set-up is pretty good, the building mysteries in the main middle are better, and the conclusion left me feeling somewhat unsatisfied. Doyle writes his stories like a Scooby Doo mystery: no matter how odd or out of the ordinary or seemingly supernatural the culprit or clues are, it always resolves to pure natural fact. I wonder if there's something to be said about Doyle in that. Anyway, in this case, I think the lack of Sherlock in much of the second act was a factor; it is always fun to try to guess what he's thinking, why he makes certain choices (which always are explained later). That element was gone during a lot of the book. All that being said, though, it is a fair mystery with an acceptable premise and lots of action.

#whatIreadin2017

#63, "A Time to Kill"

"A Time to Kill"

John Grisham

This is John Grisham's first novel, published in 1989. While it was initially mostly ignored by readers and critics alike, following the explosive popularity and acclaim that accompanied Grisham's subsequent two novels, "The Firm" and "The Pelican Brief," "A Time To Kill" was later widely considered to be an excellent example of Grisham's style and eventually a classic in the legal thriller genre.

The story is complex, extremely well-written, and thick and sticky as a Mississippi summer in the legal, ethical, and moral problems it deals with. Grisham doesn't look away from tough topics. There are very few characters who don't make poor choices, and none that are unquestioningly good--though there are quite a few that are the opposite. The novel opens with a shocking, brutal scene that sets the tone for the rest of the story. There will be no hand-holding. As a reader, you must, before the first chapter is complete, agree to the terms that Grisham sets out: this is not going to be a fun, rollicking ride, but a harsh, painful, and dangerous one. And indeed it is.

The rape is merely the opening act, however, as it precedes the subsequent murder by the girl's father, which is the subject of the remainder of the book. This is the moral and ethical quandary that is really at the heart of the story: is murder ever justified? Does society trust the legal system to condemn and punish offenders, or is the impassioned revenge of a devastated father acceptable as a method of carrying out justice? Though the story ends with the jury suggesting a possible answer, I don't think Grisham is as interested in answering questions as he is in asking them. I appreciate his restraint here, as he never editorializes; he acts almost as a reporter, detailing events that might have happened calmly, objectively. He never instructs his readers HOW to think, but he continually demands that they THINK something. I have my own conclusions

His style is very easy to read, and the story goes from one character and situation to the next with incredible smoothness. He notes every detail in just enough words to convey his meaning without being wordy. I especially enjoy his dry and occasionally ironic humor. The dialogue is fantastic, and the legal sections are fascinating. Grisham started his career as a novelist with courage and clarity, two things I think every writer ought to aspire to.

#whatIreadin2017

#61, "He Is There and He Is Not Silent"

"He Is There and He Is Not Silent"

Francis A. Schaeffer

This is the third of Francis Schaeffer's great trilogy (preceded by "The God Who Is There" and "Escape From Reason"), and is a direct and concise defense of the existence--indeed, the necessity--of God, and the truth of Christianity. He writes mostly on the subject of epistemology: that branch of philosophy concerned with knowing, and how we know that we know. Fairly dense stuff, but if one pays close attention, I think it is not difficult to understand his reasoning. If you miss something, you are likely to become lost. There are no wasted words here; every sentence is focused and makes a difference. This is not exactly light reading. It requires concentration and thought in order for it to fully bloom in the mind. However, I think that once it has been given sufficient attention, the rewards are an incredible look into the mind of a very great thinker.

Schaeffer argues that the central problem facing mankind in the last half of the 20th century (a problem which bleeds into the 21st) is that of knowing. That is not to say "knowledge," which might be thought of as culminating facts, but "Knowing," in a metaphysical and existential sense. We can know truth about God, the universe, and ourselves, because we can know that God exists, that he must exist. I particularly love his coinage of phrases such as "true truth," "infinite-personal creator" and others. Schaeffer never falters, though he does require, as I've said, quite a bit from his reader. I think it would nearly be required to have read the other two books in this trilogy before tackling this one, as he (if I recall correctly) dives more deeply into concepts such as the "upstairs vs. downstairs," the consequences of the "leap of faith" and his "line of despair," all of which are essential to understanding his philosophy but which are not described here.

In the end, this is required reading for those who wish to understand truly the basis of the Christian faith and the existence of the Christian God.

#whatIreadin2017