Tuesday, October 28, 2008

On... The Great Bridge by David McCullough

I love every book that I read of David McCullough. He crafts history in such a way that makes me want to read about the building of the Brooklyn Bridge or the Panama Canal. This book focused on the building of the Brooklyn Bridge.

McCullough's language creates such vivid pictures that I could easily imagine how it felt and what it looked like when I walked across the Brooklyn Bridge six years ago.

Even though I did not completely understand the technical details of the sinking of the caissons and other engineering details I found myself completely fascinated by the details and taking a deep gasp of breath as McCullough described a fire underwater in the caisson that nearly derailed the entire project.

At the same time I must warn that this book is not for the faint of heart. At 562 pages it makes for a formidable challenge for even the avid reader.

I definitely recommend this book for the lover of history and good reading, with the above caveat.

Monday, October 27, 2008

On... Shattered Justice by Karen Ball

I have to admit that I accidentally read the second book in the series first so I knew the outcome of the story at the outset.

While Ball creates a compelling story with moving characters I think that the time span of the story makes it a bit unbelievable. For instance, Ball starts the story when Dan was married to his first wife Sarah and sets up the "perfect family" situation. That in itself necessitates an added two years to the time line.

Other than that I loved the book and felt for the characters. I almost didn't want the story to end and know that I would have felt that way had I not known the ultimate outcome for the characters.

I definitely recommend this book and this series.

Sunday, October 19, 2008

On... Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller

I added this book to my list over a year ago after hearing good reviews of the book from girls I worked with at camp. Every girl that read the book raved about it.

I have to say that I will not rave about the book. The book is not bad. Don't get me wrong. Miller creates amazing word pictures as he describes his memories of the past in relation to his relationship to God.

I guess what threw me off the most was his seeming lack of passion about his relationship to God. In my own relationship with God I cannot imagine a lack of passion. I believe that any Christian should be passionate about that.

Blue Like Jazz is a good book on artistic/literary measures but I would not recommend it based on devotional merit.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

On... The Ransom of Mercy Carter by Caroline B. Cooney

I found this book intriguing but at the same time came away from the book a bit dissatisfied.

I'll discuss some of the negatives first. I don't think that this book is appropriate for most children at the middle school level. There is nothing inappropriate or gratuitous in the book but Cooney describes with a coolness almost the dispatching of various prisoners on the march. Of course I realize that such actions actually occurred on that march/capture. I don't want students to be unaware of what happened but I think that some aspects of history should be discussed at later ages.

Now for the positives. Cooney deals with a lot of serious issues with admirable ease. In Mercy Carter she creates a believable and likeable character that struggles with very real issues.

The book is an excellent book, a pretty good read.

Sunday, October 05, 2008

On... Randall's Wall by Carol Fenner

This book made it onto my list when I added all of the recommended summer reading books for middle school students in my district. I knew nothing about the book before I started reading.

Fenner's style appealed to me in an unusual way. She tells the story from several different points of view, most from Randall of course. Normally a technique like that turns me off of the book. In this case, Fenner made it work. It's almost as if Fenner holds the plot like a rope and lets out necessary information only at crucial points.

Randall's wall, figurative though it may be, struck me in such a profound way. As a teacher in training I have to be willing to look past what might not be appealing in the first place (or at all for that matter) in order to reach the student.

I can't tell much more than that without giving away the book but I do strongly recommend this book.

Wednesday, October 01, 2008

On... Bachelor's Puzzle by Judith Pella

Each new book by Judith Pella that I read disappoints me even more. Pella used to be one of my favorite authors. To this day I adore the Stonewyke books, the Russians series and a more recent series (the name of which escapes me).

In the past couple years I have read three of her other books, including this one, and found myself questioning why I like the above mentioned series so much.

From the beginning of the book I could predict the final outcome. Of course, a few of the details I wouldn't have been able to predict but the final outcome, yes. This decreases my motivation to read the book and my overall interest in the book. In addition, Pella succumbs to the all too prevalent tactic usesd by many Christian authors, preaching through the character's mouth.

In my own opinion I do not think that sermons from a pulpit should be included either complete or in parts. When one of the main characters, Zack, in this story impersonates a pastor I knew that I would be subjected to at least one or two. Pella did not disappoint in that respect.

In addition, the change in the main character, Zack, did not convince me at all. Simply because he stopped living the "profligate" life he had before and started impersonating a preacher he discovered the wrong doing of his previous life. Also, the evil things were clearly evil. For instance, "shut up" was a heinous swear word.

I do not recommend this book.

On... Familiy and Found by Karen Kingsbury

Part of me wishes that I could respect Karen Kingsbury more than I do. At one point I collected her books avidly because I enjoyed them so much. Kingsbury writes with great skill and creates very believable, sympathetic characters.

However, a few years ago I read an article where she was interviewed about a recent book that did not mention God at all. Now, I do not believe that Christians are limited to writing only for the Christian market. I do believe, though, that a person cannot write from any perspective or world view other than that of a Christian. In the article, and I wish I could remember her exact words, Kingsbury basicly stated that it did not matter if she did not mention God because as long as she included some sort of love that would be alright because God is a God of love.

I agree. God definitely is a God of love and a Christian is not forced to mention God or preach a sermon in his or her books but at the same time I disagree with Kingsbury's mindset behind her writing.

For that reason I sold all of my Kingsbury books and will not buy any more.

On the other hand, I still enjoy reading the books and returned to Kingsbury with Forgiven, the second in her Firstborn series. Family and Found are the third and fourth books in the series.

I really enjoyed the book. Kingsbury crafted fully believeable characters that make me want to read both the first series that chronicled the Baxter family and the series that comes after the Firstborn series.

For the above stated reasons I cannot recommend these books but on the basis of writing alone I can recommend the books. If you disagree with me about the above than I can give you a strong recommendation for these books.