Books I Read in 2024, Vol. XI

 

ONE-TO-ONE BIBLE READING: A Simple Guide for Every Christian
David Helm

Two people with open Bibles  -  simple and yet powerfully effective in growing disciples of Jesus. David Helm explains why, and gives you practical tips for getting started. "Helm's book encourages relational evangelism and discipleship based on the living and active word of God, offering practical tools for one-on-one Bible reading and envisioning a mobilization of God's people that would complement church programs. Helm calls us to invite people not only to an event, but into our lives and into the life of faith in Jesus Christ offered in his word." (Kathleen Nielson - Author and conference speaker)

This is another book I've read because of being an elder at Valley Christian Church. It is a quick read with a lot of practical resources for putting the concept of reading and talking about the Bible with one or two other people into practice. I wish I would have had this back when I was a youth minister. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this resource for ANY Christian...even as a tool for making your personal Bible reading effective and life-changing.

First Line: You probably know someone, perhaps a co-worker, who is not really a church person.

Page 56 / Line 5: If we try to read them all as if they are one type of literature (such as one of the letters of Paul), we'll quickly get off track.

A Good Line from Somewhere in the Middle: No longer was he worried about whether or not he could remain a scientist if he were to become a Christian.

Last Line: Are you ready to follow Jesus?

Books I Read in 2024, Vol. X

 

WAIT FOR SIGNS: Twelve Longmire Stories
Craig Johnson

Craig Johnson's straight-talking lawman, Sheriff Walt Longmire, first knocked readers dead in the award-winning short story "Old Indian Trick." Since then, the sheriff has captured the hearts of mystery lovers with ten bestselling Longmire novels and the hit A&E series LONGMIRE. Now, for the first time, 12 short stories featuring an off-duty Longmire are collected in a single volume. With a glimpse into Walt's past, these stories are by turns hilarious and suspenseful. The sheriff finds himself mistaken for a deity, then elbowed into putting on a show as the Ghost of Christmas Past, and then trapped in a Porta Potty. Wait for Signs is a welcome addition to any Longmire fan's shelf and a wonderful way to introduce new readers to the fictional world of Absaroka County, Wyoming.

I normally wouldn't read two Longmire books in a row without tossing in some Rat Pack Mystery or Brit in the FBI between them, but this collection of short stories perfectly fit with a flight to Michigan for a weekend conference and the drive back with Beloved. By now, it is clear that I am a fan of Johnson's Longmire output, and this collection does not tarnish that in the least. There was even the added bonus of learning the real legend behind the naming of Wyoming's Crazy Woman Creek, which I have driven by countless times in my journeys to and fro involving visiting my in-laws.

First Line: It's hard to argue with an old Indian or his tricks.

Page 56 / Line 5: "Maybe."

A Good Line from Somewhere in the Middle: The prison psychologist intimated that it was all a question of comparison, but that if you sat a bag of groceries next to Travis, the groceries would get into Stanford before he would.

Last Line: I drove the entire forty miles without cracking a smile -- a personal best.

Books I Read in 2024, Vol. IX

 

AS A WOMAN: What I Learned About Power, Sex, and the Patriarchy After I Transitioned
Paula Stone Williams

Dr. Paula Stone Williams was a married father of three who held several prominent jobs within the Christian community. Then, she made a life-changing decision: she would physically transition from a male to a female at the age of sixty. Feeling utterly alone after being expelled from the evangelical churches she had once spearheaded, Paula struggled to create a new safe space for herself where she could reconcile her faith, identity, and desire to be a leader.

In [this book], Paula pulls back the curtain on her transition journey and sheds light on the gendered landscape that impacts many in the LGBTQ+ community. She urges men to recognize the ways in which the world is tilted in their favor and validates the experiences of women who have been disregarded based solely on their gender, while also acknowledging how she was once like those men who are blind to their privilege.

I read this book in an attempt to better understand the world of transgenderism. It certainly told the tale of the author's personal journey and feelings, but in terms of understanding "why," it never went beyond "I've always felt like I was in the wrong body; that I should have been born female." And maybe that's really the only explanation for gender dysphoria. As for insights into "the patriarchy," I think Dr. Williams was confusing the shocked reactions of the evangelical ministries he led as a cultural sense of male privilege. But to be fair, the final third of the book DOES point out several instances of being treated differently, i.e., less respectfully, merely because of being a woman, and that is something to be ashamed of and to work on changing.

First Line: I had a big dream but could not hold on to the details, except some vague sense that I'd been immersed in water.

Page 56 / Line 5: Since the subject had been so much on the back burner during my college years, I was confident it was going to go away once I got married.

A Good Line from Somewhere in the Middle: Bible college is kind of like being at your aunt's house.

Last Line: To all who believe the call toward authenticity is sacred and holy and for the greater good, there are no guarantees you will find happiness, but you will know joy.

Books I Read in 2024, Vol. VIII

 

DRY BONES: A Longmire Mystery
Craig Johnson

When Jen, the largest, most complete Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton ever found, surfaces in Absaroka County, Wyoming, it appears to be a windfall for the High Plains Dinosaur Museum  -  until Danny Lone Elk, the Cheyenne rancher on whose property the remains were discovered, turns up dead. With millions of dollars at stake, a number of groups step forward to claim her, including Danny's family, the tribe, and the federal government. As Wyoming's acting deputy attorney and a cadre of FBI officers descend on the town, turning what should be a local matter into a political charade, Sheriff Walt Longmire is determined to find out who would benefit from Danny's death.

Continuing on my quest to read every Longmire mystery I can borrow from the Dakota County Library, I found another entertaining read. There's more dialog featuring Undersheriff Victoria Moretti, so there are more incidences of PG-13 and R-rated language, but if that doesn't bother you (and it comes nowhere NEAR Scorsese film level), I will recommend this tale with both my thumbs held at chest level. It's got action, meaningful character development, and humor.

First Line: She was close to thirty years old when she was killed.

Page 56 / Line 5: I watched McGroder and his staff examine and document all the parts of Jen's massive head, roughly the size of a sofa, on an assortment of clipboards and forms under the close observation of Trost.

A Good Line from Somewhere in the Middle: A lot of people might underestimate my undersheriff because she was wounded; a lot of people are morons.

Last Line: Save Jen.

Books I Read in 2024, Vol. VII

MESSY GRACE: How a Pastor with Gay Parents Learned to Love Others Without Sacrificing Conviction
Caleb Kaltenbach

[The author] was raised by LGBT parents, marched in gay pride parades as a youngster, and experienced firsthand the hatred and bitterness of some Christians toward his family. But then Caleb surprised everyone, including himself, by becoming a Christian…and a pastor. Very few issues in Christianity are as divisive as the acceptance of the LGBT community in the church. As a pastor and as a person with beloved family members living a gay lifestyle, Caleb had to face this issue with courage and grace. [This book] shows us that Jesus’s command to “love your neighbor as yourself” doesn’t have an exception clause for a gay “neighbor”—or for that matter, any other “neighbor” we might find it hard to relate to. Jesus loved everyone without compromising truth. So can we. Even when it’s messy.

I borrowed this book from the library as part of an ongoing discussion among the elders at Valley Christian Church about LGBTQ+ issues. The book does a great job of meshing the author's personal history with a general discussion about loving people without excusing their sin...and that includes ourselves, because gay people aren't the only sinners in the world, duh! Kaltenbach writes with a graciousness that models how we should "deal with" our neighbors. I'm glad he included thoughts on not only our individual responsibility to love like Jesus but how it would look to live this out as a local church family (though I wish he would have offered some practical answers to a list of questions he said "messy churches" need to consider).

First Line: For a couple of minutes after I pulled into the church parking lot, I continued to sit in my Ford Escape, my hands gripping the steering wheel as if I were still driving.

Page 56 / Line 5: During this season in Southern California, an unfortunate attitude of "us versus them" prevailed.

A Good Line from Somewhere in the Middle: God's Word should never be a catalyst for us to mistreat those who are different from us.

Last Line: By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

Books I Read in 2024, Vol. VI

 

I AM PILGRIM: A Thriller
Terry Hayes

A breakneck race against time...and an implacable enemy. An anonymous young woman murdered in a run-down hotel, all identifying characteristics dissolved by acid. A father publicly beheaded in the blistering heat of a Saudi Arabian public square. A notorious Syrian biotech expert found eyeless in a Damascus junkyard. Smoldering human remains on a remote mountainside in Afghanistan. A flawless plot to commit an appalling crime against humanity. One path links them all, and only one man can make the journey. Pilgrim.

This is another 4-for-a-dollar selection from the Dakota County Library. The above breathless description got me to take it home, and the mile-a-minute tapestry of a plot kept me reading. It was a little off-putting when a new character was introduced and all of a sudden there were several chapters of backstory...but it all was woven together with an expert eye for detail and an on-the-edge-of-your-seat urgency that made it forgivable. It's not surprising to learn that Terry Hayes is an award-winning writer and producer of several movies, including Payback and Road Warrior.

First Line: There are places I'll remember all my life  -  Red Square with a hot wind howling across it, my mother's bedroom on the wrong side of Eight Mile, the endless gardens of a fancy foster home, a man waiting to kill me in a group of ruins known as the Theater of Death.

Page 56 / Line 5: It was a good story, but it didn't mean anything to me, not now anyway.

A Good Line from Somewhere in the Middle: At that moment I realized what our mistake had been  -  we had been hunting him when we should have been trapping him.

Last Line: He is risen.

Books I "Read" in 2024, Vol. V

 

AS YOU WISH: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride
Cary Elwes with Joe Layden

Reading Cary's book has brought back wonderful memories. He has so beautifully recounted what was for me, and I'm sure for all of us, one of the truly great creative experiences of our lives. He takes us, as only he can, through a Man in Black's eye view of the world of the R.O.U.S., the Shrieking Eels, and the Cliffs of Insanity. And he does it with style and grace. So curl up in a comfy spot and have fun storming the castle.  -Rob Reiner (from the Foreword)

Thanks to Spotify, I got to listen to Elwes read the book...along with Rob Reiner and others reading sections they had contributed to the text. It was nice hearing the sincerity in their voices (I know, I know...they're actors, but still...) as they talked fondly of the time spent filming the movie and the camaraderie the cast members felt for each other. It's exactly what you'd hope would be true about one of your favorite films. There are plenty of behind-the-scenes revelations and I highly recommend this book to any fan of The Princess Bride. Bonus Revelation: Cary Elwes is an amazing vocal mimic as he quotes several people.

First Line: Standing onstage at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, surrounded by cast members and some of the crew, many of whom I've not seen in years, I feel an almost overwhelming sense of gratitude and nostalgia.

Page 56 / Line 5 (Yes, I actually found a copy of the book in the library so I could be accurate with this): It wasn't just that he wanted the film to be successful; I think he was actually fearful it might fail.

Last Line: Nothing has made me more proud than my relationship to it.