A Fiction More Real Than Not: Books I Read in 2026, Vol. XII

 

GILEAD
Marilynne Robinson

Gilead is a book that deserves to be read slowly, thoughtfully, and repeatedly....I would like to see copies of it dropped onto pews across our country, where it could sit among the Bibles and hymnals and collection envelopes. It would be a good reminder of what it means to lead a noble and moral life  -  and, for that matter, what it means to write a truly great novel. (Anne Patchett, The Village Voice)

My youngest daughter loaned this book to me, saying she thought I would love it. I procrastinated starting it simply because of the unique feature that it has no chapters. Those 247 pages of unbroken text seemed daunting. Add to that the run-on opening sentence (see below) that reminded me of The Sound and the Fury, and I just didn't think I could commit to reading the whole thing. But after a few pages it clicked in: this is an old, dying man writing to a son who will grow up without him, leaving behind a self‑portrait. Add to that the fact that the dying man is a third-generation preacher, and my interest level multiplied…and was rewarded tenfold. I highly recommend this gentle testimony of a life lived in service and self-reflection.

First Line: I told you last night that I might be gone sometime, and you said, Where, and I said, To be with the Good Lord, and you said, Why, and I said, Because I'm old, and you said, I don't think you're old.

Page 56 / Line 5: I don't know what to say except that the worst misfortune isn't only misfortune  -  and even as I write those words, I have that infant Rebecca in my mind, the way she looked while I held her, which I seem to remember, because every single time I have christened a baby I have thought of her again.

A Good Line from Somewhere in the Middle: A man can know his father, or his son, and there might still be nothing between them but loyalty and love and mutual incomprehension.

Another Good Line that I Couldn’t Deprive You Of: Much more prayer is called for, clearly, but first I will take a nap.

Last Line: I'll pray, and then I'll sleep.

Meta AI as Cartoonist

 

I took the suggestion of my Facebook feed and allowed Meta AI to use a picture it saw in my phone to create a four-panel comic strip. It wasn't comedic enough to use for Almost the Truth, but cute enough to preserve in this space.

Here's the original picture of SweetCheeks, Me, SkittleKid, and MisterSquishy from last Easter:

And here's the rollicking, fanciful adventure Meta turned us into...

Famous Last Words: Books I Read in 2026, Vol. XI

SEVEN LAST WORDS: An Invitation to a Deeper Friendship with Jesus
James Martin, SJ

New York Times bestselling author James Martin, SJ, offers a vivid and compelling portrait of Jesus based on the Messiah's dramatic last words on the cross. Father Martin shows how deeply Jesus understands our struggles and why we can turn to him completely  -  in mind, heart, and soul. Based on Martin's homilies at New York's St. Patrick's Cathedral on Good Friday 2015, each meditation reflects on one of the seven traditional sayings with the warmth, wisdom, and grace that infuse all of his writings.

For quite a while, I have had in the back of my mind the idea that it would make sense to preach a series of sermons about the seven statements of Jesus from the cross during the seven Sundays of Lent. Then, I saw this book on the library's shelves and inwardly exclaimed, "Bingo!"

Martin takes each phrase (e.g., "I am thirsty," or "It is finished") and uses it to show that Jesus understands us deeply. It's a good framework and serves its stated purpose well. I don't necessarily come down on the same plot of ground as the author in terms of "How much did Jesus know about what was going to happen on Easter?", but I still appreciated the discussion.

I still think the sermon series is a good idea, and I think this book could serve as an excellent resource for it.

Fun Fact...I didn't know until a third of the way through this wasn't the first time I'd read a book by James Martin, SJ.

First Line: When I mentioned to a friend that I had been invited to preach the "Seven Last Words" at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City, her reaction was not surprising: "The seven last what?"

Page 56 / Line 5: Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.

A Good Line from Somewhere in the Middle: So when you struggle in the spiritual life, when you wonder where God is, when you pray in doubt and darkness, and even when you are close to despair, you are praying to someone who is fully human and fully divine, to someone who understands you fully.

Last Line: He becomes someone with whom we can enter more deeply into relationship. Which is what Jesus thirsts for.

It All Started With a Mouse: Books I Read in 2026, Vol. X

 

DISNEY'S LAND: Walt Disney and the Invention of the Amusement Park That Changed the World
Richard Snow

One day in the early 1950s, Walt Disney stood looking over 240 acres of farmland in Anaheim, California, and imagined building a park where people "could live among Mickey Mouse and Snow White in a world still powered by steam and fire for a day or a week or (if the visitor is slightly mad) forever." Despite his wealth and fame, exactly no one wanted Disney to build such a park. Not his brother Roy, who ran the company's finances; not the bankers; and not his wife, Lillian. Amusement parks at that time, such as Coney Island, were a generally despised business, sagging and sordid remnants of bygone days. Disney was told that he would only be heading toward financial ruin.

But Walt persevered.

I had seen multiple quotes from this book posted on Facebook. They interested me enough that I availed myself of the wonder called the Public Library and quickly found a copy to devour. And it was tasty indeed! Because of Snow's personal interest in amusement parks, he took the time to do the research that ended up filling his book with behind-the-scenes stories and anecdotes, enough to satisfy the most die-hard fans.

I've long appreciated how Disney imagined great things and then worked hard to turn them into reality, even at the risk of his own personal financial stability. And the world has been blessed beyond measure to drink from the well of his creativity. Say what you will about corporate greed, Disney himself was more motivated by his values and ideals than any desire for profit. This book tells THAT story, too.

First Line: Walt Disney had been prowling about his park for hours looking for something to do.

Page 56 / Line 5: So Dear to My Heart is about a spunky midwestern lad named Jeremiah Kincaid and his mischievous black lamb, who together carry a plot wispy to the point of nonexistence.

A Good Line from Somewhere in the Middle: The reaction was unanimous: Disneyland would not work.

Last Line: But I knew what Walt Disney understood and had brought about: that another engine  -  perhaps even a better one  -  was just a stop or two down the line.

Alex Pretti Killers Still Protected Instead of Prosecuted

 

I've been waiting for 7 months to hear any kind of news report about an impending trial or charges being filed in the case of the nationally-broadcast murder of Alex Pretti.

And yesterday evening, KARE 11 News shared this post that left me even more convinced that if we don't keep asking about it, it's never going to happen.

7 MONTHS (!!!) after everybody watched a man get pepper-sprayed, thrown to the ground and subdued by several men, disarmed of his legally carried and holstered firearm, and THEN shot to death . . . and still no legal action against the perpetrators.

Jack's 8th, My 1st: Books I Read in 2026, Vol. IX

 

THE ENEMY: A Jack Reacher Novel
Lee Child

Jack Reacher: Hero. Loner. Soldier. Soldier's son. An elite military cop, he was one of the army's brightest stars. But in every cop's life there is one case that changes everything. For Jack Reacher, this is that case...

New Year's Day, 1990. In a North Carolina motel, a two-star general is found dead. His briefcase is missing. Nobody knows what was in it. Within minutes Jack Reacher has his orders: Control the situation. Within hours the general's wife is murdered. Then the dominoes really start to fall...

I have had a collection of Jack Reacher short stories on my to-be-read list at the library for a while...because I liked the two Jack Reacher movies starring Tom Cruise...but I had no intention of reading any of the novels. Then I saw this paperback in my local Little Free Library and decided it was a good one-off to read while on vacation. And now, as witnessed by the addition of a Jack Reacher label for this blog, I'm thinking I need to back up from this 8th book and start at the beginning (like I did with Alex Cross). I'm going to need to pick up the pace if I'm going to get everything read before I show up in an obituary someplace.

I did have one hang‑up as I read: I kept having to swap out the movie version of Jack Reacher in my head. Tom Cruise’s build is nowhere near the Jack Reacher described in these pages. John Cena was a workable recast.

First Line: As serious as a heart attack. Maybe those were Ken Kramer's last words, like a final explosion of panic in his mind as he stopped breathing and dropped into the abyss.

Page 56 / Line 5: Her eyes looked like a fifty-year-old's.

A Good Line from Somewhere in the Middle [Usually, this is a single sentence, but this is too good to stick to that "rule". A mother is talking to her two sons about how it feels to know that she is dying soon...]: It's like being made to walk out of a movie that you're really enjoying. That's what worried me about it. I would never know what happened to you boys in the end, with your lives. I hated that part. But then I realized, obviously I'll walk out of the movie sooner or later. I mean, nobody lives forever. I'll never know how it turns out for you. I'll never know what happens with your lives. Not in the end. Not even under the best of circumstances. I realized that. Then it didn't seem to matter so much. It will always be an arbitrary date. It will always leave me wanting more.

Last Line: I was in the army, and I was always where someone else told me to be.

The Odyssey: Big Film, Big Hype, Big Deal

From Wikipedia:

The Odyssey is a 2026 epic action fantasy film written and directed by Christopher Nolan. An adaptation of Homer's ancient Greek epic poem The Odyssey, it stars an ensemble cast including Matt Damon, Tom Holland, and Anne Hathaway. In the film, Odysseus (Damon), the Greek king of Ithaca, undergoes a long and perilous journey home after the Trojan War and encounters mythical beings as he attempts to reunite with his wife Penelope (Hathaway). Filming took place on location from February to August 2025 in Morocco, Greece, Italy, Scotland, Iceland, Western Sahara, and Malta, as well as at the Universal Studios lot in Los Angeles. With an estimated budget of $250 million, it is among the most expensive films of Nolan's career, and the first feature film to be shot entirely on IMAX's 70 mm film cameras.

I took the bait (and my son) and went into the theater anticipating a cinematic marvel of epic proportions. Yes, the screen was huge. Yes, the sound shook the seats. Yes, the action was...actiony. But the attempts to put it all in the context of politics and religion were a waste of footage. Nobody cares whether Odysseus offended Poseidon or what was to become of Ithaca in his absence...get to the next monster mash!

Okay, that was a bit of an exaggeration on my part. I never actually experienced a moment of "man, this movie is long" at any time. The only hint of that was actually in the first 15 minutes or so, when I wasn't sure what was going on and couldn't really understand what the characters were saying.

About the R rating: I'm not really convinced it is justified other than a couple more F-bombs than are allowed in a PG-13 movie. (Side note: Each time the term was used, I was immediately taken out of my suspended disbelief and reminded that this was a modern movie. It just seemed anachronistic, like Jesus' disciples saying "Let's go, guys.") The fights are not particularly bloody and the only nudity was a look at a dead soldier's bare bottom. The strongest contender for Scene That Caused The R Rating is when a group of men was turned into pigs. That was certainly disturbing and gross.

Bottom line for me is 3.5 out of 5 stars. A good enough escape from reality, but three months from now, nobody's going to be talking about it.