Tom Hanks
From the publisher: “ A collection of 17 wonderful short stories showing that two-time Oscar winner Tom Hanks is as talented a writer as he is an actor. These stories are surprising, intelligent, heart-warming, and, for the millions and millions of Tom Hanks fans, an absolute must-have.”
From me: This was a pleasant read indeed, though it contained more foul language than I’ve ever heard Hanks utter on the screen. Most of the stories are more slice-of-life than actual beginning-middle-end narratives, but they are a fine display of the actor’s powers of observation.
Page 56/Sentence 5: After ten days of reshoots in Budapest, they had only the surfing scenes yet to do.
Philip Gulley
“Gulley’s vision of Christianity is grounded, gripping, and filled with uncommon sense. He is building bridges instead of boundaries, and such wisdom is surely needed now.”
I found the chapter titles and the values they revealed (“Jesus Would Be a Model for Living Rather Than an Object of Worship”, “Reconciliation Would Be Valued Over Judgment”) to be intriguing, so I electronically borrowed this from the library and became instantly confused when I read the introduction and first chapter. Gulley makes it clear that he doesn’t believe in the historical accuracy of the gospel accounts in the Bible - that Jesus probably didn’t say the things the writers said he said - and that he doesn’t even regard Jesus as deity. So why would he even care about following Jesus’ values...and how can he even determine what those values are...and how can the Quakers accept him as a pastor? The more I read, the more I wondered why the author even considers himself a Christian.
56/5: What is it about religion that makes otherwise kind people forsake the obvious good to uphold doctrines that have long lost their meaning?
Craig Johnson
“ The 4th Longmire novel delivers more of the taut prose, engrossing characters, beautiful Wyoming setting, and satisfying depth that reviewers have been hailing since The Cold Dish.”
I have no idea whether I would keep reading these novels if not for having thoroughly enjoyed the TV series. Don’t get me wrong, I like the books...I really do...but I just can’t tell whether I like them for themselves or because they take my mind back to the TV characters, even when the book characters do things that I’m pretty sure the TV characters would never do. Ah well. Ours is not to reason why. Ours is but to read and report.
56/5: I stopped saying anything.
Michael Reeves
“ This brief and winsome book presents an introduction to the Christian faith that is rooted in the triune God. Reeves takes cues from preachers and teachers down through the ages, setting key doctrines of creation, the person and work of Christ, and life in the Spirit into a simple framework of the Christian life.”
I read this to be able to participate in a book discussion group hosted by Pastor Brad Dewing at my church (Valley Christian Church). All I had to do was read the “Introduction,” and I knew this was a really good decision. Can’t count how many times I said “I’ve never thought about it like that before!” while reading this book.
56/5: For when Jesus sends us, he is allowing us to share the missional, generous, outgoing shape of God’s own life.
Dave Barry
“For thousands of years, women have asked themselves: What is the deal with guys, anyway? What are they thinking? The answer, of course, is: virtually nothing. Deep down inside, guys are extremely shallow. But that has not stopped Dave Barry from writing an entire book about them.”
I really needed this book to be able to relax while reading Reconstructing the Gospel (below). Dave Barry writes the way I try to, often making me chuckle and sometimes even eliciting an actual guffaw.
56/5: Let’s say a guy named Roger is attracted to a woman named Elaine.
Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove
“Reconstructing the Gospel is an attempt to work through the problem of sin and culture infecting the presentation and living out of the gospel. A gospel that justifies slavery, racism and oppression of the poor and marginalized is not the same gospel that Jesus was presenting.”
I got the ebook version of this for free from InterVarsity Press in an attempt to educate myself on the issue of racism as part of my response to the killing of George Floyd. I picked it because of the title, thinking, “I don’t think the gospel SHOULD be reconstructed. what the sam hill is this guy talking about. Truth be told, I’m still not real sure what he’s talking about. (Sorry.)
56/5: No, I can’t dip into the DPAC and get my Christmas-spirit fix in ninety minutes any more.
Edited by Bonnidell Clouse and Robert G. Clouse
“Should women teach men? Should they exercise authority over men? What about ordaining women? Even those who agree that Scripture must determine our answers do not agree on what it teaches. And too often, differing sides have not been willing to listen to one another. Here in one volume are the views of four deeply-committed evangelicals that focus the discussion on the issues.”
I chose this book to educate myself on the different schools of thought about women in positions of church leadership because of its format of a main paper by a proponent of a particular view, followed by shorter critiques by three people who adhere to three different views...with each of the four people getting their turn to present their views and pick at the others’. The main take-away? It takes a lot of nit-picking in the original language to come up with a firm conviction on the topic...and each of the four thinks they’re right and the others are wrong. SO...there doesn’t seem to be much room for dogmatism.
56/5: If the Scriptures have been completely and correctly understood from the beginning and that understanding has been transmitted, it would seem that there would be little or no need for further biblical or theological study.
Carrie Fisher
“When Carrie Fisher discovered the journals she kept during the filming of the first Star Wars movie, she was astonished to see what they had preserved—plaintive love poems, unbridled musings with youthful naiveté, and a vulnerability that she barely recognized. Before her passing, her fame as an author, actress, and pop-culture icon was indisputable, but in 1977, Carrie Fisher was just a teenager with an all-consuming crush on her costar, Harrison Ford.”
Fisher’s reputation for brutal honesty and sailor-friendly language is well-earned, but this was a welcome respite from all the weighty reading I had been doing this third of the year. I have to admit, though, that some of her observations about her affair with Ford were far deeper and wiser than you’d expect from a 19-year-old:
With him, love was easier done than said
Instead of taking you to heart, he would take you to bed
And you take what he has to offer lying down
You’re getting more involved while he’s still getting around
It’s all a matter of touch and go
‘Cause he’s one for all and all for show
But after all was said and almost done
I was playing for keeps and he was playing for fun
56/5: The fact that Harrison and I had rolled around in the backseat during our return to London didn’t necessarily mean that it was a prologue for a more elaborate event.
Anthony Daniels
“Daniels tells a riveting, humorous, and often moving tale of life on (and off) the sets of all nine Star Wars movies, giving fascinating new insights into that galaxy far, far away.”
Perhaps obviously, I kind of unavoidably drifted to this memoir while finishing up “The Princess Diarist”, and I couldn’t be happier. Daniels’ eye for detail befits a droid and his storytelling made me feel like we were sitting around an Ewok’s fire recalling all the joys, surprises, and pains of having spent a lifetime inside a gold-colored suit.
56/5: He’s shot with Roman Polanski and Stanley Kubrick.
