Worthwhile Books

I had some heavy reading to do for two classes (Thaddeus William's DON'T FOLLOW YOUR HEART , which is a diatribe against radical individualism and REFLECTING THE DIVINE IMAGE by Dunning), so it...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2024/04/what-i-read-and-watched-in-april.html

I recently finished Russ Ramsey's fascinating REMBRANDT IS IN THE WIND . I enjoyed his good writing and his deft weaving together of biography, art history and devotional thoughts. Here is one o...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2024/04/stories-as-source-of-truth-quote-from.html

I am slowly re-reading the first eight novels in the Mitford series to refresh my memory before tackling the later novels (which I somehow missed). It's a joy to be revisiting these dear literar...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2024/03/in-this-mountain-by-jan-karon-mitford-7.html

I often say I prefer Catholic authors to modern Christian fiction writers because they address human suffering without giving overly simplistic answers. THE BETROTHED by Alessandro Manzoni is a...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-betrothed-by-alessandro-manzoni.html

We arrived back in Brazil in January which is summer vacation month. Hence we were able to ease back into our ministry responsibilities and I had loads of time for reading. I read (or finished u...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2024/02/what-i-read-and-watched-in-february-2024.html

I am a huge fan of P.O.W. memoirs, so when my sister told me about this book, I knew I had to get my hands on it. Meredith and Christine Helsby arrived as missionaries to China in 1941. The att...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2024/02/he-goes-before-them-by-meredith-helsby.html

It’s been four years since I have recommended a movie, but a recent viewing of BBC’s 2004 production of NORTH AND SOUTH proved that good movies still exist if you are willing to look for th...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2024/02/worthwhile-movie-21-bbcs-north-and-south.html

I never expected to be blindsided by THE CHRISTMAS PIG . I hated the first bleak chapters, and only continued because many people from the Lit Life Podcast group raved over this book. I'm glad I...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2024/01/the-christmas-pig-by-jk-rowling.html

My tentative goals for 2024 are these ten titles: THE INKLINGS AND KING ARTHUR , BEOWULF , THE CANTERBURY TALES , PICKWICK PAPERS or OLIVER TWIST , BODIES FROM THE LIBRARY #1 (vintage detec...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2024/01/reading-goals-for-2024.html

Some of my reading goals for 2023 were sidetracked by the unexpected rabbit trail of the Arthurian legends, but it was a happy detour. Of the five versions I read, Howard Pyle's THE STORY OF KIN...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/12/reading-year-in-review-2023.html

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash In order to keep my earlier review of 12 WAYS YOUR PHONE IS CHANGING YOU  from being too long, I opted to put this lengthy quote in a separate pos...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/12/satans-nothing-strategy-by-tony-reinke.html

Reading is a spiritual discipline akin to fasting and prayer and one that trains you in virtues, encourages your sanctification, and elicits your love for those noble, admirable, and beautiful ...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/12/reading-as-spiritual-discipline-quote.html

When I'm overwhelmed, I do more movie viewing than book reading, so November was light on books. I finished the excellent NORMS AND NOBILITY by David Hicks, which is a marvelous book primarily ...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/11/what-i-read-and-watched-in-november.html

Why and how we read matters as much as what we read.  It is not enough to read the Bible; you must eat the book  (quoting Eugene Peterson and Ezekiel 3:3). The premise of READING FOR THE ...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/11/reading-for-love-of-god-by-jessica.html

I started MIRACLES ON MAPLE HILL many years ago and couldn't get past the heaviness of the first few chapters (which didn't seem appropriate for a children's book). BUT I kept hearing good thin...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/11/miracles-on-maple-hill-by-virginia.html

Our rented apartment has no television so I continue to get a remarkable amount of reading done. The books I read in order of most-to-least appealing were 1) THE BRIDGE ON SAN LUIS REY by Thorn...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/10/what-i-read-and-watched-in-october-2023.html

Lovers of great literature will revel in SURPRISED BY JOY , the biography of a man who was led to salvation by his reading diet. The progression of “great books” in Lewis’ life worked on...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/10/surprised-by-joy-by-c-s-lewis.html

I enjoyed everything that I read this month. OVERTURE TO DEATH by Ngaio Marsh (#8 in the series) was delightful, and I enjoyed A CHILD'S ANTHOLOGY OF POETRY (edited by Elizabeth H. Sword, a th...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/09/what-i-read-and-watched-in-september.html

I have never understood the allure of food memoirs, but THE SUPPER OF THE LAMB may have converted me. Capon, an Anglican priest, author and home chef, opens the book with self-deprecating hones...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/09/the-supper-of-lamb-by-robert-farrar.html

We were on the road most of July and didn't watch anything. But in August we settled into our apartment and had a few evenings free to use my Hoopla account. I like Hallmark mysteries but the D...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/08/what-i-read-and-watched-this-summer-2023.html

Consider this a belated review of 84 CHARING CROSS ROAD  which I enjoyed in 2021 and again in January of this year. I am a fan of epistolary novels so the 20 years of correspondence (1949-196...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/08/the-duchess-of-bloomsbury-by-helene.html

How did 15 years of blogging go by so swiftly? When my sister-in-law, Diane, suggested that I start a blog to point people to the classics, I never dreamed it would become my new favorite hobby....

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/08/15th-anniversary-of-worthwhile-books.html

(Be aware that some mild spoilers are inevitable in this review.) I avoided UNCLE TOM'S CABIN  for years anticipating caricatures, bad writing, and preachiness. Frankly, it was much better t...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/07/uncle-toms-cabin-by-harriet-beecher.html

It took me three years, but I have finally made it through all of the Lord Peter Wimsey novels. And what a wonderful ride it was! I had my favorites along the way, but I can see myself revisitin...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/07/lord-peter-wimsey-books-11-15-and-one.html

This was a hectic month as we taught our classes, kept up with ministry responsibilities, and tied up loose ends before leaving our apartment for six months of home assignment. I am looking forw...

http://worthwhilebooks.blogspot.com/2023/06/what-i-read-and-watched-in-june-2023.html