MY 2018 READING LIST

Here are the most significant books I read this past year. They are from a variety of genres: spiritual, devotional, theological, philosophical, biographical, and fictional. You might something in the list that appeals to you. I must say that the Sienkiewicz trilogy (#11) was my greatest find of the year, but all of them were edifying.

1. READINGS FOR THE DAILY OFFICE FROM THE EARLY CHURCH, edited by J. Robert Wright, 1991. There is a reading for every day from one of the great fathers and mothers of the first centuries. It is a treasure trove of spiritual jewels.
2. A WAY TO PRAY: MATTHEW HENRY, edited and revised by O. Palmer Robertson, 2010, 2015. A biblical method for enriching your prayer life and language by shaping your words with Scripture. It is very helpful in deepening and expanding your prayer life.
3. DAY BY DAY WITH GEORGE DUNCAN, 1979. A years’ readings from an Anglican Evangelical who ministered to me in my youth. Heart religion that is Christ-centered and invigorating.
4. GRANT, Ron Chernow, 2017. Excellent. Eye-opening about U.S. history in the nineteenth century. It puts today into perspective and shows how Utopia is idealistic. If you think racism is a problem today read this.
5. THE TRAGIC SENSE OF LIFE IN MEN AND IN PEOPLES, Miguel de Unamuno, 1912, 1931. An argument by the acclaimed Spanish writer for the immortality of the soul against rationalism.
6. THE MAN BORN TO BE KING, Dorothy L. Sayers, 1943. A superb dramatic portrayal of the life of Jesus that C.S. Lewis read every Lent.
7. THE GOLDEN LEGEND: a novel, Nadeem Aslam, 2017. Magnificent and beautiful novel about Christians and Muslims in Pakistan.
8. THE ADVENTURE OF LIVING, Paul Tournier. A classic of Christian spirituality by the Swiss psychiatrist.
9. THE BAGHDAD EUCHARIST: a novel, Sinan Antoon, 2017. A powerful story of a Christian family in Iraq.
10. EMBODIED HOPE: A THEOLOGICAL MEDITATION ON PAIN AND SUFFERING, Kelly M. Kapic, 2017. Very Helpful.
11. WITH FIRE AND SWORD, THE DELUGE, FIRE ON THE STEPPE, Henry Sienkiewicz, translated by W.S. Kuniczak 1981. The monumental and magnificent trilogy of the saga of Poland and the Ukraine in the seventeenth century by the 1905 Nobel prizewinner. It is Poland’s “War and Peace” national epic. It is enthralling. A real page turner.
12. THE MASTER AND MARGARITA, Mikhail Bulgakov, translated by Richard Pevear & Larissa Volokhonsky, 1997, 2016. A remarkable satire of Soviet literary life and the reality of the spiritual. A commentary on Luke 11:24-26: the return of the unclean spirits into secular culture. Prophetic.
13. A WHOLE NEW LIFE, Reynolds Price, 1994. A stirring, eloquent memoir of his battle with spinal cancer. Inspiring.
14. THE DUST THAT FALLS FROM DREAMS, Louis de Bernieres, 2015. Wonderful description of three families during and after World War I.
15. LET WISDOM JUDGE: University addresses and Sermon Outlines by Charles Simeon, edited with introduction by Arthur Pollard, 1959. Superb example of Anglican Evangelicalism.
16. ON OLD AGE, Cicero. Excellent.
17. OUR CULTURE, WHAT’S LEFT OF IT, Theodore Dalrymple, 2005. A searing critique of modern society, moral relativity and elitist liberalism by a gifted commentator.
18. THE AGE OF CAESAR: FIVE ROMAN LIVES, Plutarch, translated by Pamela Mensch, 2017. The folly and danger of unchecked hubris, waste, pride, greed, lust, faithlessness, the desire for power and ambition to be in first place.
19. SPIRITUAL LEADERSHIP TODAY: HAVING DEEP INFLUENCE IN EVERY WALK OF LIFE, Mel Lawrenz, 2012,2016. Excellent, timely.
20. BEWARE OF PITY, Stefan Zweig, 1939 and 2011. Zweig’s great novel of delusion and guilt.
21. IN DEFENCE OF WAR, Nigel Biggar. Detailed defense of the Christian theory of the Just War as over against pacifism, by the Professor of Moral Theology at Oxford University.
22. THE RISE AND PROGRESS OF RELIGION IN THE SOUL, Philip Doddridge, 1744. A classic evangelistic argument for the Gospel to nominal or indifferent Christians and agnostics. It was very popular in the eighteenth century. It is a serious and compelling work that challenges us to the urgency of faith in Christ.
23. IN THE BEGINNING: THE FORMATIVE YEARS OF A DISSIDENT POET, Irina Ratushinskaya, 1988. A remarkable account of a Christian poet sent to prison camp during the 1980’s.