In the month of May I read a handful of books (still working through the last one), and felt it potentially beneficial to offer some thoughts.

The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness by Timothy Keller.

I highly recommend this read. It packs a tremendous punch for it’s small size. I can’t picture anyone for whom this book wouldn’t be helpful, but I can only speak for my own experiences and circumstances. As a mom who seeks to resist the “Mommy Guilt” society likes to liberally spread around, as a single mom who can often feel like what I do is never enough in any realm of raising my kids, and simply as a person who can often feel like I’m failing to meet up to the expectations of others, this book provides a Biblical perspective on how to rid ourselves of that comparison trap, and find freedom in forgetting ourselves and living the life God has given us to live.  Well worth the read!

Convert: From Adam to Christ by Emilio Ramos

I don’t often review a book prior to completing it, but this one is simply fantastic thus far and I have no doubt will continue as such. Pastor Emilio takes an indepth look at what it means to be in Adam and in Christ. He looks at how Christ is the better and greater Adam. How one moves from being in Adam to being in Christ; how that process happens according to Scripture AND how all of that applies as we seek to evangelize an unsaved world. This is not an academic book for the sake of acquiring knowledge, but a deeply theological book that applies that theology to the call of Christians to seek and save the lost.  I am slowly reading through section by section in the hopes that this becomes heart knowledge and not merely a reading exercise.

The Astronaut Wives Club: A True Story by Lily Koppel

I found this eBook through my local library lending platform (worth it’s own review another day). Fascinating. Engaging. And yet disappointing.  The writing was far from disappointing, but the reality of the lives of these men that the country esteems for their vocational excellence contrasts deeply with their failure in the private realm of life. This book offers the wives’ perspective on the early days of NASA – through their eyes as the wives’ of the original Mercury Astronauts, as they were known. Honest. Revealing. And a grave reminder that no matter how successful a man (or woman) may be professionally, that is no guarantee that their private lives are successful.  I’ll leave the details for you to discover, but a fascinating read and well worth the time.  This was highly enjoyable as an ebook, and suspect the hard copy would read equally well.

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

This was a family read-aloud that we all enjoyed, with kids ages 5, 7, 8, 10.  Set in 12th Century Korea, we follow an orphan boy’s life as he eventually finds himself working for the village’s most talented potter.  Park does her research on culture and time period to offer an accurate historical perspective, and she masterfully weaves those details into this engaging story about life, a boy, loyalty, and courage.  A great choice for a family book, but one that I would have enjoyed equally reading on my own. And the ending offers a turn that I did not at all see coming.

                

 

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