1. One of the great goods in this world is willed submission to good authority. 2. We as a culture are hardwired to think there is no good authority an1. One of the great goods in this world is willed submission to good authority. 2. We as a culture are hardwired to think there is no good authority and all submission is bad. 3. This is leading us all to be insane.
This is a really strong book on a topic that we don't think enough about. It has helped me think clearly about various forms and proper spheres of authority. It is good and solemn about the abuses of authority and good and hopeful about the protecting and enlivening influence of good authority. Read this one immediately. ...more
Quiet, funny, generous, thoughtful, and short. And not without some serious scholarly backbone. Not much else you can ask for in a potentially lifechaQuiet, funny, generous, thoughtful, and short. And not without some serious scholarly backbone. Not much else you can ask for in a potentially lifechanging book. This is really good on how we are all socially addicted to the big and exciting and intense, and because of this we tend to neglect the humble duties and "despise the day of small things." Let's get better at just living, man, says this book. Let's be Christlike in little ways, and maybe that will be transformative for the world.
One note: lots of shots at Platt and Radical and the like in here. I happen to really like Platt and I think you should donate time and money to Radical (https://radical.net/). But, presumably like Canlis, I think you should do this as part of a local church body and useful family member and private Christian. ...more
I didn't like it, then I was actually scornful of it, then I realized I couldn't stop reading it, then I was legitimately shocked by it, then it was oI didn't like it, then I was actually scornful of it, then I realized I couldn't stop reading it, then I was legitimately shocked by it, then it was over and I was glad I had encountered it. The trick to reading this one, I think, is to realize it's not a retelling, but rather a remaking. Toni Morrison and others have told us that Huck Finn tells half-truths (http://www.uctenglish.com/uploads/1/3... ), and this book tells the other half, just as loudly. It's a step forward in the long conversation of English Literature in America, a direct No But to Twain himself and to the Twain-taught among us. (A sort of step. A half step. It only responds to Twain on one level, and Twain is working on many levels. The Morrison essay is good on this. I think this is an important book, but not in the same way that Huck itself is-- it's not equal and opposite, just opposite.) It's one you should read, even though I still don't buy the magical-realism of making Jim a self-defining supergenius. Still. Corrective well taken....more
Clear, readable, spiritually insightful while not losing its academic bent, this is a book that deserves your time. It gives a sympathetic and nuancedClear, readable, spiritually insightful while not losing its academic bent, this is a book that deserves your time. It gives a sympathetic and nuanced reading of feminisim and gender theory, while showing the failures of each, both in humanistic terms and again as compared to the robust doctrine of body and soul spirituality that (Catholic) Christianity can allow for when it is functioning well. And this book will help us to function well!
Ahem: "As a Catholic Christian, I am beholden to a twofold truth: the dignity of every human being and the dignity of the sexed human body. These truths are entwined, inseparable. A transgender anthropology says, whether implicitly or explicitly, that I can only affirm the former by rejecting the latter."
Strong, thoughtful, caring. Let's all think and write more like this, please. ...more
Good strong readable review of what all these different books are about and how they all relate to a few clear storylines. Deftly written and entertaiGood strong readable review of what all these different books are about and how they all relate to a few clear storylines. Deftly written and entertaining. A good one to have on the bookcase or in the toolkit. ...more
Short and strong, the famously undertoned Willa Cather has something to say about love and money and religion in this aching story of big gestures seeShort and strong, the famously undertoned Willa Cather has something to say about love and money and religion in this aching story of big gestures seen from a distance. ...more
A Florida-based billionaire who made his money in toilet sales cozies up to the US government and endangers the world for selfish and stupid reasons? A Florida-based billionaire who made his money in toilet sales cozies up to the US government and endangers the world for selfish and stupid reasons? Whose name is Rump? Is this precisely the book we need in this election year?? Unfortunately, while the setting is pretty fun, the rest is kind of cheesy, preachy, and predictable. And, just like the Land of Stories series, often reads like it was written with an eye on a film adaption. All that said, my kids did love it. One of the strengths of the book is its really strong imaginings of place; there are some lively different worlds to explore in here. Anyway, maybe give it a shot. ...more
Books written by various authors can be uneven and repetitive. Books written by people who believe fiercely in 'neuthetic' counseling can be needlesslBooks written by various authors can be uneven and repetitive. Books written by people who believe fiercely in 'neuthetic' counseling can be needlessly combative and exclusionary. I'm not saying this book is without merit, but I am saying that much of the good that's in it could probably be got in other books that would be more practical, less polemical, and less-- what's the word I want-- the word that, say, would describe a position which is willing to esteem itself because it doesn't care about people's self esteem. You fill in the blank, gentle reader. ...more
The background is overly dark and violent, and the foreground is playing checkers with human emotions and psychology while pretending to be playing chThe background is overly dark and violent, and the foreground is playing checkers with human emotions and psychology while pretending to be playing chess. However, the magic is really impressively imagined and functions according to what seem like comprehensible rules, the fight scenes are excellent, and the history works well. I won't even say that there seem to be plot holes that remain because there's like five other books in the series left to patch them up. Not my cup of tea, but I can see how some people might really like this guy. ...more
Very interesting book about a pretty bad guy-- see Indian Removal and slave owning-- but in times where it was far harder to be good. Meacham's picturVery interesting book about a pretty bad guy-- see Indian Removal and slave owning-- but in times where it was far harder to be good. Meacham's picture of Jackson is nuanced and thoughtful. "We profit, too, from a leader's dim example," he says. "The great often teach by their failures and derelictions. The tragedy of Jackson's life is that a man dedicated to freedom failed to see liberty as a universal, not a particular, gift. The triumph of his life is that he held together a country whose experiment in liberty ultimately extended its protections and promises to all-- belatedly, it is true, but by saving the Union, Jackson kept the possibility of progress alive." A good strong book from a good strong author. ...more
An adequate end to a very fun series. One of the weaknesses of the plot was the inadequacy of the threat to the plot space devoted to it-- for instancAn adequate end to a very fun series. One of the weaknesses of the plot was the inadequacy of the threat to the plot space devoted to it-- for instance, we needed no less than three books, the gathering of an interdimensional and cross-continental army, a visit with a series of deceased children's authors, and some serious magic in order to deal with the Wicked Witch of the West, who, as we will perhaps remember, was defeated by accident because she has the most laughable Kryptonite ever. The whole series is tied together with stuff like that, when the real plot point is some internal life lesson that the main characters and the reader are supposed to ingest. Which is fine, of course-- that's Narnia too, in a way-- but done in too obvious a way, and with the stakes actually too low to care about while being artificially blown hugely out of proportion. Anyway: fun. My kids love them and couldn't get enough. ...more
Interesting and useful series of Biblical-Theological essays on different topics within the Pentateuch and a series of reflections on the state of acaInteresting and useful series of Biblical-Theological essays on different topics within the Pentateuch and a series of reflections on the state of academic studies. (The 'Documentary Hypothesis' seems like it's going to be a scholarly fossil pretty soon, even if that doesn't lead directly back to a conservative-orthodox view of Mosaic authorship.) All interesting stuff, from a guy who appears to be a big deal in the field, though the chapters may overlap a little too much-- at least to read all at once while keeping things straight in your mind? ...more
Very funny and a real juggling act of imagination and storytelling, this is a fantastic entry in the series and a perfect compliment to the fourth booVery funny and a real juggling act of imagination and storytelling, this is a fantastic entry in the series and a perfect compliment to the fourth book. (Fourth: bad guy magically recruits literary bad guys from classic works of children's literature in an attempt to take over the Fairy Tale world. Fifth: good guys magically recruit imaginary bad guys from imagined works of children's literature-- written by one of the characters-- in an attempt to build an army capable of defending the Fairy Tale world.) The plot flirts with 'metafiction' throughout in really fun ways: "What would you do if a guy showed up here and said he wrote the story you were in?" "I'd punch him in the face for making everything so difficult!" And look. We're now like eight or nine hundred pages in to the set up for a pretty big conclusion. The last book better deliver!...more
Here is a story: I was talking to a guy who is a pastor in a certain denomination and brought up Russell Moore as a topic of conversation. Russell MooHere is a story: I was talking to a guy who is a pastor in a certain denomination and brought up Russell Moore as a topic of conversation. Russell Moore, I was told, is a Bad Guy. He is Off the Rails, though the details on this were unclear. (Here are some specifics, from Moore's perspective: https://religionnews.com/2021/06/02/r... ) After reading this book-- and keeping the other books I've seen by him in mind-- I affirm the following: If Russell Moore is a Bad Guy, I want to be Bad too. If he's Off the Rails, the Rails are stupid and not helping us live like Christians. This book is a long meditation about the prophet Elijah, and how his story goes from dramatic victory, to embarrassing lonely terror, and how that was God's way of getting his, and our, attention. It's about the difficult act of standing up against our friends and social groups for their, and our, own good. It's about not letting our pursuit of acceptance become an idol. Here are some quotes:
What it means to "stand" for Christ, is not, it turns out, to evacuate our internal lives of all fear, or to humiliate our enemies with incontrovertible "winning," but instead to live out in our very lives the drama of the cross.... The courage to stand is the courage to be crucified.
We find safety in the herd, and we just choose different herds. The problem is that much of what is actually defined as courage in Scripture--the bridling of the passions, kindness, humility-- is seen as timidity, while many who feel themselves "courageous" because they "tell it like it is" are really just seeking to be part of their protective tribes, even when those tribes are boisterous and angry.
Notice how, inside and outside the church, people are loudly denunciatory of the evil behavior of their political, religious, or cultural opponents, and yet, when the same thing is true of their allies, they are muted or even attempt justification for the behavior. Whenever this is the case, you can be sure that these people don't believe in morality or truth or justice, but in their allies. They believe in power. They believe in themselves. That's not the way of Christ.
This is a great resource for people hurting from their encounters with the church. At least, so it seems to me-- I really like church; I got this bookThis is a great resource for people hurting from their encounters with the church. At least, so it seems to me-- I really like church; I got this book for free from a church service. But the meditations are deep, thoughtful, biblical, and honest about how church, though it is really good, can feel really bad. Give this to someone in your life who is hurting. ...more
This one is a really strong part of the series, probably the best since the first one. The interactions with other story-worlds is imagined well and lThis one is a really strong part of the series, probably the best since the first one. The interactions with other story-worlds is imagined well and lovingly done. Very fun and well executed. (Some weird love interest stuff that seems a little overdone in my estimation, but nothing too weird or story-breaking.) There is a sequence in which Mother Goose-- who I've read aloud as a tough old New Yorker since we met her-- has a conversation with the mushroom-king caterpillar from Wonderland that my family must have read out loud five times running to let various people in on the joke. I'm still laughing about it. Just hope the next book lands the plane (goose?) well. There's a lot of different plot arcs happening and they all need to be resolved skillfully!...more
Hot DAMN this is a wild book. Wildly alive historical fiction: its narrator is a slave boy who gets confused for a girl and so spends the whole book pHot DAMN this is a wild book. Wildly alive historical fiction: its narrator is a slave boy who gets confused for a girl and so spends the whole book pretending to be a girl-- in the late 1950s, during the Bleeding Kansas era, in the company of the incandescent John Brown, who, to my way of thinking, is the most interesting person this country has ever produced. Here's a quote:
The Old Man was a lunatic, but he was a good, kind lunatic, and he couldn't no more be a sane man in his transactions with his fellow white man than you and I can bark like a dog, for he didn't speak their language. He was a Bible man. A God man. Crazy as a bedbug. Pure to the truth, which will drive any man off his rocker. But at least he knowed he was crazy. At least he knowed who he was. That's more than I could say for myself.
[Which is, I imagine, how most of us feel in the company of Brown. Like confused children watching a fully certain person do his thing.]
And here's one on General Harriet Tubman:
"We all got to die," she said. "But dying as your true self is always better. God'll take you however you come to Him. But it's easier on a soul to come to Him clean. You're forever free that way. From top to bottom."
And the Acknowledgements:
"Deeply grateful to all those who, over the years, have kept the memory of John Brown alive."
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