2022 Reading Q1 Review

I did not post my 2022 reading plan as I did last year, but as in previous years I am logging the books I finish (not just read part or most of) with specific goals in terms of total volumes and distribution in specific categories. Since I posted quarterly reviews of my reading last year (Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4) in hope of encouraging others to think more carefully about what and how they read, I decided to do the same this year. I will not be posting a full list of the volumes read, but I will give an overall sense of the reading and highlight a few titles.

I completed 37 books in the first quarter of 2022. This included five works of theology, six works of philosophy, four books of history, three classics, six biographies, and seven re-reads. My goals for these categories for the year are: 24 works of theology; 12 works each of philosophy, history, classics, and biography; and 18 re-reads. This means I am slightly behind (by one) on works of theology, significantly ahead in philosophy and biography, ahead by one in history, and slightly ahead in re-reads. As I mentioned last year, one of the challenges of this method of recording is distinguishing theology from philosophy, philosophy from history, and history from biography as these so often overlap that the same volume could be put in more than one category. I simply pick the best fit and record it once.

Here are three highlights from the first quarter that deserve special mention.

First, The Light Behind the Sun by Doug Wilson. This is a collection of essays on C. S. Lewis, several of which were previously published, by a man who clearly loves Lewis and has read and thought carefully about him for many years. I had read some of the essays before, but they were still enjoyable the second time, and the work as a whole was enlightening and a very pleasant read. I gave it away as soon as I finished it, but I plan to order another copy.

Second, Aristotle for Everybody by Mortimer Adler. This was originally written for children, but it is a solid introduction to Aristotle’s thought for adult laymen hoping to profit from the Philosopher. One must be careful of these kinds of introductions as they too often misrepresent or slant the presentation of a thinker whose work would be better understood simply by reading the original source. But Aristotle can be difficult, and Adler is careful and respectful in his presentation. If you have not read much of Aristotle’s work but would like to do so, this can be helpful in getting oriented to his thought.

Third, Endurance by Alfred Lansing. This is a classic piece of history about an expedition to Antarctica at the beginning of the 20th century. I did not expect to enjoy it as much as I did. It is well-written, historically detailed, and highly engaging. What Shackleton and his crew endured is remarkable, both for its hardships and for the endurance they exercised in the midst of it. Many fans of 20th century history and expeditionary adventures will have already read this, but I never did until January. I am glad I did and am happy to recommend it to those who are interested in the genre.

 --JME

2021 Reading: Q4 & Final Summary

As I write this, there are still more than four and half hours left in 2021 in the time zone where I am sitting, and two hours more than that at my usual residence, so it is entirely possible at least one more volume will be added to my 2021 Reading Log before the new year commences. But I am content to draft the fourth quarter review and yearly summary now. It is entirely possible I will have more to say next year about the volume that remains incomplete at the moment, but it is unnecessary to say anymore about it here.

I previously posted reviews of my reading in the first quarter, second quarter, and third quarter of the year, as well as a description of my plan for reading in 2021 and the way in which I have recorded the books I read. The plan for 2022 has already been written, but its description will be posted in a separate note.

I completed 36 books during the fourth quarter after finishing 25 titles in quarter one, 21 in quarter two, and 33 in quarter three. The total volumes finished for 2021 stands at 115. While I expected a drop-off in my total volumes read in the fourth quarter, the opposite occurred. My reading pace increased during the second half of the year, a trend that I hope bodes well for 2022 when I anticipate several new challenges to my regular reading.

 

Quarter 1	Quarter 2	Quarter 3	Quarter 4
Jan: 7	Apr: 8	July: 10	Oct: 12
Feb: 6	May: 7	Aug: 14	Nov: 6
Mar: 12	June: 6	Sep: 9	Dec: 18
Total: 25	Total: 21	Total: 33	Total: 36
Total for 2021: 115

 

My fourth quarter reading included ten works of theology (8 in December alone), one volume of philosophy, four classics, one work on current events, and three biographies. I finished the year with 32 works of theology, 4 of philosophy, 4 of history, 18 classics, 4 on current events, 1 on ministry, 9 biographies, 8 on personal development, and 17 which I re-read yearly. None of the volumes are listed in multiple categories which creates one of the challenges in logging reading as I have in 2021. Many volumes could fit under multiple headings--the distinction between theology and philosophy or current events and ministry are not always easy to identify. I decided to list each volume once under the most representative category.

 

Category	2021 Goal	2021 Actual
Theology	12	32
Philosophy	12	4
History	12	4
Classics	12	18
Current Events	8	4
Ministry	4	1
Biography	4	9
Personal Development	4	8
Re-reads	18	17

 

I am content with the distribution of my reading in 2021. My only disappointment is in the area of philosophy and history; however, several of the works I categorized as Theology could also be placed under Philosophy, and I more than doubled the number of Biographies I originally planned to read, all of which could also fit under the heading of History. I realized early in the year that Current Events and Ministry are not useful categories for much of my regular reading. Some attention to each of these areas is necessary, but my soul (to say nothing of my work) is better served by feeding on Theology, History, Philosophy, and Classics. I continue to urge and encourage those who wish to read more and more profitably to adopt a strategy and plan for reading. My specific plan is adjusted every year, but I have found that simply having a plan and recording my yearly reading for the last several years has been immensely helpful.

 

Here are three highlights from the fourth quarter that deserve special mention.

First, Neil Postman’s The Disappearance of Childhood is the third book by the philosopher of technology I have read, and while Technopoly remains my favorite, this one also gave me a lot to think about. Postman is writing as a secularist, yet his insights are profound. There are a number of ideas in this volume worth developing, and I expect I will revisit it at some point in the near future. Postman postulates that popularization of the written word largely created what we think of as childhood and that the pervasiveness of digital media is causing childhood to disappear. His thesis is fascinating, compelling, and useful.

Second, Iain Murray’s The Puritan Hope has been on my shelf for a couple of years, but I never got around to reading it. I only regret waiting so long to do so. It is certainly one of my favorites of this year. A work of historical theology, Murray discusses the eschatological optimism of the Puritans. While disagreeing among themselves on certain points of exegesis and expectations for the future, the volume manifests the consistent hopefulness and confidence our Puritan fathers had in the power of Christ and the outworking of gospel ministry.

Third, C. H. Spurgeon’s John Ploughman’s Talk was witty, winsome, and wise. I laughed out loud repeatedly while reading it and sent many excerpts to elders, deacons, and friends. Spurgeon steps into the character of John Ploughman, a plain-spoken Christian with a gift for discernment and description. Though I would quibble with a couple of minor jabs he takes at Presbyterians, the work is thoroughly delightful, entertaining, and useful. I highly recommend it.

As I look back over the master list of books I read in 2021, I see many that I enjoyed and profited from that have gone unmentioned in these reviews. Some are not ones I would recommend to a general audience, being more specific in their target readers or content. Others were enjoyable or helpful for more personal reasons. But I am thankful for (almost) all of them. Those I profited from the most will probably be reread in the next few years, and those that are not might not have been worth reading at all. Every year the list of books I reread grows and the number of new volumes I read diminishes. This is by design. I am reading today to find the handful of books I want to reread in my final days. But life is only a vapor, and it is more likely that I will continue to reread books without realizing that I am doing so during my final days. I cannot know how many volumes I have left to read in my life, so I aspire to choose wisely and to spend what minutes and hours I have left reading the books that have been my best teachers and have most inspired me. I hope in some way these brief reflections will help and inspire you as well in pursuing a more disciplined and satisfying reading life. --JME

2021 Reading: Q3 Review

It is almost two weeks late, but I am finally posting a review of my reading in the third quarter of 2021. As in the first quarter and second quarter reviews, I will not be listing everything I read but only providing a snapshot and mentioning a few highlights. I previously explained my plan for reading in 2021 and the way in which I log books.

The third quarter was my largest volume of reading so far this year measured simply by the number of books read. This is not the best way to measure the quality and quantity of one’s reading, but it is the metric we are using here. In the third quarter I read thirty-three books: ten in July, fourteen in August, and nine in September. I have read eight so far in the first eleven days of October, so the numbers in the fourth quarter could go even higher, but I plan to shift my reading in the last two months of the year to longer and denser works which will bring the total number down somewhat.

My third quarter reading included nine works of theology, one volume of philosophy, three works of history, five classics, two on current events, four biographies, two on personal development related themes, and two others from the list of books I reread each year. These last were the last two volumes of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. I cannot describe how bittersweet it is to finish this series each year. It is simultaneously thrilling and deeply satisfying while also frustrating my evening reading for sometime after. Three weeks later I still have not settled comfortably into my next evening reader.

My reading plan for the year has been fairly successful overall. There will be several changes to it for 2022, but the distribution and categorization this year has been helpful. I have already read almost twice as many volumes of theology, biography, and classic literature as I originally planned. Other categories have not been as useful as I thought, so I will modify my goals there in the future. But the general strategy has proven sound and useful in directing my reading. Those who wish to read more or read more profitably would be well-advised to adopt a similar strategy. Plan the types of books you want to read, set specific and manageable goals for each category, and then track your reading through the year.

Here are three highlights from the third quarter that merit special mention.

First, Voddie Baucham’s Fault Lines is a must-read for those wishing to understand the current controversy in conservative, evangelical, and Reformed churches over Critical Race Theory and social justice. It is not the only book that ought to be read on these issues, but it may be the most useful for the majority of Christians. Dr. Baucham has done the church a great service in analyzing, summarizing, and documenting the movement in its proponents’ own words. I highly recommend it and would encourage elders and deacons especially to read it.

Second, Ned Stonehouse’s biography of J. Gresham Machen is a classic within the OPC, but I had never read it until this summer. It was interesting, informative, and surprising in a number of ways. I never realized how firmly rooted in the southern Presbyterian tradition Machen was, and though I had some sense previously, Stonehouse’s biography demonstrated even more convincingly that the man who was the catalyst in the formation of the OPC would likely be criticized as a “culture warrior” by some members of the denomination today.

Third, on a much lighter note, Mark Eddy Smith’s Tolkien’s Ordinary Virtues is a brief primer on theological and philosophical virtues found in the best-known tales of Middle Earth. Written like a devotional, the chapters are brief but useful in recognizing themes in Tolkien’s rich trilogy. The chapter on Atonement is sadly confused, though there are still valuable insights to be gleaned even there. I have already given two copies away to friends and likely will again. It is a short and easy read but an edifying one.

The three volumes listed above were not necessarily the most enjoyable or profitable from my third quarter reading, but there are ones I think most of the readers of this blog would probably find useful. Before closing this review, I should also mention Diane Langberg’s Redeeming Power which I also read in the third quarter. I do not include it as an honorable mention but because Dr. Langberg’s work has lately been promoted within OPC circles, something that in light of this book’s content I find both alarming and appalling. Redeeming Power is largely shaped and informed by the framework of Critical Theory. It contains a number of theological errors--a reminder that many people writing theological works today are ill-equipped and unqualified to do so. The perspective on Theology Proper found within the book is explicitly contrary to the Westminster Confession, which raises the question why Dr. Langberg is being sought out and given a platform by leaders in a confessional denomination. I will not attempt a thorough review here, but the content is a mixture of unremarkable statements on egregious abuse, conflation and confusion of kinds and categories of abuse, sweeping and systemic denunciation of religious institutions, and a caustic and condescending tone. It is unhelpful, problematic, errant, and divisive. --JME

2021 Reading: Q2 Review

I posted a review of my reading at the end of the first quarter in 2021, and now I am doing the same for my reading in the second quarter of the year. That first review summarized my 2021 reading plan, so I will not repeat a summary here. The total number of volumes read dropped a little in the second quarter, which may be explained by several factors, including doing more partial reading of multiple books that have not (yet) been finished and entered into the log. I am also spending more time on language study which reduces the amount of available time for reading physical books or listening to audiobooks in English.

In the second quarter of 2021 I finished twenty-one books (down from twenty-five in the first quarter). These included nine works of theology, including a couple of R. C. Sproul classics I re-read; three books that I categorize as self-development, including a book on habits, another on leadership, and a collection of essays on the study of the martial arts; and nine novels. I am always reading at least one novel, and I highly recommend a steady diet of good novels and classic literature, especially for those who dismiss fiction in preference for non-fiction. One of the novels was Charles Portis’s True Grit which I read aloud to my sons and which we thoroughly enjoyed. A couple of others were modern classics I regularly re-read: Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card (about which I plan to write in a separate post) and The Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien. There were also a couple of P. G. Wodehouse novels, G. K. Chesterton’s first novel which I had never read, two mid-twentieth century classics I had never read, and a more recent novel sent by my friend for my birthday.

At the midpoint of the year, I am behind in a few categories of planned reading and significantly ahead in others. I am satisfied with the overall balance thus far, even if the second quarter was rather unbalanced. I am fairly confident I will hit my targets in most of the categories by the end of the year. I enjoyed my reading during the last three months, though not as much overall as in the first quarter. Here are three highlights I would recommend.

First, Mark Horne’s Solomon Says: Directives for Young Men is a must-read for men, and I will be urging every member of our Session and every man in our congregation to read it. While I have a few quibbles with the book, they are minor and in no way detract from my appreciation for and eagerness to recommend and use this little volume in discipling men. Do not let the subtitle fool you. Middle-aged and older men will likewise benefit from reading and applying the exposition of biblical wisdom in this concise but very useful primer.

Second, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card is one of two science fiction novels I think every young man should read. Parents should be aware there is some language and disturbing content in the book, but young men in their early to mid-teens should be capable of handling it. There is a good reason this novel is required reading for Marine Corps officers. It is a brilliant work, highly philosophical as is all good sci-fi.

Third, P. G. Wodehouse slays me. If you do not enjoy British humor, you may not be as entertained by Wodehouse as I am. Listening to a Wodehouse audiobook while driving might be considered a reckless act as I may one day die laughing behind the wheel while Driving with Amusement. Visitors to my house who have never read Wodehouse are often subjected to a read-aloud of one of his short stories, My Battle with Drink. Wodehouse was a prolific writer, and not all of his stories and novels are equally hilarious. But if you have not laughed loudly recently while reading an entertaining story, I recommend Mr. Wodehouse for your enjoyment. --JME

2021 Reading: Q1 Review

I have made a habit of recording the books I read for a number of years, and for several years I have set targets for reading in specific genres. I do not publish my reading logs or share many details, but I have written about this habit before in hopes of encouraging others to be more disciplined and diligent in their reading. I usually complete a little over one hundred books each year. I do not log pages read or books that I only read sections of rather than the entire work. If I ever found a way to catalog that reading, it would easily triple my yearly totals, but I have never found a practical means of doing so. I use one hundred books per year as an general goal then target a specific number of titles in various categories.

At the end of 2020, I summarized my reading plan for 2021:

… in 2021 I plan to be even more aggressive with my targeted reading. I plan to read 90 books in 10 specific categories with the remaining 10+ books being free electives. The plan is to read 12 works of theology, philosophy, history, and classics, one from each category every month for a total of 48 in the year;  8 works on current events; 4 on ministry, 4 biographies, 4 related to personal development (including linguistics), and 4 foreign language titles; and at least 18 of those I re-read every year or two.

I thought it might be helpful to post a quarterly review and highlight a few titles I found helpful in the last three months.

In the first three months of 2021 I finished twenty-five books: six works of theology, two works of philosophy, one volume on history, three works of classic literature, one on current events, three biographies, three which I classified as personal development, one of my yearly re-reads, and the remaining five fitting into the category of free electives. If you do the math, you will see I am ahead in some categories, behind in others, but ontrack for the overall yearly goals. I am reasonably satisfied with the balance of the first quarter’s reading, and I have enjoyed several titles very much, three of which I will highlight here.

First, Arnold Dallimore’s biography of George Whitefield is exceptional. Dallimore wrote a two volume work published by Banner of Truth but later produced a one volume version, and it was this latter, condensed edition that I read. It made me eager to read the larger work. This was the first biography of Whitefield I have read, but I hope it will not be the last. I found the story of his life humbling, convicting, and encouraging.

Second, Kevin Belmonte’s biography of G. K. Chesterton was a joy to read. GKC has been one of my heroes for a long time, and his writing remains one of the most significant influences on my life. I reread Orthodoxy every year and regard it as a very important work of Christian literature. Belmonte did a good job telling the story of Chesterton’s life and highlighting the significant works he produced along the way.

Third, Neil Postman’s Technopoly is excellent in helping to assess our present culture, even if it was written almost thirty years ago. I have not forgiven Postman for dying before he had the opportunity to witness and critique the rise of social media, the phenomenon of Donald Trump, and our current state of politics, but his voice is almost prophetic in anticipating the trajectories that led us where we are today. I only began reading Postman last year at the urging of a friend, though I had been aware of his work for a long time. He is someone I hope to learn more from in the years to come.

I should give an honorable mention to Carl Trueman’s The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self which I also read during the first quarter. Trueman fans may be surprised, and dismayed, that his latest was beaten out of the top three slots by biographies of a rogue Anglican revivalist, a cranky, anti-Calvinistic Roman Catholic, and a dated work on the philosophy of technology by a non-practicing Jew. This is not because Trueman’s work is disappointing. It is exceptional, and I benefited from it in a number of ways. It is an important book for understanding how western civilization came to be where we are on matters of gender and sexuality. It is not a book for the average layman but can certainly be read by laymen who are prepared to think hard and acquaint themselves with philosophers and history of which they may have previously been unaware. It is a piece of academic historical and philosophical analysis, insightful and thorough, but not at all tactical. It felt more important as I was reading it than it did after I finished and let the book cool. I expect I will read it again, and I look forward to following Trueman’s continuing efforts in this area. I expect it will be a blessing to the Church in analyzing and understanding where we are at this stage of human history. --JME