lundi, décembre 26, 2011 Book Review: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult  The family's situation is heart-tugging enough without the ensuing drama. Sara and Brian (the dad) have a sick eldest daughter, Kate, and another child, Jesse. With Kate's condition deteriorating, Sara decides to have another child, Anna, in order to harvest her stem cells to help Kate. Kate, of course, continues to deteriorate further, and the medical contributions from Anna grow more invasive. At 13, Anna walks into a lawyer's office and proceeds to sue her parents for the rights to her own body. The plot revolves around Sara (the mom) and Anna (the daughter), although there are B and C plots involving the dad, son and the lawyer. The story unwinds fairly quickly, and through it all, Picoult manages to make everyone a sympathetic character, to the point where I honestly didn't know who to side with. Every coin has two sides, and every personal story has multiple facets. The ending's either a cop-out or a tearjerker, depending on how cynical you are. Not really a must-read, but more a social capital read. [Book Review: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult] |
mercredi, décembre 21, 2011 Book Review: Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult  Ahem. Yes - book reviews. This one's on Picoult's latest novel (released Mar 2011), which is my first Picoult book. I've heard she takes on controversial topics, populates her novels with characters who inevitably wind up in court, and then adds a twist (we call that deux ex machina, dahling) which wraps everything up in a neat bow before the end of the novel. Sing You Home is about embryo ownership - who owns fertilized eggs held in cold storage after a couple divorces? Protagonists Zoe and Max find out after they divorce, following many painful (and expensive) years of fertility treatments to treat both their fertility issues. After that, Zoe meets and marries Vanessa, and tries to get her eggs out of storage for Vanessa to carry to term. Max, who has since then has become a full-blown born-again right-wing Christian, has religious/moral questions regarding having his child "raised by two dykes." When the fertility clinic requires Max to give permission to release the eggs to Zoe, he opts to fight for them, so that he can give them to his brother and sister-in-law, who are also facing fertility issues. Enter two hard-talking, media-hungry lawyers, and you have a book. Not a great book, but a readable book, with a court battle, and a life lesson on how sometimes, things just don't work out the way you thought you would. Picoult's presentation of the moral dilemma that all parties find themselves in makes the characters fairly sympathetic, and if you could have predicted how this would have turned out, then you're a better person than I was (I thought the embryos would be left to die, or someone would have accidentally forgot to flip a switch to the refrigerator.) 3 hrs tops, if you're a fast reader. [Book Review: Sing You Home by Jodi Picoult] |
mardi, décembre 20, 2011 Book Review: Bittersweet Surrender by Diann Hunt  What's excellent about Hunt's writing is that she somehow makes it all sound believable, if a little packed with hot-topic issues - throw in an LGBT and this might be the perfect hot-issue book. Carly is fairly likable as a slightly overweight cancer survivor, and Scott's lightbulb-over-the-head moment (you'll know what I mean when you read the book) has to be one of the better written male perspectives I've seen in a while. Switching between Carly and Scott's POV was a little bit disconcerting at first (as I had assumed we'd be "staying" with Carly most of the time), but it did well to provide a more rounded look at all the plot points raised. Unfortunately, due to the myriad issues raised, many other plot points were glossed over. I felt Hunt could have done more to explore the difficulties of raising money for a business, for example, or discussed Magnolia's history a little more. (I think Magnolia's life would make an excellent follow-up book.) The most problematic issue was the lack of mentioning God (beyond the general italicised prayers, which - let's be honest here - show a woman who uses God when it suits her or when she needs him, rather than one who relies on Him for strength. Fun read, but where's God?  Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
[Book Review: Bittersweet Surrender by Diann Hunt] |
lundi, décembre 19, 2011 Book Review: First Date by Krista McGee  Although the story's based on the book of Esther, I didn't expect it to be so formulaic: reluctant girl (Addy) gets conscripted into an amazing reality TV opportunity - win a date to prom with the President's son ("stylishly" spelt 'Jonathon'). Of course she dislikes him at first, and of course he falls for her once he meets her, and of course she surmounts mean girls and a nasty TV producer to get the guy in the end. The good bits: - Addy does work out her faith in a real fashion, and McGee's portrayal of her as a Christian girl just going about her regular QTs and prayers very well. - Kara, Addy's reality TV roommate, is an unexpected breath of fresh air in the tired plot. The bad bits: - Can we veer away from the myth of the perfect guy? Jonathon is ridiculously nice and non-existent in real life. - Addy's sudden preaching/sharing to the nasty TV producer, and his "candid" review of Christianity read terribly awkward in Chapter 51, almost like McGee decided "okay, this is where I'll put the preachin' and teachin' in my novel." - The assassination plot - terribly contrived; I understand the need to parallel the biblical story, but this could have been done better and added more flesh to interactions with the first family. - The sudden ending. I really, really dislike books/shows which end at the crescendo. Learn how to anti-climax! Overall: Could have been so much better without writing to cliches. Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
[Book Review: First Date by Krista McGee] |
dimanche, décembre 18, 2011 Book Review: There You'll Find Me by Jenny B Jones  Story in brief: Finley Sinclair, bereft after the loss of her brother, visits Ireland as she follows in his footsteps using his diary to guide her. Meet cute on the plane with a guy, who happens to stay at her host family's B&B. She works out her life issues (and there are many), helps an old lady leave life well, and - of course - finds love. It's a Christian book, so I expected a lot of teachin' and preachin' to be going on through bad prose. But Jones surprises me there (the same way that Fireproof surprised me with its professional production) - Finley's struggles are universal (insecurity over looks, boys, weight etc) and her prayers are reminiscent of prayers which I've prayed myself as I grew up feeling around my faith in God. My issues with the book are fairly serious ones though: (1) Jones concocts an absolutely ridiculous scenario of rich heiress and movie star which does nothing for the plot - Jones shouldn't have done this; it adds nothing to the story, and instead removes the reality of the situation even further away from the average girl-at-home. Not everyone's a poor little rich heiress a la Paris Hilton, and no 18 year old hunky male movie star would be left unattended like that. (2) Absolutely irrational behaviour from boy - the sensitive sweet 18 year old boy does not exist, and should have been written out completely, or portrayed more realistically. But I suppose nobody wants to read about 18 year old jerks. I'm on the fence whether such portrayals of guys are more damaging than aspirational, but since more girls than guys are likely to read this YA novel, I'm leaning towards the "bad for girls to dream about this completely fictional guy". Jones is an excellent writer - I'll be looking out for more balanced and mature works from her as she grows as an author. Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
[Book Review: There You'll Find Me by Jenny B Jones] |
samedi, décembre 17, 2011 Book Review: Why Men Hate Going To Church by David Murrow (completely revised and updated)  I picked this book out of a list that was available for free download at booksneeze.com, which gives free books in exchange for reviews (like this one, which I've also cross posted on Amazon). It seemed to address the problem of disappearing men from the church, so I thought, why not give it (and booksneeze) a go. Plus I wanted to see if booksneeze was really legit, esp if I wasn't in the USA, but could read/review from the kindle ebook version that they were giving out. First things first - the book's really about all the reasons why men hate going to church. The central thesis: poor preaching has led to a lopsided view of God (more lamb than lion), and have thus drawn more women than men. Women develop women-friendly programmes, and men are left out in the cold (or more likely, left out to be ushers.) Murrow is fairly comprehensive when it comes to listing down the things that church does to alienate men - and I have to agree with a good many of his thinly-veiled complaints, like when in meetings (oh the bane of the baptists!) where we have to be meek and conciliatory towards everyone, ensuring that everyone is "happy". Most damning is his painfully honest assessment of the ministries that we have in church - children, visitation, choir, vacation bible school - they're skewed towards women's skills, rather than the man's abilities. Murrow here skirts a very, very, VERY fine line between adroit observation of gender difference, and sexist attitudes when he prescribes - almost demands - that churches sit up and take notice that unless we start re-engineering and re-thinking some of our programmes (rather that stick with "what all the other churches are doing), we're going to lose men altogether - and be left with feminized, emasculated men. It was an interesting read - a little long-winded (could have been made much, much sharper with better editing; Murrow tends to ramble on with many stories), I was most disturbed that a lot of Murrow's prescriptions to "fix" the church tended to be predicated on a marketing fix, rather than one grounded in the Word. To give Murrow credit, I think he tried to ground in on observations of Jesus' behaviour: for example, he said that men are driven to challenges, which Jesus did give in the imperative "Follow me" when calling his disciples. Linking this to men's need for risk-taking was good, but not all men are risk-takers, and to draw a link between the imperative command and men's need to rise to challenge/competition seemed rather shaky. I don't think that these two inductions lead to a biblical truth being presented. This is not to say that it's a bad book - read the book if you want fresh ideas on how to make your church more appealing to guys (and girls). Just remember as you read the book that these are methods, not biblical truths - and the problem with methods is that it can never be "everything to everyone". Not every guy is a jock in the making, and not all guys are macho-men who work with power tools. In this information age, other methods of engagement need to be thought up for guys working in financial services and technology - aren't these the freaks and geeks who get picked on by the jocks in the first place? Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” Libellés : books, christian, reviews [Book Review: Why Men Hate Going To Church by David Murrow (completely revised and updated)] |
mercredi, mars 03, 2010 Sanctified Common Sense: Kevin DeYoung's "Just Do Something"  Kevin DeYoung's third book offering with Moody Press, and his first solo effort, is a humble one - both in terms of it size (it's just a couple of cm shy of A5 size), and in terms of its length - a mere ten (short) chapters.
And yet the book(let) packs a theological punch on the topic of "finding God's will". I love the title - "Just Do Something - A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will" OR "How To Make A Decision Without Dreams, Visions, Impressions, Open Minds, Random Bible Verses, Casting Lots, Liver Shivers, Writing in the Sky, etc." I think it was the "etc." right at the end which sold me on the book. Jokes aside, I really like how the alternative title to the book starts to debunk the myths involving "discerning God's will" - talk about judging a book by its cover! I'm fairly certain that most Christians have used - or thought of using - one of those "biblically correct" methods of discerning God's will for their lives. The book should grab you by your false teachings and assumptions, and shake you out of your theological stupor as your eyes skim the titles in your favourite Christian bookstore.  What's the book about? DeYoung doesn't just write about the HOW, he went looking for some other "W"s as well, like why the issue is so important, why we vacillate in our decisions, what exactly are we looking for when we say we're seeking the will of God, and how we should do all this Christian living bit.The book is short enough that you can finish it in a couple of hours, but I've always advocated against rushing through Christian books like it was the Tom Bombadil bit in Lord of the Rings. Christian books aren't fiction. They're supposed to be friends helping to encourage you, and rebuke you along the way to Christlikeness, and rushing through them just feels like a deluge of rain on hard clay - you'll get runoff and nothing's going to seep into your soil to nurture your soul. Colossians 1:28 (ESV) - Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. The next bit's an overview of the main topics of the book, so as to whet your appetite to buy the book, and read it. Because it's really worth buying! Seriously! Call up the Singapore Baptist Bookstore and see if they stock it, then go out and get it! Singapore Baptist Bookstore 1 Goldhill Plaza #01-25 S(308899) Tel: +65-62537024/+65-62537578 Fax: +65-62524450 Email: bbsbooks@singnet.com.sg ***** ***** A Little More Depth...  What are some factors that suggested a book like this was necessary? Besides a lot of postmodern unbiblical practices (come on, admit that you've ever used the "if God opens the door..." justification!), there's this pesky problem of extended adolescence, where more youth/young adults are extending (sometimes indefinitely) the time taken to complete major life transitions like (i) leaving home, (ii) finishing school, (iii) financial independence, (iv) getting married, (v) having children. Note that as a Singaporean, I understand that "leaving home" may not be financially feasible - indeed it may actually get in the way of "finishing school" and "financial independence", but I read these transitions as broadly indicative rather than a prescription for "you've got it made".This phenomenon isn't really the problem - the symptom points towards something far graver, which DeYoung addresses - many Christians are using "seeking the will of God" as an excuse (or reason) for delaying decision-making. Other reasons that DeYoung suggests are timidity/ fear/ cowardice, perfectionism/kiasu-ism ("sure confirm double-chop steady bom-pi-pi") and choice paralysis. He pokes holes in each of these justifications after with giving a much-needed backgrounder on the Will of God.  Leaning on Ecumenical Creeds and Reformed Confessions and Gerald Sittser's The Will of God as a Way of Life: Finding and Following the Will of God, DeYoung covers a) God's Will of Decree (aka God always wins) b) God's Will of Desire (aka stuff God commanded and we should obey) c) God's Will of Direction (aka what to do nownownow?)He suggests an answer - to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. Sounds like a cop-out, doesn't it? But it's not. The better part of the book is devoted to helping define and (re)shape your ideas on how to develop "sanctified common sense", which is something far, far lacking in the world today. DeYoung poses a simple three-step framework by which to make decisions: check it against scripture, wise counsel, and prayer. The penultimate chapter takes these principles and applies it to two situations where people find the most to "seek God's will" about: jobs and marriage. He concludes with a mostly narrative chapter, telling the story of his grandfather, and how his grandpa didn't bother living a live obsessed with finding the "will of God" - he just believed, acted according to those Christian beliefs, and made decisions. I think that's a life worth emulating. [Sanctified Common Sense: Kevin DeYoung's "Just Do Something"] |
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