Around 8 p.m. every evening I read one chapter of the Bible, one chapter of fiction, one chapter from a Christian book, and one chapter of some secular nonfiction. Here are a few highlights.
Fiction
1. Peril at the End House (Agatha Christie)
For the past three years, I’ve been doing a monthly Agatha Christie Reading Challenge. A typical Christie novel teaches me patience as it slowly introduces the novel’s characters and setting—in this case, the “End House” and the surrounding town. The pace picks up once the murder takes place or the detective arrives. Peril at the End House features Hercule Poirot, Christie’s famous Belgian detective. Multiple near-death accidents turn out to be murder attempts with an unexpected culprit. Once you read enough of her novels, you can start guessing who did it, but instead of losing their appeal, I’d say it heightens the satisfaction.
2. Before the Coffee Gets Cold (Toshikazu Kawaguchi)
This series is a Japanese play adapted into novels and translated into English. At times this stilted its flow and made for awkward reading, but I enjoyed it so much I read the sequel. Kawaguchi employs time travel to tell four people’s stories, with some overlap of characters. If Christie’s books are clean, cosy and clever, this series is hopeful and heart-warming.
Non-Fiction
3. Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents (Lindsay C. Gibson)
I have come to realise my relationship with my parents is not and will never be perfect—but I cannot honour them well if I can’t relate with them. Emotional health is not something I was raised to be aware of nor knew how to nurture. It was the same with my parents and their parents. I thought it was time to break this cycle and start gaining understanding on something I hope to pass on to the next generation. Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents helped me understand what was going on in my parents and myself. Despite not being distinctly Christian, this book reminds us that God has made us spiritual, physical and emotional beings. It and its sequel provide a thorough understanding of emotionally immature parents and practical suggestions on how to relate with them, as well as how to mature our own emotional health.
Christian Books
4. What Grieving People Wish You Knew about What Really Helps (Nancy Guthrie)
In talking about supporting people through grief, Guthrie shares personally while also including others’ stories, so we get a wide variety of perspectives and insights of what can be helpful (and not helpful). Grief is unique to each individual, so instead of seeing this book as a list of things to apply to every person, it is more like a brainstorming session of all the things that can help. It is then up to us to consider which might best love the person in front of us. This book is not exhaustive, but it is a great start.
5. Growing Together (Melissa B. Kruger)
Designed for women to disciple one another, Growing Together is organised into short chapters, covering topics like tackling temptation and navigating difficult relationships. It also ends with practical tips on what to do when meeting up, along with some discussion questions to use together.
6. Identity Theft (Melissa B. Kruger (Ed.))
Designed for a similar audience, Identity Theft covers who we are in Christ and encourages us to hold on to and live out this truth. Each chapter considers one tainted way we look at our identity and how to let the Spirit renew us to reflect our new and true identity in Christ. It speaks to very common issues women encounter and provides practical suggestions on putting off our old selves and putting on our new selves. Identity Theft also benefits from being written by a collection of various female authors.
7. Made in Our Image (Stephen Driscoll)
Driscoll helps us to weigh AI’s positive and negative sides and navigate how to think about and respond to it. Often as Christians, we’re either against new technology, apathetic or tempted to idolise it. The one thing we know for sure is AI is here to stay. It’s a great blessing to have an accessible biblical perspective on this important issue.
8. Crisis of Confidence (Carl R. Trueman)
My reading expanded mid-year when I started theological studies. Let’s just say I wouldn’t have read this book if it wasn’t for my book review assignment. And yet, I find myself including Crisis of Confidence in this list. It is a dense, academic read, with its main aim being to defend the use of creeds and confessions in churches and Christian lives.
Trueman addresses common contemporary objections to their usage, as well as biblical evidence for their necessity throughout the life of the church. He traces the developments of the creeds and confessions across history and names some of the functions they can have. I’d never really thought much about it, but now I can see their importance. Creeds and confessions play a critical role in Christians knowing and articulating what we believe.
9. Thank God for Bedtime (Geoff Robson)
Books like this one remind us that the Bible speaks to every aspect of our lives. Thank God for Bedtime starts with our sovereign God who doesn’t need sleep, but gives sleep to us, his weak creation. Throughout Robson emphasises sleep as a good gift from God and addresses temptations to sleep too little or too much. He even includes practical tips for a good night’s rest!
I have been reminded that God did not just make us spiritual beings. Our physical health matters, and it’s important to look after our bodies as best we can in order to serve him.
