Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity

by Nabeel Qureshi

I first heard of Mr. Qureshi through an online appeal to pray for his recovery of health. Sadly he passed away shortly afterwards. The internet reports of this seeker of truth captured my attention enough to get his book. In some ways this book taught me more about the Muslim religion and culture than any other source I’ve read to date. It helped me understand many things that I was unclear about, including why the Trinity is an offensive concept for Muslims and the role of Shame/Honour in much of the Islamic world. It also emphasized apologetics as a tool for evangelization, though not without friendship as a platform first. 

A Wind in the Door

by Madeleine L’Engle

The second second in the quartet of novels about the Murray family, a sequel to A Wrinkle in Time. Creative and inventive, spiritual and scientific speculation. The cherubim character is worth the read alone. I can’t see this one being made into a movie like the first book, I’m not sure how a lot of this material could be visualized. Same message in the end, love conquers evil.

Dark Age Ahead

by Jane Jacobs
 
Though written a decade and a half ago there is much in this volume that seems current. Jacobs warns against the loss of knowledge and expertise, leading to a mass amnesia - or dark age. Sometimes it felt like it was just a pile of complaints about the way our current society is functioning (or not functioning more accurately), but other times there was astute insight, and some ideas about how to reverse these negative trends.

All Things Made New: The Reformation and Its Legacy

by Diarmaid MacCulloch
 
This book is essentially a compilation of essays and articles that MacCulloch has written over the years, and subsequently seems somewhat disjointed. Some chapters I enjoyed and appreciated, others were simply tough to get through. The majority of the book is about elements of the English Reformation, and these parts were far to detailed to be of interest to me. He does make clear that the Anglican Church really doesn't belong to the Protestant Reformation or the Roman Catholic church, but formed in an ongoing tension between the two. I was disappointed in this book since I had high expectations from reading some of MacCulloch's other works.

Kierkegaard: A Single Life

by Stephen Backhouse
 
This book has singlehandedly sparked my interest in reading Kierkegaard. A concise but thorough overview of Kierkegaard's life and writings, making the complicated Danish philosopher and theologian more understandable. After reading Backhouse's book I find myself thinking that Kierkegaard has as much to say to our current age as he did to the Danish culture of the 19th century. I also see some interesting parallels with Dietrich Bonhoeffer (Backhouse doesn't assert this, rather it is a conclusion of my own making). Now to tackle a book by Kierkegaard rather than about him.

Age of Discovery: Navigating the Risks and Rewards of Our New Renaissance

by Ian Goldin and Chris Kutarna

A brilliant analysis of how our current circumstances parallel in many ways the time of the renaissance, both with advantages and its dangers. I enjoyed getting a better understanding of the renaissance through the comparisons with contemporary conditions. I particularly appreciated the concluding chapter which looked at how to move forward in the best possible manner (magnifying flourishing genius and mitigating flourishing risk). Written by two Oxford academics, I took pleasure in knowing that one of them (Chris Kutarna) is originally from this neck of the woods.

A Wrinkle in Time

by Madeleine L'Engle

I came across a movie trailer for an upcoming cinematic treatment of this book a couple of weeks ago - I thought I should re-read the book in advance of the movie version's release. A delightful read, to be sure, and one filled with a few surprises that I had forgotten. Madeleine L'Engle loved to play with language, and that can be seen throughout this short novel. Even though its protaganists are children this should not be limited to being considered a children's book. The themes are deep and profound. Even though it was written 55 years ago it still seems relevant, we still live on a shadow planet.