Rating: 5 out 5
I became a fan of Christian music artist when I was a teenager in youth ministry. In a world of Christian music where everything seemed to sound the same, Jeremy Camp stood out as unique. I was aware that Camp had gone through some real personal tragedy when his wife died of ovarian cancer not long after they had married. His music reflected both an acknowledgment of life's deepest pains and a God who steps into our pain to bring comfort.
I STILL BELIEVE is Camp's memoir chronicling his beginnings in a home where his parents found faith, to struggles in his youth, to finding his calling in music and meeting and marrying his first wife Melissa, to Melissa's tragic battle with cancer. From there Camp reveals his journey with God to heal from Melissa's death, continuing his musical calling, and finding love again and starting a family.
Camp's story is encouraging because of the comfort he found in his relationship with God. I STILL BELIEVE is a great journey through Camp's story.
Review copy obtained through the Tyndale Blog Network
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Review of THE STORY OF THE VOICE by David B. Capes
Photo Credit: Thomas Nelson
Rating: 5 out of 5
The Voice translation of the Bible is an interesting approach to presenting the Christian Bible in a way that strives to both preserve the ancient words originally written and the writers' literary styles and communicating those words and thoughts in smooth meaningful English. A team of artists, scholars, and writers came together to develop this unique Bible translation. I had an opportunity to review The Voice New Testament last year and I loved the literary style and the screenplay dialogue format of it.
THE STORY OF THE VOICE by David B. Capes takes us on a journey of how The Voice translation came to be. Starting with Chris Seay's vision of creating retelling of the biblical narrative that was accessible to people who were unfamiliar with the Bible. This led to a several year journey of The Voice coming about in parts beginning with the last few chapters of John's gospel. Capes tells us about the key players involved, which I found interesting because it's a diverse mix of people, some of which I don't agree with theologically. The translation philosophy of contextual equivalence is presented and illustrated, as well as why some things were translated the way they were.
THE STORY OF THE VOICE is a great look at the heart behind The Voice translation. I haven't had a chance look at the Old Testament, but I did really enjoy the New Testament. I would describe the translation as a combination of translation and commentary with the explanatory notes throughout, both within the text and in blocks outside of the text. I wouldn't recommend it as your only translation. The book mentions several perceived weaknesses of other translations and how The Voice fills those voids. However, I think it's best to read The Voice beside another translation. I think they'll greatly complement another.
Review copy provided by Thomas Nelson through the BookSneeze Reviewer Program
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Review of READING COMICS by Douglas Wolk
Rating: 4 out of 5
Comics and graphic novels are a really interesting storytelling medium. I've always particularly enjoyed the superheroes of comics. READING COMICS by Douglas Wolk is an entertaining and informative book for comic lovers. Wolk writes on the history if comics and what makes them appealing to people.
While the first part of the book covers the theory behind comics and their history, the second part of the book is the most interesting. The second part of the book delves into specific comics and their creators, presenting them in a review type of style. While I recognized the likes of Frank Miller, Alan Moore, and Grant Morrison, many of the others presented an introduction to some artists I wasn't familiar with.
READING COMICS is a fun book if you're interested in a broad view of comics throughout the course of their existence.
Review copy provided by Da Capo Press
Comics and graphic novels are a really interesting storytelling medium. I've always particularly enjoyed the superheroes of comics. READING COMICS by Douglas Wolk is an entertaining and informative book for comic lovers. Wolk writes on the history if comics and what makes them appealing to people.
While the first part of the book covers the theory behind comics and their history, the second part of the book is the most interesting. The second part of the book delves into specific comics and their creators, presenting them in a review type of style. While I recognized the likes of Frank Miller, Alan Moore, and Grant Morrison, many of the others presented an introduction to some artists I wasn't familiar with.
READING COMICS is a fun book if you're interested in a broad view of comics throughout the course of their existence.
Review copy provided by Da Capo Press
Review of IF GOD IS GOOD by Randy Alcorn
Rating: 4 out of 5
I think few people are free from the struggle of reconciling a good and loving God with the existence of evil and suffering. IF GOD IS GOOD by Randy Alcorn tackles many of the questions brought about by the struggle. Alcorn has been one of my favorite authors, so I was very interested in reading his take on what is one of the thorniest subjects in the world.
The book is good in that it reveals the utter failure of the non-theist to adequately solve the problem of evil. Alcorn also shows how God can and does bring good out of the suffering that people undergo. He delves into how God utilizes suffering specifically in the process of maturing a believer in Christ. He also brilliantly shows God's two eternal solutions to the problem of evil in heaven or hell. Hell makes sense in light of the problem of evil if Christianity is true.
While I appreciate Alcorn as an author, I didn't find his arguments for compatibilist free will convincing. He argues it well, but I think one of the implications of compatibilism is that God can't genuinely offer salvation to all if he only enables a select few to even be able to respond to that offer. I also struggle with embracing the greater good theodicy that states that God allows only evil that he can bring about a greater good from. This seems to make evil necessary to God accomplishing the good he wants to do.
Still, Alcorn writes with a pastoral heart and has much wisdom and encouragement to give. I appreciate him putting his time into such an overwhelming subject.
Review copy provided by Waterbrook Multnomah
I think few people are free from the struggle of reconciling a good and loving God with the existence of evil and suffering. IF GOD IS GOOD by Randy Alcorn tackles many of the questions brought about by the struggle. Alcorn has been one of my favorite authors, so I was very interested in reading his take on what is one of the thorniest subjects in the world.
The book is good in that it reveals the utter failure of the non-theist to adequately solve the problem of evil. Alcorn also shows how God can and does bring good out of the suffering that people undergo. He delves into how God utilizes suffering specifically in the process of maturing a believer in Christ. He also brilliantly shows God's two eternal solutions to the problem of evil in heaven or hell. Hell makes sense in light of the problem of evil if Christianity is true.
While I appreciate Alcorn as an author, I didn't find his arguments for compatibilist free will convincing. He argues it well, but I think one of the implications of compatibilism is that God can't genuinely offer salvation to all if he only enables a select few to even be able to respond to that offer. I also struggle with embracing the greater good theodicy that states that God allows only evil that he can bring about a greater good from. This seems to make evil necessary to God accomplishing the good he wants to do.
Still, Alcorn writes with a pastoral heart and has much wisdom and encouragement to give. I appreciate him putting his time into such an overwhelming subject.
Review copy provided by Waterbrook Multnomah
Review of CHRISTIAN APOLOGETICS by Douglas Groothuis
Rating: 4 out of 5
Some find Christian faith more difficult to believe than others. Before I came to faith in Jesus and even afterward, I was one of the people who needed to be convinced by some really good evidence. Fortunately, I had access to some great books that carefully and thoughtfully defended the faith. Though I didn't have it at the time of my journey toward faith, CHRISTIAN APOLOGETICS by Douglas Groothuis is one of those types of books.
This thick book contains all of the best and most logical arguments of why belief in a Creator God and specifically the God of Christianity makes sense. After some helpful discussions on worldview as a preliminary before getting into the evidence, Groothuis launches into some arguments for belief in God such as the ontological argument, the cosmological argument, and the fine-tuning of the universe. The book also discusses intelligent design against Darwinian evolution. Then the book looks specifically at Jesus, defending his historical existence, the incarnation, and his resurrection.
The last part of the book covers common objections, of which the problem of evil I found to be the most interesting. This was the only area of the book I didn't feel provided an adequate defense as it embraced the greater good theodicy. Groothuis also proposes compatibilism as the correct and biblical model of free will. While I don't agree with his assessment entirely in this area, I did feel he made a concise and good argument for it.
CHRISTIAN APOLOGETICS is a solid resource for anyone wanting to know how to defend the Christian faith.
Review copy provided by InterVarsity Press
Some find Christian faith more difficult to believe than others. Before I came to faith in Jesus and even afterward, I was one of the people who needed to be convinced by some really good evidence. Fortunately, I had access to some great books that carefully and thoughtfully defended the faith. Though I didn't have it at the time of my journey toward faith, CHRISTIAN APOLOGETICS by Douglas Groothuis is one of those types of books.
This thick book contains all of the best and most logical arguments of why belief in a Creator God and specifically the God of Christianity makes sense. After some helpful discussions on worldview as a preliminary before getting into the evidence, Groothuis launches into some arguments for belief in God such as the ontological argument, the cosmological argument, and the fine-tuning of the universe. The book also discusses intelligent design against Darwinian evolution. Then the book looks specifically at Jesus, defending his historical existence, the incarnation, and his resurrection.
The last part of the book covers common objections, of which the problem of evil I found to be the most interesting. This was the only area of the book I didn't feel provided an adequate defense as it embraced the greater good theodicy. Groothuis also proposes compatibilism as the correct and biblical model of free will. While I don't agree with his assessment entirely in this area, I did feel he made a concise and good argument for it.
CHRISTIAN APOLOGETICS is a solid resource for anyone wanting to know how to defend the Christian faith.
Review copy provided by InterVarsity Press
Review of HANDY DAD by Todd Davis
Rating: 4 out of 5
I love being a dad and I love doing fun and creative things with my kids. That's why I was excited about HANDY DAD by Todd Davis. HANDY DAD is about creating memorable experiences with your kids where you're spending quality time with them and teaching them at the same time.
The book features 25 projects for dads and kids to do together, ranging from super easy, to afternoon projects, to weekend endeavors. With the step by step instructions for each of the projects, the book provides se really fun projects to tackle.
A paper airplane, which is one of my kids' favorite things to do, is one of the easier projects and takes little time. Some other cool projects that I want to tackle in the future when my kids are older are the zip line and the go cart. It's a great book with a lot of great things to do, and I'm glad I got a copy. The only downside is if you don't have the tools a project requires, you're out of luck unless you want to spend the money on the tools.
Overall, it's a great book for deepening the relationships between dads and their children.
Review copy provided by Chronicle Books
I love being a dad and I love doing fun and creative things with my kids. That's why I was excited about HANDY DAD by Todd Davis. HANDY DAD is about creating memorable experiences with your kids where you're spending quality time with them and teaching them at the same time.
The book features 25 projects for dads and kids to do together, ranging from super easy, to afternoon projects, to weekend endeavors. With the step by step instructions for each of the projects, the book provides se really fun projects to tackle.
A paper airplane, which is one of my kids' favorite things to do, is one of the easier projects and takes little time. Some other cool projects that I want to tackle in the future when my kids are older are the zip line and the go cart. It's a great book with a lot of great things to do, and I'm glad I got a copy. The only downside is if you don't have the tools a project requires, you're out of luck unless you want to spend the money on the tools.
Overall, it's a great book for deepening the relationships between dads and their children.
Review copy provided by Chronicle Books
Review of MONSTERS IN AMERICA by W. Scott Poole
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
It seems that human beings have always had a certain strange obsession with mysterious supernatural horrific creatures or monsters. Shows like The Walking Dead and the Twilight series are a case in point. So I was really interested in a book that focused specifically on this obsession with monsters and what may lie underneath it. MONSTERS IN AMERICA by W. Scott Poole is an interesting take on the subject as it focuses on American obsession with monsters. In fact, MONSTERS IN AMERICA is strangely a book about American history.
Poole traces American history through its monsters. America's monsters read like a reflection of America's most corrupt moments.
While the concept of tracing America's history through its monsters is an interesting one, I think I would have enjoyed an exploration of humanity's obsession with monsters in general with more of a focus on the current landscape of monster obsession around the world. But that wasn't the focus of this book. Still, it's an interesting read as Poole speculates on the real-life conditions he believes have spawned America's monsters.
Review copy provided by Baylor University Press
It seems that human beings have always had a certain strange obsession with mysterious supernatural horrific creatures or monsters. Shows like The Walking Dead and the Twilight series are a case in point. So I was really interested in a book that focused specifically on this obsession with monsters and what may lie underneath it. MONSTERS IN AMERICA by W. Scott Poole is an interesting take on the subject as it focuses on American obsession with monsters. In fact, MONSTERS IN AMERICA is strangely a book about American history.
Poole traces American history through its monsters. America's monsters read like a reflection of America's most corrupt moments.
While the concept of tracing America's history through its monsters is an interesting one, I think I would have enjoyed an exploration of humanity's obsession with monsters in general with more of a focus on the current landscape of monster obsession around the world. But that wasn't the focus of this book. Still, it's an interesting read as Poole speculates on the real-life conditions he believes have spawned America's monsters.
Review copy provided by Baylor University Press
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