Be honest. Did you spend too much money on books last year? It's probably okay, especially if part of that book money was used to purchase Punic Wars and Culture Wars.
I don't do a lot of links on this blog, but this list of AbeBooks Most Expensive Sales in 2008 was quite amazing.
For the record, the most I ever paid for a book was $125.
To see what bargains you missed, click here.
The preacher of Ecclesiastes tells us, "Of the making of many books, there is no end." To which we add, "Of the buying and reading of many books, there is no end."
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Friday, January 23, 2009
Congratulations 2008 Winners
Congratulations to two fine Christian scholars: Dr. Bradley Birzer of Hillsdale and Dr. Roy Clouser, professor emeritus from New Jersey College. Both have won, in my opinion, the highest of literary honors; that is, their books ranked in the top two books I have read during the past year.
Sad to say, the Ben House Best Books Award does not include cash prizes, a nice medal or plaque, or other benefits. It does not seem to open doors to key interviews, literary circles, or influential think tanks. It lacks the prestige of a Nobel or Pulitzer Prize. It is merely a reader telling an author and whatever audience is out there: This is a really great book! That in itself is not a bad prize.
Best Books of 2008--At Last!
BEST BOOKS OF 2008
During a year in which the two political parties were battling over their nominees, hurricanes were threatening our coasts, and economic upheavals were plunging the nation into a depression, I often found myself thinking this most serious thought: What book should I read next?
2008 turned out to be a marvelous book year. Besides the books I agonizingly decided were the best, there were many other good books read, some works re-read, and a quite a few started and not yet finished. While I cannot but hope that everyone in America buys and reads Punic Wars and Culture Wars, I offer some supplemental readings to go along with it.
10. The Making of the President 1968 by Theodore H. White
In case anyone missed it, 2008 was an election year. With an unpopular war and economic upheavals leading to an ever-increasingly unpopular president, it seemed like a good time for a diversion. So, I read one of the volumes of a series written by one of the best political journalists and commentators of the twentieth century. The 1968 election witnessed the rise and demise of some of the most influential political figures of the last part of the twentieth century, including Lyndon Johnson, Robert F. Kennedy, George McGovern, Richard Nixon, Nelson Rockefeller, George Wallace, and Ronald Reagan. Political history of the latter parts of the twentieth century is a favorite topic of mine.
9. The Perils of Peace: America’s Struggle for Survival After Yorktown by Thomas Fleming
From the moment he took command, George Washington’s leadership created a story with few parallels in history. The culmination of his military career is the battle of Yorktown in 1781. The sense is that the rest of the war was minor wrapping up operations until the ink could dry on a peace agreement. Often overlooked is the fact that after Yorktown, the British still maintained a large number of troops in the rebellious states, the French fleet which sealed Cornwallis’ hopes for escape was itself destroyed some months later by the British navy, the American government was hampered by weak and argumentative men, and the British government was not anxious to end the war. This is a great account of some overlooked history. I love this period of American history.
8. Historiography: Secular and Religious by Gordon Clark & The One and the Many by R. J. Rushdoony
Both of these books are about history and both are written from Reformed perspectives, but what unites them in my mind is something greater. For about four years now, I have been researching the Calvinist worldview thinkers of the twentieth century. These two books, both published in the early 1970s, represent the high intellectual achievement of Calvinistic thought. We now have many books assisting us in how to develop a worldview and how to think. Neither of these books is a “how-to” manual; rather, both are examples of what Christian thinking looks like when the mind, Biblically grounded, begins taking every thought captive for Christ. A Christian historian who hasn’t read these two works? Unthinkable.
7. God and Gold: Britain, America, and the Making of the Modern World by Walter Russell Mead
The history of the past several centuries has been the story of the combination of Anglo-American victories on the battlefields, in the marketplace, and in the realm of ideas. Mead does not portray the British or Americans as a superior race or culture in some warped sense; instead, he points out many failures, stupidities, and idiocies of the English-speaking world. Still, due to rational and sensible approaches to government, economics, religion, and cultures, the Anglo-American combination has not only won over its opposition, but has made the world better in the process.
6. Rainbows for the Fallen World by Calvin Seerveld
At some point Christians will again dominate the world of art and aesthetics. That Christian renaissance will be built upon the works of such men as H.R. Rookmaaker and Calvin Seerveld. (Both were, incidentally, followers of the Christian philosophy of Herman Dooyeweerd.) This book is a collection of essays encouraging Christian art, art appreciation, and aesthetic application to the world. This book, along with testimonies from his former students, testifies that Seerveld was a true teacher. This book, a reprint, deserves wide spread reading.
5. A Conservative History of the American Left by Daniel J. Flynn
I suspect that this outstanding book will be revised and expanded within the next decade. But don’t wait until then. This is a marvelous history of the recurring lunacies of leftists. Parts of this history are incredibly funny, while other parts are scary. All of the usual suspects are covered in this book—utopians, feminists, socialists, communists, and 60s radicals—with additional coverage of quite a few nutcases I had never come across before. A great companion volume to this book is Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg. Goldberg’s book is aptly subtitled: The secret history of the American Left from Mussolini to the politics of meaning. Flynn and Goldberg plowed the same grounds resulting in two excellent crops.
4. The Great Upheaval: America and the Birth of the Modern World by
Jay Winik
Here is another in-depth coverage of the early portions of our nation’s history. From the time of Yorktown until the election of 1800, the nation was still a grand idea being born. The year 1800 is significant because that was the year where an incumbent President was defeated and the nation transitioned to a new leader in an orderly manner. Winik covers this familiar portion of American history well, but he enriches it by weaving in the story of two other nations during this same time period. France underwent a horrible revolution and Russia suffered under an unbendable tyranny during those years under Catherine the Great. French and Russian leaders were very much affected by Enlightenment thought, but it was the land of the more conservative Enlightenment thought, the land rooted in historic Reformational Protestantism, that produced an orderly and free government. God has been good to us.
3. Senator Sam Ervin: The Last Founding Father by Karl Campbell
Another evidence of God’s kindness to America was the late Senator Sam Ervin of North Carolina. How soon we have forgotten this man whose Constitutional knowledge, literary skills, and story-telling ability restored confidence in the U.S. and our government during the Watergate Hearings in the 1970s. Ervin was a descendant of those same Scots-Irish who battled against the crown on both sides of the Atlantic, and being of that heritage, he was a faithful Presbyterian. Much of his career was controversial due to battles over segregation and civil rights. In his latter days—during the Watergate disaster—he became a folk hero.
2. The Myth of Religious Neutrality by Roy Clouser
There are two factors that kept this book from being my best read of the year. First, the competition was tough this year. Second, even though I read this book carefully with pen, ruler, and strong coffee at hand, there is too much depth to plumb in just one reading. This book is amazingly profound. Those who love the work of Cornelius Van Til will love this book. The author is not himself a Van Tillian; rather, he gleaned from the same source as Van Til. This book is a serious exposition and application of the philosophy of Dutch thinker Herman Dooyeweerd. Christian educators, pastors, theologians, philosophers, and historians need to increase the scoops on their morning brew and tackle this work.
1. Sanctifying the World: The Augustinian Life and Mind of Christopher Dawson by Bradley Birzer
Christopher Dawson was a contemporary and acquaintance with C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. His life story is not, however, nearly as interesting as theirs; nor will any of his books become box-office screen hits. Lewis and Tolkien both fought in World War I and labored as literary professors. Dawson, a man of weak health and of an isolated life, rarely seemed to gravitate beyond the walls of his study. He lived during the fascinating history of the twentieth century, but his life’s mission was analyzing the impact of Christianity upon history. Friends noted that while others had a library in their house, Dawson had a house in his library. Bookish, frail, often depressed, devoutly Roman Catholic, this man wrote some of the greatest books and essays on history ever. He sought to revise the history of Edward Gibbon; he succeeded to an astonishing degree. Birzer’s study is magnificent. The biographical portions of his life are neatly interwoven into the thoughts and literary output of this man. The only thing better than this book is reading the works of Christopher Dawson himself.
During a year in which the two political parties were battling over their nominees, hurricanes were threatening our coasts, and economic upheavals were plunging the nation into a depression, I often found myself thinking this most serious thought: What book should I read next?
2008 turned out to be a marvelous book year. Besides the books I agonizingly decided were the best, there were many other good books read, some works re-read, and a quite a few started and not yet finished. While I cannot but hope that everyone in America buys and reads Punic Wars and Culture Wars, I offer some supplemental readings to go along with it.
10. The Making of the President 1968 by Theodore H. White
In case anyone missed it, 2008 was an election year. With an unpopular war and economic upheavals leading to an ever-increasingly unpopular president, it seemed like a good time for a diversion. So, I read one of the volumes of a series written by one of the best political journalists and commentators of the twentieth century. The 1968 election witnessed the rise and demise of some of the most influential political figures of the last part of the twentieth century, including Lyndon Johnson, Robert F. Kennedy, George McGovern, Richard Nixon, Nelson Rockefeller, George Wallace, and Ronald Reagan. Political history of the latter parts of the twentieth century is a favorite topic of mine.
9. The Perils of Peace: America’s Struggle for Survival After Yorktown by Thomas Fleming
From the moment he took command, George Washington’s leadership created a story with few parallels in history. The culmination of his military career is the battle of Yorktown in 1781. The sense is that the rest of the war was minor wrapping up operations until the ink could dry on a peace agreement. Often overlooked is the fact that after Yorktown, the British still maintained a large number of troops in the rebellious states, the French fleet which sealed Cornwallis’ hopes for escape was itself destroyed some months later by the British navy, the American government was hampered by weak and argumentative men, and the British government was not anxious to end the war. This is a great account of some overlooked history. I love this period of American history.
8. Historiography: Secular and Religious by Gordon Clark & The One and the Many by R. J. Rushdoony
Both of these books are about history and both are written from Reformed perspectives, but what unites them in my mind is something greater. For about four years now, I have been researching the Calvinist worldview thinkers of the twentieth century. These two books, both published in the early 1970s, represent the high intellectual achievement of Calvinistic thought. We now have many books assisting us in how to develop a worldview and how to think. Neither of these books is a “how-to” manual; rather, both are examples of what Christian thinking looks like when the mind, Biblically grounded, begins taking every thought captive for Christ. A Christian historian who hasn’t read these two works? Unthinkable.
7. God and Gold: Britain, America, and the Making of the Modern World by Walter Russell Mead
The history of the past several centuries has been the story of the combination of Anglo-American victories on the battlefields, in the marketplace, and in the realm of ideas. Mead does not portray the British or Americans as a superior race or culture in some warped sense; instead, he points out many failures, stupidities, and idiocies of the English-speaking world. Still, due to rational and sensible approaches to government, economics, religion, and cultures, the Anglo-American combination has not only won over its opposition, but has made the world better in the process.
6. Rainbows for the Fallen World by Calvin Seerveld
At some point Christians will again dominate the world of art and aesthetics. That Christian renaissance will be built upon the works of such men as H.R. Rookmaaker and Calvin Seerveld. (Both were, incidentally, followers of the Christian philosophy of Herman Dooyeweerd.) This book is a collection of essays encouraging Christian art, art appreciation, and aesthetic application to the world. This book, along with testimonies from his former students, testifies that Seerveld was a true teacher. This book, a reprint, deserves wide spread reading.
5. A Conservative History of the American Left by Daniel J. Flynn
I suspect that this outstanding book will be revised and expanded within the next decade. But don’t wait until then. This is a marvelous history of the recurring lunacies of leftists. Parts of this history are incredibly funny, while other parts are scary. All of the usual suspects are covered in this book—utopians, feminists, socialists, communists, and 60s radicals—with additional coverage of quite a few nutcases I had never come across before. A great companion volume to this book is Liberal Fascism by Jonah Goldberg. Goldberg’s book is aptly subtitled: The secret history of the American Left from Mussolini to the politics of meaning. Flynn and Goldberg plowed the same grounds resulting in two excellent crops.
4. The Great Upheaval: America and the Birth of the Modern World by
Jay Winik
Here is another in-depth coverage of the early portions of our nation’s history. From the time of Yorktown until the election of 1800, the nation was still a grand idea being born. The year 1800 is significant because that was the year where an incumbent President was defeated and the nation transitioned to a new leader in an orderly manner. Winik covers this familiar portion of American history well, but he enriches it by weaving in the story of two other nations during this same time period. France underwent a horrible revolution and Russia suffered under an unbendable tyranny during those years under Catherine the Great. French and Russian leaders were very much affected by Enlightenment thought, but it was the land of the more conservative Enlightenment thought, the land rooted in historic Reformational Protestantism, that produced an orderly and free government. God has been good to us.
3. Senator Sam Ervin: The Last Founding Father by Karl Campbell
Another evidence of God’s kindness to America was the late Senator Sam Ervin of North Carolina. How soon we have forgotten this man whose Constitutional knowledge, literary skills, and story-telling ability restored confidence in the U.S. and our government during the Watergate Hearings in the 1970s. Ervin was a descendant of those same Scots-Irish who battled against the crown on both sides of the Atlantic, and being of that heritage, he was a faithful Presbyterian. Much of his career was controversial due to battles over segregation and civil rights. In his latter days—during the Watergate disaster—he became a folk hero.
2. The Myth of Religious Neutrality by Roy Clouser
There are two factors that kept this book from being my best read of the year. First, the competition was tough this year. Second, even though I read this book carefully with pen, ruler, and strong coffee at hand, there is too much depth to plumb in just one reading. This book is amazingly profound. Those who love the work of Cornelius Van Til will love this book. The author is not himself a Van Tillian; rather, he gleaned from the same source as Van Til. This book is a serious exposition and application of the philosophy of Dutch thinker Herman Dooyeweerd. Christian educators, pastors, theologians, philosophers, and historians need to increase the scoops on their morning brew and tackle this work.
1. Sanctifying the World: The Augustinian Life and Mind of Christopher Dawson by Bradley Birzer
Christopher Dawson was a contemporary and acquaintance with C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. His life story is not, however, nearly as interesting as theirs; nor will any of his books become box-office screen hits. Lewis and Tolkien both fought in World War I and labored as literary professors. Dawson, a man of weak health and of an isolated life, rarely seemed to gravitate beyond the walls of his study. He lived during the fascinating history of the twentieth century, but his life’s mission was analyzing the impact of Christianity upon history. Friends noted that while others had a library in their house, Dawson had a house in his library. Bookish, frail, often depressed, devoutly Roman Catholic, this man wrote some of the greatest books and essays on history ever. He sought to revise the history of Edward Gibbon; he succeeded to an astonishing degree. Birzer’s study is magnificent. The biographical portions of his life are neatly interwoven into the thoughts and literary output of this man. The only thing better than this book is reading the works of Christopher Dawson himself.
Friday, January 16, 2009
To Each His Own
Everyone has his or her own workout schedule. The plan is to either get in shape, lose weight, or build a more muscular body. I have always lived in fear of physical strength. Physically strong people are expected to move things. Yet, I have now caved in and have begun my own workout program.
Here is the hard, painful, and unappealing way to build biceps:
Neither the method or the results are appealing.
Here is my approach:
John Frame's books are my idea of a body building exercise. I think Mr. Frame has at least 17 different suggested orders in which these three books can be read. I suggest a slow workout with The Doctrine of the Knowledge of God for starters. Many have recommended this work as an outstanding coverage of Christian epistemology. I have good memories of reading it about 17 or more years ago. I hope to begin my workouts with it.
Then the training program moves to The Doctrine of God. Judging from the size of the book, I think it weighs about 40 pounds. As the title says, this is a study of the covenantal Triune God we Christians worship. With all of our pursuit of Christian views of different aspects of life, doctrine, and church, we better make sure that we do not neglect frequent Bible surveys of who this God is that we worship.
Yesterday, I received a copy of The Doctrine of the Christian Life, which tops out the scales at 60 pounds. This massive study of ethics covers the Ten Commandments and various other Bible passages showing us how we ought to live, think, and behave as the people of God. And, I rejoice that this volume includes Frame's masterful review of R.J. Rushdoony's Institutes of Biblical Law. This was one of the few serious recognitions of a vital work that appeared in the 1970s.
Not only are the books big and heavy, but the content is big and heavy. Mr. Frame refers to using these books in a course or two he teaches. You could almost label the books as a seminary. Frame draws heavily from Cornelius Van Til, who was one of his teachers and who also was the subject of a great, in-depth study.
I really like Frame because he combines the intellectual foundations of Calvinism that Andrew Sandlin has so faithfully extolled with a genuine Christian congeniality. (I admit that I fear the consequences of Calvinist being patient, open to other people's opinions, and congenial. Start doing that, and the next thing you know is that you will have dancing in the aisle at church with tamborines.)
One other point on this training program: There are three perspectives from which to use and study these books. There is the Situational Perspective. This means that you really need to be doing some chore you had rather not do, so you read from these books instead. Then there is the Normative Perspective. Normative for me is being sprawled out on the couch reading. Finally, there is the Existential Perspective. I think that is basically understood as having strong black coffee at hand while reading.
We'll keep you updated on our work of Framing the House.
Here is the hard, painful, and unappealing way to build biceps:
Neither the method or the results are appealing.
Here is my approach:
John Frame's books are my idea of a body building exercise. I think Mr. Frame has at least 17 different suggested orders in which these three books can be read. I suggest a slow workout with The Doctrine of the Knowledge of God for starters. Many have recommended this work as an outstanding coverage of Christian epistemology. I have good memories of reading it about 17 or more years ago. I hope to begin my workouts with it.
Then the training program moves to The Doctrine of God. Judging from the size of the book, I think it weighs about 40 pounds. As the title says, this is a study of the covenantal Triune God we Christians worship. With all of our pursuit of Christian views of different aspects of life, doctrine, and church, we better make sure that we do not neglect frequent Bible surveys of who this God is that we worship.
Yesterday, I received a copy of The Doctrine of the Christian Life, which tops out the scales at 60 pounds. This massive study of ethics covers the Ten Commandments and various other Bible passages showing us how we ought to live, think, and behave as the people of God. And, I rejoice that this volume includes Frame's masterful review of R.J. Rushdoony's Institutes of Biblical Law. This was one of the few serious recognitions of a vital work that appeared in the 1970s.
Not only are the books big and heavy, but the content is big and heavy. Mr. Frame refers to using these books in a course or two he teaches. You could almost label the books as a seminary. Frame draws heavily from Cornelius Van Til, who was one of his teachers and who also was the subject of a great, in-depth study.
I really like Frame because he combines the intellectual foundations of Calvinism that Andrew Sandlin has so faithfully extolled with a genuine Christian congeniality. (I admit that I fear the consequences of Calvinist being patient, open to other people's opinions, and congenial. Start doing that, and the next thing you know is that you will have dancing in the aisle at church with tamborines.)
One other point on this training program: There are three perspectives from which to use and study these books. There is the Situational Perspective. This means that you really need to be doing some chore you had rather not do, so you read from these books instead. Then there is the Normative Perspective. Normative for me is being sprawled out on the couch reading. Finally, there is the Existential Perspective. I think that is basically understood as having strong black coffee at hand while reading.
We'll keep you updated on our work of Framing the House.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Reading & Listening
After recently reading Melville's Moby Dick and a biography of Melville and watching the two wonderful movie versions of Moby Dick, I was drawn to this delightful history of the whaling industry. Good combination of primary sources, literary contributions, and narrative writing.
I stumbled across this selection of music featuring Del McCoury and his band, along with a number of other great singers, including Mac Wiseman, Patty Loveless, Emmylou Harris, Merle Haggard, and others. This is classic Bluegrass angst over the direction of the country, the loss of morals and traditions, and the straying away from foundations. Donald Davidson would have loved it.
More favorite books coming soon. Thanks to Austin Bob and Jonathan for recent comments and book suggestions. Thanks to George Grant for listing Punic Wars as a favorite book. Thanks to Lawrence for the Lester Flatt story. More fodder for the book and music mills. Now I just need more money.
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Dr. George Grant’s Favorite Books of 2008
1. Stress of Her Regard (newly restored edition) by Tim Powers
2. Practical and Pious by A.C. Cheyne
3. Truths We Confess by R.C. Sproul
4. Punic Wars and Culture Wars by Ben House
5. A Prodigal God by Tim Keller
6. The King Alfred Saxon Tales Tetrology by Bernard Cornwell
7. The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett
8. Tales from the Perilous Realm by J.R.R. Tolkien
9. The Reason for God by Tim Keller
10.What’s So Great About the Doctrines of Grace by Richard Phillips
11. The Living Church by John R.W. Stott
David Bahnsen’s Favorite Books of 2008—with David’s brief commentaries
1. God and Gold: Britain, America, and the Making of the Modern World - Walter Russell Mead
It is not just the best book I read in 2008. It is the best book I read by far. It is one of the best books I have ever read, and I hope to read it every year for the rest of my life. No book has ever done a finer job of covering the historicity and integration of religion and economics in the Anglo world. The book is a descriptive and prescriptive masterpiece, evaluating the unique elements in England and later America that gave birth to this empire of freedom we enjoy today.
2. The Victory of Reason - Rodney Stark
Reason, science, and morality have progressed because of Christianity; not despite it.
3. Liar's Poker: Rising through the Wreckage on Wall Street - Michael Lewis
I have to confess, rarely has a book been so hard to put down once I started reading it (and he wrote this in 1989, believe it or not)
4. Democracy's Good Name: The Rise and Risk of the World's Most Popular Form of Government - Michael Mandelbaum
The author of the paradigm-shifting Case for Goliath and Ideas the Conquered the World returns to top shelf in this extraordinary work documenting how democracy came to be the prominent form of government on planet earth and what conditions exist today that pose a threat to it.
5. Economic Facts and Fallacies - Thomas Sowell
Sowell, whom I wish more than anything was the first black President in American history, ruffles the feathers of those whose economic logic can always be reduced to redistributionism. The book is not as insightful as Hazlitt's Economics in One Lesson, but it is equally cogent and needed in today's atmosphere of economic illiteracy.
6. The Return of History and the End of Dreams - Robert Kagan
A short but sweet piece from one of the most important foreign policy minds alive today. Kagan's Dangerous Nation convinced me several years ago that I have been fed a load of bull about the founding fathers being isolationists; his newest piece convinced me that China and Russia remain as great of a threat as the Islamic terrorists do.
7. Panic: The Story of Modern Financial Insanity - Michael Lewis (ed.)
I reviewed this a week or so ago, and remain blown away that the things I read were written as commentary of the 1987 crash, the 1998 meltdown, and the dotcom crash, as it sure felt like I was reading current events.
8. King of the Club - Charlie Gasparino
The story of the rise and fall of Richard Grasso, the head of the New York Stock Exchange over the last couple of decades, and the ultimate victim in Eliot Spitzer's despicable and self-serving series of crusades from 2002-2006. Grasso, of course, did not resign in the midst of a massive hooker scandal while serving as the moral watchdog on Wall Street (that would be Spitzer). Grasso resigned for taking the paycheck that the compensation committee gave him.
9. Defending Identity: Its Indispensable Role in Protecting Democracy - Natan Sharansky
The man whose Case for Democracy finalized my conversion out of paleo-conservatism outdid himself with this delightful repudiation of multi-culturalism
10. Blue Blood and Mutiny: The Fight for the Soul of Morgan Stanley - Patricia Beard
Not all of you would find it interesting. I read it cover to cover, barely stopping to eat. But I am a Sr VP at the company ... =)
Dr. P. Andrew Sandlin’s Best Books Read in 2008with Andrew's comments
1. Modernism: The Lure of Heresy, by Peter Gay. Perhaps Gay’s swan song, but a sweeping work revealing the godlessness, egomania and hatred for the past on the part of every leading modernist from Charles Baudelaire to Andy Warhol. Lushly illustrated with color photos. Discloses (albeit unintentionally) why were are in the mess we’re in today.
2. God and Gold: Britain, America, and the Making of the Modern World, by Walter Russell Mead. Shows the national roots of the global free market in Holland and traces how the Protestant Faith alone furnishes the rationale and ambiance for burgeoning global wealth.
3. The Courage to Be Protestant: Truth-lovers, Marketers, and Emergents in the Postmodern World, by David Wells. Potent distillation of his major works of the last 15 years or so. A searing indictment of the man-centered, market-driven, compromising, theologically impoverished evangelicalism, seeker-sensitive and Emergent Movement of our day.
4. Modern Uncertainty and Christian Faith, by G. C. Berkouwer. A prophetic work from the early 50s, when the author was less enamored with Barth and Rome. Blisters liberalism and neo-orthodoxy and opposes “the new Christianity in the old church.”
5. The Vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy, by Thomas Sowell. Copiously documented application of author’s instant classic A Conflict of Visions: The Ideological Origins of Political Struggles. Shows how the prevailing socio-political vision of our time (liberalism) is commandeered by arrogant intellectuals whose lofty, Utopian vision, impervious to empirical falsification, wreaks havoc on every society in which it’s tried.
6. The Forsaken: An American Tragedy in Stalin’s Russia, by Tim Tzouliadis. Remarkable, page-turning account of all the Americans who immigrated to the Soviet Union in the 30s in search of respite from the Great Depression only to suffer and die miserably in Stalin’s Hellish gulags — and, perhaps more searingly, an account of how the U. S government did almost nothing to help them, consistently turning a blind eye and deaf ear. Not a book for the faint-hearted. A blood-boiling book. Thanks to Elizabeth Miller for the recommendation.
7. The New Science of Politics, by Eric Voegelin. An understated précis of the author’s main political thesis — that political tyranny, from Puritanism to Stalinism, derives from Utopian Gnosticism. Thanks to Jason Escalante for the recommendation.
8. The Long Walk: The True Story of a Trek to Freedom, by Slavomir Rawicz. Controversial but absorbing autobiographical tale of a Pole incarcerated in Siberia during WWII but who, along with a handful of others, escaped and walked to freedom in northern India. One of the most bracing survival tales of modern times.
9. Tortured for His Faith, by Haralan Popov. This is a serendipitous re-read.
10. Child 44, by Tom Rob Smith. Arguably the best English-speaking thriller in 2008. Follows the trail of a child serial killer in the Soviet Union in the early 50s through the eyes of the detective investigating the gruesome crimes amid a statist machinery committed to the proposition that “murder doesn’t exist in the Soviet Union.”
The world will have to wait for another week or two before I issue the truly Reformed, conservative, paradigm shifting official list of the Best Books of 2008 and the Best Unread Books of 2008. For now, George, David, and Andrew give us some good leads for future reads and purchases.
Have any other suggested titles? Leave your comments, please.
1. Stress of Her Regard (newly restored edition) by Tim Powers
2. Practical and Pious by A.C. Cheyne
3. Truths We Confess by R.C. Sproul
4. Punic Wars and Culture Wars by Ben House
5. A Prodigal God by Tim Keller
6. The King Alfred Saxon Tales Tetrology by Bernard Cornwell
7. The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett
8. Tales from the Perilous Realm by J.R.R. Tolkien
9. The Reason for God by Tim Keller
10.What’s So Great About the Doctrines of Grace by Richard Phillips
11. The Living Church by John R.W. Stott
David Bahnsen’s Favorite Books of 2008—with David’s brief commentaries
1. God and Gold: Britain, America, and the Making of the Modern World - Walter Russell Mead
It is not just the best book I read in 2008. It is the best book I read by far. It is one of the best books I have ever read, and I hope to read it every year for the rest of my life. No book has ever done a finer job of covering the historicity and integration of religion and economics in the Anglo world. The book is a descriptive and prescriptive masterpiece, evaluating the unique elements in England and later America that gave birth to this empire of freedom we enjoy today.
2. The Victory of Reason - Rodney Stark
Reason, science, and morality have progressed because of Christianity; not despite it.
3. Liar's Poker: Rising through the Wreckage on Wall Street - Michael Lewis
I have to confess, rarely has a book been so hard to put down once I started reading it (and he wrote this in 1989, believe it or not)
4. Democracy's Good Name: The Rise and Risk of the World's Most Popular Form of Government - Michael Mandelbaum
The author of the paradigm-shifting Case for Goliath and Ideas the Conquered the World returns to top shelf in this extraordinary work documenting how democracy came to be the prominent form of government on planet earth and what conditions exist today that pose a threat to it.
5. Economic Facts and Fallacies - Thomas Sowell
Sowell, whom I wish more than anything was the first black President in American history, ruffles the feathers of those whose economic logic can always be reduced to redistributionism. The book is not as insightful as Hazlitt's Economics in One Lesson, but it is equally cogent and needed in today's atmosphere of economic illiteracy.
6. The Return of History and the End of Dreams - Robert Kagan
A short but sweet piece from one of the most important foreign policy minds alive today. Kagan's Dangerous Nation convinced me several years ago that I have been fed a load of bull about the founding fathers being isolationists; his newest piece convinced me that China and Russia remain as great of a threat as the Islamic terrorists do.
7. Panic: The Story of Modern Financial Insanity - Michael Lewis (ed.)
I reviewed this a week or so ago, and remain blown away that the things I read were written as commentary of the 1987 crash, the 1998 meltdown, and the dotcom crash, as it sure felt like I was reading current events.
8. King of the Club - Charlie Gasparino
The story of the rise and fall of Richard Grasso, the head of the New York Stock Exchange over the last couple of decades, and the ultimate victim in Eliot Spitzer's despicable and self-serving series of crusades from 2002-2006. Grasso, of course, did not resign in the midst of a massive hooker scandal while serving as the moral watchdog on Wall Street (that would be Spitzer). Grasso resigned for taking the paycheck that the compensation committee gave him.
9. Defending Identity: Its Indispensable Role in Protecting Democracy - Natan Sharansky
The man whose Case for Democracy finalized my conversion out of paleo-conservatism outdid himself with this delightful repudiation of multi-culturalism
10. Blue Blood and Mutiny: The Fight for the Soul of Morgan Stanley - Patricia Beard
Not all of you would find it interesting. I read it cover to cover, barely stopping to eat. But I am a Sr VP at the company ... =)
Dr. P. Andrew Sandlin’s Best Books Read in 2008with Andrew's comments
1. Modernism: The Lure of Heresy, by Peter Gay. Perhaps Gay’s swan song, but a sweeping work revealing the godlessness, egomania and hatred for the past on the part of every leading modernist from Charles Baudelaire to Andy Warhol. Lushly illustrated with color photos. Discloses (albeit unintentionally) why were are in the mess we’re in today.
2. God and Gold: Britain, America, and the Making of the Modern World, by Walter Russell Mead. Shows the national roots of the global free market in Holland and traces how the Protestant Faith alone furnishes the rationale and ambiance for burgeoning global wealth.
3. The Courage to Be Protestant: Truth-lovers, Marketers, and Emergents in the Postmodern World, by David Wells. Potent distillation of his major works of the last 15 years or so. A searing indictment of the man-centered, market-driven, compromising, theologically impoverished evangelicalism, seeker-sensitive and Emergent Movement of our day.
4. Modern Uncertainty and Christian Faith, by G. C. Berkouwer. A prophetic work from the early 50s, when the author was less enamored with Barth and Rome. Blisters liberalism and neo-orthodoxy and opposes “the new Christianity in the old church.”
5. The Vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy, by Thomas Sowell. Copiously documented application of author’s instant classic A Conflict of Visions: The Ideological Origins of Political Struggles. Shows how the prevailing socio-political vision of our time (liberalism) is commandeered by arrogant intellectuals whose lofty, Utopian vision, impervious to empirical falsification, wreaks havoc on every society in which it’s tried.
6. The Forsaken: An American Tragedy in Stalin’s Russia, by Tim Tzouliadis. Remarkable, page-turning account of all the Americans who immigrated to the Soviet Union in the 30s in search of respite from the Great Depression only to suffer and die miserably in Stalin’s Hellish gulags — and, perhaps more searingly, an account of how the U. S government did almost nothing to help them, consistently turning a blind eye and deaf ear. Not a book for the faint-hearted. A blood-boiling book. Thanks to Elizabeth Miller for the recommendation.
7. The New Science of Politics, by Eric Voegelin. An understated précis of the author’s main political thesis — that political tyranny, from Puritanism to Stalinism, derives from Utopian Gnosticism. Thanks to Jason Escalante for the recommendation.
8. The Long Walk: The True Story of a Trek to Freedom, by Slavomir Rawicz. Controversial but absorbing autobiographical tale of a Pole incarcerated in Siberia during WWII but who, along with a handful of others, escaped and walked to freedom in northern India. One of the most bracing survival tales of modern times.
9. Tortured for His Faith, by Haralan Popov. This is a serendipitous re-read.
10. Child 44, by Tom Rob Smith. Arguably the best English-speaking thriller in 2008. Follows the trail of a child serial killer in the Soviet Union in the early 50s through the eyes of the detective investigating the gruesome crimes amid a statist machinery committed to the proposition that “murder doesn’t exist in the Soviet Union.”
The world will have to wait for another week or two before I issue the truly Reformed, conservative, paradigm shifting official list of the Best Books of 2008 and the Best Unread Books of 2008. For now, George, David, and Andrew give us some good leads for future reads and purchases.
Have any other suggested titles? Leave your comments, please.
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