Best Books of 2012--Third Through 10th Places

I am beginning to fear that this year will slip away before that most important bit of book news is announced: Not the Pulitzer Prizes or the Nobel Prize for Literature.  Those are both somewhat overrated.  I am talking about my yearly announcement for the best books I read in the previous year.  To increase speculation and excitement, I am holding off on the first and second place winners.

But there are some great books and authors listed below.

3. Colonel Roosevelt by Edmund Morris

A great man, an outstanding leader.  Where is the TR of our time?

Consider the whole three volume set as the winner.  I read the first volume just after I got out of college, and now over 30 years later, Morris finished the set and I finished the reading.  TR was an incredible man.  You don't have to agree with all his actions and views to admire him.

4. Washington’s Secret War: The Hidden History of Valley Forge and Now We Are Enemies by Thomas Fleming.
I am increasingly convinced that Thomas Fleming is one of our greatest historians.  Now We Are Enemies was his first book and has been reprinted recently (50th anniversary edition).  Washington's Secret War shows how Washington understood both wars he was in:  One was political and one was military.  Fleming writes history as it ought to be written.  I look forward to reading more of his books



5. King’s Cross: The Story of the World in the Life of Jesus by Tim Keller
Whether this is read in conjunction with studying the Gospel of Mark, or read for devotional reading, or read as a model for preaching, this is a great book.  I am increasingly sold on Tim Keller's writing and thinking.



6. Between Two Worlds: The Art of Preaching in the Twentieth Century by John R. W. Stott
I first read this book back in 1994.  After Dr. Stott's death last summer, I decided it was time to read it again.  Being back in the pulpit, I found this book incredibly helpful. I look forward to reading it again before too long.

Stott was one of the most respected evangelical leaders in the world.

7. Letters to a Young Calvinist: An Introduction to the Reformed Tradition by James K. A. Smith
This book could have been and should have been written to me many years ago.  This was a really fun book.  I want to teach through it soon.  It brought back many memories.



8. Washington by Ron Chernow
I often regretted getting into this book because of its length and I have read quite a few books about Washington over years. Yet, this work, read a very little at a time, is a thorough and rich biography of an incredibly difficult man. In an election year where we yearn for someone of ability and nobility, it is well to reflect upon George Washington.  This book did win the Pulitzer Prize for non-fiction.  Nice consolation since it came in eighth place.



9. Family Driven Faith by Voddie Baucham
Dr. Baucham spoke at the Atlanta Association of Classical Christian Schools conference this past June.  Great speaker and the author of a hard-hitting book on family issues.CCS conference in June. Family matters are more important than politics right now.  This books needs to be widely read and distributed.




10.  Think by John Piper
This book and the Baucham book are published by Crossway Books.  I read this book twice and have become yet another fan of John Piper.  This book has more focus on the Bible rather than on logic or reading skills.

Helpful in creating thinking skills to apply to Scripture reading and study.