January 2006 Archive
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January 2, 2006
Books in 2005
Well, I had hoped to do a lot more reading in 2005 than I ended up doing. At one point, the plan had been to try to read 52 books (I'm not counting reading that I do for work in this discussion.) I used to often end up near 52 books during the course of year, but no longer. Probably the result of much less time for reading coupled with the fact that I'm drawn toward longer non-fiction books these days.Anyway, I'm going to aim for 52 books again for 2006 and see where things end up. The sidebar has been reset and I got a big fat non-fiction book for christmas (Wilentz's The Rise of American Democracy reviewed by Foner in The Nation.) I'd put it on my wishlist after reading that review and my mother snagged it for me. It is, indeed, a BFB. And will take me a while to get through, since it's too large for carting onto the Metro.
In any event, here is the (too small) 2005 reading list. I may have missed one or two, but it's close to complete. Onward to '06!
Books Read in 2005
Stiff by Mary Roach - 3.5
Preacher: Gone to Texas by Garth Ennis - 3.5
Preacher: Until the End of the World by Garth Ennis - 3.5
Preacher: Proud Americans by Garth Ennis - 3.5
Preacher: Dixie Fried by Garth Ennis - 3.5
Preacher: War in the Sun by Garth Ennis - 3.5
Preacher: Salvation by Garth Ennis - 4
Preacher: All Hell's A-Coming by Garth Ennis - 3.5
Preacher: Alamo by Garth Ennis - 3.5
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon - 3
Hammer of Eden by Ken Follett - 3.1
Good in Bed by Jennifer Weiner - 3.8
300 by Frank Miller - 2.75
The Russia House by John Le Carre - 2.25
Calculating God by Robert J. Sawyer - 2.9
The Impossible Bird by Patrick O'Leary - 2.5
Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes - by Neil Gaiman - 4
Sandman: The Doll's House - by Neil Gaiman - 4
Sandman: Dream Country - by Neil Gaiman - 4
Sandman: Season of Mists - by Neil Gaiman - 4
Sandman: A Game of You - by Neil Gaiman - 4
Sandman: Fables and Reflections - by Neil Gaiman - 4
Sandman: Brief Lives - by Neil Gaiman - 4
Sandman: World's End - by Neil Gaiman - 4
Sandman: The Kindly Ones - by Neil Gaiman - 4.25
Sandman: The Wake - by Neil Gaiman - 4
The Star Fraction - by Ken Macleod - 3
All In My Head - by Paula Kamen - 4
Under the Banner of Heaven - by Jon Krakauer - 3.75
Bones of the Moon - by Jonathon Carroll - 4
Left Behind - by Lehaye & Jenkins - 1.5
A Cure for Gravity - by Joe Jackson - 3.75
The Plot Against America - by Philip Roth - 4
Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart - by Gordon Livingston - 3.5
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - by J.K. Rowling - 4
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - by J.K. Rowling - 4.25
Winning by Jack Welch - 4
High Tide in Tucson by Barbara Kingsolver - 5
Cadillac Desert by Marc Reisner - 4.25
The Long Emergency by James Kunstler - 3.8
In her Shoes by Jennifer Weiner - 3
The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver - 4
Rising Tide by John Barry - 4
Pigs in Heaven by Barbara Kingsolver - 2.9
The Gate to Women's Country by Sheri S. Tepper - 4.25 Healthy Aging - by Andrew Weil - 3.5
One True Thing - by Anna Quindlen - 4
4 Comments --
Yes - although the Left Behind stuff is not new - when I was in junior high they were showing us movies of what life would be like after the Rapture... But the pre-millennial dispensationalists seem to be growing in strength, which is scary.
Anyway, if you want to read some great commentary on the Left Behind books, check out Slactivist's series - starting here (scroll down to the bottom, it's in reverse chronological order):
Early on he says:The apocalyptic heresies rampant in American evangelicalism are more popular than ever.It's a real tour de force and a dismantling of the so-called "theology" in this series of books. Highly recommended.
It's easy to dismiss these loopy ideas as a lunatic fringe, but that would be a mistake. The widespread popularity of this End Times mania has very real and very dangerous consequences, for America and for the church. ("Premillennial dispensationalism" -- the technical terms for what these prophecy freaks teach -- teaches that the Sermon on the Mount does not apply to Christians living today. It also undermines the core of Christianity -- Jesus' death and resurrection, and the hope of that resurrection. These are not tangential matters for Christians.)
The cultural standard bearer for these Very Bad Ideas is the "Left Behind" series of novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. These books have become so popular that every pastor in America is now confronted with the task of gently, pastorally explaining to their congregation why the theology of these books is misguided and misguiding.
I'm not a pastor, so I won't be pastoral here. These books are evil, anti-Christian crap. This weekend, I'm beginning a new series of posts in which I'll go through these books, page by page.Posted by: Medley on January 2, 2006
Thanks, I'll check that out.
Posted by: Squelch on January 2, 2006
clearly, you need to read more ...
Posted by: d on January 5, 2006
Ah, another non-nut who has read Left Behind! (Well, at least I think I'm a non-nut.)
Very interesting, to get a glimpse into this world of evangelical Christian pornography, IMO.
Posted by: Zach on January 2, 2006