Summer Reading List

Unlike some people, I didn't enter the summer with a reading plan. I sort of go with the flow and when the library says things show up from being on reserve, I read it.

Bossypants by Tina Fey

This book was everything I hoped it would be. I'm a huge Tina Fey fan and if you enjoy her style (eg. 30 Rock) you'll love this book.

Life of Pi by Yann Martel

Carolyn read this one a long time ago and one of my old RAs recommended it to me. I did enjoy this book while reading it, but it is so unique that it leaves me a little unsure of whether I really enjoyed it or not. Either way, very well written.

Live From New York by Shales & Miller

I didn't read all 650 pages, but I loved how it was written. The story of SNL's history is told through interviews and is simply a collection of quotes from the stars and writers of the show. It's a fascinating way to tell a history and I really enjoyed learning about the early days as well as history that I was aware of. I think it's hard to find any franchise that has produced so many big names in the entertainment industry.

Those Guys Have All the Fun by Shales & Miller

This recent release by the same guys who wrote about SNL is written in the same way. It was so fascinating. I never intended to read all 780 pages, but each chapter lead me on to the next and I read it all. From very humble beginnings  to now being worth more than the NBA, NHL, and MLB combined, this book explains how a little cable network changed the world of sports into entertainment.

Love Wins by Rob Bell

When Rob Bell speaks, people listen. This book is too huge to ignore. It's really popular among the college students I work with. My favorite seminary prof said many times, you shouldn't talk about who you haven't read. I'm glad I got to read it and there were many things I appreciated about what Bell said.

Erasing Hell by Chan & Sprinkle

I think very highly of Francis Chan and I was frankly surprised he wrote a response book. This would represent the other side of the discussion Bell brought to the forefront. A couple critiques are that I got the distinct impression that this book was written with haste. It's fairly choppy and lacks a logical ark because I think they were just trying to refute things Bell brought forward. There were also a few times that I thought Chan was going too far in trying to dictate what emotion the reader should be having, but overall it was worth the time to read. The thing I most appreciate, whether I agreed with all of his conclusions or not, is that he was trying to find what scripture taught even if it was hard to hear. For more on Chan and his motivation, check out this video.

Although I didn't have a list entering the summer, here are a couple of books that I'm looking forward to:

The Voice of Matthew by Lauren Winner

Lauren Winner is easily one of my favorite authors. I want to read everything she writes and when I realized she wrote this a while ago, I got a copy right away.

The Book of Basketball by Bill Simmons

This one's been out for a while and since the NBA is on lock-out, this 750 page beauty might help to ease the sadness of not being able to watch my favorite team during those long winter months.