Theology
Ecstasy and Intimacy, When the Holy Spirit Meets the Human Spirit, by Edith Humphries: An excellent, excellent, relatively unheard of book. Deeply Trinitarian, this book outlines a theology of ethics, worship, church and family life based upon union with God the Father in Jesus Christ through the Spirit. Tautly argued but also incredibly accessible, this book is an extremely helpful addition to a practical/mystical theology of holiness, compassion and love.
Ezekiel: Vision in the Dust, by Daniel Berrigan, Art by Tom Lewis-Borbely: Berrigan’s poetic and prophetic re-telling of Ezekiel, making the story come alive through a profound exegesis and a potent application to modern day events. Ezekiel was called to acts of outrageous drama and doom-saying, and he was largely not attended to. It is a miracle that we still have his writings, much in the same way it is miracle we still know of Berrigan and his Plowshares work against Vietnam and Nuclear weapons. Prophets don’t always get to die of old age.
Spiritual Transformation
Better Together, by Danielle Strickland: Danielle’s new book is a timely and well-crafted call to be unflinchingly truthful about the inequity of the world when it comes to gender and power; to be obedient to the Lord in the call to share power and privilege; to be wisely strategic in the development and nurturing of inclusive leadership teams; and to be looking forward with hope, not backward with blame. Her chapter on power is especially important, I think, in a “zero-sum” world that believes (from all sides) that power can be won and lost, but not shared.
The Spirituals and the Blues, by James H Cone: Cone traces the development of spirituals to gospels, and the Blues to Jazz and Rap. All of this music comes from the same place - the pain of black people trying to survive and assert their being in the face of structures and powers that would negate and destroy them. The music is not simply performative - it is declarative of existence, of humanity, and of hope in the face of impossible opposition. Spirituals look beyond the grace for redemption, but not exclusively. They include calls to resist, to flee, to steal away. The Blues locate the struggle entirely on the worldly plane, but in these and the spirituals there is no clear dualism between the sacred and the secular. Essentially, Cone argues that this music IS black experience and history, and can only be rightly understood and created by those shaped by that history.
Poetry
The Legend of Sigurd and Gudrun by JRR Tolkien: Well, now I really know where Tolkien drew his inspiration from. These are poems in the Norse style, composed (or interpreted) by Tolkien as a result of his long study and teaching of the Sagas, Eddas and Lays of the North. These two long Lays tell the story of Sigurd and Brynhild, the Volsungs, and Sigurd’s wife Gudrun (who was herself faithful, but who he married as a result of her mother’s deceit, to everyone’s doom). Within these poems can be traced the origins of Tolkien’s Mirkwood, Aragorn, the curse of rings, dragons, Hurin and Turin (especially) and much else besides. The poems are accompanied by commentary from Christopher Tolkien, who fills in details from the original stories where possible and highlights his father’s process where he can.
Non-Fiction
Limits to Medicine, Medical Nemesis: The Expropriation of Health, by Ivan Illich: Illich books are so difficult to summarise, because they cover so much ground and in such revolutionary ways. Illich loves to take on sacred cows, and in this book he takes on the modern medicalisation of society. He uses the phrase iatrogenesis to describe the ill-health and death that have resulted from the widespread medicalisation of our bodies, our thinking and our culture. This can be because of of doctor’s mistakes or the widespread pharmaceutical monopoly on health (the giving of bad or too many drugs, the reliance on pain killers), or the loss of our long-held ability to care for ourselves and one another. He argues, convincingly, that this medicalisation has not really increased life expectancy, and it certainly has not improved our quality of life - it has simply changed our expectation of life, health, and the type of death we require. This was written in 1976, and I can only imagine what he would be saying now. Above all Illich argues that we must wrestle back the idea of control over our own bodies, our own wellness. We must not allow others - especially a medicalised bureaucracy - to have the final say over what sickness means and if we are sick or not. The book is unbelievably researched, dense and powerful.
Women and Power, A Manifesto, by Mary Beard: A two-part manifesto about how we hear (or don’t hear) women’s voices, particularly in public leadership and concerning issues that aren’t considered “women’s issues”, and about the access women have (or don’t have) to power. Specifically Beard suggests that a change in the way we view power is essential. Power is not something we have, but something we can use. And within this shift comes a dismissal of both hierarchies and the cult of personality. There is a different possible way of being together, and Beard gives an excellent contribution to our thinking on how to get there.
On Fairy Stories, by JRR Tolkien: I read this as part of an online discussion group called Eucatastrophe. I do not put this under sci-fi and fantasy, though the topic is fairy stories, because Tolkien’s very definition of fairy stories would not allow this work to go there. He treats fairy stories seriously, in some ways academically, and he is very concerned with precision in the term (as he always is). His concluding point is the most important, the presence of Eucatastrophe (and unlooked for, unhoped for happy ending, the sharp turning from despair to joy) as an essential quality of fairystories. It is essential because it links these stories with the great Eucatastrophe of the Incarnation and Resurrection, and ushers the reader into the place of genuine Joy.
Novels
The Captain and the Glory, by Dave Eggers: An attempt at contemporary political and cultural satire in the vein of Swift’s “Gulliver’s Travels” and especially “A Modest Proposal”. Eggers uses the metaphor of a huge, successful ship - the Glory - to represent the USA, and foists upon it the horror of The Captain, a paper-thin symbolic representation of the current President. The Ship begins to suffer the same disasters that Eggers sees America suffering today. The book works about as well as the monologues of late-night talk show hosts. These are obvious jokes for the in-crowd. If you align with Egger’s worldview and appreciate any attempt to lambaste the President I suppose you might dig this book. If you don’t, you won’t make it past the first few pages, and its unread contents will only serve to stoke your resentments. Either way it won’t have the intended impact. My main trouble with it is that it isn’t really funny or particularly clever. And it is entirely without subtlety. There are some memorable bits, to be sure, but it just seems like an opportunity for Eggers to vent his spleen. Maybe an absurdist satire just won’t work when reality is already so absurd? I will say this though: the ending was lovely, and indeed hopeful.
The Only Harmless Great Thing, by Brooke Bolander: An alternative history in which an elephant that was electrocuted for public entertainment does not go quite so quietly as she did in our version of history. A beautiful story from the perspective of human and elephant women of the power of story, the power of the WE, the power of resistance and sacrifice even unto death.
Sci-Fi/Fan
Artemis, by Andy Weir: In the same mode as his amazing first novel, The Martian, Weir imagines the technical details of what a colony on the moon would be like around 20 years into its existence, and then weaves a narrative around those details. It is super nerdy, to the point where you begin to wonder, Wow, is everyone science-smart but me? Because all of his characters are able to come up with detailed scientific solutions to problems pretty much off the top of their heads, and all are extraordinarily skilled in engineering, chemistry, maths and metallurgy. Also, the story is told in the First Person Present, which is a little distracting because it doesn’t exactly make sense why Jazz, the protagonist, is talking to you, the reader. It did in The Martian, but I think maybe Weir got trapped in the conceit. Anyway, it was a very fun speculative read and a pretty good heist-in-space story.
Stardust, by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Charles Vess: One of my favourite stories, a fae tale for adults. I read it in novel form, watched the movie (not quite as good) and now in a format that includes nearly two hundred beautiful illustrations. As always, Gaiman paints a picture of the frightening and the strange other world, but in a way that shines the mirror-light back onto our culture and society.
Under the Pendulum Sun, by Jeannette Ng: A bizarre and wonderful work of gothic fantasy, very much in the vein of the Brontes or Lord Byron. It follows the story of Catherine Helstone, sister of Laon, on their missionary journey into Fairyland. Fairyland, in these alternate history, was discovered by Captain Cook on his journeys and subsequently become a place much desired for trade and for missionary endeavours. It is a place of mists, shadows, mockery, with a pendulum sun and a moon that is actually a giant salmon. But the Fae are not so easily converted, and they have their own agendas at work. This novel is brilliantly written, suffused with that fairy light that is so strange and threatening. It is also very, very dark, and certainly not up everyone’s alley. But it does seem to take the Gospel seriously, and seriously asks the question of how might Queen Mab and her Arcadian retinue come to know the Lord?
Graphic Novels
Embroideries, by Marjane Satrapi: From the author of Persepolis, this graphic novel offers a glimpse into a world I would never otherwise see: the “discussions” of Iranian women when their men are napping after lunch. Satrapi records the concerns, jokes, stories and advice offered around things like keeping (or faking) one’s virginity; marriage and divorce; Iran versus Europe; being a mistress versus being a wife; and much more. Again, this is not a world I know at all, and it is fascinating.
Jung, A Graphic Guide, by Maggie Hyde: An extremely helpful and engaging introduction to the life and thought of Carl Jung, founder of Analytic Psychology. Reading this one sees just how influential even his categories and vocabulary continues to be: introvert and extrovert; projection; synchronicity; shadow self, and more are all concepts currently very much in vogue. He is even one of the founders of personality types, which (in a bastardised version) are all the rage these days. Jung’s main work may have been trying to find a unity between the rational and the mysterious, the scientific and the spiritual. And he went pretty far out there in his thinking. I don’t agree with much of Jung’s thought, but I do recognise a person who was searching intently, and who applied his genius intellect in a way that was designed to help bring healing to humanity.
Scripture
Exodus
James
Ezekiel
