Reviews and More Reviews

It has been some time since I reviewed books. I have finished six in that time, so get ready for quick reviews of these volumes.

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Come On, People

Bill Cosby & Alvin F. Poussaint

Thomas Nelson, 2007 (265 pages)

This was a very odd book for me to read, but I love Cosby. I picked this book up from a sale rack for just $5 and, while the message of the volume may not be directed to me, I found several good things in it.

Come On, People is a book that comes from Cosby and Poussaint’s travels around America, in which they interview African-American leaders and citizens in the hopes of seeing what can be done to help their people rise up. The subtitle to the book, On the Path from Victims to Victors, shares the hope the book seeks to instill.

If you have seen Bill Cosby in the last couple of years, you know that this type of work is his passion. He wants the people of his ethnicity to see that there is a better and less violent way to “make it” than the one often portrayed in the media and music.

I found the book to be an eye-opener, and it had some good parts to it. I was disappointed, however, that the authors felt it necessary to throw in several curse words to “nail down” a point. As a Christian, this turned me off to those parts of the book.

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If You Want to Walk on Water, You’ve Got to Get Out of the Boat

John Ortberg

Zondervan, 2001 (228 pages)

This was a book I heard a lot about after its release in 2001, but I just never had a copy of it until now. The title of the book is the message of the book. Ortberg, who works at Willow Creek, uses the account of Peter trying to walk on the water, to teach the reader lessons about stepping out in faith.

This book is very simple to read and is filled with many illustrations, each one very well-chosen. My only complaint about the volume is that it is almost too easy. You can get much of the information from the title of the book! While I don’t like books that “chase rabbits,” Ortberg’s volume almost goes to the other extreme. There is one central message, and he never strays. The book, several times, became quite redundant to me.

I was refreshed by the message of the book, though, and I liked how the author pointed out several “minor” details in the story of Peter and Jesus, painting several  helpful lessons from those points. If you like devotional-level books, you’ll find this one encouraging.

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Successful Christian Parenting

John MacArther

Word Publishing, 1998 (243 pages)

Leah and I read this book together for our devotionals, as we felt we needed to read some good parenting material. If you know me much at all, you know that I read a lot by John MacArthur (see the 5th review in this list!) and I also listen to his podcast. Seeing how he is a Calvinist, I don’t agree with all his teachings, but I like his style.

That being said, Leah and I were both disappointed with this book. About the first 1/3 of the book was spent trying to convince the reader that children are born bearing the sin of Adam and that our job as parents is to realize that depravity. I knew MacArthur believed that false doctrine, but I found it “over the top” that a huge portion of the book was spent–for the most part–on that one topic.

Once we made it through that part of the book, there was some good, though. Once the author got to the “practical” side of the volume, his emphasis on Scripture shone through. Leah and I were able to get some insight in the chapters that exposited Ephesians 5 and 6.

If you have a large parenting library and just “have to have” another book, I would add this one. If you are starting such a library, I would avoid this one.

[NOTE: The same book is available in paperback, but has another title. It is called What the Bible Says about Parenting and was published in 2000.]

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Jesus: The Greatest Life of All

Charles R. Swindoll

Thomas Nelson, 2008 (308 pages)

The ninth and (by the author’s admission) final volume in the “Great Lives from God’s Word” series, Jesus is Swindoll’s attempt to sum up the biography of the central figure of all history. I have now read all 9 volumes in Swindoll’s series. Having read the previous 8, I was excited to read this book, since it is about Jesus. Sadly, I found this book to be average in the series, at best.

The one problem with this book, in my opinion, is that there is no way, in just 300 pages or so, to exposit the life of Christ. I know that’s not Swindoll’s purpose, but that is his strength. He is wonderful at taking a passage and wringing the meaning out of it through word studies and illustrations. When covering such a vast amount of material as the four accounts of the life of Christ, there is no way for that talent of Swindoll’s to truly be used.

As I read this book, I was obviously touched, since Jesus’ life is the greatest. However, I felt like Swindoll just picked a few selected stories and left out others that were just as vital to the overall story of Jesus. He even spends one entire chapter dealing with Jesus statement, “I will give you rest,” but rarely mentions that quotation; choosing rather just to talk about how we need to rest. Lost opportunity, if you ask me!

Divided into four major sections, section 3 is the strongest. It deals with the crucifixion, and Swindoll is able to bring out a lot of good material concerning that event.

Though I was slightly disappointed overall with the book, I would still recommend it. The life of Jesus is always worth our study, and this book, though weak in many areas, will bring helpful information to your study.

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The Truth War

John MacArthur

Thomas Nelson, 2007 (224 pages)

I read this book in 2009 and reviewed it, but I felt like I had rushed through it a little more than I should have, so I decided to read through it again and do a very brief review.

MacArthur, using the epistle of Jude as his background, seeks to show how the ideas of postmodern thought are invading Christianity and how it must be stopped. This book, while it chases a few rabbits, is helpful for those who want to know just some of what is really going on in movements such as the Emerging Church, and the reader will find encouragement to fight for Truth.

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Dave Barry’s Book of Bad Songs

Dave Barry

Andrew McMeel Publishing, 1997 (94 pages)

Yes, I needed a laugh! I like Barry. I like rock and roll. I like to laugh. This little book is the perfect combination of those three.

I have read this book several times in the past, but I pulled it back out to read for a good laugh. It never fails to deliver!