Following Jesus, the Servant King by Jonathan Lunde

     What does it really mean to be a follower of Jesus? That’s the main question addressed in Lunde’s book, which is part of the Biblical Theology for Life series. He asks three questions:

1) Why should I be concerned to obey all of Jesus’s commands if I have been saved by grace?

2) What is it that Jesus demands of his disciples?

3) How can the disciple obey Jesus’ high demand, while experiencing his “yoke” as “light” and “easy”?

     Lunde begins working through these questions by going through the Old Testament covenants. He discusses how grace was involved in them, and the demands that were placed on the people involved in those covenants. He then discusses how Jesus has become the fulfillment of those covenants and the establishment of a New Covenant.

    What I liked about this book: I never really thought of discipleship as a form of covenant before, so that was enlightening and I got to see the Old Testament covenants in a new light.

     What I didn’t like about this book: Lunde has a tendency to use $10 words when a much simpler word could be used. I think I have a pretty decent vocabulary, but I had to grab the dictionary several times. It was distracting to have to keep stopping, especially since this is not a “light-reading” topic. Explanations also tended to be repetitive and wordy. The insets were also distracting: short paragraphs of about 3 or 4 sentences set off to the side of the page, sort of indented into the paragraph. Authors usually use these to highlight a piece of information in their book that they feel is important, putting it in sight for people who like to skim through books for main points. Lunde didn’t do that. Here they were used for additional pieces of information that went along with what he was saying. It was distracting to find a place where his train of thought paused so you could read those extras… and there were so many of them.

     Unfortunately, I had a hard time getting through this book, and I was really disappointed because the topic was interesting to me. The back cover says that the book is for “pastors, church leaders, students, and lay readers,” but I have to disagree. I think the average person isn’t going to make it through this book. I would recommend it for seminary teachers and students, and maybe pastors. Not lay readers.

I received a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes from Zondervan.

This was book 10 in my 52 Books in 52 Weeks challenge.

Dragons of the Valley by Donita K. Paul

The land of Chiril has not seen war for some time, but now the neighboring kingdom is at their door with the intent of destroying and taking over the peaceful land. A band of unlikely heroes are summoned to hide and protect Chiril’s greatest treasure. Accompanied by an eccentric wizard, and aided by a host of interesting characters, they must find a way to keep their kingdom from falling into the hands of the enemy. Their biggest challenge: The Grawl. A creature/man whose origin is cloaked in mystery, seeming to be more legend than reality.

After receiving this book, I discovered that it was the second book of a series. That made me hesitant, since I hadn’t read the first book, but I went into reading with that fact in mind. The first couple of chapters were a learning process for me since the various races of creatures weren’t explained in detail (this was most likely done in the first book – “The Vanishing Sculptor”). The Appendix in the back of the book came in handy, and I was thankful for it. With the first couple of chapters out of the way I was able to fall into the story. The novel seems to be geared a bit more toward younger readers, but is good reading for adults as well. What stood out most for me was the excellent characterization. Especially that of Lady Peg. At first, I thought the character would annoy me, but she became very entertaining. Her “confrontations” with Groddenmitersay are some of my favorite scenes. I also fell in love with the kimens.

I did find myself confused here and there by some things that were left unexplained or didn’t have enough detail. I suspect that is because it is the second novel in the series. I will most likely purchase “The Vanishing Sculptor” to try to fill in those gaps. Overall, Paul does an excellent job of portraying her fantasy world, and the story flows well.

I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

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This was book 3 in my 52 Books in 52 Weeks challenge.

Classics Challenge 2011

So, I’ve decided to do another book challenge that can crossover with the 52 Books challenge. This is the Classics challenge, and the idea is to read classic novels/books. There are different levels in this challenge, but I’ve chosen to go for the Bachelor’s Degree by reading 12 classics (1 per month).

This challenge is hosted by Stiletto Storytime.

Green by Ted Dekker

Green is Book Zero, both the final and first book of Ted Dekker’s Circle Series. This novel picks up with Thomas of Hunter and the Circle ten years after the events in the novel White. But now the Circle is breaking. The followers of Elyon have begun to doubt that Elyon will return for them as promised. Some doubt he ever really existed at all. To make matters worse, it is Samuel, Thomas’s own son, leading this turn from Elyon. Thomas must fight to keep the Circle together. Their hope lies in the Lost Books of History and making a way from the future world back to our world.

Ted Dekker, the author, says you can read Green as either the first or last book of the Circle series. I admit, I was doubtful. But I can now see how it works. The story does indeed come full circle. But I must also admit that I was left with a few questions. I am hoping these questions will be answered for me when I re-read the Circle series or the Paradise series. Or when I read the Lost Books series. Yes, they are all connected… in quite an amazing way. Despite the questions I was left with, and what I found to be a slow start as a new character was introduced, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. As usual, Dekker’s symbolism was beautiful. The mirror to the Christian faith is wonderful. And once the story really gets going, it’s a page-turner. If you love fantasy, this one is definitely for you. If you love symbolism, I strongly suggest this book. Another great novel from Ted Dekker.

This was book 1 in my 52 Books in 52 Weeks challenge.