Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky

     A nameless narrator tells us about his life. “I am a sick man… I am a spiteful man. An unattractive man. I think that my liver hurts.” As he continues we find that he is cynical and bitter. Today he might be diagnosed as bipolar. In the first part of the novel we find out the narrator’s views of himself and the world. The second part of the novel consists of ”notes” from the narrator that describe certain events of his life. Throughout his tales there are times you may feel draw to him or feel sorry for him, but then he’ll do or say something mean or spiteful (as he himself claims to be) and all pity washes away for a bit.

     The entire novel is one big contradiction. The narrator himself is a giant paradox. He claims to feel superior to everyone, and sometimes even acts the part, but most often we can see that he feels largely inferior to everyone around him… and he hates everyone for it. He despises himself, but punishes everyone else for his shortcomings. He speaks certainly that he is writing only for himself and that no one will ever read his notes, yet he constantly addresses the readers directly. I think there have been many interpretations of this novel, and all will have a hint of truth to them. I believe that what you pull away from this novel will depend on the type of person you are, and where you are in your own life.  You may see pieces of yourself in the man from underground. You will definitely see things in him you hope to never see in yourself. But I think everyone will come away with something different, and everyone should read this one… at least once.

1) Overall Plot = 4
2) Characters = 4
3) Flow/Pace of the story = 4
4) Is the story easy to follow? = 4
5) Overall Enjoyability = 4.5

Average score of  4.1

Overall grade = B

You can buy the book here:  Amazon | B&N

This was book 20 in my 52 Books in 52 Weeks challenge.

This was book 3 in my Classics challenge.

Breath of Angel by Karyn Henley

      Melaia is a chantress at the Temple of the Most High. One night in the courtyard she witnesses the murder of a weary traveler and quickly finds herself in a world she thought only existed in old songs and stories. Angels and immortals locked in battle. The stairway to Heaven must be rebuilt, and Melaia is pushed into a journey where she will discover angels, draks, and herself.

     Breath of Angel is the first book in The Angeleon Circle series by Karyn Henley. Labeled as fantasy and marketed as Christian, it meets both categories well, but some may be skeptical at first, as I was. The Christian label is tested with the use of titles such as “priestess” and “chantress” and the treatment of angels. It takes awhile to start seeing some mild Christian metaphors, but they are there. This is why the category of Fantasy is so important. It allows liberty to be taken in certain areas to move the story forward, but nothing that would be deemed un-Christian. Even with the use of characters who are “chantresses” there is no use of “magic” in any way that would turn someone off, as one might expect.

     The story starts quick and moves along at a steady pace. Some of the characters, however, fell a little flat for me. Though not so much that it was a disappointment or a distraction. Overall, this is a good read, and it kept me interested to the end.

1) Overall Plot = 4
2) Characters = 3.5
3) Flow/Pace of the story = 5
4) Is the story easy to follow? = 5
5) Overall Enjoyability = 4

Average score of 4.3

Overall grade = B

I received a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes from WaterBrook Multnomah. Please rate my review here.

You can read an excerpt here or download Chapter One.
Check out Karyn Henley’s website here or her blog here.
Purchase the book here: CBD | Amazon | WaterBrook Multnomah

You can also watch my video review:

This was book 13 in my 52 Books in 52 Weeks challenge.

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.

Keep Your Greek by Constantine Campbell

     In “Keep Your Greek,” Campbell gives practical advice and tips on things you can do so that your Greek doesn’t die. Some of the tips are obvious. A couple may surprise you, but the logic behind it is undeniable.

     I am not a seminary student. I was encouraged to study Greek on my own after frequently watching a pastor on television who uses several different languages in many of her sermons to point out context, tense, etc. I wanted to be able to do this in my own personal studies. Unfortunately, as Bill Mounce says, I got “lost in the fog.” I got discouraged and began to study less and less, until it was not-at-all. I want to change that, so I knew I had to read “Keep You Greek.” It is so encouraging, especially since I am doing this on my own, to see that others struggle the same as I do. The tips in this book will no doubt help me learn and keep my Greek.

This book was provided to me for free by Zondervan for the purpose of this review. My opinions are my own.

This was book 5 in my 52 Books in 52 Weeks challenge.

Keep Your Greek (a preview)

Keep Your Greek by Constantine Campbell is a book I will be posting a review for next week, but I have finished reading it and since I’ve added it to my 52 books challenge page I decided to do a quick post to say “the review is coming” and maybe give you a few things to check out.

This won’t your average book review, because this isn’t your average book. It is for students of Biblical Greek. Students who fear they will LOSE all the Greek they’ve learned once they are no longer students. That’s all I’ll say for now, but you can check out the book with the Zondervan widget in the sidebar. Stay tuned for my review next week.