reading list for 2011

In January of 2011 I made this post, which gave some short reviews of the best books I had read over the year of 2010.  I wanted to do that for 2011 too.

Throughout 2011 I read through 70 books, not including those for school.  I decided to also go through those and find out which ones were of "eternal significance", both for 2010 and for 2011.  In 2010 I read 25 out of 91 books that I think were of eternal value.  In 2011 I read 21 books less, but this time I read 39 books that I think were actually really good for me.  So, we're getting better! :) You can go to my reading link to see when I read which ones.  The following list are some short reviews of the ones I most enjoyed from this year.

1. Hinds' Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard.  I've already done a sort of review on this book here, so I won't do another one.  It's a great book, though!

2. The Guy I'm Not Dating by Trish Perry.  This book is just plain funny.  I really like it.  It's a Christian fiction romance-ish book.  Hilarious.

3. The Shelter of God's Promises by Sheila Walsh.  I got this book from BookSneeze in February or March, and I really enjoyed it.  It went through 10 different aspects of God, including love, confidence, grace, and home.  I honestly didn't expect to like it as much as I did!

4. The Space Trilogy by C. S. Lewis.  This trilogy includes "Out of the Silent Planet", "Perelandra", and "That Hideous Strength", all by C. S. Lewis.  Lewis is a great fiction writer, as everyone already knows from The Chronicles of Narnia.  The first two books were my favorite; the third was much longer and harder to get through.  Great series!

5. The Mark of a Man by Elisabeth Elliot.  I know this is a book Elliot wrote for men, but I've also heard it suggested that women read it so that they can see more of what God wants a man to be.  The book was written to Elliot's nephew, Peter(?).  I love Elliot's style of writing in that she is so straightforward and to the point.  This book was no exception.

6. If You Love the Lord by Keith Green.  I didn't know much about Keith Green when I first got this book, but throughout this book I came to be really excited to meet this man in Heaven!  He was so very passionate and in love with the Lord, and he wasn't afraid to be brash and rude and make things awkward if he could tell them about Jesus through that.  He had tremendous courage in Christ and is a great encouragement for believers.

7. Let Me Be a Woman by Elisabeth Elliot.  For years I had heard about this book, heard it praised time and time again, and I finally got it at the end of January, 2011. Elisabeth Elliot is definitely one of my favorite authors, if not my absolute favorite. She's just so straightforward and blunt, and her clear-cut view of just about everything is something I really enjoy. Let Me Be a Woman is written to Elliot's daughter, who was about to get married. So there's not really a lot directed to single women, but there is a lot about submission. At the time I was preparing for my first Twelve Extraordinary Women Bible study that I'm leading, and the topic for that month was Eve. In Twelve Extraordinary Women one of the focuses of Eve was on submission, and Let Me Be a Woman really helped me understand that more and, hopefully, present and explain the topic of submission more clearly to my Bible study girls. The book also helped me understand more about who I am in Christ, and how I can live as He has called me to by making me who I am. I would definitely recommend it to any woman!

8. Twelve Ordinary Men by John MacArthur. This book is very similar to Twelve Extraordinary Women by MacArthur, and was actually written first.  Apparently Twelve Ordinary Men had such an overwhelmingly positive response that MacArthur agreed to write one for the women.  Anyway, I so enjoyed Twelve Ordinary Men.  Each chapter studies one of Jesus' disciples.  My favorite chapters were those about John, Andrew, Phillip, and Nathanael.

9. A Tale of Two Sons by John MacArthur.  You can go here to see my review on this book.

10. Surprised by Joy: The Shaping of My Early Life by C. S. Lewis.  This book is Lewis' autobiography.  I really enjoyed it because it showed how his life was just so radically transformed with his salvation and new love for the Lord.

11. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.  Go here to read my review on this great book.

12. Radical by David Platt.  Incredible book.  Read it.

13. Candles in the Dark by Amy Carmichael.  I started this book back in 2010, I think, but then I lost it and couldn't find it anywhere.  Anyway, I finally found it under my bed about six months later, and finished it.  This is such a great book.  I love all of Amy Carmichael's writing; she's very much like Elisabeth Elliot in her straight-out love for the Lord and bluntness.

14. If I Perish by Esther Ahn Kim.  Such an incredible book about one who was tortured and punished for Christ and stood firm.

15. Every Young Woman's Battle: Guarding Your Heart, Mind, and Body in a Sex-Saturated World by Shannon Ethridge and Stephen Arterburn.  Every Young Woman's Battle has so many great tips and encouraging words for young women who are struggling in this world today to stay pure for God.  I so enjoyed this book.

16. Fireproof by Eric Wilson and Alex and Stephen Kendrick.  This is (I think) the book that the movie Fireproof was based off of.  I really loved the movie, and when my sister got the book I just had to read it.  I thought it really showed, better than the movie, how hard it is to fight for your marriage when it just seems like it's gone.  This was a beautiful book.

17. The Last Sin Eater by Francine Rivers.  The Last Sin Eater is one of the best books I have ever read.  I first saw the movie, which is also amazing.  This book is such a beautiful one telling of a young girl, Cadi, who is just completely weighed down with despair over this huge sin she feels she has committed, and she will do anything to get rid of the guilt.  The sin eater is also a man plagued with despair and fear and shame.  Through the courageous heart of Cadi the whole town is changed and set free through the word of God being brought to them.

18. A Chance to Die: The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael by Elisabeth Elliot.  Over the years I've heard over and over again that I should read this book.  I was finally able to borrow it from a woman at my church, and I so enjoyed it.  Amy Carmichael is one of the missionaries who is most encouraging to me.  Her life epitomizes exactly what I want to do with mine--go to India and work at, and eventually start, an orphanage.  She gave up everything for the Lord, and is such an encouragement to me.

19. The Journals of Jim Elliot.  I think I've mentioned this book a few times over the past month or so and how it was impacting me.  I really, really love reading journals.  There's something so great about peering into the minds and hearts of great people and being able to see an aspect to them that would never be seen otherwise.  I already admired Jim Elliot because of his great sacrifice when he was martyred by the Auca people in 1956, but being able to see through his journals how truly enraptured with God he was just made me that much more excited to meet this man in Heaven!  I also enjoyed reading how much he just adored his wife, Elisabeth, and how much he longed to marry her for so many years before God allowed that to take place.  Such a great book.

A few book reviews

At the beginning of 2011 I said I wanted to start doing more book reviews.  What I meant were ones not actually connected to Book Sneeze, and after three months I'm finally getting around to it!  I've been able to get a lot of reading done so far this year, and wanted to share with you a few of my favorites, and my thoughts on each one.

The very first book I read this year was Hinds' Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard.  Beth had recommended this to me a few months prior, and I ended up loving it!  It was written in a similar style to Pilgrim's Progress, but was a bit easier to get through than that other old book.  It starts out with Much-Afraid being a timid, quiet woman terrified of just about everything and certainly not up to journeying to the Celestial City in her own strength.  But then the Good Shepherd leads her to follow Him, and the rest of the story is based on her traveling with the two guides he gave to her, Sorrow and Suffering, up the high mountains to His heavenly kingdom.  The story of Much Afraid challenged me to keep fighting and pressing on towards Heaven, and encouraged me by reminding me of God's great love and protection for His children.  Hopefully I'll be able to read this again soon!

The next book I wanted to write about was Let Me Be a Woman by Elisabeth Elliot.  For years I had heard about this book, heard it praised time and time again, and I finally got it at the end of January.  I know I've said this before, but Elisabeth Elliot is definitely one of my favorite authors, if not my absolute favorite.  She's just so straightforward and blunt, and her clear-cut view of just about everything is something I really enjoy.  Let Me Be a Woman is written to Elliot's daughter, who was about to get married.  So there's not really a lot directed to single women, but there is a lot about submission.  At the time I was preparing for my first Twelve Extraordinary Women Bible study that I'm leading, and the topic for that month was Eve.  In Twelve Extraordinary Women one of the focuses of Eve was on submission, and Let Me Be a Woman really helped me understand that more and, hopefully, present and explain the topic of submission more clearly to my Bible study girls.  The book also helped me understand more about who I am in Christ, and how I can live as He has called me to by making me who I am.  I would definitely recommend it to any woman!

The next book is A Tale of Two Sons by John MacArthur, which I finished about a week ago.  This was also a book I had heard about a lot in the past, and when I finally got around to reading it I was not disappointed.  The book I basically an in-depth study of Luke 15:11-32--the story of the prodigal son.  John MacArthur did a great job of bringing to light the feelings, personalities, and basic lives of the prodigal son, the merciful father, and the elder brother.  I was challenged to forgive others, to thank God for His tender mercies, and to see myself as the wretched sinner I really am, among other things.  Something else I liked about this book was that, while it was theologically deep, it was so clearly explained and well-written that I never felt like I was just muddling through trying to understand what on earth the man was talking about.  An all-around good book.

The final book I wanted to review is No Graven Image by Elisabeth Elliot.  This is the only novel written by Elliot, and as such I was eager to have it for my own and read it.  I received it about a week ago, and finished it this afternoon.  No Graven Image is the fictional story of Margaret Sparhawk, a twenty-five-year-old missionary to the Quichua Indians of Ecuador.  She arrives in Ecuador with high hopes of translating the Bible into Quichuan, starting a school, perhaps building a hospital, and ultimately winning multitudes to Christ.  But she soon realizes that this work will be much harder than she had anticipated.  Every step is a baby step, and she struggles with finding just how to begin her work and how to reach the people.  I enjoyed the unhurried pace of the story, but most especially the in-depth look into the life of a missionary.  Elliot was a missionary herself, so she knows exactly what she's talking about.  As I am hoping to go to India as soon as possible after I graduate college, I've been looking for a book that can begin to prepare me for the challenges I will face.  I thought this book was very good in doing that, and will definitely be reading it again.

And that's it!  I hope these reviews were enjoyable and that you'll go find these books and read them!

Another thing I wanted to share was that today I was able to pray with a young girl at Bible club, and she accepted Jesus as her Savior.  I'm thrilled!  As it's my last year working at the Bible club, this moment was especially poignant, and will definitely be something I treasure in my heart.  Please pray for this little girl and ask that God would continue to grow her in her faith and make her more like Him.