Girl meets God by Lauren F. Winner

RATING: a honest to God III.

Ryan Gibbons bought me a copy of Girl Meets God from Powell's on Hawthorne just before dinner at the Bagdad theater some July night this summer. Anyway, The book is recounting of Ms. Winner's decision to move out of a life of Judaism and to choose Jesus. Ms. Winner's writing style is forthcoming; she dances from whimsical to sincere with almost no effort at all. I really enjoyed her book.

Sex God by Rob Bell

RATING: A sexy III.

Sex God by Rob Bell came highly recommended by the summer interns at PUMP. Bell suggests as do many spiritual authors (from Augustine to Eugene Peterson) that our spirituality and our sexuality are intimately connected because they are integral to God's formation in us; and goes on to draw lots of helpful connections and implications. This is the second of Rob Bell's books that I've read, and I really like his writing style. Bell also does these cool videos for small group discussion as well. Thanks to Matt Tibbles for introducing me to those.

Seeing Is Forgetting the Name of the Thing One Sees: a Life of Contemporary Artist Robert Irwin by Lawrence Weschler

RATING: an enlightening III

I think I've mentioned before that I sometimes tour the Portland Art Museum with fine artist Michael Brummett. If you are going to go to an art museum this is the way to do it: walking around with a guy that knows stuff about a lot of the people whose works are hanging on the walls.

Anyway, Michael had made mention of this book a few times as a book that had had noteable influence on his thinking. I hadn't ever read a book about an artist before, but I was pretty much interested from page one. One of things that I admire about Robert Irwin is that the art that he created was the result of the pursuit of answers to all kinds of questions. Irwin never really let the art dealers dictate what he made. By the time a certain kind of artwork started to get popular, Irwin had answered that question and was moving on. It is a very engaging book. I recommend it.

The Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysic of Ethics by Immanuel Kant

RATING: A Fundamentally Tedious II

Last summer I read David Hume's Dialogue Concerning Natural Religion. Based solely on my reading of these two books I think these guys would have related to each other in our age in the following way:

Hume: Hello, I'm a Mac.

Kant: ...and I'm a PC.

I get the idea that the few people I hang out with who have read and therefore may understand Hume well enough to evaluate his work, see him as a kook. But this review isn't really about him, it's about Kant's work. Kant's self-evident need to be brutally thorough in the application of the scientific method to a moral metaphysic is probably necessary and surely helpful in the end, but dizzying. I felt like I needed to stop and ask for directions about every three pages. Unfortunately, Google Maps is no help in this case. Anyway, I have great respect for the motive, methodology and subject, but this is far from popular reading. You better really want it if you are going to pick it up.

Renovation of the Heart by Dallas Willard

RATING: morally forward III

I am a big fan of USC philosophy professor Dallas Willard. I think he is writing some of the most deep and practically helpful work being published for a certain group of Christians I like to call "the rest of us." In Renovation of the Heart, Willard offers simple, practical steps toward a Christ-like character. While I don't personally resonate with his 6-part description of a human being, I am very impressed with Willard's astonishing ability to offer concrete, pragmatic answers to questions of human improvement while completely avoiding the trap of legalism. Willard writes, "Grace is opposed to earning, not effort." I recommend the book.

The Release of the Spirit by Watchman Nee

RATING: a unusually fresh III

The work of Watchman Nee was first recommended to me when I was working as a book seller at Christian Supply. I had just finished my undergraduate degree, so reading wasn't high on my list of extracurricular activities. Last year, I picked up The Release of the Spirit for almost nothing at a Christian book sale. It is not a long book, I remember reading a good portion of it at Les Schwab one day this spring, while waiting for new tires to be fitted on the Vanagon.

Nee was a Chinese Christian who started many churches over the course of his life. In 1952, he was imprisoned by the Chinese government for his faith. He died in prison 20 years later. I think one of the most interesting concepts of this book is Nee's idea of brokenness. According to Nee, the effect of Christian brokenness is not simply a more humble believer, but the purpose of the "crack" is to create an openning for the release of the Spirit. I find Nee's ideas to be original and I intend to read more of his work.

Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki

RATING: A fiscally philosophical II

It's time to start banging out the book reviews again. Thankfully the load is light this year, so there's a good chance 2007 reviews will be done before 2008. RDPD was recommended to me by a few people and finally lent to me by good friend David Lankton. I enjoyed the book. Kiyosaki is probably never going to win any literary awards, but that certainly would not be the point. In fact, the author leaves the impression with both the style and the content of this autobiographical sketch that anyone willing to apply him/herself to the right financial principles and work ethic can in fact become rich. The book covers a narrow discussion field, carries ostensible wisdom and is repetitive, but it's a fine primer for the interested.