Reading Up a Mid-Summer Storm

Today I'm dropping back into your life for just a bit, a quick break from my mini blogging sabbatical.  I just had to share all the great books that are piling up here, there, and everywhere as summer reaches its peak.  For while I might not be writing these days, I am reading up a storm.

Love it.




Land of Silence -
Tessa Afshar
Christian fiction at its best ... a seamless, compelling weaving of story, history, and Scripture.  Tessa's book was voted by Library Journal as one of the top five Christian fiction titles of 2016.  Born in Iran, she came to faith in Christ in her 20s and received her M.Div. from Yale University where she cochaired of the Evangelical Fellowship at the Divinity School.  I burned the midnight oil on this one ... a worthy read for sure.


The Opposite of Worry: The Playful Parenting Approach to Childhood Anxieties and Fears -
Lawrence Cohen, Ph.D
If you have an anxious little one in your world, this will quickly become your go-to handbook.  Insightful, hopeful, practical.  I'm reading slowly, I'm earnestly recommending this little volume penned by a psychologist specializing in children's play, play therapy, and parenting.


Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy -
Sheryl Sandberg & Adam Grant
A #1 New York Times bestseller, the authors take us by the hand and walk us through stunning grief to discover resilience, joy, and renewed hope ... at home, at work, in community with others.  Sheryl's wrenching personal story and Adam's superb research blend together in a way that will grab hold of your heart as well as your mind.  I was hooked by page 2.


Introverts in the Church: Finding Our Place in an Extroverted Culture -
Adam McHugh
Adam's The Listening Life was my favorite 2016 book {remember If You Read Only One Book This Summer ... This Is It}?  He's back with a revised and expanded edition of the first book I'd ever read on introversion.  The 2009 version was a game changer for me personally and professionally ... and I can't wait to put my feet up with this fresh read in this current era of social media's onslaught.  He's giving us a special emphasis on ministering to youth and new research on the neuroscience of introversion.  Easy to read, filled with personal stories, deeply insightful.


The Evangelicals: The Struggle to Shape America -
Frances Fitzgerald
I've been greatly disturbed with the way that evangelicalism has become so interwoven into the political fray.  I'm quite interested in diving into this 700+ page historical tome, written by a Pulitzer Prize winning author.  I'll be reading from my own Christ-centered faith perspective and encourage you to do the same if this subject has been tugging at your heart ... or if you see life through evangelical faith eyes.


*   And check out my most recent selection of not-to-be-missed posts from around the web.  You'll find an unexpected potpourri of quick inspiration on life / ministry / culture.

What pages are capturing your attention this summer?


I'd love it if you'd subscribe before you head off!  And you'll be one of the the first to know when I emerge from my mid-summer sabbatical ... 

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in the stacks with