Genesis by Nahum Sarna

Well: the book itself is a work of art and the commentary was wonderful. It is a shame that the JPS is so expensive, but sometimes you get what you pay for.

Genesis as Dialogue by Thomas Brodie

His basic thesis is that the stories in Genesis all form diptychs. In some cases, this seems true; in others, it seems forced.

The Savior and the Serpent by Alonzo Gaskill

There were a few interesting insights and questions in this book, but overall I was very disappointed in it. There were some glaring errors, but the biggest flaw was that he spent most of the book castigating some people for taking the text too literally and others for not taking it literally enough without ever making it clear by what metric we determine how to take what. His overall thesis is unconvincing.

House Thinking by Winifred Gallagher

Some interesting data points here but mostly a mish-mash. Her room-by-room formula doesn't work so well when most of the info isn't room specific and this book is too short to try to combine examples, theory, and practice.

Genesis Vol I and II (Word Biblical Commentary) by Gordon Wenham

This was a solid and useful commentary but not earthshaking.

Better by Atul Gawande

I love Gawande's writings and many of the essays in this book were excellent and thought-provoking. But it was disappointing to find two that I had already read (in the New Yorker) and another essay (and the conclusion) that seemed irrelevant to the theme and mere padding. Oh well.

Rethinking Thin by Gina Kolata

Kolata points to evidence that humans have a (very narrow) weight preset and that it is virtually impossible for them to diet their way below that amount (at least, for the long term). I'm no scientist and can't judge the evidence, but one would think that given the discrimination obese people face in this culture that if it were possible to be thin, they would be. So I'm inclined to believe her and think that all of the cultural focus on losing (large amounts of) weight will someday join leeches in the history books.

The Golden Goblet by Eloise Jarvis McGraw

Wow! This was excellent. This was another pre-read for studying ancients next year, but I totally got into it--amazing suspense for a children's book. Highly recommended. Would be a great family read-aloud, too.

The Boy of the Painted Cave by Justin Denzel

I read this since it will be part of Simon's reading for our study of Ancients next year. I think it is a good, if not stellar, choice for pre-history.

House Update

OK, this is supposed to be a book blog, but I haven't been reading much since I've been working on the house so . . .

. . . brace yourself for a pretty scary 'before' picture. (Two people had the same reaction on seeing this bathroom for the first time: "That paint looks just like baby poop!")



And here's the after pictures:



(I think the first picture is a truer representation of the paint color.)

Here's the master bedroom, which also has a scary 'before' (yellow and gold/orange spongepaint; mercifully, I don't have a picture):



Now, I think that wall needs something, but I don't know what. Also, should I paint the nightstands white or black?

Here are a few more views of the master bedroom:




I'm pleased with how the stencil turned out; definitely the best way to cheaply add interest to a huge, blank wall.





And this if from my yard (how cool is that?):



This is the library; over the bookcase, it reads "I have always imagined that paradise is a kind of library."



This is the master bedroom. I like the tile but I don't like the paint. Any ideas on what color would be better?



This is one of the walls in the gameroom (AKA the DMZ):

Light on Snow by Anita Shreve

eh.

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

Normally I read until midnight, but last night I was so wiped out at 10pm that I decided to set aside my Serious Book and read a few pages of a new Fluff book to get to sleep.

At 4:04am, I finished My Sister's Keeper. I literally couldn't put it down--this book's strengths were its incredible characterization of a half dozen major characters as well as its compelling portrayal of a family ripped apart by a child's illness.

Now that it is the light of day, I've been vacillating between thinking that the twist at the end was pure stupidity and thinking that it was the perfect encapsulation of the idea that we, ultimately, don't control . . . anything.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver

On the one hand, Barbara Kingsolver is a delicious writer who chronicles well the tale of her family's year of eating mostly home-grown food. On the other hand, this book suffers prodigiously in comparison with The Omnivore's Dilemma, which covers much of the same ground without sounding preachy or elitist. Despite Kingsolver's repeated reminders that she wasn't being preachy or elitist, she was. I'd have a helluva lot easier time eating locally if I could hire a caterer for a family party or calculate food costs without counting labor costs (or time).

River of Doubt by Candace Millard

I can't remember the last time a non-fiction book gave me so many nightmares; let's just say I won't be canoing down the Amazon any time soon. This well-told tale of Theodore Roosevelt's near-death while exploring an unknown tributary of the Amazon is worth reading.

The Underground History of American Education by John Taylor Gatto

I've wanted to read this forever but was always put off by the price tag--imagine my surprise when I found it at a library sale. Anyway, it was terribly disappointing. I didn't trust his credentials to address the topic and the text seemed to meander.

Dave Barry Hits Below the Beltway by Dave Barry

Gotta love Dave Barry. I always have to go find my husband and read big sections out loud to him.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this lovely and magnetic book.

On the Wealth of Nations by P. J. O'Rourke

This was such a disappointment. It was like O'Rourke forgot to be funny.

Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas by James Patterson

This was the lamest, cheesiest, most emotionally manipulative book I have ever read.

Sex God by Rob Bell

I've been listening to (and enjoying immensely) some of Bell's sermon podcasts, but this book didn't do much for me. It bordered on the incoherent--some interesting ideas that just didn't feel fleshed out.

The Writings of Camilla Eyring Kimball

This was an enjoyable read; charming for its datedness but nonetheless hinting at the intellectual life of what might be the most interesting prophet's wife.

Girl Meets God by Lauren Winner

A good memoir about a woman's conversion from orthodox Judaism to Christianity. And we can play six degrees of separation: I learned about this author from Susan Wise Bauer's blog (they're friends) and the author mentions her friendship with Jana Reiss in the book.

Mudhouse Sabbath by Lauren Winner

This was pretty good; not life changing but a nice read.

Note

I haven't been reading or posting must since we are in the middle of moving, but wanted to do a quick update today so I can box up these books.

Sisters and Little Saints by Carol C. Madsen

This was OK; it is important as a history of the Primary but seemed to suffer from authors who forced themselves to sound correlated when they didn't really want to. And it was a little dry.

Stolen Lives by Malika Oufkir

This was pretty good.

Adventure Capitalist by Jim Rogers

The travelogue parts of this book where quite interesting; the parts where he thinks he understands how the world works just because he got lucky in the stock market once were much less.

Polio: An American Story by David Oshinsky

This didn't do much for me. About a decade ago, I read Patenting the Sun, which was a much better history of the polio vaccine.

From Mafia to Mormon by Mario Facione

This was a light, enjoyable read.

Naked Economics by Charles Wheelen

I loved this book. I can't say that much of it was new to me, but it was presented well with interesting data. Highly recommended.

The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards

What if you tried to protect your wife and ended up destroying your family? In this finely-crafted novel, Edwards creates compelling characters and avoids a morality play while teasing out the long-term complications of a well-motivated lie.

The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan

Easily one of the best books that I have ever read, this engaging story of those who survived the Dust Bowl deserves a wide audience.

Oracle Bones by Peter Hessler

I didn't like this at all. There were a few interesting anecdotes, but mostly this felt like him rewarming his newspaper and magazine articles to sell a book.

Grace in Galatia by Ben Witherington

I'm not sure if this title was a little flabbier than the usual Witherington fare or if I am just a tad burned out and stressed out trying to get everything on my shelf read for my classes this Spring.

Climbing the Mango Trees by Madhur Jaffrey

This book was delicious: a lovely memoir of a food-filled childhood in an unusually progressive extended family in India. Recommended.

Water Buffalo Days by Huynh Quang Nhoung

I read this to the boys; they really liked it and I did, too.

Conflict and Community in Corinth by Ben Witherington

I'm feeling a little guilty for reading so much Witherington lately instead of getting a broader variety of sources, but I just like him so much. This is another great title.

1-2 Corinthians by Craig Keener

This was a little skimpy compared to the depth of commentary that I am used to. However, I've had people ask me for a good 'first commentary' and now I can recommend The New Cambridge Bible Commentary.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

I've never fallen in love with a narrator's voice as quickly as I did this one--the fact that Death is the narrator probably tells you something about me. This was as excellent book--highly recommended.

Blessing of a Skinned Knee by Wendy Mogel

Mogel attempts to base child-rearing on Jewish principles. This serves as a useful corrective to our child-obsessed (but, paradoxically, child-neglecting) culture. But her execution leaves a lot to be desired. I often sensed that she said what she wanted to say and then mined 3000 years of Jewish tradition for a quote to support her viewpoint. She was also maddeningly vague: Yes, we all agree that kids need reasonable limits (who would argue with that?) but what precisely should those limits be?

Hebrews: A Commentary by Luke Timothy Johnson

I'll try not to let my general distaste for the epistles color my feelings toward this commentary: it was solid if not enrapturing.

The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson

Ranking as one of the very best books I have read in a long time, Johnson makes the 1854 cholera epidemic in London fascinating. His wry humor, good storytelling, deft elucidation of the big issues, and great details make this one highly recommended.

Reminiscences of an Octogenarian by Bruce Metzger

Bruce Metzger is the main man of twentieth-century textual criticism of the Bible; this volume had a few interesting anecdotes in it, but was otherwise simultaneously too scanty and burdened with numbing detail.

The Letter of James (Anchor Bible) by Luke Timothy Johnson

This was a pretty good commentary; definitely the best of the three that I read. My esteem for the ABC series increases, but I am still annoyed by their decision to cram references into the text instead of into notes.