book reviews

Five-star grace books 2013

January 1, 2014 // 33 Comments

A few months ago my book, The Gospel in Ten Words, joined an exclusive club of books that have received 100 five-star reviews on Amazon. In recognition of this achievement, Amazon sent me a gold-framed certificate, a gift voucher, and a personal note from Amazon CEO, Jeff Bezos. Actually, none of that happened. [...]

4 Books for Christmas (2011)

December 4, 2011 // 2 Comments

The Supernatural Ways of Royalty, by Kris Vallotton and Bill Johnson One of the four things the earth cannot handle, is a servant who becomes a king (Pro 30:21-22). A servant doesn’t know how to rule – he hasn’t been trained. Worse, an abiding sense of insignificance combined with a poverty mentality means [...]

“Sit, Walk, Stand” by Watchman Nee

September 14, 2011 // 21 Comments

(Note: I wrote the following review 6 months ago but never got around to publishing it. Lately several people have asked me if I’ve read Sit, Walk, Stand – it seems this book is enjoying a renaissance among grace folk.) A few weeks ago I posted some thoughts on Watchman Nee’s book The Normal [...]

“What’s So Amazing About Grace?” by Philip Yancey

May 24, 2011 // 11 Comments

I only just got around to reading Philip Yancey’s 1997, award winning book, What’s So Amazing About Grace? When a friend gave me this book several years ago I mistook it for another book I thought I had already read it. But a few weeks ago I picked it up, got whacked in the guts by the story at the start of [...]

“God’s Astounding Opinion of You” by Ralph Harris

April 3, 2011 // 3 Comments

Who do you think you are? If you were to describe yourself in 50 words or less, what would you say? You might refer to your accomplishments, your habits, your strengths and weaknesses. And right there is the problem that lies at the heart of everything. You don’t really know who you are. From the moment we’re [...]

“That Hideous Strength” by CS Lewis

March 26, 2011 // 2 Comments

Everyone knows CS Lewis wrote the Narnia Chronicles, but not so many people are familiar with his earlier Space Trilogy. Unlike Narnia, Out of the Silent Planet, Perelandra, and That Hideous Strength were not written for children. As Lewis says, they are fairy-tales for grown ups. They are also ripping yarns [...]