Recent Reads

The following are books that I've recently read - or am currently reading - and would like to offer as recommendations:

Killing Lincoln by Bill O'Reilly.  Even if you're not a Civil War buff, you will find this book interesting and intriguing.  The book chronicles the last two weeks of the war and the development of Booth's assassination plot, prior to the unfolding events surrounding Lincoln's assassination.  There's so much more to the story than we were taught in our history classes.

The Cat Who series by Lillian Jackson Braun.  If there's such a thing as "fun" murder mysteries, these books are it! Thanks to my friend Roxie for introducing us to the adventures of Jim Qwilleran and his two Siamese cats, Koko and Yum-Yum, who help Jim solve the murders. Cat owners/pet lovers will find their escapades especially delightful. Joel and I are reading these books together and have decided that our Beatrice and Phoebe are Koko's and Yum-Yum's respective counterparts.  Roxie warned us, "These books are addictive."  :)

The Hole in our Holiness by Kevin DeYoung. (You knew there were be a theological read in the mix.)  DeYoung looks at what it means to be holy and why we should even care about holiness. He emphasizes holiness as an act of love and obedience:  "There is a gap between our love for the gospel and our love for godliness. This must change. It’s not pietism, legalism, or fundamentalism to take holiness seriously. It’s the way of all those who have been called to a holy calling by a holy God.”  You may read a review of the book by Pastor Erik Raymond here.

The Devil in the White City:  Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson.  Ashlea recommended this book to me as a very interesting historical read. Who knew that in the midst of the the 1893 Chicago World's Fair a serial killer was on the loose in Chicago?  Though this book reads like a novel, it documents the spellbinding true story of two men:  the architect of the fair, Daniel Hudson Burnham, and the murderer, Henry H. Holmes.  "Burnham overcame tremendous obstacles and tragedies. . .to transform swampy Jackson Park into the White City, while Holmes used the attraction of the great fair and his own satanic charms to lure scores of young women to their deaths."  Larson is a gifted story teller, and I plan to read more of his historical narratives.