lazy summer reading/listening

MKH and I went on a little five day summer vacation and it was sooo nice. Some friends loaned us their house by the lake in Michigan and we had a wonderful time golfing, fishing, boating, antique-ing, buying things for the grandkids, visiting historical sites, sitting in a quaint coffee shop drinking coffee and eating in a little Greek restaurant.

That sounds like a long list of vacation activities and looking at that list now makes me wonder how we managed to do any reading, when, in fact reading is mostly what we did.

The first book was one we listened to on cassette tape. Angels and Demons by Dan Brown. I would say that it wasn't as interesting as the Da Vinci Code but it was well worth listening (or reading). I think Mr. Brown is at a distinct disadvantage. He seems to like to write about religious topics but he doesn't write very convincingly (in my opinion) when it comes to what really makes Christians tick. His religious characters aren't very real. Good writing must take a huge amount of research because when an author dabbles in an area in which the reader is well versed, the author shows his ignorance real fast. My advice to Dan Brown would be to do more interviews, get some real faith, or find something else to write about. Still, MKH and I liked the book and it made our trip to Michigan and back a lot more enjoyable.

The first day in Michigan I read Under and Alone by William Queen, a book that was loaned to me by the owners of the lake home. This was a fascinating and very believable true story about a cop who went undercover with the most violent outlaw motorcycle gang in the world; the Mongels.
I had no idea how large the outlaw gangs can be and how much money they handle through illegal drugs, prostitution and other illegal activities. We're talking millions and billions of dollars. How they can keep any of their business straight is a mystery to me since they're almost always drinking and hopped up on Meth. These folks are not the type you want to rub shoulders with since they pride themselves in the fear they evoke in others through their reputation of beatings, gang rape, murder and all kinds of illegal activity. William Queen was able to infiltrate the gang and his undercover work put 52 of them in jail. This was an eyeopening book and easy to read although if you read it be prepared for some raw language.

Next on the reading list was Confessions of a Reformissionist Rev. by Mark Driscoll. This was a book loaned to me by JW who is our new worship minister. The author tells a fascinating story of his experiences both good and bad as a young church leader and new church planter. He was called the cussing pastor by
Donald Miller in Blue Like Jazz. Certainly Driscoll's personality and methods are a lightning rod to say the least. It was a fascinating bit of behind the scenes information. Some things he revealed were shocking. Some things were disgusting and probably could/should have been edited out. Some things were very much right on and I often thought of some people who I wished could read a particular page or paragraph. This is an important book and I enjoyed the look at the Mars Hill church that I've heard so much about.

Finally, I am about 200 pages into Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond. This is a surprising and important book. I probably wouldn't have started on this one except MH, a friend and professor at Ivy Tech, recommended it to me and loaned me his copy. The author sums up his book in one sentence, "History followed different courses for different peoples because of differences among peoples' environments, not because of biological differences among peoples themselves."
If you read this book make sure you read the Prologue which carries the account of Yali's Question. That's my favorite part of the book so far, that and the story of the Battle at Cajamarca. Previous to reading this book if someone had asked me my opinion as to why some people seem to do so much better than other people I would have answered "the land." I'm finding some confirmation for that answer in this book but a whole lot more. This book will make you think about some things that you probably have never thought of before. It's scholarly but very readable. It has been a New York Times Bestseller. Now that my vacation is over I won't finish this book as quickly as I'd like but sometimes a slow read is the best read.

I hope you get into a really good book or two or three this summer.