Review: SOG: The Secret Wars of America’s Commandos in Vietnam

A weekend reading review!  Because Pastors also need a break from heavily theological reading! Actually this weekend I’m preaching at a retreat!

 

John L. Plaster. SOG: The Secret Wars of America’s Commandos in Vietnam.  New York, NY: Simon Schuster, January 1st 2019. 368 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

Have you ever heard of a Special Operations group called MACV SOG?  If not, it might be because this is one of the most secretive group during the Vietname War since it operatives had to agree not to talk about their experience for twenty years.  Yet much of today’s Special operations group and capabilities in the modern US military owe its tactics and capabilities to this covert group.  If you are interested in US special operations forces, military history and also the military side to the Vietnam War this book is a must-read.

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Review: Crossroads in Jerusalem

For this week’s “Wee-kids” Wednesdays here’s a review of a children’s book that I got from the publisher but I don’t see it on sale yet; so I linked to the author’s other similar work here and here.

Elizabeth Raum.  Crossroads in Jerusalem. Greenville, SC: BJU Press, November 14th 2019. 150? pp.

5 out of 5

Do you like the old “Choose Your own adventure?”  And do you want to read a Christian and biblical one?  If so this title is one that you should conside!  In this work the author takes us to the time of Jesus’ visit to Jerusalem.  The author is able to blend in biblical events and teachings with respectful and reverential imagination involving you as a character among the people.  She is able to write in such a way as to let you the reader choose your journey. Every choice you make changes the story. After a journey end you can go back to the crossroads and pick a different unread path.

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Review: Art for God’s Sake: A Call to Recover the Arts

Philip Graham Ryken. Art for God’s Sake: A Call to Recover the Arts.  Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing, April 2nd 2006. 64 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

Want to read a book that lays the foundation for a Christian view of art?  This is a book worth reading concerning this topic.  It is written by Philip Graham Ryken.  Ryken is the president of Wheaton College which has been compared to as the Evangelical Harvard.  In under a hundred pages Ryken establishes a Christian worldview of art.  I read this aloud with my wife as part of our night’s devotional read and we both enjoyed it.  In addition I enjoyed it enough that half way through the book I had to order it online as a gift for an artist in our church.

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Review: Ruth by Daniel Block

First Christian book finished for 2020!  And finished it yesterday while waiting at the Courthouse pending for Jury Duty.

Daniel Block.  Ruth.  Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, December 15th 2015. 308 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

This is the best technical commentary on the book of Ruth I would recommend.  If you read the book of Ruth in the Bible it is only four chapters and yet this commentary is 271 pages long (308 pages if you go by what the publishers say), filled with insights properly extrapolated from God’s Word that is exegetical in nature; that is, it is filled with grammatical and syntactical observation from the Hebrew text along with word study and exploration of a passage’s intertextuality.  An aspect of this commentary that makes it unique is the author’s use of discourse analysis.  There are many things readers will learn from God’s Word here and I was blown away with what I discover in this book that led me to worship God and Christ more!  While I have in the past enjoyed other titles in the Zondervan Old Testament Exegetical Commentary Series this one would be one that I would highly recommend.

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Review: Eisenhower’s Armies: The American-British Alliance during World War II

Was so tired last night and struggling with what to write, so here’s a late weekend reading review, because sometimes pastors also need a mental break from, well, ministry…

Niall Barr. Eisenhower’s Armies: The American-British Alliance during World War II.  New York, NY: Pegasus Books, December 7th 2015.  544 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

Want to learn about the American-British alliance militarily during World War Two?  This is a book worth reading!  The work is fascinating and informative.  It is well researched and insightful.  However I must say the title of the book isn’t fully accurate; it isn’t really as much about Eisenhower’s “armies” as it is about the British and American trying to work with one another at the level of military generals because Eisenhower doesn’t become the Supreme Allied Commander until 76 percent into the book.  Despite the title the book is really fascinating read still if you are looking for something about the alliance beyond the personality of Eisenhower.

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Review: Stories Jesus Told: Who Is My Neighbor?

First book review to kick off the year and consistent with our “Wee-kids” Wednesdays here’s a review of a children’s book that’s coming out in March 2020.

Tim Ladwig. Stories Jesus Told: Who Is My Neighbor? Grand Rapids, MI: Discovery House, March 3rd 2020. 32 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

Want a children’s story book on Jesus’ parable of the “Good Samaritan?”  This is one I would recommend.  I’m glad I got to read this to my children!

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Review of Two History Books Read End of 2019

Robert Greenberger.  When Montezuma Met Cortés: The True Story of the Meeting that Changed History.  New York, NY: Ecco, January 15th 2019. 560 pp.

5 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

What if everything you heard about the Conquistor Hernando Cortés and the Aztec emperor Montezuma was incorrect?  This book is a work of superb historical scholarship that goes against the grain of mainstream narrative that often glorify Cortés.  In peeling back the myth we get closer to the truth of what actually happened in history between Cortés and the Aztecs. This book makes a strong case of how people even today have not look at him and his claims critically enough even by those who teach history.

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