Highly Updated, Alphabetized and Tabled! This is my Long but Incomplete list of authors who’ve crossed my path. Some are good, some abysmal. I haven’t commented on all, but those most notable should have something attached. I have not discriminated in this list so those who are not in with Christian beliefs still get listed, but I suppose they could be as a warning? I suppose also that I could critique the pagan religious stuff as well, but why? Enjoy!
| Adams, Douglas | (“Hitchhikers Guide”, Dirk Gently) The general interrelated mish-mash of all things is a concept to live by. Funny and sometimes very insightful dive into the intricacies of thought, not necessarily based on quality, rather quantity. |
| Adams, Richard | (Watership Down) More cute animals. I love this one too, just like Wind in the Willows. Saw the movie and got the book right afterward. Epic.(Shardik) WOW not cute animals. Definitely a trip through the ravages of superstitious religion and the machinations of man. |
| Aesop | (Fabled to be great). |
| Alexander, Lloyd | (The Black Cauldron) Another childhood memory that I revisited only a few months ago. Still as good as ever. I should read Westmark again someday. |
| Andersen, Hans Christian | (Shoes and such). |
| Anthony, Piers | (Isle of Woman, Incarnations) His books are good studies of people and relationships. I really enjoyed “watching” people. The incarnations were definitely NOT representative of immortality in reality, but they were entertaining. Fantasy is just that, FANTASY. |
| Appleton, Victor | (Tom Swift)This series is like the Hardy Boys, only for nerds. I will maintain my opinion of the excellence of these books to any who ask. Okay, I was too nerdy for “The Hardy Boys.” These books, series I, II and III were what got me hooked on reading. I would not read my half-a-million words per week were it not for Victor Appleton’s stories. |
| Aristotle | (Smart Guy). |
| Asimov, Isaac | (Sci-Fi, math, history, science) His research skills are awesome. His insight is opinionated. Historical opinion, especially on the Bible must be taken with a grain of salt (or hallucinatory stuff, depending on how picky you are). Asimov has been a good companion over the last years. His work, though not quite in line with my worldview as far as society goes, has many times brought me to think hard about interaction with others. Much of his ideas regarding humans as a race are, as with Heinlein, worth the effort of fitting into our own thoughts. The Foundation series, and his Guide to the Bible (not from a Christian point of view, mind you) are filled with knowledge and insight. |
| Aspirin, Robert | (Sci-Fi). Phule’s Company was the book series I enjoyed the most. Read a couple of the Myth books but Phule’s was just plain good stuff. Minds me of Terry Pratchett, only in the future, in space, with more criminals and misfits. Compare with Harry Harrison. |
| Bahnsen, Greg L. | (Theonomy in Christian Ethics) Postmil Theonomist. A more thorough work would be difficult to find. I believe that he’s committed himself to a philosophical “false dilemma” in his arguments, but the book is very valuable in any case since it draws the reader to think very hard on the implications of God’s law and what Christ actually did with it. |
| Baillie, John | John Baillie (Christian Devotion) Wonderful stuff, I need to read it again. |
| Baum, L. Frank | L. Frank Baum (THE WIZ). |
| Bear, Greg | Greg Bear (Darwin’s Children and Radio) Really entertaining. Definitely not believable (which I prefer for fiction). |
| Berg, Jim | Jim Berg (“Changed into His Image” and “Created for His Glory”) I can only thank the Lord for this man’s work. Changed really did just that. I read it twice and I’m different twice because. Conviction straight from the Bible. |
| Bond, Michael | Michael Bond (Paddington). Pretty, and fun, little kid’s stories. I’ve not read them all, but they’re good stuff. |
| Bonhoeffer, Dietrich | Dietrich Bonhoeffer (The Cost of Discipleship) Rocked my world in many ways. Showed me how carried away I can get and how vital my commitment is. |
| Bradbury, Ray | Ray Bradbury (Farenheit) I’m hoping the world ends before this happens. It’s too easy to envision and too frightening and depressing to enjoy reading twice. |
| Bradley, Marion Zimmer | Marion Zimmer Bradley (Mists Of Avalon) Beautiful twist on Arthur and His Knights. I really enjoyed it. |
| Brooks, Terry | (fantasy) Yuck again. It’s not my type. I just couldn’t get past the blatant similarities to other fantasy books I’ve read, and the predictability of the mess. The early Shannara books stunk, and the Star-Wars Episode 1 book was horrid. Apologies to the fans, but Terry isn’t worth reading. |
| Brown, Dan | (“The Davinci Code” and “Angels and Demons”) Made me want to travel to Europe and see all the old cathedrals and castles and such. He did a really good job of describing the setting. His ideas were junk, based on junk and really just suck, like junk. |
| Buckland, Raymond | (Pagan) A big compendium of paganry. I no longer recommend this or other new-agery. Rhymes with sewagery. |
| Buffett, Jimmy | (Parrots Normal Writers) I prefer the music but my Wife doesn’t, so the book is less offensive. |
| Bunyan, John | (Pilgrim’s Progress). I loved the dialogue. There were some uncomfortable choices of names for the characters Christian encountered, and locations sometimes fared the same. Overall, a good read; worth a second round. Shorter than I thought it would be. May be overrated as a fundamental Christian classic but for the time in which it was written, probably priceless. |
| Burroughs, Edgar Rice | (Martian Chronicles) I picked these up because Heinlein mentioned them. No comparison, but I liked the Barsoomian jokes. |
| Calvin, John | (Institutes Of The Christian Religion) Fantastic insight into what Christians believe, from apologetics to doctrine in general. |
| Card, Orson Scott | (Fantasy). Ender’s Game is a must-read for any kid and even adults. It is a Sci-Fi that reaches right into your brain. Seventh Son was a good read, but long in the distant past (I think I read it in Middle School). |
| Cary, Phillip | (Good News For Anxious Christians) Phenomenal book. Takes all the wind out of “modern Christianity.” Read it, whether you believe or not. It’ll change your point of view. |
| Carey, Jacquelin | (Kushiel’s Chosen/Dart/Avatar) I haven’t read #4. I don’t think I will any time soon. Too far off my moral scale. A year ago I would’ve bent the spine, but I’ve changed. |
| Carroll, Lewis | (Alice In Wonderland & Through The Looking Glass). Whimsical but dark in many places. I love these books. Love ‘em. |
| Challies, Tim | (The Discipline Of Spiritual Discernment.) Wonderful book filled with the truth about judgment, what Christians can do to determine the truth in any situation. Very practical, sound and easy to read. |
| Chaucer, Geoffrey | (Canterbury’s finest). |
| Cherryh, C.J. | (Faded Sun Trilogy. A beautiful story about a “soldier gone native.” I loved every minute of it. This story is epic like Dune and rolls like Star Wars.) |
| Chesterton, G. K. | (Orthodoxy, All Things Considered, The Man Who Knew Too Much) Reviews forthcoming. |
| Clancy, Tom | (Military Stories). |
| Clarke, Arthur C. | (SPACE). Lots of good stuff to read in His repertoire. I am particularly fond of “The Songs of Distant Earth” but that may be a result of Mike Oldfield’s album of the same name which derived its inspiration from Clarke’s book and also led me to investigate the book for myself. Oldfield is awesome, and his musical SoDE is really awesome. |
| Clemens, James | (Wi’t’ch Chronicles) Fantasy, Nasty, Scary, Nightmarish, Not worth reading. Freaky stuff loosely sewn together by plot and more freaky stuff. If you want very imaginative and detailed grossity, this is the stuff to read. |
| Clemens, Samuel | (TOM and HUCK). |
| Constantine, Storm | (Wraiththu) Incredible. The sequel recently released was NOT up to standards. |
| Cooper, James Fenimore | (Last of the Mohicans) The movie was better. |
| Creighton, Michael | (Scientific Sci-fi). |
| Crowley, Alesdair | (Pagan) Magical theory and rituals) Heavy philosophy and guidance. I no longer recommend this or other new-agery. Rhymes with sewagery. |
| Cunningham, Scott | (Pagan) One of the most popular in the religion. I no longer recommend this or other new-agery. Rhymes with sewagery. |
| Dahl, Roald | (Peachy). |
| Dante | (Infernal). |
| De Cervantes, Miguel | (Don Quixote) Fantastic. Much to chew on. It’s not just a fairy-tale but a discussion of many good subjects, from honor and civility to government and living. I found each character and encounter in the book to have some rewarding quality. There’s some theology too, though it is highly Romish, that is worthy of reflection. What attracts me there in the religion section is probably the period in which this was written (Reformation), which probably weighed in on Cervantes’ context quite a bit. |
| Defoe, Daniel | (Moll Flanders) Great read, filled with moving scenes and stories of how it should’ve been but wasn’t. Worth the time. |
| Dickens, Charles | (Wonderful). |
| Donaldson, Stephen R. | (Covenants) Almost on a level with LOTR, but anachronistic in language and VERY VERY VERY repetitive with words like “hellfire” and other fancy things. I love books that have the scope of vision that Donaldson, Tolkien and Herbert all have. After #6, His sequels sucked, though I think many of Donaldson’s fans may disagree with me. Probably a case of “too much of a good thing” for me.The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant are analogous in many ways to our own lives. The Destroyer uses despair to disarm us, making his weapons effective. Covenant enters into the story in unbelief and despair, but through the providence that the God of his world sets forth, cannot but bring others out of their despair and effectively defeat the Destroyer. I’m not sure about Donaldson’s faith, but he has a grasp of the human condition that hints of a considerable understanding of anthropology in light of the Fall and redemption. |
| Doyle, Arthur Conan | (Elementary). I recently spent an excessive amount of time reading the Sherlock Holmes books and I think I’ve taken in about all of them now. My favorite might well be the final bow with Dr. Moriarty that ended Holmes’ amazing career. I enjoyed most of all the mundane exchanges between Holmes and Watson, believe it or not, including the snippets about tobacco in a slipper and simple things like that. I’m a sucker for the little stuff. |
| Dumas, Alexander | (Musketeers). |
| Edwards, Jonathan | Theologian of Puritan Likelihood |
| Elliot, George | (The Lifted Veil) I’m not sure quite what to make of the whole story except that it is very engaging, provoking and well done. Written in first person, it sure reads as if it was biographical, but the setting and characteristics of the speaker have some rather unconventional particulars (clairvoyance or some sort of mind-reading ability). But to think on the relationships between characters is quite enjoyable. This is not really a happy book, though there are some satisfying parts. I found Elliot quotable in many of his observations. Worth reading. |
| Farley, Walter | (The Black Stallion) The movie was cool too. Scope again. |
| Farrar, J. and S. | (Pagan). Popular basic Wicca. I no longer recommend this or other new-agery. Rhymes with sewagery. |
| Fitzpatrick, Elyse | Christian Counselor and Author |
| Foster, Alan Dean | (Funny Sci-fi). |
| Frank, Anne | (Diaretic). |
| Furey, Maggie | (Fantasy) I am guessing it wasn’t great, ‘cause I can’t remember a stitch of the book or the title. |
| Gemmel, David | (Okay Fantasy) Never mind, he sucks. I can’t defend the writing. Just because there’s a lot of books doesn’t mean it’s good. |
| Gibran, Khall | (Poetry of my dreams) Beautiful imagery. I dream of writing poetry as beautiful as his. |
| Gibson, William | (TECH) Invented cyberspace. He’s freaky and night-mare dreamish, but entrancing. More movies should come out. Johhny Mnemonic was a bust. Neuromancer was a dance through the dirt of humanity and insanity of living in a world that has lost moral bearings to the extent that the individual really has to come up with them on his own. Frightening. But Gibson’s work is beautiful too. |
| God | (Bible) Version? Currently ESV but I’m not picky. I don’t consider the Positive Bible, Femme Lib, Gay, Affirmative Action or (insert special category here) to be the Bible. TR is fine, so is the AV, whatever. Quit arguing about the typeset and translation and check the message contained. Oh, and it’s NOT a fortune cookie. I was raised with the Bible, tried for the longest time to ignore it and finally found that it was useless without belief. Now it’s the first, most powerful reference in my life. |
| Goldman, William | (Princess Bride) My all-time favorite movie and the book is great too. I wish there was a sequel. |
| Graham, Kenneth | (The Wind In The Willows) I loved the old toon-films and audio books. I read and loved the stories and they bring back memories as real as if I’d lived them. |
| Greene, Robert | (48 Laws) More like the conspiracy theory stuff. I am not interested in control. It’s scary. I certainly don’t want to do it like the 48 expect. Servanthood, not mastery, is the game and I have a hard enough time with that. |
| Grimm, Brothers | (Faerie Tails). |
| Grisham, John | (Legal stuff zzzzzz….). |
| Harrison, Harry | (Bil the Galactic Hero, Stainless Steel Rat) Pure gunk. I love it. Standing wager among my friends about making it through the entire Bil series in one try. |
| Hart, Darryl | (A Secular Faith) Difficult read, but worth it. Hart is of the Two-Kingdom philosophy in Reformed Christianity. It ties up a lot of what could be considered loose ends regarding the relationship of the Christian and the Church to the secular world. I got a better understanding of how believers can relate to culture and their church. |
| Heinlein, Robert | (THE MASTER of Sci-fi and social ideas) Yep, he’s a humanist. He’s not Christian, but his work is entertaining, informative, and one can do much worse. I don’t keep up with most Sci-fi any more, but I’ll stick with Bob. I have yet to discover useless writing from this source. Some of the most influential works include “Time Enough For Love,” “Starship Troopers, (NOT THE MOVIE! LEARN HOW TO READ!)” “Number Of The Beast,” and “Stranger… |
| Hemingway, Ernest | Author, Journalist |
| Henry, Matthew | (Commentary) Easy to understand break-down of the Bible. I use it regularly. Can’t claim to have read it all, but large chunks have been chewed. |
| Herbert, Frank | (Dune) Scope. The sequels were not as good, but the Brit movie that came out a while back, was really cool. The original Dune movie was okay because of innovation, not much else. |
| Herodotus | Ancient Historian |
| Herriot, James | (Veterinary stories) Beautiful stories of the old country. I loved the audio books. Just peaceful reading. Like Sherlock Holmes the Vet, sort of, only dark and stormy nights are more about getting out of the cold/wet, rather than catching the badguy. |
| Hesse, Herman | (Siddhartha) Eastern religion. Not my cuppa any more, but it helped me get an A on my World Religion course this year. |
| Hickman, Tracy | (Fantasy). |
| Horton, Michael | (The Christian Faith) Systematic theology. Really well written. I like reading Horton more than listening to him. He is a wealth of information and communicates clearly on paper. This huge book has passages that I have to read through several times because of the depth of thought and sometimes just the broad strokes of implication found in even single sentences. I have perused other systematic theology books, and read a couple through – Horton’s is excellent and very modern (meaning it applies to and is accessible to people of the last couple of decades). |
| Hyde, Daniel R. | URC Pastor, Author of “Welcome to a Reformed Church.” He outlines the major distinctives of Covenant Theology as it is found in affiliated churches. Good stuff to start on if you’re first time visitor (my church offers it as a gift just so). |
| Jordan, Robert | (Fantasy) Blech. I decided I don’t like this stuff. Popularity doesn’t guarantee quality. |
| Keith, Harold | (Rifles for Waitie) This was another book from my youth. I still have the copy I first read. Wonderful. |
| King, Stephen | (Gunslinger) I don’t really like any other works in his horror collections. This series was disjointed like Gibson’s Neuromancer, beautiful and grotesque at the same time. Really good stuff. I enjoyed Green Mile and Shawshank as movies. |
| Koukl, Greg | (Tactics) A series of lessons on how to engage in a conversation without making classic philosophical blunders like imposing your own views on a person’s beliefs. It helps prevent “straw-man” arguments when defending a conviction. Christians should certainly read this – it will cause you to think more about what you believe and also more about what others believe. This doesn’t strictly have to be a Christian book, being useful for any conversation concerning beliefs and convictions. |
| Kraig, Donald Michael | (Magical Theory) Almost entirely ritual and magical application. I no longer recommend this or other new-agery. Rhymes with sewagery. |
| L’Amour, Louis | (Westerns) History in every one. So many authors are overlooked because of their type-casting. L’Amour is a master of historical fiction. Read “The Haunted Mesa” and “The Walking Drum” back to back and then write your reviews. My first memorable story was “Down The Long Hills,” force-fed to me in the fifth grade, I think. I loved it and soon my Uncle Wilbur began flooding me with titles in periodic packages. Definite essentials include “Flint,” “Last Of The Breed,” “Education Of A Wandering Man,” “Smoke From This Altar.” |
| Lahaye, Tim | (Left Behind et all) Blech. Trying to force Daniel and Revelation from the Bible into a believable story is for God, not man. The characters sucked, the scenes were repetitive and predictable (no pun) and the bad guys were stupid like Cobra from G.I. Joe cartoons. Over-armored idiots. We all know evil people are not stupid, why hope they are? |
| Lloyd-Jones, Martyn | Theologian of Doctor Descent. Very nearly Covenantal, but has issues with baptism, I think. I really enjoyed reading his Great Doctrines of the Faith, which were easy on the eyes and quick to make sense (this mostly because they are transcripts compiled and edited from his lectures). |
| Lawhead, Stephen | (Historical medieval) He’s pretty good. Sometimes drawn out and not always temporally accurate in his use of words. Endings can be cheesy, but overall gets an A- for his stories. |
| Lewis, C.S. | C. S. Lewis (Mere Christianity, Lion Witch Wardrobe, Space Trilogy) He’s had some critics in Christian circles about his use of allegory, but I take the simple stance that fantasy is Fantasy. Look beyond what you see. Oh, and the evil witch is just that… EVIL. Quit crying about witchcraft. Friend of Tolkien, and amazing thinker, Lewis has inspired me greatly. Mere Christianity is an eye-opener for those of us new to the Way, as well as anyone who hasn’t found Him yet. The Space Trilogy and the Chronicles of Narnia are, simply… You’ve just gotta read ‘em yourself. Beautiful work, not in the immensity of Tolkien, but in a more direct fashion. |
| Lovecraft, H. P. | (Cthulhu) Better than any horror flick out there. A good suspenseful, repulsive and dark writer. Recommendations of what first to read were spot-on when I found them: The Call and The Shadow Over Innsbrook were both great to start with. |
| Lowry, Lois | (Gathering Blue) I still don’t get why this sort of work is on banned book lists. |
| Lucado, Max | (Beautiful) Watered down but still moving. I prefer hard-hitting doctrine to mushy-poetic motivational-preaching. If you’re going to hit me with God’s Word, it had better pack the PUNCH of God’s Word. Catholics and Baptists can have peaceable lunch together over this stuff. |
| Luther, Martin | (Galatians Commentary and Concerning Christian Liberty) Powerful doctrine of the church, the minister, Christian living and much more. A most valuable read. |
| Machen, J. Gresham | (Christianity And Liberalism) A great read that illuminates very well all sorts of troubles with the Church of Christ in today’s society just as much as when it was written. Cross-read with Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged and John Calvin’s Institutes. |
| Machiavelli, Niccolo | (The Prince). |
| Mack, Wayne A. | Biblical Counselor and Author |
| Mallory, Thomas | (Le Morte D’ Arthur). |
| Marrs, Jim | (Conspiracy junk) Falls under, maybe even below the magic stuff. This material causes serious psychological problems, undermines authority, deletes files pertaining to respect of people or organizations and in general plays havoc with society. |
| Martel, Yann | (The Life Of PI) What a weird book. It was definitely what I’d call a “summer read.” Throw away when finished. I enjoyed it, but can’t figure out what specifically made the book enjoyable. |
| McCaffrey, Anne | Anne McCaffrey (Dragons) NOT on the same plane as Rawn. |
| McCoy, Edain | Edain McCoy (Pagan Fluff) Celtic tribal stuff. I no longer recommend this or other new-agery. Rhymes with sewagery. |
| Miller, Calvin | Calvin Miller (The Singer Trilogy) Beautiful poetic rendition of the New Testament. Allegory, hard to read for me, but pretty. |
| Millman, Dan | Dan Millman (Oriental Philosophy) This guy captured a LOT of what we could be in terms of physical living and how we view things. Zen isn’t the way to go, but finding joy in details and service is a skill to be developed and a gift to be coveted. |
| Milne, A.A. | (Pooh). |
| Minsky, Marvin | (Sci-Fi) Turing Option was a great story about AI. |
| Montgomery, Lucy Maud | (All about Anne) I have a thing for redheads. I have a thing for the old days, which I never experienced). Watching someone grow up has always been a fascination for me. |
| Musashi | (5 Rings) Complement to Sun Tzu. Eastern religion and philosophy are very attractive. But they’re not in my book of recommendations. They deny the truth (easy, too, since they’re mostly about denial). The principles as applied to warfare are valuable, but people who read them for insight on running businesses or as guidance in life really should look a little less east. |
| Orwell, George | (Animal Farm) About as obvious as can be; a story about manipulating the masses and forming an awesome “government of the people” in entertaining foil of talking animals.(1984) Absolutely fantastic. Very well written with an air of suspense that wouldn’t let up. Sense of pressure and doom on nearly every page. This guy pinned it. |
| Owen, John | Puritan, Preacher, Theologian |
| Patchett, Anne | (Bel Canto) Tragedy, engrossing, weird. |
| Peretti, Frank | (Piercing writer) I don’t like his stuff. It’s not cool. Very overdone Christian thriller.” Spiritual warfare forced to reality, much like the Left-Behind series was Revelation forced to reality. Things spiritual should stay there. |
| Phillips, Dan | (World-Tilting Gospel) A prolific blogger who put out some excellent writing in 2010-2011. I read WTG in a couple of days and can’t really find anything worth griping about, except maybe it was too short. DJP is a witty but devoted theological writer with a keen grasp of Christian doctrine, making an edifying yet entertaining read – excellent for new Christians or as a gift for someone you’d like to share the Faith with. I want his Proverbs book next. |
| Piper, John | Charismatic Semi-Reformed Preacher of Great Fame |
| Plato | Plato (Philosophical). |
| Poe, Edgar Alan | Edgar Alan Poe (Pendulous Pen) I can’t say I liked reading Poe. The phenomenon I could call Shakespearablah applies (almost every book I was required to read in grade school ended up on my most hated list). |
| Pratchett, Terry | Terry Pratchett (Funny Fantasy) Pretty much Douglass Adams in Fantasy. I love the stuff. Parody of just about every political or social situation around. His Tiffany Aching stories are some of the best I’ve read ever. Really. |
| Raleigh, Sir Walter | (Great stuff). |
| Rand, Ayn | (Atlas Shrugged etc.) Very selfish philosophy. She portrays so much that’s just on the verge of being right (such as “all men are NOT created equal” and “minorities are NOT victims”), but humanism is still corrupt, noble as we might think it is. I still enjoyed the good guys’ victory, and she makes badguys very unlikable. |
| Ravenwolf, Silver | (Pagan) Example of pluralism at its worst. Anything is okay. Christian witches, all sorts of stuff. I no longer recommend this or other new-agery. Rhymes with sewagery. |
| Rawn, Melanie | (Dragon Prince) Still my all-time favorite series. Competes with LOTR. I LOVE her imagery, detail, passion and everything. This is one of the stories I read at least once every two years. Soundtrack is the score from Last of the Mohicans. |
| Rice, Anne | (Vampires, dead people) Beautiful imagery and some deep thought circling deity and religion, powerful enough to make you think. |
| Roberson, Jennifer | (Cheysuli) Writes Books, fantasy, yay. Not. I couldn’t get into her. |
| Robinson, John J. | (Freemasonry) Historical stuff intrigues me and this guy seems to have done good footwork. Problem is I lost interest in the topic. Oh well. Might come in useful someday, but I ditched my copy. |
| Robinson, Spider | (Heinlein’s Twin) almost, especially now that he’s co-authored one with the Master. |
| Salvatore, R.A. | (Fantasy and Star Wars). |
| Seuss, Dr. | (Green Eggs etc…) Great Guy, reminds me of my brother. Actually, if Seuss were younger, it’d be a short stretch to convince me that he was my brother. |
| Shakespeare | Shakespeare (Dead). |
| Shatner, William | (HORRIBLE WRITER) Fair starship captain. He’s found his niche in commercials. |
| Shelley, Mary | (Frankly Scary) Falls in with Poe under Shakespoopie |
| Smith, E.E. | (Lensman) LONG-winded and hard to read. Maybe I’m too young. |
| Socrates | (Dusty thinking) Philosophy is at odds with Christianity, but being able to argue, think, speak and comprehend are advantageous. |
| Sproul, R.C. | (Holiness of God) and Much more. This man has done a ton of writing over his lifetime and has probably benefited more people than he can count. I’ve read and studied through his Holiness of God a couple of times and it never ceases to draw me into new considerations of how vast the glory and awe of God can be for us little people. |
| Spurgeon, Charles Haddon | (All of Grace and more) This man’s testimony to the Faith is incredible. If more of us could be like him… |
| Starhawk | (Pagan) Another very popular author. I no longer recommend this or other new-agery. Rhymes with sewagery. |
| Stevenson, Robert Louis | (Treasured). |
| Strobel, Lee | (The Case For Christ) His associations may not be to my liking, but this book played a very powerful part in my salvation. My problems with God were dealt with directly by Strobel’s work in the book. |
| Sun Tzu | (Art of War) See note on Five Rings. |
| Tennyson | (Poetically Spiffy). |
| Thiessen, Henry | (Lectures in Systematic Theology) I’m working on Hodge now. Both are really hard work. Also see Horton above. |
| Thorsson, Edred | (Runes) One more book on a magical system. Oracle or fortune telling, some religion too. I no longer recommend this or other new-agery. Rhymes with sewagery.One note: I have a great love for symbols and written language. I see the appeal of “powerful” in visual communication. There is something to this, primarily because it’s not introspective, but external. Runes and mystical marks reach outward, which is far better (if “better” can be applied here) in regards to mysticism than are the other forms of magic which are conversely introspective and feeling-oriented. Communication vs. internalization. |
| Tolkien, J.R.R. | (LOTR and all else) He’s had the same attacks as Lewis, but I don’t get why. He didn’t claim Gospel content. He wrote a Beautiful story that defined fantasy, showed depths of depravity and heights of awesomeness rarely seen in fiction today. The movies were nearly as good. Put the imagination in me. I think Tolkien could be the seed of my love for languages and, to my discredit in many cases, magic. |
| Torrey, R.A. | (The Fundamentals) Motivating and convicting. A collection of some of the most thoughtful articles on what is important to Christianity today. More Christians should read them. They’re free, too.Lamentably, I do take issue with some of the theology. It is revivalistic, or maybe what we’d call “missional” these days. I’ve grown un-fond of that vein of religion so much that I have a distrust of many “we must” statements. The fundamentals of the faith are different depending on who you’re talking to. That is, for better or worse, how it goes in this age. We hope and wait for the next. |
| Trevallion | (Shibumi) Another Eastern Philosophy story but with some serious cool assassin stuff. I loved the garden and the peaceful scenes. Never heard of the Basque either, until this book. |
| Tripp, Paul David | Christian Counselor and Author |
| Verne, Jules | (All Wet). |
| Warren, Rick | (Purpose Driven Drivel) His work was poopy. I didn’t like the abuse of text from the Word. I am not a member of a corporation and my purpose is NOT to get along in society, though I would love to do so. |
| Weiss, Margaret | (See Tracy Hickman. Pulp). |
| Welch, Ed | CCEF Counselor and Writer |
| Wells, Orson | (World War). |
| Westminster Divines | Catechetically Correct |
| White, E.B. | (Trumpet of the Swan) This book really affected me; being one of the earliest I can remember reading. I wanted to Be the boy. I wanted to go to the warm springs in Montanabanana. |
| Williams, Tad | (Otherland) Scope. Complex. Engrossing. Mastery of including just about every genre in writing. I loved it. The soundtrack is Deep Forest Comparsa. |
| Wolverton, Dave | (On My Way To Paradise) Still a favorite of mine, shocking, thought provoking and on a level similar to Gibson in it’s dreamy sort of style. |
| Wurts, Janny | (Master of Whitestorm) Just plain classic stuff. Great story, great idea, well done. Surprising even when predictable. |
| Wilde, Oscar | (Picture of Dorian Gray) Quite a dramatic tale. Thought-provoking philosophy and striking views of the fall into depravity. |
| Wyss, Johann David | (Swiss Family) Survival, invention, solitude, adventure. All you could ask for in a L’Amour but Disney made a movie about it. |
