Book Meme

I was tagged (surprising since only so many people know that I exist…however).

1. One book that changed your life:
Beyond the Cosmos by Hugh Ross. The book itself was interesting (all about superstring theory, extra-dimensions and their theistic implications ); but it included an 800 number to Ross’s organization at the back of the book. I called the number, received their catalog, and was suddenly exposed to an abundance of books on science and philosophical apologetics that, up till then, I had been ignorant of. Those books later led me to read works by Alvin Plantinga and other Christian philosophers, as well as scientists such as Fritz Schaeffer and John Polkinghorne (though I make no claims to understanding much of what they wrote). The upshot was that my faith, which was flagging at the time got an energized boost. And the way that Ross’s book ended in my hands was rather strange as well, almost providential even.

2. One book that you've read more than once: Not counting the Bible, I’d have to say Mere Christianity. I received it as a gift and it sat on my shelf for almost 12 years before I actually read it.

3. One book you'd want on a desert island:
Not counting the Bible, I’d have to say Handbook of Christian Apologetics by Peter Kreeft and Ron Tacelli. It’s interesting reading but also fairly light. I would have said the Norton Shakespeare but it’s just too heavy (It would have sunk to the bottom of the ocean before I could get it ashore). A close second might be How to Build an Emergency Coconut Radio by the Professor from Gilligan’s Island.

4. One book that made you laugh: On the Road with the Archangel by Frederick Buechner. Also, A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving. Also, Canterbury Tales.

5. One book that made you cry:
The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis

6. One book you wish had been written: A Beginner’s Guide to Living Life Without Looking Like or Being a Fool (on the other hand maybe Proverbs qualifies). Also, the sequel to Brothers Karamazov.

7. One book you wish had never been written: The Communist Manifesto. Also the Late Great Planet Earth. Also Left Behind.

8. One book you're currently reading:
Dog Creek: A Place in the Cariboo by Hilary Place

9. One book you've been meaning to read: Summa Theologia but I may have to settle for reading Kreeft’s Summa of the Summa.

10. Tag 5 others:
Do I even know 5 other people? Eh, you know who you are.