Best Books of 2014 (plus an update on the one I’m writing)

It’s no secret I’ve been an avid reader since the magical moment in third grade an intuitive teacher placed Scott O’Dell’s The Black Pearl in my tiny, eager hands. This past year I set a goal of reading eighteen books. I never lack desire to read, but definitely time. I hit my goal last week, three weeks overdue–just like all my library books. I had been inspired by Karen Swallow Prior’s engaging memoir, Booked: Literature in the Soul of Me, to be intentional about adding some classic works of fiction into my usual nonfiction-only lineup, alternating genres between books. Here’s a list of my ten favorite books I read last year (in order of my progression through the year) in hopes of sparking your interest for your own reading goals:

• Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller Okay, so technically this is a play and not a book, but I’m guessing many of you are like me and haven’t given it a second thought since reading it (or the CliffsNotes version) back in high school. I think it’s an especially important read for my fellow Millennials. I loved this quote so much it garnered coveted back page of my journal real estate: Biff: No! Nobody’s hanging himself, Willy! I ran down eleven flights with a pen in my hand today. And suddenly I stopped, you hear me? And in the middle of that office building, do you hear this? I stopped in the middle of that building and I saw–the sky. I saw the things that I love in this world. The work and the food and time to sit and smoke. And I looked at the pen and said to myself what the hell am I grabbing this for? Why am I trying to become what I don’t want to be? What am I doing in an office, making a contemptuous, begging fool of myself, when all I want is out there, waiting for me the minute I say I know who I am! Why can’t I say that, Willy? 
• Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert Flaubert writes the main character, Emma, so well that I questioned whether his name was a pseudonym for a female author. I was assured it was not. If you have ever felt a sense of ennui (a fantastic word I learned from the aforementioned Professor Karen Swallow Prior meaning “a feeling of listlessness and dissatisfaction arising from a lack of occupation or excitement”) you will relate to this book and see the dangerous paths she misguidedly treads. A favorite quote describing Emma: Accustomed to calm aspects of life, she turned, on the contrary, to those of excitement. She loved the sea only for the sake of its storms, and the green fields only when broken up by ruins. She wanted to get some personal profit out of things, and she rejected as useless all that did not contribute to the immediate desires of her heart, being of a temperament more sentimental than artistic, looking for emotions, not landscapes.
• If Only: Letting Go of Regret by Michelle Van Loon A book about accepting God’s healing for all our “woulda, coulda, shoulda” thoughts, I loved this book so dearly I have an entire blog post devoted to it, which you can read here. Also worth noting, it won a 2015 Christianity Today Award of Merit in the Christian Living category.
• Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston I don’t think I’ve ever read a book with more masterful use of description: Death, that strange being with the huge square toes who lived way in the West. Or, She sent her face to Joe’s funeral, and herself went rollicking with the springtime across the world. This was a re-read for me from high school and I went back to it for one particular quote that has stuck with me since: Janie stood where he left her for unmeasured time and thought. She stood there until something fell off the shelf insider her. Then she went inside there to see what it was. It was her image of Jody tumbled down and shattered. But looking at it she saw that it never was the flesh and blood figure of her dreams. Just something she had grabbed up to drape her dreams over. 
• A Beautiful Disaster: Finding Hope in the Midst of Brokenness by Marlena Graves This book took me gently by the hand and compassionately walked with me through a wilderness in my life. Marlena offers humble, simple, and profound words that speak deeply into the desert seasons we all endure. Read my review for more.
• A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle If I had to pick one book as my favorite from last year this might be it. It quickly became one of those books that makes something click-on deep inside; flips a switch that can’t be unflipped. I could, and probably will at some point, write an entire piece about my experience reading this interaction between Mrs Whatsit and Meg as she is presented with her gift: “Meg, I give you your faults.” “My faults!” Meg cried. “Your faults.” “But I’m always trying to get rid of my faults!” Couple that with Mrs Who later giving her a gift by quoting 1 Corinthians 1:25-28 (which I was already in the process of writing a talk on when I read this book) and you may catch the gist of why this book has become so precious to me.
• Teach Us to Want: Longing, Ambition & the Life of Faith by Jen Pollock Michel It was no surprise to me that this book ended up winning the 2015 Christianity Today Book of the Year Award. I had the crazy privilege of being invited to review it as an online exclusive for Books & Culture, which you can find here.  
• Women, Leadership, and the Bible by Natalie R Wilson Eastman Here’s a book for anyone looking for a framework to dig deep into scripture. Though she uses the concept of women in ministry as an example, the formula presented here for figuring out why you believe what you believe could easily be applied to any biblical topic. True to her word, she presents a system that doesn’t lean the reader to the author’s own conclusions, but rather presents a method for reaching a conclusion. I found it encouraging: You may not be an expert on exegesis or Bible interpretation in general. You may be learning as you read this book. That’s okay. You have to begin somewhere. I’ll echo the refrain I’ve said before: take your time, but do start somewhere. And also challenging: Rather than looking for Bible verses that seem to support what we’re already doing or what we think, the question we should be asking is, “Is there a biblically legitimate reason for what we’re doing, the way we’re acting, the efforts and projects on which we’re expending our energy?”
• Eternal Living: Reflections on Dallas Willard’s Teaching on Faith and Formation by Gary W Moon My love and regard for Dallas Willard’s teaching began only weeks before he crossed the threshold into eternity. His work engages both the academic and emotional sides of my spiritual brain, and his knack for distilling a grand concept into a short, profound phrase has caused me to set a book down more than once with my mouth agape. Eternal Living is a collection of essays from people impacted by Dallas Willard’s life and is arranged in three parts: those who knew him as a family member, longtime friend or adviser; those who knew him best as a professor, colleague or philosopher; and those who knew him as a minister and reformer of the church. Reading this book brought the Apostle Paul’s words to the Corinthians to mind, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1Corinth1:1 ESV). More than a tribute to one man, these essays pointed me toward a way of living fully immersed in the kingdom now: What can we learn from this virtuous man? Really, its quite simple. Believe and trust Jesus, his invitation and that his processes have a proven and transformative result. Seek to be the kind of person who loves people one at a time, face to face, and watch for Jesus to provide the fruit. Be faithful and intentional every day; the kingdom is on the move and we are invited in on it. Finally, think magnificently of God–always!
• Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth by Richard J. Foster I have read of the spiritual disciplines before, but this was the first time I was able to gain any practical grasp of them. This discipleship classic covers twelve disciplines that fall equally into the themes of Internal, External, or Corporate Disciplines. The book states, The purpose of the Disciplines is liberation from the stifling slavery to self interest and fear. Overflowing with practical ideas for utilizing ancient disciplines within our modern framework, this book challenged me both to think deeply and practically apply what I learned to my daily life. Already slathered in magenta highlighter, I’m sure this will end up being re-read multiple times as my mental cogs are slowing churning out ideas for my own writing in this area. I don’t know about you, but I’m searching for more of this: Our world is hungry for genuinely changed people. Leo Tolstoy observes, “Everybody thinks of changing humanity and nobody thinks of changing himself.” Let us be among those who believe that the inner transformation of our lives is a goal worthy of our best effort.

Now time for an update! About a year ago I wrote this post announcing that I was stepping out and writing something beyond what I see as my ability. As time has allowed I have continued to plug away at the project, mostly during still-dark Saturday morning ‘office hours’ at the tiny table in the back corner of a local Starbucks. I have a tentative title: From Simon to Peter: Ordinary Lives Transformed by Extraordinary Callings and a book proposal that I have received some interest in, though I have only submitted it once before. I also have a little over two weeks of study complete and recently taught a six week course on the material at my church. Dear friends, I would appreciate your prayers as I update and polish my proposal to shining and gather my courage to send it out more widely this spring. Please know, regardless of whether I ever secure professional publishing, I feel called to this project and will see it to completion in whatever form that takes. I’m eagerly anticipating the day it’s finished and I get to share all I’m learning with all of you!

I’ve found it to be slow and highly rewarding work: writing, that is. Reading, too. Paradoxically, these disciplines have grown in me both a longing to be more than I am and increased a deep sense of peace in who I am. I am never more me than I am with a page of words before me. I’m grateful for this gift and hope to steward it well as the Lord walks me into more of the plans He has for me. I am so thankful for the encouragement I receive post after post from so many of you. Walking with you has given me resolve, and walking with our faithful Father gives me hope. May you be encouraged to walk into all the plans he has for you, friends!

PS I would LOVE to know what’s on your must-read list! Please (pretty pleeeease!) leave a suggestion or two in the comments to help me build my list for 2015! 🙂