Seinfeldia: How a Show About Nothing Changed Everything (2016) by Jennifer Keishin Armstrong
If you are a fan of Seinfeld, you have no choice but to read this book. And then rewatch the entire series.
The Relic Master: A Novel (2015) by Christopher Buckley
You wouldn’t expect a book set in the 16th century featuring Albrecht of Mainz, Frederick the Wise, and Albrecht Dürer to give you bouts of spastic laughter—but this one does!
The Mortification of Sin: Dealing With Sin in Your Life (1656) by John Owen
There is no better treatment on how to put to death sin in our lives. I’m thinking about re-reading this one every January.
The Jesus Storybook Bible (2007) by Sally Lloyd-Jones
I read this one with Charlotte. Unforgettable, rich, and compelling—adults perhaps have more to gain from reading this book than their children.
Denmark Vesey’s Garden: Slavery and Memory in the Cradle of the Confederacy (2018) by Ethan J. Kytle and Blain Roberts
This is one of the best books on Civil War memory that I have read.
The Apostles’ Creed: A Guide to the Ancient Catechism (2018) by Ben Myers
A deep but accessible meditation on various aspects of the Apostles’ Creed. This we need: as Myers writes, “In discipleship, the one who makes the most progress is the one who remains at the beginning.”
Why Should the Devil Have All the Good Music?: Larry Norman and the Perils of Christian Rock (2018) by Gregory Alan Thornbury
Larry Norman was the first—and best—Christian rocker, and this biography of him is stellar.
Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life (2016) by Tish Harrison Warren
It is a great temptation to connect the sacred only with the outwardly holy things we do (go to church, pray, etc.) while denigrating the rest of our lives as low and sinful. Warren helps us to see how everything, when rightly perceived, can be done as an act of worship to God.
Spiritual Friendship: Finding Love in the Church as a Celibate Gay Christian (2015) by Wesley Hill
This book is very helpful for thinking through the issue of same-sex attraction, but even more, it is a beautiful paean to the importance of friendship.
The Gospel Comes With a House Key: Practicing Radically Ordinary Hospitality in Our Post-Christian World (2018) by Rosario Butterfield
After Owen’s Mortification of Sin, this was the most challenging book I read this year. One can read how Butterfield practices hospitality and despair for never attaining her level. However, it gives a forceful nudge in the right direction—even for those, like me, for whom hospitality does not come naturally.
Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era (1988) by James McPherson
This is probably the best single-volume history of the Civil War. This is the most important era in our country’s history, and McPherson is suited to the task.
Illiberal Reformers: Race, Eugenics, and American Economics in the Progressive Era (2016) by Thomas C. Leonard
The common narrative of the early progressives as people who, well, progressed society has some truths in it, but it neglects their racism and advocacy for eugenics. Leonard’s book is an important corrective.
The Prodigal Prophet: Jonah and the Mystery of God’s Mercy (2018) by Timothy Keller
Keller is a model for preaching the gospel. His latest is worth a read for his small section on politics alone.
Patriots: The Vietnam War Remembered From All Sides (2003) by Christian Appy
Patriots is filled with oral histories from all kinds of participants in the Vietnam War: government officials and soldiers from the United States, South Vietnam, and North Vietnam, antiwar activists, journalists, and more. It is at turns infuriating, heartening, and tragic—just as was the war it covers.
The Wind in the Willows (1908) by Kenneth Grahame
This is flat enjoyable—I found myself longing to spend time in Toad Hall with Toad, Mole, Rat, and Badger.
What did you read this year?
Tony Petersen 