Once every week we sort through a huge list of publishers, retailers and publications and look for new, upcoming or otherwise notable books that may be of interest to our readers.
Do note that we have not read most of these books so do encourage you to shop and to read with care and discernment. We do not necessarily endorse these books, but provide them because of their interest to us.
The Dangerous Book for Boys by by Conn Iggulden and Hal Iggulden
288 Pages
Hardcover
Collins
Available Now
First published across the pond, this book has now been "Americanized" and has been released in North America. The book is "equal parts droll and gorgeous nostalgia book and heartfelt plea for a renewed sense of adventure in the lives of boys and men." It covers the essential boyhood skills that seem to have been lost in this electronic world.
*
Are We Rome: The Fall of an Empire and the Fate of America by Cullen Murphy
272 Pages
Hardcover
Houghton Mifflin
Available Now
Though hardly the first to notice similarities, Cullen writes the first book I've seen on the topic. According to the publisher's description "Murphy reveals a wide array of similarities between the two empires: the blinding, insular culture of our capitals; the debilitating effect of corruption; the paradoxical issue of borders; and the weakening of the body politic through various forms of 'privatization.' Most pressingly, he argues that we most resemble Rome in the burgeoning corruption of our government and in our arrogant ignorance of the world outside--two things that are in our power to change."
*
Girls Gone Mild: Young Women Reclaim Self-Respect and Find It's Not Bad to Be Good by Wendy Shalit
352 Pages
Hardcover
Random House
June 26, 2007
The author of A Return to Modesty: Discovering the Lost Virtue "Shalit reveals how the media, one's peers, and even parents can undermine girls' quests for their authentic selves, details the problems of sex without intimacy, and explains what it means to break from the herd mentality and choose integrity over popularity." Despite the humanistic bent, this book appears like it will be one of a rising number of "counter-cultural" books showing how women are fighting back against our hook-up culture.
*
Misquoting Truth: A Guide to the Fallacies of Bart Ehrman's "Misquoting Jesus" by Timothy Paul Jones
176 Pages
Paperback
InterVarsity Press
June 2007
Timothy Paul Jones, author of a bestselling book that answered The Da Vinci Code returns with a book answering Bart Ehrman's fallacies.
*
Flushed: How the Plumber Saved Civilization by W. Hodding Carter
256 Pages
Paperback
Atria
Available Now
I just like the title. The book sounds passably interesting too and its now available in softcover.
*
Comeback Churches:How 300 Churches Turned Around and Yours Can, Too by Ed Stetzer and Mike Dodson
224 Pages
Hardcover
B&H Publishing Group
Available Now
Stetzer, a Southern Baptist missiologist, always shares interesting facts even if his analysis of the facts aren't always entirely satisfying.
*
The Voice of Luke: Not Even Sandals by Brian McLaren
224 pages
Paperback
Thomas Nelson
July 4, 2007
According to the publisher: "From the same writing team of The Dust Off Their Feet comes a fresh exploration of the life of Jesus with retelling of the timeless narrative found in The Gospel of Luke. Not Even Sandals recovers the passion, grit, humor, and beauty have been lost in our translations of Luke." I didn't know there was anything wrong with the existing translations. Hopefully McLaren is consistent in maintaining the true meaning of the text.
*
God on Trial: Dispatches from America's Religious Battlefields by Peter Irons
384 Pages
Hardcover
Viking Adult
Available Now
Peter Irons, professor emeritus of political science at the University of California, takes an in-depth look at five recent landmark court battles over the separation of church and state.
