Author: Andy Andrews

My Description: This is a followup to The Traveler’s Gift, extending the story of the main character and the lessons taught, but this story could stand on it’s own. This is a journey through discovering what traits and characteristics most impact our society and history and what should our focus be on to bring better good. Andy does a really good job of incorporating interesting historical figures and dives into their wisdom and stories. In the end the reader is left with a whole lot to think about and apply.

My thoughts: There were many times when i had to just stop reading and think about what i had just read – it was that good and thought provoking. At times it felt a little pre-thought out and idealistic, meaning that some of the rants on characteristics felt like refined essays instead of casual conversation within the story.

[I received this book for free from Thomas Nelson for this review as part of their BookSneeze program]

Author: Mark Batterson

My Description: Batterson writes in typical style for this book, combining real life stories with a teaching on a passage of Scripture. The idea is great: discovering how God has shaped you uniquely and being bold to live it out. The premise feels tired and forced at times – through the story of King David.

There is freedom in figuring out how God has designed you, and the more you grow the more you will understand who you are not. Being yourself, and being comfortable being yourself is a way that you can honor God and bring Him glory.

My thoughts: Either this book was not one of Batterson’s best written, or i just have had too many for my share of life-shaping books.

[I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah for this review as part of their Blogging For Books program]



Title: Beyond Opinion: Living The Faith We Defend

Author: Ravi Zacharias

My Description: Ravi is a superb apologetic speaker and author. This book follows his tradition of providing sound intellectual reasoning for defending the many questions surrounding the Christian faith. Not only do we hear from Ravi, but there are many other well known teachers who contribute to the book. They talk through all the major questions that are asked concerning the doubts of God and Christianity.

My thoughts: Apologetics is something that needs constant attention. There will always be those whom question my faith and i need to be able to respond in an appropriate way. Instead of jumping to defensive conclusions and relying on the “it just faith” card, i want to be well versed in the logical, intellectual, scientific, and historical reasons why Christianity holds up, why it makes sense, and why i believe you should follow. Above apologetics, i believe a personal encounter with God is the best defense of Christianity. However, i am a strong supporter and lifelong learner concerning the issues and questions surrounding Christianity and Jesus.

[I received this book for free from Thomas Nelson for this review as part of their BookSneeze program]

Title: The Butterfly Effect: A Story of Second Chances

Author: Andy Andrews

My Description: Andrews dives into a history tale about courage, leadership, determination, and how one person’s actions have a rippling effect on others. In true Andrews fashion, he intrigues the reader with interesting detail and a compelling storyline – although this time all drawn from researchable history. His main point is that your life matters. What you do matters. How you act, the choices you make, and the people you do life with has a tremendous yet usually unknown impact on the world.

My thoughts: This book brings hope. It reminds the reader that they are important. In the American fast pace rat race, they are not simply commonplace. But their actions effect others, for good and bad. These results could change lives, could save lives, could alter the course of a nation’s history. This reminds me of my responsibility to live in a way that is honoring to God and to walk in wisdom.

The Next Christians: How a New Generation is Restoring the Faith

Author: Gabe Lyons

My Description: I thought this book would be more gloom and doom and less here’s our next step. But to my surprise, most of the content centered around how “Restorer” Christians are learning to live out their faith in their current culture.

Gabe describes six characteristics of Restorers (The Next Christians):

1. provoked, not offended
2. creators, not critics
3. called, not employed
4. grounded, not distracted
5. in community, not alone
6. countercultural, not relevant

The descriptions of these characteristics sound better than the labels themselves. Often as i was reading through i would think to myself, yea i’ve thought that, or yea that describes me…

I think the main area that talked about what i had been thinking was the one on work or employment. Integrating faith and skills and God’s gifts into what we do as a job is something that doesn’t get talked about a lot. Instead Spiritual Gifts is simply a course/class offered by the church to help you volunteer within the church. I like Gabe’s fresh look into it.

[I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review as part of their Blogging for Books program]

The Right To Lead: Learning Leadership Through Character and Courage
Author: John Maxwell

My Description: One of my favorite quotes about leadership comes from Andy Stanley – “Leadership is a stewardship. It is temporary and you’re accountable.” This book by John Maxwell seems to run along the same lines. He gives his thoughts and teachings on having the right, the stewardship, to lead. Through anecdotes, stories, principles, and life lessons, Maxwell explains the basics of being a good and Godly leader.

My thoughts: What i like about Maxwell, is that he doesn’t just focus on leading others - management. He also talks about self-leadership which is just as or more important in many aspects. What i don’t like is the format of the book. I am not into smaller “gift” books. They just don’t seem to flow as i would like and seem to be too refined, shiny, and not gritty and raw. Instead of solid explanations, i feel like i have to settle for one-liners and quips. The plus side, is that it is short and quick read. But it is probably not a book you will reference again later on.

Author: Andy Andrews

My Description: Andy scripts a fascinating historical story of adventure, pain, love, and discovery. The book is split into the present and the past. The past story talks about U-boats, Nazi Germany, a coastal American town, and the strain and rewards of relationships. Even though the story is from another era, and many things have changed today, the reader is still caught up in what is going on and curious as to what will take place next. It is very relatable and real to life. The present day story is about the author’s quest to uncover the details and truth about the past story he is telling and his backyard discovery.

My thoughts: The coolest part for me was the dynamic of the 2 main characters – the German man and the American woman – both suffering from relational pain, both needing their hearts mended, and being able to achieve that through helping others. Out of their anguish they found commonality and helped to heal each other.

Author: Tim Irwin, PH.D.

My Description: Tim takes the time to tell the “failure” story of six recently influential people: Robert Nardelli, Carly Fiornia, Durk Jager, Steven Heyer, Frank Raines, and Dick Fuld. Through these stories he describes what went right and what went wrong which gives the reader a good snapshot to refer to later. As he moves through the rest of the book, he draws comparisons between failure in business leadership and the derailment of a train. Towards the end of the book he identifies five important lessons about leadership, citing specific examples from the previous stories.

My thoughts: Right from the beginning, Irwin made sure that I knew this book was not simply a collection of biographies, but it was a learning tool. The content was not about them – it was about me and how I could apply the lessons to my own leadership sphere. The stories helped me to relate to how these issues emerge, and made them seem more plausible in my own scenarios. He did a good job of taking away the “that would never happen to me!” aspect.

Nuggets:

• Derailment is all about character. In a society that usually operates by the standard “the end justifies the means” it was refreshing to hear a voice saying that the process does matter – and it’s huge!
• Authenticity is a relevant topic.
• “Why am I afraid to tell you who I really am?”  Because if I tell you who I really am and you reject me, that is all I have…
• Derailment is an issue of the heart.

Obstacles Welcome

Author: Ralph de la Vega

My Description: The “American Dream” is still alive and on display throughout this book. De la Vega combines the power of his immigrant story with practical leadership principles as he guides the reader through an assortment of teachings. This book does not dive too deeply into any one topic, yet covers a lot of ground and material. Not only do you get a glimpse into the life of a boy from Cuba growing into one of America’s top executives, you also walk through some analysis and best practices of one of America’s top wireless carriers, AT&T (formerly Cingular).

My thoughts: I really appreciated the personal touches of this book. Because his teaching is intertwined with real life experience, it kept my attention. Only towards the last 80% did I feel that the content was getting a little dragged out. One of my main issues with the book is the focus on “self”. A common theme that de la Vega emphasizes is belief in yourself, setting your own direction, and taking control of your life. Although I believe these things are important in some aspect, I do not see them as central, as the author does. I believe that we should be seeking God’s direction for our life, not our own. We should be allowing Him control, and seeking to live under His plan, instead of creating our own. Aside from the self-centered nature of this book, many principles and teachings still ring true. This is a great book for a quick covering of business leadership, coming from a great perspective.

Nuggets:

• Throughout the book, the reader is let into the process, planning, and practices of some of Cingular and AT&T’s largest moments, including the largest cash merger in America.
• Obstacles are really opportunities
• There are a bunch of insightful graphs, illustrations, and descriptions throughout the book that help the reader to visualize and grasp the concepts.
• The end of each chapter includes a short summary of the key “Takeaway Messages.”

Author: Max Lucado

Description: Lucado delivers 15 chapters filled with engaging stories, biblical scripture, and truthful insights. Not difficult to read, and each chapter could stand alone. Read it as a whole or skip to the chapters that you are dealing with right now. Includes an in-depth discussion guide at the end of the book for all of the chapters.

My thoughts: I normally do not read Max Lucado because of redundancy and overkill of stories and fluff. However this read was refreshing and relevant. I liked how the chapters could stand alone if read independently. The content from scripture was well linked and truths were easy to identify. I also felt like Lucado made it a point to make this book very applicable.

Nuggets:

• Fear Freezes.
• The Villagers of Stiltsville – a great poem/story that deals with significance.
• Deals with the current fears of the economy and financial stress.