Books « Daniel Darling, Author, Pastor, Speaker

Posts Tagged ‘Books’

Jan

2012

Friday Five: Laurie Alice Eakes

Today I’m honored to feature the talented novelist, Laurie Alice Eakes. She is a fellow client of my agent, Tamela Hancock Murray and an award-winning author. Her books have won numerous awards, including The National Readers Choice Award. She was also a Carol Award finalist. In the past three years, she has sold six books to Baker/Revell, five of which are set during the Regency time period, four books to Barbour Publishing, as well as two novellas to Barbour Publishing and one to Baker/Revell. Six of her books have been picked up by Thorndike Press for large print publication, and Lady in the Mist, her first book with Revell, was chosen for hardcover publication with Crossings Bookclub. She also teaches on-line writing courses and enjoys a speaking ministry that has taken her from the Gulf Coast to the East Coast. She blogs regularly here. Here latest book is A Heart’s Safe Passage.

Today Laurie was kind to take time out of her writing day to chat with me about the writing life:

Dec

2011

My Favorite Books of 2011

I had the opportunity to read quite a few great books in 2011. Not quite as many (101) as my friend, Aaron Armstrong, but I read quite a few. Here are my top ten books. You’ll notice they are not necessarily all books that were published in 2011, but books I had the chance to read this year.

Unbroken by Lauren Hildenbrand

Lou Zamperini’s His life as told inUnbroken is a powerful story, a reminder of the sovereignty and grace of God in the life of one man, lived during one of the most ominous periods of world history.

Bonhoeffer by Erik Metaxes

Bonhoeffer is a book I highly recommend. It is a weighty, important biography of a man used greatly by God. Bonhoeffer was unsuccessful in taking down Hitler, but his life has become an inspiration for Christian boldness, faith, and cross-bearing in the many decades since he was martyred.

I have a feeling that this is the book Eric Metaxas will be always be known for. His painstaking work has given us a great gift.

Also, I conducted a very interesting interview with the author here.

Just As I Am by Billy Graham

I’ve always wanted to read this book. I’m intrigued by the biographies of well-known evangelical leaders.This book gave me a newfound appreciation for God’s work in his life. I’m amazed at how God took the son of a dairy farmer and used him to bring millions to Christ, influence world leaders, and help usher in this era of evangelicalism.

The God Who Is There by D.A. Carson

This is a great book for those who wonder how the Old Testament fits into the New. Carson clearly presents the “one big storyline” of the Bible.

The Next Story by Tim Challies

I highly recommend this book for those who live and work in the digital world. I suspect it will be a texbook in Christian colleges.

Dug Down Deep by Josh Harris

This may be the most readable book on doctrine available. It’s at times funny, honest, and personal. I would highly recommend it.

Spiritual Rhythm by Mark Buchanan

I find myself soaking this book in a chapter or two at a time and then thinking deeply about each section. Mark talks biblically and with doctrinal precision about subjects such as sin, repentance, and the spiritual disciplines of prayer, Bible reading, and church involvement.

Bloodlines by John Piper

This is a brave and important book, tackling head-first the issue of race.

Lions of Kandahar by Rusty Bradley and Kevin Maurer

For someone who knows little about military lingo or strategy, this book was a delightful read. The authors were explanatory of situations, protocol, weapons, etc. It gave me such an appreciation for the men and women who risk their lives in places like Afganistan.

Deliver Me From Evil by Kathi Macias

Reading Deliver Me From Evil gave me a disturbing, up-close look at the horrific problem of human trafficking. Kathi Macias weaves a story of a young girl who was kidnapped from her San Diego area home and forced into sexual slavery; a girl in the Golden Triangle in Thailand. In this novel, Kathi shares the awful exploitation of young girls in excruciating, but appropriate detail. These are girls whose innocence and freedom and self-worth are bought and sold to the highest bidder by the most evil of men.

Honorable Mentions:

These books were as great as the other ten, so I wanted to put them here:

Work Matters by Tom Nelson

Earthen Vessels by Matthew Lee Anderson

King Solomon by Phillip Ryken

A God-Sized Vision by Collin Hansen and John Woodbridge

Nov

2011

Friday Five: Dave Zimmerman

Today I’m privileged to feature my friend, Dave Zimmerman. Dave is longtime editor for Intervarsity Press and a columnist at Burnside Writers Collective. His books include Deliver Us from Me-Ville and the devotional compilation My Heart–Christ’s Home Through the Year.

May

2011

Why I Still Like Paper Books

Not long ago I wrote a post on the importance of reading books, even in the 21st Century. I want to follow up on that by sharing why I still prefer paper books to e-books, even in the midst of the e-book revolution. Recently Amazon revealed that e-books for their Kindle reading device now outsell paperback and hardback sales of books. I also have quite a few friends who speak of enjoying their reading experience on their Kindles and iPads. And yet, I’m one person that has resisted the revolution. That’s not to say I’ll never buy a Kindle or some other device. I may. But as of right now, I prefer paper books. Here are a few reasons why:

Apr

2011

Why Reading Books Still Matters

reading photo © 2008 ladyb | more info (via: Wylio)One of the big questions we’re facing in the 21st Century is the question of books. Will we still need books? Or does everyone simply read blogs. In a world of iPads, Kindles, and Wii, are books important or are they an analog relic of the ancient past?

It is true that the digital revolution has transformed the way we learn and process information. But I want to make an argument that books still matter.

Why Reading Matters

I’m not sure who said it, but it’s a good piece of wisdom. Readers are leaders and leaders are readers. Take a close look at the successful people around you and one thing you will notice is that they are readers. Most people thought of George W. Bush as an off-the-cuff Texan who thumbed his nose at the “elites.” His enemies dismissed him as lacking intellectual curiousity and depth. What most people don’t know is that President Bush was an avid reader. This is what his closest advisors, Karl Rove said:

In the 35 years I’ve known George W. Bush, he’s always had a book nearby. He plays up being a good ol’ boy from Midland, Texas, but he was a history major at Yale and graduated from Harvard Business School. You don’t make it through either unless you are a reader.

According to this Wall Street Journal article, one year the Leader of the Free World read 95 books. While serving as President. That’s around 2 books a week. Quite a pace. Leaders are readers.

Jan

2011

Friday Five Interview – Terry Whalin

If you’re a writer, editor, book publisher, agent or anyone associated with publishing, it’s likely you know my friend, Terry Whalin.W. Terry Whalin understands both sides of the editorial desk–as an editor and a writer. He worked as an editor for Decision and In Other Words. His magazine articles have appeared in more than 50 publications including Writer’s Digest, The Writer and Christianity Today. He is the creator and webmaster for Right-Writing.com.

Terry has written more than 60 nonfiction books and his latest is Jumpstart Your Publishing Dreams, Insider Secrets to SKYROCKET Your Success. (WTW Press). Another recent book is Running On Ice: The Overcoming Faith of Vonetta Flowers (New Hope Publishers). See more about his writing and purchase books at: www.terrywhalin.com. For more than 12 years Terry was an ECPA Gold Medallion judge in the fiction category. He has written extensively about Christian fiction and reviewed numerous fiction books in publications such as Faithful Reader.com and BookPage. For over five years, Terry was an acquisitions editor in the book divisions of David C. Cook and Howard Books.A former literary agent, Terry is now a publisher at Intermedia Publishing Group. On a regular basis, he writes about the Writing Life. Terry and his wife, Christine, live in Scottsdale, Arizona.

On a personal note, when I have always looked and read Terry’s informative blog for help sharpen my writing skills. And when I got my first book contract, Terry was available to give me some good and personal advice. Today he was kind enough to stop by and chat with me:

Dec

2010

iFaith – Chapter 2 -Urgent Emails – The Prayer of the Desperate

Category: iFaith
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I plan on posting key quotes from my upcoming release, iFaith, all the way through into January. Here are a few quotes from Chapter Two.

Somewhere along the line, a famous preacher or best-selling author told us that if we “just trust in Jesus,” or if we “just give enough money,” or if we “just attend church faithfully,” or if we just “follow the rules,” then life will automatically get so much better. There are even whole books and sermons available that teach “the right kind of prayer” that triggers the blessings from heaven.

But what happens when you follow Christ in faith and life gets worse?

Here is another quote from chapter two, after a section where I describe a very personal story of a friend of ours who lost her husband and an examination of the life of Naomi, whose story is told in the Biblical book of Ruth:

Naomi’s story, Ashli’s story—these narratives frighten my generation, because we’re conditioned for the good life. We’ve been fed a steady diet of positive empowerment. We’ve grown spiritually fat on the junk food of bad theology and political promises of prosperity.

There is nothing inherently wrong with prosperity or the good life. But is the American Dream the sum total of our spiritual aspirations? If so, we’ve missed something. What Christ offers is something radically different. Take up your cross, He says. Follow Me, He asks. Deny yourself, He commands.

Cross-bearing? Following? Denying? These words are insulting to a generation conditioned for unlimited success. Sure, we’ll follow Christ, but there better be a safety net. At least a 401(k) and health insurance.

We rarely consider that our trials, the unfair tragedies that roll across the threshold of good people, may be the very signposts that lead others to God.

Dec

2010

Friday Five – Tim Challies

Today, I’m honored to chat with Tim Challies, who really needs no introduction. Tim maintains the blog, challies.com, one of the most widely read evangelical blogs. Tim is a voracious reader, whose book reviews have helped shape evangelical thought. He’s the author of The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment and Sexual Detox along with the forthcoming The Next Story (April 2011). He blogs every day at www.challies.com. Tim also worships and serve at Grace Fellowship Church and edit Discerning Reader. He is also the cofounder of a new publishing venture, Cruciform Press. Tim is also a web designer and conference speaker.