Looking for something to read that will encourage, entertain, educate, or intrigue? Our parish library has lots of options! You can find the library downstairs, just off the Crypt Café.
Here are highlights of some books currently available:
Soul Survivor: How Thirteen Unlikely Mentors Helped My Faith Survive the Church
By Philip Yancey
In this intriguing book, Yancey intermingles his personal experiences of Christian faith with
thoughtful profiles of thirteen contemporary and historical figures who challenged and
refined his beliefs. Some spiritual mentors are figures Yancey encountered only through their
writings, such as G.K. Chesterton, Shūsaku Endō, and Leo Tolstoy. Others are authors that he
personally interviewed, such as Annie Dillard, Dr. Paul Brand, Henri Nouwen, and Frederick
Buechner. With great care and candour, Yancey describes how these mentors helped him to
stay hopeful as he grappled with the deep tensions and mysteries of following Christ in
community with others.
I first had the pleasure of reading Soul Survivor almost fifteen years ago, when I had recently
left the mentorship of a school setting and I was wrestling with vocational questions. I am
wondering how its wisdom might speak to me in fresh ways now, all these years later. I have
my own copy to reread, though – so the church copy is all yours.
Reviewed by Adele Gallogly
Being Christian: Baptism, Bible, Eucharist, Prayer by Rowan Williams
The aim of Being Christian sounds like a simple task: to describe four fundamental acts that all Christians hold in common. Of course, the topic is a complex one making this task more difficult than it might first seem. I am glad to report that Rowan Williams manages to carry of the task in a pleasant, accessible book ideal for small group discussion or as a tool for personal reflection. Williams has selected four of the most enduring and obvious practices that Christians share: Baptism, reading the Bible, celebrating eucharist, and prayer. These are also four practices which Christians do together, which is critical to keep in mind while engaging with Williams' reflections and on the development of the triptych of books. Christianity is always practiced in community, large or small though it may be, and this is fundamental to understanding these practices better. Being Christian is an affordable, approachable book that is well-written and reveals great depths to be explored.
Reviewed by Andrew Rampton
The Other Face of God: When the Stranger Calls Us Home by Mary Jo Leddy
Supporting and working with refugees in Canada's largest city might seem, at first glance, to be a one-way street. The privileged local, acting out of charity, assists and supports newcomers to Canada who have left behind almost their entire lives in hopes of something better here. Mary Jo Leddy, after 20 years at Romero House in Toronto, shares, through memories, reflection, and anecdotes, that the experience of refugee support is life-changing for both the helper and the helped. With a focus on grace and mercy, Leddy describes how her encounters with refugees building new lives in Canada challenged philosophies of imperialism, xenophobia, and selfishness. They also revealed depths of faith and the abundance of God's love in the world. This short book is a powerful exploration of the human condition, easily digested in the short reflections and stories it offers.
Andrew Rampton
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy
This is a book for everyone, children and adults. It is a book of pictures and words about four characters and their adventures. They are all different like us, each with their own weaknesses, questioning, greedy scared and gentle. I can see myself in all of them. But it is so much more than that. It is a book full of ideas, of kindness, of caring, and above all, of love. It gives a wonderful answer to the question,"What do we do when our hearts break?" "We wrap them in friendship, shared tears and time, till they wake hopeful and happy again" The author, writes, “I hope this book encourages you to live courageously with yourself and for others. And to ask for help when you need it – which is always a brave thing to do.”
Reviewed by Judith Purdell-Lewis
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