so it’s almost time for another football entry, but here’s a quick change of pace during which time, i’ll discuss a couple books that i’ve finished reading… hard to believe that it’s only nine days away from Christmas… i’m working night and day (well, mostly night) to put together a new issue of theTRu.print (about 5 of 12 pages done at the moment) and, of course, working on the redesign as well… in the meantime, i’ll be trying to keep things updated here a little better as well… for now, it’s on with the show… books… let’s dig in…

TOTAL GLOBAL DOMINATION

now playing: If I Ruled the World – Sammy Davis, Jr

5 Cities that Ruled the World- Douglas Wilson

initially, this book jumped out at me… i mean, i’m a history buff in much the same way that the Buffalo Bills are a Super Bowl contender, but i do enjoy learning about history and i often find it to be fascinating… (especially when presented properly)… so this book seemed to be right up my alley… a brief look at the history of the world in five sections, tidily summed up and (presumably) easy to read…

i must first admit that i didn’t recognize the name attached to the project – Douglas Wilson is, apparently, a well-known theologian (well known by people other than me) – and thus i was surprised by the immediate and continual thread of religious implications that ran throughout what otherwise read as the scripts for episodes of City Confidential… (anyone ever watched that show? anyone?)… once i understood the perspective from which the book was written, however, all was fine and i enjoyed the book for what it is…

the book does, in fact, describe the history of five cities and the legacy that they’ve left behind throughout history… or, in the case of New York City (perhaps the most personally interesting chapter) is currently leaving for the rest of history… coincidentally (or not?) the legacies all relate to freedom of some sort or another… Wilson clearly believes that freedom is life’s end game and, for him, each city represents the unlocking of a new facet of life over time… and it all leads up to New Jerusalem which will usher in complete and total freedom…

the quirkiness that litters the pages can work, depending on how you read (me, i read with inflection in my head)… but as charming as it can be, it does present a bit of distraction and adds to the overall cluttered content… and by “cluttered,” i mean that at times it feels like the book has no structure and that the topics at hand are lost in a whirlwind of whimsy… and again, this can work, but it does make following along – or retaining anything of value – fairly difficult… scratch that, challenging…

all in all, i’m glad that i read this book as it was rather engaging and enjoyable… i think that, had it been a lecture – or perhaps a 5-part, 30 minutes each lecture series – it would be very popular… as a book, i suppose it’s pretty niche, but definitely a nice read… [and in the interest of full disclosure i got it from Thomas Nelson for free]…

AND MILES TO GO BEFORE I SLEEP…

now playing: Story – The Rocket Summer

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years
by Donald Miller

it was a long time ago (feels like it anyway) that i first happened to hear Donald Miller give a talk about the concept of story and how the elements that make up a successful story can influence how we live our lives… this is another memoir from Donald Miller and once again, he manages to write in such a way that is comforting and casual… having read this and some of Miller’s previous books, i feel like i’ve had some incredibly interesting conversations with the most familiar stranger i’ve never met… (it puzzles me sometimes, too)…

Here’s the thing though, i know that books are one-way communications, but books like this make me talk to myself for hours on end afterwards… (it’s not out loud… usually)… anyway, it’s hard to really unpack this book without it all spilling out on the page in front of me, so i’ll try to just pick out a few of the highlights…

the book centers around character development, which plays out in to scenarios – in a story and in real life… Miller talks about how the traits and qualities that endear us to characters in a movie are the qualities and traits that we should work on developing in our own lives… we need to have the right goals and ambitions in life if we ever want our lives to have any meaning… one of the lines that stood out to me came after Miller described the scene of his uncle’s funeral… something to the effect that if you die and you weren’t telling a good story with your life, nobody will say that you died too soon, just that you’re dead… basically, you need to make sure that no matter when you die, it’s too soon…

The long and the short of it is that Donald Miller weaves in a number of interesting storylines to support what appears to be a very solid philosophy for life… i highly recommend this book and any of his others… and listening to his talk, too… [and for the sake of full disclosure i bought TWO copies of this book with my own money - no free copy (what's up with THAT?)]…

CLOSING THE BOOK…

that’s going to do it for now… i’m currently reading The Silver Chair from the Chronicles of Narnia, I Am America (and So Can You), Live from Middle America, and i’m about to dive into Saint… and if i don’t get to it tomorrow, the Colts are going to win…

peace… love… bdg…