This summer I'd like to begin with Marilynne Robinson's latest book of essays, When I Was a Child I Read Books:
Then I'd like to erase a deficit in my classic repertoire by reading Crime & Punishment:
In honor of the ongoing 150th anniversary of the U.S. Civil War, another one of my goals is to read through the events of the summer of 1862 by following Shelby Foote's epic Civil War narrative:
This year's Western National Leadership Training event in Jackson, Wyoming, sponsored by the Synod of the Rocky Mountains of the Presbyterian Church (USA) will be partly based on Rex Miller's book The Millenium Matrix. I don't think I'll be able to attend WNLT, but I would like to be able to join the follow-up conversations about the kind of leadership that will be required to lead the church forward:
Finally, I'd like read Tom Long's latest book What Shall We Say? Evil, Suffering, and The Crisis of Faith, partly in the hopes that it will give me some fodder for an October sermon series on the Book of Job:
What about you? What will you be reading and feasting upon this summer?
I've already started my summer reading with several books:
ReplyDelete'A Musician Looks at the Psalms', by Don Wyrtzen. I'm still moving along as a church musician after over 50 years, and enjoying it more than ever since retiring from a steady job and relying on mostly substitute jobs. It's nice to not have a day-to-day responsibility in this sometimes overwhelming field! This is a book of daily meditations on The Psalms, which gives me plenty of time for thinking on the words, and re-listening to my many recordings of the settings of The Psalms throughout musical history.
'Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs', ed. by Kowalchick & Hylton. A serious tome for a serious herb gardener such as the likes of me. Offers information, drawings and photos of over 150 herbs, covering such ancillary subjects as healing, gardening, cooking and bathing with herbs, herbal teas, history and lore, crafts, including herbal dyeing (a special interest of mine.) More information than I can hope to absorb, but will enjoy trying!
'Be An Outrageous Older Woman', by Ruth H. Jacobs. As I find myself almost halfway through my 70th year, feminism is still alive and well in my soul, and this book addresses issues faced by older women in our youth oriented society. Written with sassy, sometimes feisty humor, it's also quite serious in addressing issues like reinventing yourself, having fun on a tight budget, relationships and social groups, sexuality, and how to make your golden years shine. This one is a real winner!