The Return

Review: The Lesser Bohemians: A Novel Eimear McBride Hogarth 2016 I had no preconceived notions what expect from this book.   Its other reviews were anywhere from brilliant to not so much so.   The prose style, at least initially, accomplished what I think its purpose was---to show the reader the impressions of a person encountering a new experience.   Short, chaotic type snippets from all directions that begin to take shape as she acclimates to her new surroundings.   Had me thinking of a Beckett novel at times, but less serious.   As the book moves forward the prose becomes more like what the reader is accustomed to except where the experiences are new, overwhelming or in some other way acts to unbalance the status quo.    The book descriptions given in the other reviews and elsewhere sum up the story line.   Young girl in a new town, older guy helping find her way.   Yep, that’s it.   Both of their stories seemed to...

Review: The Great Spiritual Migration: How the World’s Largest Religion Is Seeking a Better Way to Be Christian Brian McLaren Convergent Publishing 2016 I hadn’t read anything from this author in quite a while and when I saw this book I decided to see what he had to say now.   McLaren communicates well and can be very convincing.   He hasn’t lost the touch over the years.   This book is engaging, thought provoking, and will make some folks unhappy.   That’s his style or at least what I have read it is.   This book is not just for those that identify as Christian.   And it’s my opinion that even an atheist might find this a good read.    Each chapter can be read as a standalone, so start where you want after the preface.   Being a bit of a traditionalist I read front to back.   Most of the central thrust addresses what McLaren see as a religion bound by the rigid form of its own belief systems and unable or unwilling...

Review: Greek for Everyone: Introductory Greek for Bible Study and Application A. Chadwick Thornhill Baker Books 2016 Wow! This book is much more thorough than I had expected.   I had studied beginner Biblical Greek and thought this would be a good refresher book.   It is that and more.   It also contains some good information on interpretation and exegesis.   Nearly hermeneutics in scope, I think.   That too is good.   But, you knew that was coming, this is no lightweight read.   As such I will need much more time to read through it. What I would like to do is to comment briefly on what I have covered so far. The author wants to present an overview of the Biblical Greek language that presents not only grammar, but some of the important points to consider for proper interpretation.   His explanations are accessible and complete.   I believe that this would have been helpful to me when I originally studied the language. ...