Book Reviews

If you have read an inspiring or encouraging Christian book, and want to let others know about it then contact Cat with any information, to get a review posted on here. Find out more here about books you can borrow from other church members.

Read on below for some recommended books from church members:

The Way of the Wild Heart

If you are a man, or raising boys, or are simply baffled by why men do what they do, you need to read this book by John Eldredge.

Subtitled 'A map for the masculine journey' this book describes the stages a man goes through as he grows up. The key theme is of God our Father raising us as sons who he loves, and of whom he is proud. For many people this process has gone wrong; the book is full of illustrations of how the journey can go off track. On the other hand the book is crammed with advice, suggestions and stories of how to do it right and how to mend damaged lives.
The stages John Eldredge describes are:

● Beloved Son – being a child secure and loved
● Cowboy – developing boldness through adventure and exploration and learning to work
● Warrior – learning how and when to fight for what is right
● Lover – growing to appreciate beauty
● King – being trustworthy with power
● Sage – offering Godly counsel&wisdom, born of experience.

These stages overlap, they are not distinct, but a man's life goes through phases in which one of these stages will be prominent. On the other hand, God always wants us to know that we are Beloved Sons.

The book is very good at identifying what men need. Men (and boys) need challenge, adventure, risk. We need to be led by leaders we respect and trust. I enjoyed this book for the wisdom displayed in it. All the way through there are illustrations and recommendations that rang a bell for me. Places where I felt: 'Yes, this is true. This is how I feel'. I liked the way that each stage is described, with its own strengths and weaknesses, problems and opportunities. For each stage the author describes God's ideal plan, how we can develop the person in that stage, what can go wrong and what to do about it.

In style the book is very readable. There are many anecdotes taken from real life (sometimes with names changed to protect the injured), from the Bible and from other literature. The author is obviously fond of Lord of the Rings and other adventure stories. Many of his own experiences are taken from climbing and hunting expeditions. There will be some aspects of the book with which you may feel uncomfortable: hunting deer for example. It's well worth putting this to one side and focussing on the real value in the book.

David Robinson.

Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference?

Andy Barratt.

Worth knowing: Wisdom for Women

As indicated by the title, this book is full of need-to-know wisdom for every variety of the 21st century female. Thankfully, it’s written by women much like the average among us, which protects the reader from pious chitchat and instead brings a down to earth look at the ensuing issues.


Each chapter is written by a different woman (or women) on a different issue.  The chapters are fairly short making the book good for ‘portion a day’ reading and the diversity between the structure and content of each chapter alleviates repetition making it a book you’ll want to read every word of.
A chapter which particularly stuck out to me was “the names God speaks over us” by Ali Macinnes. She balances personal testimony with strong biblical support by continuously referring back to the life of Peter the disciple to make a valuable point about our worth in God’s eyes.
The book also has an element of reader interaction as the writers provide space for reflection by use of rhetoric and literal questions to really get you thinking.


Sprinkled between the teaching, women who have been through tough times share how God transformed the situation. These very honest stories are uplifting and encouraging to anyone who reads them.
Unless you happen to be facing every female issue possible at the same time, you
may find some chapters irrelevant to your current situation. But that just makes it the sort of book that can sit on your bookshelf for continuous future reference and can repeatedly bless you throughout your spiritual journey and life. It may also provide insight into how to support others you know in the illustrated situations.
So overall, it’s a valuable read no matter your age or circumstances and I’m really glad I was given it to read!

Fi Sweeney.

The Case Against Christ is a fantastic book for anyone with any questions at all about Christianity (most people then!)

It's a series of self-contained chapters on a variety of issues that come up regularly, both with Christians and non-Christians:

- The Church & society

- Science and faith (can they exist together 
  and not be conflicting?)

- The Bible (is it too
   old/violent/contradictory/sexist...?)

- Suffering

- Jesus (was He invented?)

- 'Prove it - does God exist?'

John Young discusses these common questions and provides researched evidence, shedding light on them, and helping us to see why Christianity is worth believing.

 Cat Dale.

The Heavenly Man is one of the most inspiring and challenging books I have ever read. It is the story of one Chinese man, Brother Yun, and follows him from his dramatic conversion, his hunger to get hold of a Bible, and his unwavering desire to preach the gospel to his largely un-reached nation.

In all of this Brother Yun undergoes horrific persecution, but it is his response to this, firmly based on scripture, that completely awakens the reader to the incredible character of this ‘heavenly man’.

I was personally challenged by this book on three levels. Firstly the grace with which Brother Yun treats those who persecuted him, secondly his passion for the Word of God and the reverence with which he holds it, and finally it woke me up to the real situation that other Christians are facing in other parts of the world and stirred me to pray for those outside of my immediate contact zone.

This book should come with a health warning. If you do not want to be challenged in your prayer life, your attitude toward others, your commitment to sharing the gospel or the comfort with which we comparably live then stick well clear!  

                              Ben Dale.