The Next Ten (Or Seven For Josh)

It was going to be the next five, but it took about 15 seconds to pull #6 off the shelf. Here are the next ten books I plan to read.

1. Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference? (Yancey). This has been a major area of interest for me for a while, and this is the third-last book that I want to really get an understanding of before gathering my thoughts and trying to build a cohesive picture of what prayer is, how it is designed to work, and what it is meant to accomplish. It will be a life-long study, but I am getting to see the first chapter a little more clearly.

2. The Brera Gallery, Official Guide (Touring Club Italiano). Since I'm heading to Milano next weekend with half a dozen friends, I want to review a bit about what we're going to be able to see. It's a great museum, with some gorgeous works by Cima, Bellini, Matnegna, and Crivelli (one reproduction of which is hanging in my living room), as well as a bunch of stuff from the 17-19th centuries as well.

3. Letters To Malcolm (C. S. Lewis). His last book, and one in which he writes about various aspects of prayer. I expect it to be exceptional.

4. The Living Christ (Fickett). A book in which he celebrates the lives of contemporary people who are intent on being the expression of Christ's love. This one may be a bit of a challenge for me... I'm quite sure it will be much more heart than head, which I don't mind but am not used to reading. If it's good, I think it's going to be inspiring. If it's bad, it will be dire.

5. Emotional Intelligence (Goleman). Cause I could use a bit more.

6. Understanding And Crafting The Art Of The Mix (Moylan). Because I want to create incredible music, and I realize that my ears are only going to take me so far on their own. This one is heavy - it's a text book - but I believe there is gold inside. Gold records, baby! Yeah! *making "I'm shooting you" motion while winking*

7. What A Difference A Daddy Makes (Leman). I've read this before, but want to go through it regularly to be the best father I can to my little chick.

8. It's Not About Me (Lucado). I have the good fortune of having already learned that. I think this will be a good second step.

9. Essay Collection: Faith, Christianity, and the Church (C. S. Lewis). There is so much wisdom in this book... every time I open it I am astounded. On the short list for now are the essays on prayer, but I'm sure that my eye will wander once I start, in the most wonderful kind of way.

10. The Art Of Mixing (Gibson). This is a particularly interesting book on recording and mixing: he takes aspects of sound and represents them as balls of various densities (indicating clarity/presence) and sizes (indicating frequency range, EQ, and effect) on a three-dimensional stage (indicating pitch [up/down], pan [left/right], and volume [front/back]). Should provide a very interesting alternative way to thinking about creating music.

I guess some of these - well, all of them - will have a fairly limited appeal. Still, I think they will all be good for me. Anyone else want to contribute a list? Let's see what I can ask you about next time we talk...

Books I Have Known and Loved

I was recently sorting through the books on my shelves to get rid of the ones I won't read again (or haven't read and likely never will) so I can give them away and have room for the new ones I've bought over the holidays. It made me think of people I've talked to who don't re-read any of their books. I can't imagine getting to the end of a really amazing book and knowing that I couldn't ever go back to it.

So, I tried to think of the books that I have re-read and plan to read again. Without looking again, I think they fall into a few categories:

Books that are just a lot of fun to read. I like these ones because they make me laugh out loud. I do most of my reading when I travel (and I travel a lot), so I have had a lot of time on planes or in airports giggling to myself with these books as company:
Catch 22 (Joseph Heller)
The Bear Went Over The Mountain (can't remember the author)
Most Bill Bryson books, especially his Aussie, UK, and Europe ones

Books that are so well-written that once is not nearly enough. These books inspire me to speak and write with more care, and make me want to learn to be a true story-teller:
Almost anything by Robertson Davies, especially the Deptford Trilogy
Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)

Books that remind me of the man I want to be:
Mere Christianity; Faith, Christianity, and the Church (both by C. S. Lewis)
What A Difference A Daddy Makes (Kevin Leman)
Wild At Heart (John Eldredge)

Books that are just too beautiful to leave on the shelf. These take my breath away:
Tons on Netherlandish masters from the 15th and 16th cetnuries (Campin, Van der Weyden, Ven Eyck, Gerard David)
A few on Gothic and International Gothic altarpieces
Guides from the museums I have known and loved... my version of a "little black book": The Louvre, National Gallery (London), Prado, Acedemia, Uffizi, Vatican Museums...