Book Review: Seven Women — Women Who Changed the World

I read Seven Men by Metaxas about 2 1/2 years ago (April 2013) and thought at the time that he should write a similar book about women. That book, Seven Women, is coming out on 8 September 2015.

Like its prequel, Seven Women is a series of short biographies of people who have made an important, sometimes culture-shifting contribution to their own time and culture and to the subsequent history of the world. The biographies in Seven Women are about women whose lives and accomplishments can inspire others to attempt great things -- Joan of Arc, Susanna Wesley, Hannah More, Saint Maria of Paris, Corrie ten Boom, Rosa Parks, and Mother Teresa. These women were all women of deep faith in God and who depended on God for inspiration, strength, and guidance as they set out to do what He had called them to do.

Metaxas chose women whose greatness derive[d] precisely from their being women, not in spite of it… and not because they or their accomplishments are measured against who men are and what men have done. Metaxas does not attempt to promote either an egalitarian or a complementarian viewpoint on the role of men and women. Some of these women were wives and mothers -- some were unsuccessful at or unfulfilled in those roles (not always their fault, either) -- but Metaxas focuses more on what they did outside of those roles.

Some of the biographies are stronger than others. For me, the stories of Hannah More, Saint Maria of Paris, and Rosa Parks were the most interesting. Prior to reading Seven women, I knew nothing about those three -- except for knowing that Rosa Parks' determination not to move from her seat on the Birmingham bus so that white folk could sit on that row was the spark that lit the fire of the Civil Rights Movement in the US. The biographies in this book should be inspiring to men and women, to girls and boys.

DISCLAIMER: I received a free review copy of this book from the publisher as a part of their BookLook Bloggers programme. I received no other compensation except for continued participation in the book review programme and have been free to write the reveiw that I think the book deserves.

Book Review: No Greater Valor, by Jerome Corsi

No Greater Valor: The Siege of Bastogne, and the Miracle That Sealed Allied Victory (I read the Kindle edition), by Jerome Corsi, is a (mostly) readable account of the American defense of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. American forces tenaciously held this important crossroads against numerically superior forces and in spite of harsh weather and shortage of both food and ammunition. Because of the weather and the fact that the Bastogne defenders were surrounded by German forces, fresh supplies could not be brought in until the weather broke on 23 December. I'm not competent to declare whether or not this battle is the most courageous ever fought by American troops, but this certainly is a story of courage and determination. The defenders on the ground, the airmen who flew supply drop runs, medics who volunteered to fly into Bastogne in gliders, and Patton and his 3rd Army all demonstrated courage.

I have no military background — missed the Vietnam draft by one graduating class, my draft number was either #162 or #169 (Hey, give me a break — that was 43 years ago). I also don't generally like books about specific battles. Consequently, I struggled a bit with the military organizational vocabulary. Mostly, I just ignored those kinds of details and read for the bigger picture and that was what I found appealing. For me, the book got much better once the preparations to defend Bastogne were done. I did find it appealing to be reading this book on the 70th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge and the Siege of Bastogne — that was not by design, it's just when I happened to read the book.

Corsi says that his primary purpose in writing this book was "to reexamine the importance of God in our Judeo-Christian historical tradition in a world certain again to be…'nasty, cruel, brutish, and short' once again in the future." I don't believe he accomplished his purpose. Note — that's not the same thing as saying that I don't believe the premise. I just don't think Corsi presented the kind of compelling evidence that he intended. There are certainly examples of faith in action — Patton's distribution of leaflet encouraging the troops to pray, the attendance of both troops and leaders in Mass and Protestant services during lulls in the action, the statements of belief that God had favoured the American. Did God give the generals and other officers extraordinary wisdom in making decisions that seem to be merely fortuitous? I think so. Were the personnel involved motivated and emboldened by a belief that they were fighting to defeat an evil in the Nazis that was built on a Satanic foundation? I think so.

Someone who believes that God does not intervene in human affairs or, certainly, a non-Christian may well find the references to God's help obnoxious. But, if that focus doesn't bother you, this is a really good story of courage and great strategy.

[DISCLAIMER: I received a copy of this book from the publisher as a part of their blogger book review programme, BookLook Bloggers. The expectation by the publisher is that I will write the review that I believe the book deserves. Other than the free copy of the book and continued participation in the reveiw programme, I receive no other compensation from the publisher.]

Review: The Race Before Us

Bruce Matson is a Richmond lawyer who ran a marathon in college but is now 49, overweight, and out of shape. He's also a church regular who is questioning his faith — "Do I really believe what I recite in the Nicene and Apostles' Creeds on Sundays?" He skillfully weaves together his twin struggles to get in both physical and spiritual shape. He took the spiritual quest seriously, wrestling with major philosophical and historical approaches to Christianity and finally realizes that, ultimately, though the intellectual assent is important, the key is trust. One of the things I liked about the book is that I know the places he ran (though, even so, I thought a couple of his descriptions of runs were a bit too detailed). I have also asked myself some of the same questions about faith.

He alternates chapters devoted primarily to running with those devoted primarily to his search for meaning in his faith. Matson deals with some questions and issues of faith that require some deep thought — a lot of Christian apologetics in this book. It was challenging and an excellent refresher on some of my seminary courses from 30+ years ago.

Some good appendices:

• Top Ten Arguments for the Existence of the God of the Bible — He touches on and explains most of these in the text of the book, but this is a good summary list. (Christian apologetics) Throughout the book, though, he emphasizes how much he was aware that Christian faith or trust was not solely dependent on the truth of these arguments.
• Bibliography — If one wants to explore any of the topics, these are all good sources. Matson does not just include those that support his final conclusion on faith.

(Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book free from the author in exchange for a review. However, I was free to write the review I thought the book deserved. I expect no further personal gain.)