Madeline L'Engle, A Wrinkle in Time

This Newberry Meddle–winning book is an imaginative story of intergalactic travel. Meg and her brother Charles Wallace, along with their friend Calvin, follow three strange ladies, Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who, and Mrs. Which, through a "tesserect," a wrinkle in time, which allows them to travel a great distance in no time at all. They eventually get to a very strange planet, where there is no individuality. All of the kids bounce their balls to the same rhythm, all of the moms call their kids in for supper at precisely the same instant, and the paper boy throws the paper on a perfect trajectory every time. But far from a perfect world, this world is under the influence of the great shadow, and has been given over almost totally to its power. On this world, Meg and Chrales Wallace discover that their father is imprisoned here, after stumbling onto a tesserect in his research. This strange world is ruled by a great brain, which makes all of the decisions for everyone. The kids find themselves drawn to its power, and struggle to not be drawn in by it. Chrales Wallace is almost totally taken over by it, and only by taking a tesserect are Mr. Murray, Calvin, and Meg able to escape. After recuperating on another planet, Meg, the only one who will be able to resist its power, goes back alone to rescue her brother, and is able to resist the force of this evil will and reclaim her brother, through love, the one thing that this evil brain doesn't have and cant counteract.

This is a good story, both for children and adults. It causes us to take pause and look at our world. What does it mean to have a will? And what forces are vying for our allegiance? It is science fiction in the vane of C. S. Lewis's space trilogy, and uses other worlds to take an insightful look at our own.

Stanley Grenz, Prayer

In this great little book, theologian Stanley Grenz takes a careful look at Prayer. He looks at what prayer is, and why we as Christians should do it. He then goes on to focus on petitionary prayer, helping us to build an understanding of God and the world where prayer really matters.

Grenz clearly has a heart for prayer. And his passion is reflected throughout these pages. He writes as someone who wants to tear down barriers to prayer and help draw us closer to God. He begins this task by strongly reminding Christians how important prayer is, and how important it should be. He starts off with the bold assertion that prayer is the biggest challenge facing the church today. Many people have relegated prayer to the back corners of our lives, maybe doing it out of habit, but no longer really believing in its power. Grenz sets out to remind us that prayer is to be cenral to who we are as Christians. This reminder includes a look at the role played in the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, and the role it has played in the life of the church ever since. He also looks at how prayer has been understood theologically, and sets out to build a theological understanding of prayer. His understanding focuses on prayer as being "the cry for the kingdom." Prayer is a time when we come into God's presence to entreat him to bring about things as he wills. We pray "according to God's will," seeking that God's desires, God's very kingdom, would be done here on earth. In essence, we are longing for the future to break into the present. And God has invited us into relationship with him in such a way that our prayer in some way releases God's power to act. Our very petitions can make a difference.

This great little book is an education in itself. Grenz looks at many rational stumbling blocks that can interfere with our prayers, and then takes an extended look at what it means to pray according to God's will. This is clearly a theology alive with God's spirit, and it calls the beliver back to what should be at the heart of her or his life, prayer.

Tom Clancy, Clear and Present Danger

This book has always been one of my favorites. It was the first Clancy book I read, and got me hooked. It is classic Clancy. He brings together diverse elements of the plot into a great narrative. It is full of detail and interesting characters.

It’s a tough book to summarize, but I’ll try to hit the high points. Drugs are a major threat to America. In an election year, the President decides to do something about it. He approves a covert operation to send US troops into Colombia to recon landing strips used by the Cartel, and radio info about drug flights, which are then intercepted. This is going fine, but when the Cartel successfully kills the Director of the FBI while he is in Colombia, the mission changes, and the troops are redeployed to actively take out the drug production operations. They also take out a number of the leaders of the cartel using precision bombs. These operations are successful, but the Cartel, and their chief intelligence operative, Felix Cortez, start to figure things out. And Cortez is also able to deduce who is in charge of the operation—James Cutter, National Security Advisor to the president. So he blackmails Cutter, threatening to make the whole operation public, especially including the deaths of numberous civilians in the “precision bombings.” Cutter agrees to strand the teams in Colombia, allowing Cortez and the Cartel to capture the troops and claim victory, while at the same time reducing the volume of shipments to the US, thus allowing the President to claim victory. Jack Ryan is acting Deputy Director of Intelligence for the CIA. He learns of action the US is taking, and comes to figure out that the troops have been stranded. So he organizes a mission to get them out, and goes himself. The troops are successfully extracted, or at least the troops who have still survived are.

Clancy’s book is unparalleled as espionage fiction. He has almost a genre unto himself—or he at least sets the standard. But his book is also a great study in character, and in the art and conduct of war. He illumines some of the implications for terrorism for our understanding of how nation-states conduct war and respond to violence against them. In that way, it is actually amazingly current, and proves to be an imformative and thought-provoking look at responses to terrorism, both good and bad.

Tom Clancy, Patriot Games

An exceptional book. One of the best books in the spectacular Ryan saga. In Patriot Games, Ryan finds himself the target of a small extremist group from Northern Ireland, the ULA, after he disrupts an attempt by them to kidnap the Prince of Wales and his wife and child. The ULA retaliates by attempting to murder Ryan's wife and daughter on their way home. They succeed in seriously injuring both of them, but they escape death. It also becomes clear that they had planned on simultaneously murdering Ryan. This unprecedented attack by foreign terrorists on American soil, and the attack on his family, sends Ryan to the CIA, to seek out the people who have made such a personal attack on him. He works with intelligence information to understand the motives of the ULA, and to find them out. But before they succeed in nailing down their position and intentions, another attack occurs. This time, a large force of terrorists attak the Ryan home, Perrigrine Cliff, while the Prince and Princess of Wales are visiting. A pitched battle ensues, and Ryan and company escape to the water down the cliff, and manage to lead the attackers to the Naval Academy at Annapolis, where the encounter more force than they can withstand.

The book is an unparalleled read. Clancy has built great characters, an intricate plot, and exciting action. If you've never read Clancy, this is a good place to start. For me, this was at least my third or fourth time through this one, and it was just as good as ever.

Cornelius Ryan, The Longest Day

This epic account of D-Day truly portrays the scope and also the significance of this fateful day. Ryan starts by describing the situation of both Allied and Nazi troops and defenses leading up to the attacks. He follows the preparations, and also the difficult decision by Eisenhower to proceed with the attack despite less than ideal conditions. In impressive detail, Ryan both follows the large movements of troops from paratrooper drops to soldiers on the beach, while also weaving in personal details that reflect extensive research and that give a truly human element to the story.

It was especially fascinating to learn how weak the Nazi response to the attacks truly was. One wonders if things might have turned out differently if the Nazi generals hadn't been so scattered (a war game was about to be under way, and many important commanders had left their posts to take part; Rommel, the renouned General, was in Berlin instead of overseeing operatios on the coast, and Hitler wasn't even made aware of the attacks until many hours after they had commenced). Ryan takes us into the action, and helps us to appreciate the amazing scope of the operation, telling of seas filled with landing boats and skies dark with planes. It's hard to even imagine the sheer scope of the operation. A good read, and an insightful look at this most fateful day in the history of the twentieth century.

Bernstein and Woodward, All the President's Men

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Ken Follett, On Wings of Eagles

This great non-fiction book by author Ken Follett chronicles a fascinating attempt by a US buisenessman, Ross Perot, to free some of his employees from wrongful imprisonment in Iran during the regime change and unrest there in 1978. Follett brings to life this fascinating window on a time of unrest in the country of Iran. Ross Perot is a well know American buisenessman (known best now for his campaigs for President in 1992 and 1996) who at that time ran one of the pioneering companies in computer applications. His company, EDS, had contracted to work with the Iranian government on their social security program. As the unrest in that country increased, it reached a point where Iran quit paying the company for their work, and owed them millions of dollars. As Perot was contemplating pulling his people out of the country, two of his top executives, Paul Chiapparone and Bill Gaylord, were suddenly arrested, on fuzzy charges of some type of conspiracy, though no formal charges were brought. Perot, feeling responsible for his employees, immediately started to pull strings at all levels of government and with friends and aquaintances in all sorts of positions. He talked with everyone from aquaintances in the Iranian government to American statesman Henry Kissinger. Even with these varied and powerful contacts, they were unable to make any headway in getting the two prisoners released.

The two men were being held in an Iranian jail, and as political unrest continued, and general sentiment in the country turned against Americans as the Ayatola emerged as the most powerful force in politics, Perot started looking for other ways to free his men. This developed into a plan to break the men out of jail. Perot enlisted the help of decorated military veteran Bull Simons, who he had known through his support of the military and through his recognition of the soldiers who had bravely carried out the raid on the Son Tay POW camp in Vietnam, a raid that was successful except that the prisoners had been moved only days before. Perot gathered together a group of men from inside his company who were war veterans, or who had other applicable skills such as martial arts, and set them working on an audacious plan to break the two men out of jail. After months of planning, and after all diplomatic options failed, Perot began to put his plan into action.

The men finally made their way to Iran, which was difficult because of the political situation, but as they began to get ready for the actual raid, the two prisoners were moved to a more secure prison, where breaking them out was a different type of prospect. While evaluating their new options, unrest started to break out on a grand scale, as the current government broke down. The crowds broke down the doors to the prison, among their other activities, and the two men were able to walk free. Through visits from Perot and others, they knew that they had friends in town, and made their way to Perot's hotel. Once free, they had to leave the country. This proved to be a challenging journey north to the Turkish border. This journey involved going through bandit country, through numerous military checkpoints, and navigating numerous obstacles. Follett makes the whole plot and journey come alive in a real-life drama of life and death, involving a government that was falling apart at the seams, and a determined businessman loyal to his employees. It is a great read, and an interesting piece of history that I knew nothing about.

Leon Morris, Revelation

Revelation is probably one of the most feared books in the New Testament, and in the whole Bible. It's imagery is strange and often cryptic, and some don't quite know what to make of it—it seems easier to ignore it. But it's also a book that is full of stunning visions and memorable poetry. And Leon Morris opens the book up for the reader in a way that makes it approachable and understandable.

I can't say that I often read commentaries from start to finish, but I did with this one. This commentary on the book of Revelation by Leon Morris, is part of the Tyndale New Testament Commentaries series. It's meant to be readable for layman as well as student and pastor. Morris is a recognized exegete on the Johanine literature, and brings learning to bear on this interesting book. He takes a very irenic and faithful approach to the book that seeks to discern its meaning and intent, both in its original setting and for readers today. And I think he acheives just that aim. After reading this somewhat short commentary, Revelation seems so much more approachable, and I highly recomment it to others. Morris finds Revelation as a book of great comfort and encouragement to the troubled Christians for which it was written, who were struggling under persecution from the Roman authorities. But he also sees in it God's identity and intention for the world layed out for all to see. He unpacks the symbolism in a helpful way that keeps it meaningful and brings it "down to earth" without either being a slave to the literal or dismissing it as merely figurative. He seems to find just the right approach to the book that retains its prophetic power yet doesn't give the book over to complicated schemes of future-times events. Highly recommended. A great introduction to this powerful prophetic book.

Ken Follett, Jackdaws

This is one of the first Ken Follett books I have read, though certainly not the first book I've picked up that is set in World War Two. Follett brings us into the world of the French resistance and and Allied espionage in the period of the German occupation of France leading up to D-day. Even as the Allied forces were preparing for a major assaut on the German forces, British and American personell were coordiating with members of the french underground to disrupt German activities and communicatikons in preparation for the coming attacks. In this book, Follett brings the reader into this world of danger and deception. We are introduced to Flick, a British agent that leads a team of British "operatives" behind enemy lines, and also to Deiter and some of her other German opposition. The British have chosen an important telephone and communications exchange post in a small town in Germany as an important target in the time leading up to the D-day raids. The French underground has made one attempt already, but was defeated by a superior German defense force at the castle housing the exchange. Now, the British have found a way to get a team in—send in a group of women who can pose as cleaners, to attack the post and disable the lines of communication. But there's not much time, and the group must be all women. So a group of varying quality is assembled from among the available agents, or even aquaintances of agents. This group of women quickly train for the important raid, and are parachuted in. The Germans, meanwhile, have got wind of the operation from a captured member of the underground, and are waiting for Flick and her group, but they manage to put down at a different airfield, and make their way to the communication exchange. Despite some unexpected challenges and some good detective work by the German officer, the ladies manage to deliver the devastating blow to the Germans and disable the exchange.

Follett's book is a good one. He delivers good action in an interesting historical setting, but also takes you into the lives of the people involved, on both sides. The personal and interpersonal struggles are what bring the book to life. It makes for a good read.