by Jason Joyner | Feb 9, 2009 | Blog, books, culture, faith
I’ve been enjoying a new devotional that I recently picked up: A Faith and Culture Devotional: Daily Readings in Art, Science, and Life. I saw it mentioned on The Point blog, and so far I haven’t been disappointed. I’m not very far into it, but it has already had articles from or quoting from Francis Collins of the Human Genome Project and Francis Schaeffer, with future articles from Erwin McManus, Chuck Colson, Scot McKnight, Dallas Willard, Lee Strobel, and J. P. Moreland.
The subjects are collected under Bible and Theology, History, Philosophy, Science, Literature, Arts, and Contemporary Culture. Quite a diversity, but the reading I’ve done so far is quite thought-provoking.
As a teaser, here’s a quote from “Art-A Response to God’s Beauty” by Lael Arrington, with an extensive quote from one of my favorites, Francis Schaeffer.
Schaeffer concludes, “What a Christian portrays in his art is the totality of life. Art is not to be solely a vehicle for some self-conscious evangelism…Christians ought not to be threatened by fantasy and imagination…The Christian is the really free man-he is free to have imagination. This is our heritage. The Christian is the one whose imagination should fly beyond the stars.
by Jason Joyner | Feb 9, 2009 | Blog, books, culture, faith
I’ve been enjoying a new devotional that I recently picked up: A Faith and Culture Devotional: Daily Readings in Art, Science, and Life. I saw it mentioned on The Point blog, and so far I haven’t been disappointed. I’m not very far into it, but it has already had articles from or quoting from Francis Collins of the Human Genome Project and Francis Schaeffer, with future articles from Erwin McManus, Chuck Colson, Scot McKnight, Dallas Willard, Lee Strobel, and J. P. Moreland.
The subjects are collected under Bible and Theology, History, Philosophy, Science, Literature, Arts, and Contemporary Culture. Quite a diversity, but the reading I’ve done so far is quite thought-provoking.
As a teaser, here’s a quote from “Art-A Response to God’s Beauty” by Lael Arrington, with an extensive quote from one of my favorites, Francis Schaeffer.
Schaeffer concludes, “What a Christian portrays in his art is the totality of life. Art is not to be solely a vehicle for some self-conscious evangelism…Christians ought not to be threatened by fantasy and imagination…The Christian is the really free man-he is free to have imagination. This is our heritage. The Christian is the one whose imagination should fly beyond the stars.
by Jason Joyner | Dec 3, 2008 | Blog, books, CFBA, fiction, reviews, suspense
I’ve taken a little time off from reviewing books in order to avoid commitments I can’t meet. However, I couldn’t pass up this week’s book from the CFBA: Dark Pursuit by Brandilyn Collins. This is her first book (a stand alone) since her lauded Kanner Lake series.
Darell Brooke is the King of Suspense, having written 99 books. Since his car accident two years ago, he is a shell of his former imposing self. He needs a cane to get around and he can’t concentrate enough to hold a plot. He badly wants to reclaim his glory and write book #100, but he can’t push through the mental fog.
When his estranged granddaughter Kaitlan returns to his door, with a tale of a murderous boyfriend after her, he wants to help her. He’s a police officer and has hid the evidence, so she can’t go to the local police. Can the King of Suspense help save his only family and reclaim his fame with the plot inspiration drawn from the trap?
I admit it was a little different reading this book. I was invested in the lives of the people in her Kanner Lake books, so it was a shift to get into the characters of Dark Pursuit. Brandilyn continues her expert pacing and building of suspense. The book never fails to be a page turner.
The new characters grew on me after a while. Darell Brooke is a prickly old man, bitter about his new circumstances, and it is hard to empathize with him initially. Kaitlan is a sympathetic character, and she’s easier to root for, especially when she is in danger.
I also struggled with the apparant direction of the book for a while, because it seemed un-Brandilyn. The reader knew everything up front, and it seemed like I was just following along. I should’ve known better. I don’t want to give away anything more than there’s more than meets the eye, and I was very pleasantly surprised at the end. The twists and turns are very satisfying.
I had a little problem with the obsession of the killer, but this comes into focus better at the end. Still, it seemed a little too outrageous to me. There was also some repetition of phrases describing the suspense that caught my eye after a while, distracting me.
Up until the last part of the book, it wasn’t my favorite Brandilyn Collins book. It was a worthy enough suspense, but I wasn’t savoring it. After finishing it this morning, it really turned it into a very enjoyable, satisfying read. She sucks us in, then pulls a fast one. I shouldn’t be surprised. Her fans will find this new book continuing her tradition of Seatbelt Suspense, while new readers should find this a solidly entertaining suspense.
Also, for more behind the story, check out this interview with Brandilyn in the Christian Fiction Online Magazine. You can also read the first chapter of Dark Pursuit, HERE.
by Jason Joyner | Dec 3, 2008 | Blog, books, CFBA, fiction, reviews, suspense
I’ve taken a little time off from reviewing books in order to avoid commitments I can’t meet. However, I couldn’t pass up this week’s book from the CFBA: Dark Pursuit by Brandilyn Collins. This is her first book (a stand alone) since her lauded Kanner Lake series.
Darell Brooke is the King of Suspense, having written 99 books. Since his car accident two years ago, he is a shell of his former imposing self. He needs a cane to get around and he can’t concentrate enough to hold a plot. He badly wants to reclaim his glory and write book #100, but he can’t push through the mental fog.
When his estranged granddaughter Kaitlan returns to his door, with a tale of a murderous boyfriend after her, he wants to help her. He’s a police officer and has hid the evidence, so she can’t go to the local police. Can the King of Suspense help save his only family and reclaim his fame with the plot inspiration drawn from the trap?
I admit it was a little different reading this book. I was invested in the lives of the people in her Kanner Lake books, so it was a shift to get into the characters of Dark Pursuit. Brandilyn continues her expert pacing and building of suspense. The book never fails to be a page turner.
The new characters grew on me after a while. Darell Brooke is a prickly old man, bitter about his new circumstances, and it is hard to empathize with him initially. Kaitlan is a sympathetic character, and she’s easier to root for, especially when she is in danger.
I also struggled with the apparant direction of the book for a while, because it seemed un-Brandilyn. The reader knew everything up front, and it seemed like I was just following along. I should’ve known better. I don’t want to give away anything more than there’s more than meets the eye, and I was very pleasantly surprised at the end. The twists and turns are very satisfying.
I had a little problem with the obsession of the killer, but this comes into focus better at the end. Still, it seemed a little too outrageous to me. There was also some repetition of phrases describing the suspense that caught my eye after a while, distracting me.
Up until the last part of the book, it wasn’t my favorite Brandilyn Collins book. It was a worthy enough suspense, but I wasn’t savoring it. After finishing it this morning, it really turned it into a very enjoyable, satisfying read. She sucks us in, then pulls a fast one. I shouldn’t be surprised. Her fans will find this new book continuing her tradition of Seatbelt Suspense, while new readers should find this a solidly entertaining suspense.
Also, for more behind the story, check out this interview with Brandilyn in the Christian Fiction Online Magazine. You can also read the first chapter of Dark Pursuit, HERE.
by Jason Joyner | Jan 29, 2008 | Blog, books, fiction, miscellaneous, work
Wow! How often do we get snow days anymore? Growing up, it was always the best day when we had a snow out, keeping us from class. I grew up in a rural community, so there were always kids who would get snowed into a farm or ranch even if we had school. I, on the other hand, had no excuse.
I lived a block from school.
I thought about trying to call in saying I was stuck, but they’d probably say something like, “I’m looking out the window and I can see your driveway. Nice try.”
Today had a bit of a black cloud in the otherwise bonus day off: I have to travel an hour into the high mountain desert on a bus, catching it at 5:30 am. So first, they didn’t cancel right away, so I had to get up early and trudge (more like skate) to the bus stop. Then, they sent us home at 10 am, but we sat at the bus depot for an hour before heading out so they could be sure they got everyone. Ah well. I still got six hours at home I wouldn’t have had otherwise. Well spent paying bills and playing G.I. Joes with my 3 boys. Yo Joe!
This gave me plenty of time to dive into the latest book I chose for the CFBA blog tour: My Name is Russell Fink by Michael Snyder. So far it is an interesting read, and I’ll have more in a couple of weeks. However, I just had to share this quote from it today. The main character is a hypochondriac, and is getting a mole biopsied by his doctor. Of course, he is sure it is cancer, so he is a bit nervous doing the procedure:
I begin to speak but have to stop and clear my throat. “Please tell me you’ve done this before, Doc. That you’re not reading the instructions as you go.”
“Actually, I’m using this paint-by-numbers kit that came with my mail-order medical license.”
The wit of Mike Snyder, ladies and gentlemen.
by Jason Joyner | Jan 29, 2008 | Blog, books, fiction, miscellaneous, work
Wow! How often do we get snow days anymore? Growing up, it was always the best day when we had a snow out, keeping us from class. I grew up in a rural community, so there were always kids who would get snowed into a farm or ranch even if we had school. I, on the other hand, had no excuse.
I lived a block from school.
I thought about trying to call in saying I was stuck, but they’d probably say something like, “I’m looking out the window and I can see your driveway. Nice try.”
Today had a bit of a black cloud in the otherwise bonus day off: I have to travel an hour into the high mountain desert on a bus, catching it at 5:30 am. So first, they didn’t cancel right away, so I had to get up early and trudge (more like skate) to the bus stop. Then, they sent us home at 10 am, but we sat at the bus depot for an hour before heading out so they could be sure they got everyone. Ah well. I still got six hours at home I wouldn’t have had otherwise. Well spent paying bills and playing G.I. Joes with my 3 boys. Yo Joe!
This gave me plenty of time to dive into the latest book I chose for the CFBA blog tour: My Name is Russell Fink by Michael Snyder. So far it is an interesting read, and I’ll have more in a couple of weeks. However, I just had to share this quote from it today. The main character is a hypochondriac, and is getting a mole biopsied by his doctor. Of course, he is sure it is cancer, so he is a bit nervous doing the procedure:
I begin to speak but have to stop and clear my throat. “Please tell me you’ve done this before, Doc. That you’re not reading the instructions as you go.”
“Actually, I’m using this paint-by-numbers kit that came with my mail-order medical license.”
The wit of Mike Snyder, ladies and gentlemen.
