It’s time to post my top 5 books of 2009 (plus or minus a book or two). As I looked at what I’ve read this year it strikes me that 2009 for me was the most diverse and broad reading journey that I’ve probably had in any year. I read a lot of books that don’t fit a lot of categories and that aren’t widely circulated in the Christian community. I read several classics in 2008. I’m not sure there is anything that was in the neighborhood of A Failure of Nerve, Team of Rivals, In Over Our Heads or The Prophetic Imagination in terms of how much I was impacted, but there were some phenomenal books I read and learned from.
My total books read was around the 50-55 range this year and I’m giving you the best of those in my opinion. I’m only giving a super brief summary here since there are links to blog posts that are based on these books or are a review that I did. And for continuity I included my list from 2008 and 2007 below if you are new to the blog.
Here we go:
1. Texts That Linger, Words That Explode: Listening to Prophetic Voices by Walter Brueggemann – This was probably my favorite of the year. It’s not light reading by any means, but some of the essays in this collection were so rich I found myself getting an adrenalin rush reading it. It’s had me thinking a lot about hermeneutics and culture.
2. Making Room for Leadership: Power, Space, and Influence by MaryKate Morse – Timely resource for me, but one of the few books that tries to help leaders understand the factors that influence how much power they have and how they use it in community.
3. Silence by Shusaku Endo – Engaging novel, but even more thought provoking as it relates to some really deep issues.
4. Hitler by George Victor – This was a bit creepy of a read, but it blew my mind. If you’re looking at all for something that provides a historical example of how character in leadership matters and the dark side of leadership, you’d be hard pressed to find a better book.
5. Following Christ in a Consumer Society by John F. Kavanaugh – Great critique of western culture and western Christianity with a view of developing a theology of stewardship and Biblical ethic.
6. Modern Psychotherapies by Stanton Jones and Richard Butman – This is a textbook FYI, but it was thoroughly enjoyable reading through this primer on the various schools of psychotherapy with a view to the compatibility or lackthereof with the Christian faith and the Scriptures.
Honorable Mention:
The complete Harry Potter Series particularly The Order of the Phoenix and The Deathly Hallows – Sue me, but I had tons of fun reading this series over a few month span. The two books above were almost addictive to me, but the whole series was just a fun read and escape from all the other books I am reading or have to read.
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield – Most creative book I’ve read, but very inspirational and a little bit raw.
Holy Discontent by Bill Hybels – Fired me up…If you have any prophetic leanings in your temperament or gifting, you should add this brief book to your list. It’s helpful as it relates to perspective as well as practical ways to fuel the fire in redemptive ways.
Invitation to Lead by Paul Tokunaga – No other resource has helped me as much as this book on Asian-American leadership since I joined Epic, an Asian American ministry. Unbelievably helpful, but it serves as primer on Asian American culture as well as a helpful resource for leadership development.
The Reason for God by Tim Keller – Great postmodern apologetic that was really fun to read and engage with because it gets right at the heart of some of the bigger issues. It’s in the same general category of Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis and Simply Christian by N.T. Wright but it accomplishes things that neither of those books do for today’s culture.Do you have any books that you’ve read in 2009 that I or others should make sure we read in 2010? Make sure you explain “why” if you have one!Here are the best books I Read in
2008:
1. A Failure of Nerve – Edwin Friedman
2. In Over Our Heads – Robert Kegan
3. Surprised by Hope - N.T. Wright
4. Team of Rivals – Doris Kearns Goodwin
5. Communication Theory for Christian Witness - Robert Kraft
Honorable Mention:Four Gospels, One Jesus – Richard A. Burridge
Made to Stick – Chip and Dan Heath
Growing Healthy Asian-American Churches – Several Authors
2007
- Congregational Leadership in Anxious Times by Peter L. Steinke
- The Challenge of Jesus by N.T. Wright
- The Prophetic Imaginationby Walter Brueggemann
- The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse by Johnson & VanVonderan
- The Younger Evangelicals by Robert Webber
These were the 5 that stood out for me in 2007 (though none were written in 2007). For other book recommendations you can visit my amazon bookstore at this link.
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