I Recommend: A Reunion Bibliography

Every other Thanksgiving weekend, the Logan clan gets together to eat and talk, talk and eat. I’m not sure which we do more. It doesn’t really matter: we love both.

We talk about everything, including religion and politics — even church politics. It can get interesting because we don’t agree on much everything. Hopefully, we do it without offending each other. (If I offended you this last weekend, please accept my apologies…)

As part of our discussions, I recommended quite a few books, web sites, and videos. Rather than send individual e-mails to remind those I talked to, I’m writing this post, sharing it on Facebook, and tagging those involved.

What We Should Be Good At

ISBN is 1594481717 The heart of A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future is a discussion of six “senses” that are necessary in the Conceptual Age: design, story, symphony, empathy, play, and meaning. Even better, after each chapter, Pink lists exercises and resources for developing that sense.

A Whole New Mind is the most recent book I finished in 2010.

Doing What We’re Good At

ISBN is 159562015X ISBN is 0743201140 ISBN is 0743261682

These books recommend that we focus on doing what we do well, rather than attempting to improve our weak areas. We’ll improve much faster and enjoy the process.

Here are my strengths according to Strengths Finder 2.0.

Why We Do What We Do

ISBN is 1594488843 Do we do what we do for money or something else? The answer might surprise you. Read Daniel H. Pink’s Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, or for a short introduction, watch the video summary below.

Universalism

ISBN is 0061926086 ISBN is 0060578416 ISBN is 0061698768

If God is good and all-powerful, would He do anything other than save everyone? These books answer that question and then address how that answer should effect what we do.

Bible Interpretation

ISBN is 0060088303

Does the Bible condone owning slaves, oppressing women, and killing homosexuals? The Good Book: Reading the Bible with Mind and Heart discusses how the Bible has been (re)interpreted to oppose slavery and liberate women and how the same techniques should be used to change Christian’s attitudes toward gays.

Evolution

ISBN is 0393315703 ISBN is 0231139624 ISBN is 0061228788

What is Evolution? What is the evidence for it? Can it be consistent with Christianity? These three books answer those questions, and many more.

There are a couple more good books in the list of books I read in 2009.

Geology

ISBN is 0878424156

What forces shaped the geography of Idaho, Washington, and Oregon? One major factor were the numerous Missoula floods. Glacial Lake Missoula and Its Humongous Floods is by the same author as many of the Roadside Geology series books (listed below).


ISBN is 0878421602 ISBN is 0878420630 ISBN is 0878422021 ISBN is 0878422196

Bicycle Truth

Bicycle Truth “is dedicated to pointing out those leaders in the Adventist community who do not believe like I do, mostly by publicly outing them in a “humble, loving, winsome manner” on this website as Philistine bicycle riders. This website collects some of the best thinking on the subject of bicycle prohibition from a Seventh-day Adventist perspective.” ;-)

The Black Swan

ISBN is 081297381X

The Black Swan: Second Edition: The Impact of the Highly Improbable discusses exceedingly rare events with massive consequences. I’ve talked about this book to everyone. Read it, if only for its discussion on confirmation bias.

Nuclear Weapons

Ben’s BBs” graphically illustrates the number of nuclear weapons the US possesses.

Winning Wars

In this bracingly honest talk, international security strategist Thomas Barnett outlines a post-Cold War solution for the foundering U.S. military that is both sensible and breathtaking in its simplicity: Break it in two.

Miscellaneous

Conclusion

Did I forget to mention or link something I recommended? Let me know in the comments.

I bet you wish you were at the Logan family reunion. ;-)

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2 responses to “I Recommend: A Reunion Bibliography”

  1. Art King Avatar
    Art King

    Awesome post Brent! I've added several books to my amazon wish list! The RSA Animate video is very very interesting!

  2. Brent Logan Avatar

    Thanks! I'd like to say I read the books so you don't have to, but it's not true. Once I read a great book, I want everyone else to read it, too. :-)

    RSA Animate has a bunch of other great summary videos on YouTube. Check them out.