6 Great Reads For The Summer

Pastor Art Snow • July  18, 2022

6 Great Reads For The Summer

The warm summer sun, a comfortable chair on the porch or patio, a cold beverage of your choice in one hand and a good book in the other, that’s what I call a fun afternoon. But with all of the thousands and thousands of books out there which ones do you choose? Well allow me to make 6 suggestions: 

I’m Still Here, Black Dignity in a World made for Whites by Austin Channing Brown

This is an outstanding “in your face” look at racism in America with the opening chapter entitled, “ White people are exhausting”. Before anyone becomes defensive Brown does a masterful job of detailing her experiences in a dominant white world and the constant adjustments she felt like she had to make along the way to get along. 

She tells an opening story of when she was seven years old in the library, one of her favorite places in the world. She made her way to the counter with an armful of books to check out and handed the Librarian her library card. The woman looked her up and down and said; “Is this your card?” The young Austin said yes, the woman retorted incredulously “This is YOUR card, you didn’t steal it?” No she said my name is Austin Brown, and all of a sudden she understood that not only was Austin a mans name, it was a white mans name. She immediately went to her mother on the other side of the Library and demanded “Why was I named Austin?” Her mother said very gently, “We have talked about this before, it was your Grandmothers maiden name.” “No” she said I know how I got the name, what I am asking is why?” Her mother then explained to her that she and her father were trying to find a name for her and they decided that they gave her a white mans name so when she would apply for jobs as an adult she would have an advantage. And so her journey began, living in a world made for whiteness. 

Brown explains her use of “creative anger”, that is not just getting mad at the system, but allowing your anger to lead to societal change.

This is a small but powerful book that will give people of color both the passion and the tools to make lasting change. And will hopefully help the dominant white culture understand where they are missing it, and make their personal changes that will bring about both justice and reconciliation. 

Chasing Francis by Ian Morgan Cron

This is a delightful book about a Megachurch Pastor who becomes disenchanted with church and God at the same time. The only problem is for two Sundays in a row he emotes from the pulpit and says to his church, “Is this all there is?” Well as you can imagine he was called into the church library and confronted by the elders. Being honest with them he admitted to having a “Crisis of faith”. Although he was not fired he was sent on a sabbatical to re-find his faith and then the elders would decide if he was fit to return to the pulpit. 

Not knowing where to go, he decides to go to Italy where his uncle lives who happens to be a Franciscan Friar. His uncle assures him he can help him and to met him for dinner at his favorite restaurant and he would introduce him to a friend. He shows up, but there is only his uncle sitting at the table, and no friend. It is then he explains his friend actually died 800 years ago but can still help. 

The uncle then tells him the story of Saint Francis and his commitment to helping the poor and his ministry to the leper colonies. He offers to take him to all the important places Francis ministered. This begins a three month journey where his faith is restored and he re-connects with God. 

This is a hopeful refreshing read that also teaches the reader about a great man of God that many only associate with statues and birdbaths. So take time to read this treasure and maybe even deepen your walk with God yourself. 

Theodore Roosevelt And The Making Of American Leadership by Jon Knokey

Not only am I suggesting this great book for your summer reading but I am reading another book about this great American Leader right now entitled “River of Doubt, Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey” that may be of interest to you.

Knokey’s style of writing brings the reader right into Roosevelts life as if you were in the same room with him. You feel like you are with him as a frail sickly boy growing up as he caught and stuffed animals of all kinds, or when he went to Harvard and lived like an entitled wealthy student that felt just a little better than his classmates. 

You will join him on his journey to Albany for his first foray into politics, then you will be beside him  on one of the saddest days of his life, when he lost both his beloved wife and his mother. Knokey makes you feel like you are with him during his two years in the Western wilderness as he attempts to process his overwhelming grief. 

Along the way the author talks about leadership skills Roosevelt learned along the way that enabled him to lead the Rough Riders up San Juan Hill that others saw as a suicide mission. Then though the presidency and beyond. This excellent book combines a leadership read and a history lesson all in one volume. Just a heads up, it may raise your blood pressure a little so be prepared, enjoy the ride !

The Supper Of The Lamb, A Culinary Reflection  by Robert Farrar Capon

Capon was actually an Episcopal Priest and self identifies as “An old fashioned high churchman and a Thomist (a school of theology that arose as a legacy of the work and thought of Thomas Aquinas)  to boot.” 

In his opening acknowledgments he says: “To my Wife: the lighting behind my thunder”. Indeed this Episcopal priest writes with both thunder and grace. Capon is a “wordsmith”, one of my favorite kind of authors. As Mark Twain said; “The difference between the “right” word and the almost right word is the difference between lighting and a lighting bug.”, and Capon always choses the “right” words. 

What the author does is combine his love for food and his love for God to the point where at times you don’t know where one ends and the other begins. In one sentence he is speaking of the purpose of mushrooms and wine and in the next he is telling us that “Creation exists in its own right, it is no parable, no front, no Punch and Judy show in which God plays all the parts, but a vast and raucous meeting where each thing acts out of its nature, shouting I am I, as if no other thing had being.” 

His chapter titles are as intriguing as his writing; The Tin Fiddle, And She Took Flour-, The Burnt Offering, Wave Breast and Heave Shoulder, The Generous Ox, The Mysterious East, and The Burning Heart. 

After reading this book you will be not only in love with food, but you will know why. And he closes the book with recipes from meat and poultry, to desserts and beverages. I have to go now, I have gotten so hungry just writing this piece. I am going to take Capon’s advice and grab a little salmon. Salute!

When The Church Was Young, Voices Of The Early Fathers by Marcellino D’ Ambrosio

Have you ever wondered what the early church was like, what gave them spiritual direction until they had the New Testament Canon in 376 AD? Who were the men and women who gave shape to early Christianity, and what miracles surround these long lost pillars of the faith?

D’Ambrosio takes what could be stuffy, boring and dusty information and draws it into an easy readable format that closes every chapter with you wanting more. He begins with a selected chronology of the Early Church Fathers from 30 AD beginning with the birth of the church at Pentecost to 749 AD with the death of John of Damascus. 

Unfortunately most Christians know very little church history and if they know any it might be concerning the Reformation with Martin Luther in 1517 AD. But little is known of Clement, and Cyprian or Athanasius and Basil the Great. 

D’Ambrosio explains the Church Councils and what was codified by their gatherings. You do not have to be a history person to enjoy this book but it does help. The book is written for the layman, not the scholar or clergymen. The book closes with “Further reading on the Early Church Fathers”, what an incredible resource for those who wish to dig a little deeper. So I hope you take the challenge and thereby enlarging your knowledge of these incredible men and women who shaped and changed the history of our faith. 

A Promised Land by Barack Obama

I close my suggested reading list with a book I have not yet read but it is on my “to read” list. As you would know Obama was the 44th President of the United States and has authored two previous books: Dreams From My Father, and The Audacity Of Hope. He is also the recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. Having read and loved Michele Obama’s book  entitled “Becoming”, I am sure I am going to love this book equally as much. You guys get to work on the first 5 and I will start this one. Enjoy your Summer reading !

Pastor Art Snow | July 18, 2022

Edited and Adapted for Web Use by: Eric Muñoz Jr.