Since 2012 I have been keeping a list of all the books that I read. This allows me to look back on the year and see how my reading has gone as well as to catch any patterns than may need to change. For example, I love reading fiction, but I benefit more from reading non-fiction. So while I allow myself to enjoy fiction, I also make sure that I am reading a similar amount of non-fiction.
I am not a great reader, but over the years I have learned to accommodate. I listen to a lot of audiobooks. I use the text-to-speech feature on my Kindle. While I enjoy watching TV more, I know I grow when I read. So while it does not come as easy as some, I try to read as much as I can.
With that in mind, here are a few of my favorite books I read in 2020.
Vertical Marriage by Dave and Ann Wilson
I first heard Dave and Ann Wilson at a conference about a year ago. They were hilarious and challenging. After hearing them I went out and bought the book right away and was not disappointed. Vertical Marriage is funny, entertaining, insightful, and filled with good advice about having a godly marriage. This is one of those books where they tell the most ridiculous stories and you think, “How did that marriage last!?” Yet it did, and they share how.
After reading the book I led our church through the small group study and people seemed to really enjoy the group. I highly recommend this book.
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William Shire
After reading Civil War books for several years straight, I decided to branch out a bit. I ended up settling on this one and was not disappointed. Hitler is one of those people that many people have heard about but don’t have a ton of details. This book gives a lot of information about how Hitler rose to power and then manipulated a number of different countries to take control of them.
Lord Foulgrin’s Letters by Randy Alcorn
I first read this book when I was in college but decided to reread it a few months ago. This book imitates the style of C.S. Lewis’ Screwtape Letters where a head demon is giving advice to a lesser demon on how to tempt humans. Randy Alcorn takes this idea one step further by adding in a story in between all the advice. The result is a compelling read with a lot of really good advice on spiritual growth and Christianity.
There are plenty of other deeper theology books out there, but none will be as engaging as this one. Randy Alcorn finds the perfect mix of entertainment and teaching. Last week I had my 12 year old read this book and was very engaged and said he really liked it.
Bruce Catton’s Civil War Trilogy
I am sort of cheating here because this is actually three books. But to pick one would be like picking a favorite child if I had triplets! Bruce Catton makes Civil War history interesting. He loves to show what happened both as a big picture as well as focusing in on random people throughout the war. I first read these books about 7 years ago and this is probably the fourth time I have read them.
The Civil War is such an interesting time. This is easy to say when I am about 150 years removed, but it does make for a very compelling story. Brothers against brothers. War heroes against rising stars. Christians against Christians. A fight for both rights and the freedom of an entire race. Successful people failing and losers rising to the top. There is still a lot we can learn from the Civil War.