*Get your copy on Amazon here*
You remember the scene, I know you do. In 1989's "Dead Poets Society," teacher John Keating (Robin Williams) is leading his new class in how to measure the enjoyment of a poem. The exercise involves graphs which students dutifully copied, and measurements strictly observed, when suddenly Keating insists that the students rip this section out of the textbook and toss it. Poetry cannot be measured like you would a temperature, or a quantity of liquid. It's inherent beauty comes from what it does to your head and your heart.
Well, while I was skulking around my alma mater's library, I was browsing in the film books section which was impressively diverse for a college with no film studies program at that point. Tucked among the larger books by James Agee, and old Halliwell's Film Guides, I found a 63-page pamphlet entitled "How to Judge Motion Pictures, and How to Organize a Photoplay Club" by Sarah McLean Mullen. The pamphlet trumpeted its foreword by a William L. Lewin and was published by Scholastic, a weekly newspaper for high school students. I sat down to read, and found the copyright date for this revised edition- 1936. Oh, this was going to be good.
While the yawny foreword talked of Lewin's nationwide research into using films for education, Mullen's material was the best part to digest. In the back of the pamphlet, I found what Mullen has called a "Scholastic Score Card For Rating Photoplays." Ten aspects of a judged film is rated on a weighted scale, the scores are totaled, and the total weighted score, after a little more math, gives you a percentile rating that tells you whether a film is good or not. As an audience, we all have expectations when seeing a photoplay, their irritating term for movies, and the Score Card slices through all the physical discomforts we experience at the theater, giving us a true indication of a film's worthiness.
The ten items judged are: Entertainment Value, Basic Theme, Story, Title, Dramatic Plot Structure, Social Value, Direction, Characterization, Settings-Costuming-Make-up-Properties, Lighting and Photography, and Sound and Musical Effects. Interestingly enough, the sample Score Card printed is for a real 1935 film featuring Henry Fonda called "I Dream Too Much." Someone named Syms C. Armstrong of the Burr High School Photoplay Club paid 35 cents to see this, and the film's final percentile score is 63-1/3%. Mullen warns us that very few ever pass the 90% mark, much less score a perfect 100 percentile. When I looked up "I Dreamed Too Much" on IMDB.com, only a few hundred people had seen it, but it's weighted average score was 5.5 out of 10. Apparently, Syms found more to like than today's jaded audiences.
So, which film should I test Mullen's hypothesis out on? Last year's Best Picture Oscar winner? A contemporary film from Frank Capra or John Ford? No, I'm going for a short film, so I can look back and forth between Mullen's ingredients for good photoplay-making, and the screen. Yes, I believe 1987's "Gent Video Centerfold #4: Stacey Owen" on VHS will do just fine. Don't judge me.
The video is just twenty-six minutes. For Entertainment Value, a big-busted Scottish lass waking up nekkid and going through her day before posing for a pretend photo shoot does have some Entertainment Value. On the +3 to -1 scale, I scored this a +1. The Basic Theme has no significance, so a -1. No Story, either, so we'll goose-egg that section. The Title onscreen is different from the video box, and none of them is listed on IMDB, so I score it a -1. While the Dramatic Plot Structure is stupid, there is some, so +1. Social Value? Um, yeah, zero. Direction gets a +1, Peter Kay does his job and shows off every aspect of Owen's physical talents. Characterization is supposed to include Acting and Speech. The film is narrated by Owen, and photographer James Campbell, but Owen doesn't do very well even playing herself, so another zero. The Settings, Costumes, Make-Up, and Properties are all consistent with a direct-to-video centerfold tape that served as an introduction for Owen to eventually move to more hardcore efforts, so a +2. Lighting and Photography were both blinding and bleached out, so another zero. The Sound and Musical Effects were horrendous. When Owen isn't pleading with you to look her up the next time you are in Scotland, some song I think was called "When a Woman's Alone" assaults your ears. Definitely, a -1. Now then, I multiply the scores by the weight, add the weighted scores, and then divide the total by three. According to the Sarah McLean Mullen Scholastic Score Card For Rating Photoplays, "Gent Video Centerfold #4: Stacey Owen" gets a pitiful 8.33%. Sorry, love.
The rest of the pamphlet covers how to start a photoplay club in high school, which involves complicated parliamentary procedures, and sexism- girls will appreciate the social aspects of the club, while boys will be more interested in how the film equipment runs. The main focus is Mullen's formula, and it was a hoot to read aged passages like "we are all familiar with climaxes. We have sat breathless during many of them, and have slumped back with a sense of deep relief when they were over," which had me laughing so hard, I did slump back.
I thought about following the inspiring civil disobedience of John Keating, and ripping this pamphlet to shreds, but this was the original 1936 copy. It is so old, I looked at the yellowed library card in back, and it was signed by a humanities professor who taught at the university so long ago, they died, and then had a building constructed and named for them. Oh, Syms, if you only knew what photoplays would be like in almost another one hundred years! Book: (* * *)/Video: (*) out of five stars.
-(Unrated) video, contains very strong nudity and sexual content
Wednesday, January 8, 2025
Saturday, December 21, 2024
Book Review: "Legends and Lies: Great Mysteries of the American West" by Dale L. Walker
*Get a copy of Legends and Lies: Great Mysteries of the American West by Dale L. Walker on Amazon here*
*Get a copy of Vengeance is Mine: The Mountain Meadows Massacre and its Aftermath by Richard E. Turley, Jr. and Barbara Jones Brown on Amazon here*
*Get a copy of Tales of Soldiers and Civilians: and Other Stories by Ambrose Bierce on Amazon here*
*Get a physical copy of "Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery" on Amazon here*
In twelve chapters, Walker touches on a dozen great mysteries of Western lore. He does not set out to solve any of them, but think again if you expect this book to do nothing but regurgitate old facts.
You may have heard of many of the stories in this book, since more than a few of them have been subjects of later books and documentaries. The "real" death of Davy Crockett, what happened at the Battle of Little Big Horn, and who is buried in Jesse James' tomb have all been covered on television, too, which lends credence to Walker's research. But what about some cases you learned about in school, and find out later things may not have happened the way your teacher said?
I am writing of the strange suicide of famed explorer Meriwether Lewis in Tennessee in 1809. All my life, I was told he killed himself, and that was that. Reading Lewis' book, we find he killed himself after being attacked by an unknown assailant. He was shot in the head (exposing his brain), and offed himself before anyone else could come back and finish the job...um, yeah.
You may know that writer Ambrose Bierce wandered into revolutionary Mexico, and was never seen alive again, but did you know Boston Corbett, the man who killed John Wilkes Booth, also vanished in the American heartland? Or Black Bart, the famed stagecoach robber, also disappeared somewhere on the west coast?
What about the strange two deaths of Lewis and Clark's guide, Sacajawea (or Sakakawea, as she is known in the Great Plains)? Or the Mountain Meadows Massacre, where Mormon Church militia members and local Native Americans wiped out close to one hundred and fifty members of a wagon train, all because of lies and rumors spread all over Utah?
Was Jesse James really shot in the 1880's? Did Billy the Kid really die in Arizona? Or did both men live into their nineties, getting to know each other in their new lives, and reluctantly coming out in the 1930's and 1940's? Okay, according to DNA testing, that is Jesse in his grave, lending little help to Brushy Bill Roberts' claims that he was Billy the Kid.
Living in North Dakota, I have always had an interest in Western history. George Custer left his house near present day Mandan and died in Montana. Lewis and Clark and Sakakawea spent winters here, also near Mandan, on their great trek west and back. Teddy Roosevelt, after his mother and wife died on the same day, came to ranch near Medora, claiming he never would have had the courage to become president if it was not for his trials and tribulations in North Dakota. His presidential library is currently being constructed.
Walker's book is interesting, even to laypeople who have a passing interest in American history. The twelve chapters are evenly paced and never dull. There is an immense bibliography at the back of the book. After a kind foreword by John Jakes, Walker plunges us into the "old days," writing expertly and with enough description to read like fine fiction.
Legends and Lies: Great Mysteries of the America West is a fantastic starting point if you want to start reading more about Western history. There is such a variety of true stories, you can pick and choose your subject and become an armchair expert like I thought I was, until this book opened my eyes and has led me to do more reading. A good book will do that to you.
*Get a copy of Vengeance is Mine: The Mountain Meadows Massacre and its Aftermath by Richard E. Turley, Jr. and Barbara Jones Brown on Amazon here*
*Get a copy of Tales of Soldiers and Civilians: and Other Stories by Ambrose Bierce on Amazon here*
*Get a physical copy of "Lewis & Clark: The Journey of the Corps of Discovery" on Amazon here*
In twelve chapters, Walker touches on a dozen great mysteries of Western lore. He does not set out to solve any of them, but think again if you expect this book to do nothing but regurgitate old facts.
You may have heard of many of the stories in this book, since more than a few of them have been subjects of later books and documentaries. The "real" death of Davy Crockett, what happened at the Battle of Little Big Horn, and who is buried in Jesse James' tomb have all been covered on television, too, which lends credence to Walker's research. But what about some cases you learned about in school, and find out later things may not have happened the way your teacher said?
I am writing of the strange suicide of famed explorer Meriwether Lewis in Tennessee in 1809. All my life, I was told he killed himself, and that was that. Reading Lewis' book, we find he killed himself after being attacked by an unknown assailant. He was shot in the head (exposing his brain), and offed himself before anyone else could come back and finish the job...um, yeah.
You may know that writer Ambrose Bierce wandered into revolutionary Mexico, and was never seen alive again, but did you know Boston Corbett, the man who killed John Wilkes Booth, also vanished in the American heartland? Or Black Bart, the famed stagecoach robber, also disappeared somewhere on the west coast?
What about the strange two deaths of Lewis and Clark's guide, Sacajawea (or Sakakawea, as she is known in the Great Plains)? Or the Mountain Meadows Massacre, where Mormon Church militia members and local Native Americans wiped out close to one hundred and fifty members of a wagon train, all because of lies and rumors spread all over Utah?
Was Jesse James really shot in the 1880's? Did Billy the Kid really die in Arizona? Or did both men live into their nineties, getting to know each other in their new lives, and reluctantly coming out in the 1930's and 1940's? Okay, according to DNA testing, that is Jesse in his grave, lending little help to Brushy Bill Roberts' claims that he was Billy the Kid.
Living in North Dakota, I have always had an interest in Western history. George Custer left his house near present day Mandan and died in Montana. Lewis and Clark and Sakakawea spent winters here, also near Mandan, on their great trek west and back. Teddy Roosevelt, after his mother and wife died on the same day, came to ranch near Medora, claiming he never would have had the courage to become president if it was not for his trials and tribulations in North Dakota. His presidential library is currently being constructed.
Walker's book is interesting, even to laypeople who have a passing interest in American history. The twelve chapters are evenly paced and never dull. There is an immense bibliography at the back of the book. After a kind foreword by John Jakes, Walker plunges us into the "old days," writing expertly and with enough description to read like fine fiction.
Legends and Lies: Great Mysteries of the America West is a fantastic starting point if you want to start reading more about Western history. There is such a variety of true stories, you can pick and choose your subject and become an armchair expert like I thought I was, until this book opened my eyes and has led me to do more reading. A good book will do that to you.
Monday, November 11, 2024
Book Review: "The Civil War: Strange & Fascinating Facts" by Burke Davis
*Get the book on Amazon here*
Despite the title, these strange and fascinating facts may interest Civil War buffs, and not many others.
Burke Davis, the author of several history books, takes the little stories and factoids he has collected in research and puts them all here in small anecdotes. To appreciate the value of these stories, the reader should have more than a passing knowledge of the Civil War. Many names, dates, and battles are tossed around by an author who knows his subject, and requires his readers to know some, too.
The stories here are very entertaining, covering various subjects. The Civil War was full of "Firsts," First: successful submarine, hospital ships, tobacco and cigarette taxes, and U.S. presidential assassination. The book also mentions Confederate States president Jefferson Davis more than Abraham Lincoln, possibly because Davis is barely a footnote in high school history books today. Stonewall Jackson, Ulysses Grant, and Robert E. Lee are also profiled. One entertaining chapter debunks many myths surrounding Grant's drunken war behavior. Davis also gets serious, writing about widespread venereal disease, and atrocities committed on civilians by both sides.
Davis' book was published in 1960, and the publishers decided to reprint the book many times without updating it. Davis mentions the upcoming centennial of the war, and descendants of the major figures of the war and what they are doing today, or at least today many decades ago. Another drawback is the lack of an index, leaving a serious researcher to have to skim the book looking for useful information. The author mentions prices for Civil War memorabilia at current auction prices- again from many decades ago. Davis writes that more people lost their lives in the Civil War than in all the wars from the Revolution to our most current conflict- Korea. I will recommend this book as a cursory page turner. As a displaced Texan who descends from Confederate (and one Yankee) soldiers, I appreciated Davis' balanced view of both sides of the conflict. Too often today we lose sight of the fact that over 600,000 people lost their lives in this war, and still not many people know much about it.
Despite the title, these strange and fascinating facts may interest Civil War buffs, and not many others.
Burke Davis, the author of several history books, takes the little stories and factoids he has collected in research and puts them all here in small anecdotes. To appreciate the value of these stories, the reader should have more than a passing knowledge of the Civil War. Many names, dates, and battles are tossed around by an author who knows his subject, and requires his readers to know some, too.
The stories here are very entertaining, covering various subjects. The Civil War was full of "Firsts," First: successful submarine, hospital ships, tobacco and cigarette taxes, and U.S. presidential assassination. The book also mentions Confederate States president Jefferson Davis more than Abraham Lincoln, possibly because Davis is barely a footnote in high school history books today. Stonewall Jackson, Ulysses Grant, and Robert E. Lee are also profiled. One entertaining chapter debunks many myths surrounding Grant's drunken war behavior. Davis also gets serious, writing about widespread venereal disease, and atrocities committed on civilians by both sides.
Davis' book was published in 1960, and the publishers decided to reprint the book many times without updating it. Davis mentions the upcoming centennial of the war, and descendants of the major figures of the war and what they are doing today, or at least today many decades ago. Another drawback is the lack of an index, leaving a serious researcher to have to skim the book looking for useful information. The author mentions prices for Civil War memorabilia at current auction prices- again from many decades ago. Davis writes that more people lost their lives in the Civil War than in all the wars from the Revolution to our most current conflict- Korea. I will recommend this book as a cursory page turner. As a displaced Texan who descends from Confederate (and one Yankee) soldiers, I appreciated Davis' balanced view of both sides of the conflict. Too often today we lose sight of the fact that over 600,000 people lost their lives in this war, and still not many people know much about it.
Book Review: "Famous Movie Stars and Directors" by Joseph Stewart
*Get the book on Amazon here*
I had reviewed the nightmarish book from Santa Monica Press entitled Guide to Home Video and Movies by someone named Ryan Reed. That self-proclaimed ultimate video guide was full of misspellings and absent films, and an embarrassment to all the better video guides out there. At the same thrift store where I picked up that tome, I found Famous Movie Stars and Directors by Joseph Stewart. Also from Santa Monica Press, also exactly 128 pages, this sad book did not have as many misspellings, but the factual errors alone make it an awful choice for anyone out there writing a film studies paper, interested in movies, or just looking for a brief read.
This book is a collection of one and a half page profiles of well-known performers and directors- at least well-known when this was published in 1993. I decided to bring up some of the glaring errors from the Actor section only because if I corrected everything here, I would have enough material for a book of my own. I will mention that Faye Dunaway has been rechristened Faye "Dunawaye" every time she is written about, including the table of contents and her own profile.
From Dustin Hoffman's entry: "Hoffman has been nominated for four Academy Awards, for his performances as Ben Braddock in The Graduate (1967), Ratso Rizzo in Midnight Cowboy (1969), Lenny Bruce in Lenny (1974), and Raymond in Rain Man (1988). He finally won for this last film..." Good for Dustin, except he won his first Oscar for 1979's "Kramer vs. Kramer", and was also nominated for "Tootsie". Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone each get just one page for their entries. The longest entry is Bette Davis, who gets a whopping two and a half pages. Burt Reynolds' page and a half has only one of his films mentioned- "Deliverance." After naming James Stewart's films "Bell, Book, and Candle" and "Anatomy of a Murder," author Stewart writes "Arguably, he has not had a significant role since these films..." Pardon me while I get arguable, but did our author simply forget about "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," "How the West Was Won," "Shenandoah," "The Flight of the Phoenix," "The Shootist," and "Airport '77," or did he not possess the simplest film reference book?
Finally, he gets John Wayne, one of my favorite actors, all wrong. Back to the work: "Throughout the 1940's, he appeared in several uninspired movies, mostly Westerns and war films." While most of Wayne's output in the 1940's was Westerns and war films, see if you recognize some of these "uninspired" flicks: "Flying Tigers," "They Were Expendable," "Angel and the Badman," "Fort Apache," "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon," and his uninspired Oscar-nominated role in the uninspired "Sands of Iwo Jima." Whether a Wayne fan or not, you have to agree that Joseph Stewart has no idea what he is talking about, and Leonard Maltin, master of the film guide, had nothing to worry about.
So what did I do with these horrible reads? I donated them to the local library in my former hometown for their annual book sale. This was decades ago, but I'm willing to bet the quarter each I paid for these that they never sold.
I had reviewed the nightmarish book from Santa Monica Press entitled Guide to Home Video and Movies by someone named Ryan Reed. That self-proclaimed ultimate video guide was full of misspellings and absent films, and an embarrassment to all the better video guides out there. At the same thrift store where I picked up that tome, I found Famous Movie Stars and Directors by Joseph Stewart. Also from Santa Monica Press, also exactly 128 pages, this sad book did not have as many misspellings, but the factual errors alone make it an awful choice for anyone out there writing a film studies paper, interested in movies, or just looking for a brief read.
This book is a collection of one and a half page profiles of well-known performers and directors- at least well-known when this was published in 1993. I decided to bring up some of the glaring errors from the Actor section only because if I corrected everything here, I would have enough material for a book of my own. I will mention that Faye Dunaway has been rechristened Faye "Dunawaye" every time she is written about, including the table of contents and her own profile.
From Dustin Hoffman's entry: "Hoffman has been nominated for four Academy Awards, for his performances as Ben Braddock in The Graduate (1967), Ratso Rizzo in Midnight Cowboy (1969), Lenny Bruce in Lenny (1974), and Raymond in Rain Man (1988). He finally won for this last film..." Good for Dustin, except he won his first Oscar for 1979's "Kramer vs. Kramer", and was also nominated for "Tootsie". Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone each get just one page for their entries. The longest entry is Bette Davis, who gets a whopping two and a half pages. Burt Reynolds' page and a half has only one of his films mentioned- "Deliverance." After naming James Stewart's films "Bell, Book, and Candle" and "Anatomy of a Murder," author Stewart writes "Arguably, he has not had a significant role since these films..." Pardon me while I get arguable, but did our author simply forget about "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance," "How the West Was Won," "Shenandoah," "The Flight of the Phoenix," "The Shootist," and "Airport '77," or did he not possess the simplest film reference book?
Finally, he gets John Wayne, one of my favorite actors, all wrong. Back to the work: "Throughout the 1940's, he appeared in several uninspired movies, mostly Westerns and war films." While most of Wayne's output in the 1940's was Westerns and war films, see if you recognize some of these "uninspired" flicks: "Flying Tigers," "They Were Expendable," "Angel and the Badman," "Fort Apache," "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon," and his uninspired Oscar-nominated role in the uninspired "Sands of Iwo Jima." Whether a Wayne fan or not, you have to agree that Joseph Stewart has no idea what he is talking about, and Leonard Maltin, master of the film guide, had nothing to worry about.
So what did I do with these horrible reads? I donated them to the local library in my former hometown for their annual book sale. This was decades ago, but I'm willing to bet the quarter each I paid for these that they never sold.
Book Review: "The Good Little Mermaid's Guide to Bedtime" by Eija Summer, illustrated by Nici Gregory
*Get the book on Amazon here*
This charming book was a perfect fit for my two daughters, ages 6 and 4, who make it their nightly campaign to not go to bed.
An unnamed "good" little mermaid gets ready for bed. She thinks of herself as a predator who doesn't have time for such niceties as tidying up her room and brushing her (razor sharp) teeth. She's too busy striking fear into other marine life...while yawning...and will only go to sleep on her terms.
My daughters were enraptured throughout the book, even my sometimes distracted four year old. My six year old is obsessed with mermaids (she recently suggested the name "the Mermaids" for her soccer team), and this was a perfect fit. Gregory's illustrations are bold and splashy (sorry), with a lot of blues and greens. The book is large, and the illustrations pop off the page. This was a fun book to read, as well. I used a nice, calm voice to read the story about the good little mermaid getting ready for bed, and then a funny voice when the mermaid complains why she can't get ready. As the good little mermaid, I yawned at one point in the story and my six year old did, too.
The Good Little Mermaid's Guide to Bedtime is a delightful book perfect for the three to seven year old in your life. I see myself reading this a lot in the next few years.
This charming book was a perfect fit for my two daughters, ages 6 and 4, who make it their nightly campaign to not go to bed.
An unnamed "good" little mermaid gets ready for bed. She thinks of herself as a predator who doesn't have time for such niceties as tidying up her room and brushing her (razor sharp) teeth. She's too busy striking fear into other marine life...while yawning...and will only go to sleep on her terms.
My daughters were enraptured throughout the book, even my sometimes distracted four year old. My six year old is obsessed with mermaids (she recently suggested the name "the Mermaids" for her soccer team), and this was a perfect fit. Gregory's illustrations are bold and splashy (sorry), with a lot of blues and greens. The book is large, and the illustrations pop off the page. This was a fun book to read, as well. I used a nice, calm voice to read the story about the good little mermaid getting ready for bed, and then a funny voice when the mermaid complains why she can't get ready. As the good little mermaid, I yawned at one point in the story and my six year old did, too.
The Good Little Mermaid's Guide to Bedtime is a delightful book perfect for the three to seven year old in your life. I see myself reading this a lot in the next few years.
Friday, November 8, 2024
Book Review: "How to Be a Christian Without Being Religious" by Fritz Ridenour
*Get the book on Amazon here*
This 1967 paperback takes the apostle Paul's epistle to the Romans and does a deep read, translating his words to the modern churchgoer. The text I had was punctuated by some fun illustrations by Joyce Thimsen, and Ridenour had me almost all the way throughout the book
Paul wrote ahead to the Romans to prepare them for a visit he would be making, and doing a little preaching about how to deal with Jews and Gentiles. Ridenour quotes from the Living Letters paraphrase, as well as a couple of other writers. The provocative title is easily explained throughout the book, as believers are told that good works and saintly appearances do not necessarily equal being a "good" Christian, and that some are so busy being a flawless churchgoer, they lose sight of Who we are seeking fellowship to worship. Every chapter takes a section of the epistle, quotes it, and then Ridenour explains what Paul meant. The chapters end with "For Further Thought"- a series of questions that incorporate what you just read, other related verses in the Holy Bible, and some critical thinking on your part. There are no right answers. I did a deep read of this deep read, filling a small notebook with over thirty pages of notes, For Further Thought answers, and quotes. Paul's words are heavy on who can have God's salvation, and what must be done to achieve it through faith and not just show.
Ridenour does a great job of answering many "yeah, but what about...?" questions. Jesus died for our sins, but not the temptation of sin. You must be very strong with your gift of salvation to the point where sinning isn't be an option. "I can still sin a little, God will just forgive me again;" no, you are saved from the penalty and guilt of sin but fight the power or draw. The "For Further Thought" questions would confirm what Ridenour wrote, but also allowed me to question some of what was written. I had huge problems with one chapter, however. Paul tells us to love our neighbors as ourselves, but "Chapter 11: The Only Law You Need" also says to obey the government because God is the one who put it there. As I read this in the spring of 2024, and considering this fall's election, I could not wrap my head or heart around this idea. Yes, be a good citizen and pay your debts, but considering some of what members of our government do, they make it VERY difficult. God may be using them to challenge the believer, which Ridenour says will make us a better person, but this was very hard to accept- and I think I speak for many people across the political spectrum. I would love for the social media shrieking to die down- I was part of the noise, and I'm getting away from that. I'm tired of being insulted by people I have known for decades, so I skip those posts and pay more attention to family events, recipes I have no business wanting to try, and teasing my wife online.
I was reading this book and taking notes while waiting for my children to get out of school or while sitting in waiting rooms during appointments, so it took me almost a month. It was humorous to see many people staring into their phone screens for whatever reasons, while I was using my phone to read recommended Bible quotes. This is a nice introduction to non-fiction Christian reading, especially when the thought of reading The Holy Bible all the way through with little context is so daunting. I even jotted down some notes for a short article about some stoic wisdom from Marcus Aurelius, and how some of Paul's words relate. This is a very readable little book, and I recommend a deep read of this deep read to broaden your horizons.
This 1967 paperback takes the apostle Paul's epistle to the Romans and does a deep read, translating his words to the modern churchgoer. The text I had was punctuated by some fun illustrations by Joyce Thimsen, and Ridenour had me almost all the way throughout the book
Paul wrote ahead to the Romans to prepare them for a visit he would be making, and doing a little preaching about how to deal with Jews and Gentiles. Ridenour quotes from the Living Letters paraphrase, as well as a couple of other writers. The provocative title is easily explained throughout the book, as believers are told that good works and saintly appearances do not necessarily equal being a "good" Christian, and that some are so busy being a flawless churchgoer, they lose sight of Who we are seeking fellowship to worship. Every chapter takes a section of the epistle, quotes it, and then Ridenour explains what Paul meant. The chapters end with "For Further Thought"- a series of questions that incorporate what you just read, other related verses in the Holy Bible, and some critical thinking on your part. There are no right answers. I did a deep read of this deep read, filling a small notebook with over thirty pages of notes, For Further Thought answers, and quotes. Paul's words are heavy on who can have God's salvation, and what must be done to achieve it through faith and not just show.
Ridenour does a great job of answering many "yeah, but what about...?" questions. Jesus died for our sins, but not the temptation of sin. You must be very strong with your gift of salvation to the point where sinning isn't be an option. "I can still sin a little, God will just forgive me again;" no, you are saved from the penalty and guilt of sin but fight the power or draw. The "For Further Thought" questions would confirm what Ridenour wrote, but also allowed me to question some of what was written. I had huge problems with one chapter, however. Paul tells us to love our neighbors as ourselves, but "Chapter 11: The Only Law You Need" also says to obey the government because God is the one who put it there. As I read this in the spring of 2024, and considering this fall's election, I could not wrap my head or heart around this idea. Yes, be a good citizen and pay your debts, but considering some of what members of our government do, they make it VERY difficult. God may be using them to challenge the believer, which Ridenour says will make us a better person, but this was very hard to accept- and I think I speak for many people across the political spectrum. I would love for the social media shrieking to die down- I was part of the noise, and I'm getting away from that. I'm tired of being insulted by people I have known for decades, so I skip those posts and pay more attention to family events, recipes I have no business wanting to try, and teasing my wife online.
I was reading this book and taking notes while waiting for my children to get out of school or while sitting in waiting rooms during appointments, so it took me almost a month. It was humorous to see many people staring into their phone screens for whatever reasons, while I was using my phone to read recommended Bible quotes. This is a nice introduction to non-fiction Christian reading, especially when the thought of reading The Holy Bible all the way through with little context is so daunting. I even jotted down some notes for a short article about some stoic wisdom from Marcus Aurelius, and how some of Paul's words relate. This is a very readable little book, and I recommend a deep read of this deep read to broaden your horizons.
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Book & Film Review: How to Judge Motion Pictures, and How to Organize a Photoplay Club by Sarah McLean Mullen/"Gent Video Centerfold #4: Stacey Owen" (1987)
* Get your copy on Amazon here * You remember the scene, I know you do. In 1989's "Dead Poets Society," teacher John Keating...
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* Get North Dakota history books on Amazon here * Before 1878, the Northern Pacific surveyors made their way west from Mandan, North Dakot...
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* Get the book on Amazon here * Despite the title, these strange and fascinating facts may interest Civil War buffs, and not many others. ...
