Nonsense - Jamie Holmes

The power of no knowing. The author is a Future Tense Fellow at New America and a former research coordinator at Harvard University. He uses his background and experiences in this book to report on such diverse topics as hostage negotiators, fashion trends, and the art of contradiction. This is an interesting book, in just the mere fact all these subjects are addressed and woven together in one book.
"It turns out that what matters most isn't IQ, willpower, or confidence in what we know. It's how we deal with what we don't understand." says the author.This is a well researched book, and the notes section itself is over 75 pages long and very extensive. If you need to know anything about his research or for further study, you will find it here.
Th writing and topics reminded me of Malcolm Gladwell in some places, and how the author tied seemingly unconnected processes and events together. The Waco incident and the Yom Kippur War.
This is writing at a different level, to be able to hold the attention of a reader with a story that has been over-reported in so many media outlets, and to tell it from another perspective. Or think about it in a different way, hearing about what was going on in the background, behind the scenes.
With chapter titles such as, The problem with urgency, why intentions are misread, and the uses of uncertainty, this is a book that covers a lot of ground. Divided into three parts, Making Sense, Handling ambiguity, and Embracing uncertainty, after reading this book you will realize that you don't always have to be certain. At over 300 pages, it may take some readers some time to get through this book, but it is worth the read.
I was provided a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for this review.

Your Daily Brain - 24 hours in the life of your brain

From the minds behind Marbles, the brain store, and marblesthebrainstore.com, comes this book explaining what your brain does every day, every 24 hours. This book is divided into 3 sections, The morning, the day, and the evening. There are short chapters with a digital clock next to each describing what is going on in your brain during each of the times. Each chapter moves in 15 minute time periods throughout the day. from 6:30 AM to 9 PM. At the end of each chapter there is a paragraph summing up the activity.
This is an interesting book, but not quite what I expected.I would have preferred longer chapters, with maybe more technical information, Still in my opinion, the best parts are the paragraphs at the end of the chapters. that are short to to the point and full of information. It's the kind of book that appeals to readers into psychology and how people think. Or if you just want to know what your own brain is doing during the day. The author is listed as Garth Sundem, who has also authored several other book, including Brain Candy, Brain Trust, and Beyond IQ, He can be found at www.garthsundem.com.
I can see how this book would be useful those of us who want to find out how we tick, and how our mind works. This is still the kind of book that I like to read.
Published by threeriverspress.com.
I have been provided a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for this review.

Lay It Down- Bill Tell

Living in the freedom of the Gospel. There's good news for the weary.  Burnout, spiritual breakdown, depression. From the very beginning, the author uses quotes from a lot of authors that are recognizable to many readers. Among them, Brennan Manning, Tim Keller, John Eldredge, Wayne Grudem, and John Stott.  And that;s just in the first few chapters.  Other quotes from C.S. Lewis, John Calvin, Paul Tripp, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Phillip Yancey, and Charles Spurgeon.  He certainly is well read and obviously has a lot of respect for those that have come before him.
This is a very personal story of the author's struggle with burn out, depression and exhaustion, that lead him to a crisis and eventually intensive therapy. A lot of people that go through this do not have the luxury of two weeks of intensive therapy, let alone a support group and understanding people around. He had uncovered some deep seated issues of worthiness, culminating in a story of purchasing a new shirt, one that was not a hand me down, The realization that our identity and worthiness is is in Christ, struck him many years after.
This book is divided into three parts, God Views me differently, God Makes me different, God Relates to me Differently. In particular, his discussion of the difference between Punishment vs. Discipline I found interesting. There are quotes from a few versions of the Bible, some may have an issue with quotes from The Message paraphrase. The book does state that the devil will try to convince us to believe lies about ourselves, he is called the accuser for a reason. For those that have been through a similar situation, it offers hope and advice and confidence that there is rest and peace through trusting in Jesus for our sufficiency. He is all we need.
Bill Tell serves as National Staff development Specialist for the Navigators.
Published by Navpress, in alliance with Tyndale House publishers.
I have received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for a review.

Reframe - Brian Harden

From the God we've made, to God with us.  Published by Navpress. This book has a bright red cover that makes it hard to miss. I could see it sticking out among other books at a bookstore because of this. The author wrote this book because "I realized most of the the things I knew about God, somebody had told me." He "accepted the challenge to become intimately connected to God, and it changed him forever."
In chapter one, right of the bat, he states, "It's all about you." That kind of thew me off, being Reformed and all, I thought my life should be all about God. You know the whole dying to self thing.
But I did fond some good quotes, like the one on page 149, "He has given Himself completely. What more could He do to prove His love? He has devoted Himself to relationship with us. How can we give any less? Why should God expect any less?" Now that is giving up our life to lose it, giving our all to God, and being totally dedicated.
The uthor is the vision and voice behind the Daily Audio Bible, which boasts 74 million downloads and more than 150,000 daily listeners.
In the prologue, the author says he writes from the via media. a Latin phrase that means middle of the road. He also states he didn't write anything just to be controversial, and there for me is the problem. I do believe his intentions are right, but sitting where he is on the fence, seems to be based on emotion and not willing to offend anyone.
One of the biggest issues I have is on the same prolouge where he offers his own version of the "sinner's prayer." Especially the line, "I give you permission to touch all the broken places in me." Obviously God, being sovereign, does not need permission to be invited into our lives. It seems to be a lot of romantic, emotional feelings are expressed. I found it all a bit too light and fluffy for my tastes.  Kind of like marshmallows, when I was expecting meat and potatoes. Also distressing was a quote from Robert Schuller to introduce one chapter.
The book is in 3 parts, Rethink, Reframe, and Restart.
Among everything else, another good quoteon page 51, concerning the way we need to reframe how we see God, "God has basically been framed as the very wealthy uncle who also happens to be the family drunk. We need to keep Him happy so that we can get what we want and need."
Overall, I am sorry to say, I can't really recommend this book.
I have been provided a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for this review.

The Ragamuffin Gospel = Brennan Manning 25th Anniversary Edition

On the inside cover the author states who this book is for. "This book is for the bent and the bruised who feel that their lives are a grave disappointment to God."
Despite the fact their is a recommendation from Eugene Patterson (author of the Message) inside, I would recommend this book. This most recent release is the hard cover 25th anniversary edition. I had read this book years ago, and re-reading it helped me to remember how honest and real it was. The author definitely puts his own story between the pages, claiming to be a ragamuffin himself. I have an older paperback edition, and was glad to see it published as a hard cover for, I believe, the first time. To me, a few pages on Martin Luther and the Reformation is always a good sign. The entire book is about God's grace. The undeserved, unmerited favor of God, that is only through faith, not by works.
In an honest admission of failure, on page 16 the author states, "Often I have been asked, "Brennan, how is it possible that you became an alcoholic after you got saved?" It is possible because I got battered and bruised by loneliness and failure; because I got discouraged, uncertain, guilt-ridden, and took my eyes off Jesus." We need more upfront statements like these in this world, where we all think that everyone else has it all together. They don't.
Chapter 2 begins with a description of creation that makes a good case for intelligent design.
Although he never uses the words total depravity, he describes the depravity that we are all capable of, but God loves us anyway. In the chapter titles Paste jewelry and sawdust hot dogs, the author states "The way we treat each other is the truest test of our faith" How we show our love to our fellow humans on this earth.
And on page 189, "The first step toward rejuvenation begins with accepting where you are and exposing your poverty, frailty, and emptiness to the love that is everything."
The whole idea that we can't earn God's grace or His favor, is all through this book. The author has a gentle way of writing, that invites the reader to have a conversation, a dialog, and is quite easy to read. I will enjoy having it on my shelf as a hard cover.
I have been provided a complimentary copy of this book  in exchange for a review.