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A Bookshelf of Mentors and Friends March 2010
A Bookshelf of Mentors and Friends
A friend of mine asks an intriguing question when trying to get to know someone: “What movie can I watch in order to understand you?” (How about it?! What movie could I watch to understand you?! I’d love to hear. And then I’ll tell you what my own answer is.)
The same type of thing might be done with books. As I’ve mentioned to a few of you recently, I’ve been collecting 3 sets of the most important 20 books in my life. I plan to pass them down to our three sons. And with them, I’ll say, “These books will let you know your dad better, and so you’ll know yourself better. And they’ll probably bless you in brand new ways.”
All of them have been important to me, but for different reasons. God has used some of them to transform my life. Others capture a sense of a community that formed me, like the rural, Dutch community of my youth, or the inner-city, African-American community of my first fifteen years of ministry. Still others have done for me what all books worth reading do: they helped me see the truth about life more clearly, or they opened up my affections or imagination so that I could live more truly. And some were great books at just the right time of life.
The list actually started at 10, but it grew. Now and again a newly read book replaces another, as will probably happen again. Of the 20, I have 3 copies of some, 1 or 2 of others; hard cover copies are a good stimulus package for used bookstores but not the family budget. Of course I wish I could make the list 40 or 50, but, alas, even 20 may be too many. Two books aren’t on the list but are so basic as to be assumed: the Bible (I’ll have a well-worn edition for each) and the Psalter Hymnal (the songs and confessions which have shaped my faith and life).
A couple people asked if they could see a copy of the list. So, I offer it, not so much to say that my list is important, but to stimulate your own reflection on what good reading you do, and what books you might offer to bless others around you. Take a look. I’ve included a brief hint as to why each is there.
Sietze Buning, Purpaleanie and Other Permutations (life in rural Zutphen, MI, the 1950’s CRC)
Phillip Gulley, Front Porch Tales (stories of small town, Midwest values of my youth)
David James Duncan, The Brothers K (the 1960’s world I grew up in; full of joy and sadness)
J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit (me in my late teens and early twenties, hobbit style)
C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity (the book God used to lead me to Christ as if for the first time)
C.S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (the good news of God, Narnia style)
John Calvin, The Golden Booklet of the True Christian Life (a short summary of the Christian life )
Cornelius Plantenga, Jr., Beyond Doubt (a mentor’s devotional on basic Christian truths)
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship (the book Jesus used to make me a disciple)
Frederick Buechner, Godric (I saw my life in this, albeit from a pirate-become-hermit’s view)
Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird (as a youth, this impassioned me about injustice)
Martin Luther King, Jr., “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” (a prophet to America; urban ministry)
Gary Schmidt, Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy (race issues, bucking church tradition)
John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath (what writing!; the issues of the ‘20’s remain in CA today)
Henry Nouwen, With Open Hands (prayer and life)
Lewis Smedes, Love within Limits (a mentor’s thoughts on “the greatest of these: love”)
Walter Wangerin, As For Me and My House (one of two books that helped our marriage)
M. Scott Peck, The Road Less Traveled (psychology and spirituality blessing life)
Geoffrey Chaucer, Canterbury Tales (on a desert island, if I could take only two books…!)
Eugene Peterson, Reversed Thunder (my pastoral mentor from books; “the last word” on life)
There’s my list. How about yours?! And then, with me, keep reading and growing! —Pastor Mark Vermaire
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