josiahdegraaf's reviews
1185 reviews

Real Sex: The Naked Truth about Chastity by Lauren F. Winner

4.75

I've gotten to the age where I roll my eyes at edgy book titles like this one. (Which is not a diss on Winner; I know how the publishing industry works and who really chooses the titles for these kinds of books.) But once you get over the annoyance at the marketing guru who feels the need to use sexy language to sell a book on chastity, this is really a pretty excellent work. I may even go so far as to say that it's the best book on chastity that I've read.

Winner does a fantastic job in this book of talking quite honestly about the challenges of chastity and what practicing it requires. She speaks to the real issues celibate Christians face. And she does a fantastic job pointing to <i>why</i> chastity matters in a way that doesn't just list the relevant Bible verses, but digs into the foundation of why sex is important and why honoring God with this aspect of our humanity matters. (And how it affects the rest of society, whether we realize it or not!)

The book left me with a lot of interesting ideas to think on. While this book is nearly two decades old at this point, it still feels like a book that seeks to reframe the current discussion on chastity in Christian circles in very helpful ways. And while there were a few parts I wasn't as sure of as others (or may put differently myself), I very much appreciated and benefited from this book as a whole. Winner is an astute writer, and I'd highly recommend this book to any other Christians interested in exploring the why and how of chastity.

Just forgive the provocative title.

Rating: 4.5-5 Stars (Excellent).

The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik

3.75

Solid sequel to the first book in this trilogy. The protagonist's character arc and the way she grew in unexpected ways over the course of this story intrigued me. And of course, her humor and voice was as delightful as ever (though that sometimes led to a slower action pace given how much time was spent in the quirky rabbit trails in her head). The book seemed to meander at times, but that made where it finally ended up entertainingly unexpected.

Rating: 3.5-4 Stars (Good).

Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson

4.0

Just a delightful story. And for those critics who claim that Sanderson can't write rich prose, this book is a prime example of the fact that he does know how to embellish his prose when he wants to. This book is quite different from Sanderson's normal fare in that regard, but I very much enjoyed the time spent in this book and would love to see more "different" projects like this from him.

Rating: 4 Stars (Very Good).

A Gentleman in Moscow: A Novel by Amor Towles, Amor Towles

medium-paced

4.25

 I was rather surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. It's slower than most books I enjoy reading--and there are large portions of the book where it feels like there isn't much of import happening.

But I also found myself thoroughly enjoying the character and world of this book. Even though the world was limited to a single hotel! Towles did a wonderful job depicting the secret life that went on amidst this hotel. The depictions of Russian history over this time period were fascinating. And I found myself very much invested in the life of the Count and those around him.

Very enjoyable read.

Rating: 4-4.5 Stars (Very Good). 

The Violent Bear It Away by Flannery O'Connor

dark funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.75

While I've very much enjoyed many of O'Connor's short stories, I've struggled with her novels. But I think I've read enough of her at this point to understand enough of how she uniquely frames stories to "get" this one. It's weird, it's dark, and it's definitely subversive. But as a darkly twisted (but earnest) angle at how God's calling can take a hold on our life in very real and meaningful ways (despite how ridiculous it can seem at times), this book left me with a lot to reflect on.

Rating: 3.5-4 Stars (Good).

Unnatural Death by Dorothy L. Sayers

funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes

3.75

I think this was the first Sayers novel I read where I first realized just how funny she could be with her characters. Enjoyable mystery that not only has some great twists, but at the deepest level just has some delightfully quirky characters to spend time with.

Rating: 3.5-4 Stars (Good).

Gallipoli by Peter Hart

dark sad slow-paced

3.5

This is a very thorough book, and one should not take my three star rating as a sign that it was poorly-written. Just an acknowledgement that, as a lay reader, this book was a bit overly detailed for my tastes. I did appreciate the meticulous research and primary sources quoted in this historical account, even if they contributed to the granular details that sometimes made the book feel like a slog. I also very much appreciated the conclusion that tied a lot of disparate ends together.

As a whole: probably not the best book for the lay reader, but if you want a comprehensive, in-depth look at what happened at Gallipoli, this book should be right up your alley!

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Good).

On The Psychology Of Military Incompetence by Norman F. Dixon

medium-paced

4.0

Fascinating read on how authoritarianism in the military is one of the central roots of military incompetence. That thesis obviously has applications far outside the military as well. As a lay person, I'm not educated enough to have strong opinions on this topic, but the case seemed well-argued as a whole, though I <i>will</i> agree with the concerns of other viewers that this is pretty British-focused in the examples it chooses to analyze.

Overall, this was a good read that sparked a lot of thoughts.

Rating: 4 Stars (Very Good).

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

I was rather surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. It's slower than most books I enjoy reading--and there are large portions of the book where it feels like there isn't much of import happening.

But I also found myself thoroughly enjoying the <I>character</i> and <i>world</i> of this book. Even though the world was limited to a single hotel! Towles did a wonderful job depicting the secret life that went on amidst this hotel. The depictions of Russian history over this time period were fascinating. And I found myself very much invested in the life of the Count and those around him.

Very enjoyable read.

Rating: 4-4.5 Stars (Very Good).

Death of an Army: The Siege of Kut 1915-1916 by Ronald Millar

slow-paced

3.75

As a layman reader, there were at times where I got a bit lost and bogged down in all of the granular details I had difficulty following. But most of the book was pretty easy to follow and I enjoyed reading it. I would have liked to get a bit of a better sense for the personalities of some of the "main characters" since it was a bit "plot-heavy" to use some fictional terms. But as a historical overview of what happened during the siege of Kut, this was an interesting read.

3.5-4 Stars (Good).