The Biblio-Files

bib·li·o·phile (bĭb'lē-ə-fīl') n.

1. A lover of books.
2. A collector of books.

4.1.09

A Challenge

This is probably more for myself than any others, but I am taking it upon myself to read more this year. I think I try to convince myself of this every year, but this morning I read something that I pray will keep me motivated.

As I was catching up on some blogs, I stumbled upon an article about George W. Bush being a book lover. Intrigued, I read it to find that he is an avid reader, reading many more books that I do! In 2006 he read ninety-five books. In 2007 he read fifty-one. In 2008 he read forty!

While his numbers may have declined, I found myself ashamed for not taking the time to read more than I do. I barely make it through one complete book a month, and here the leader of the United States of America is reading an average of over a book a week for the past three years! With all the concerns and tasks and travels that he must surely have to endure, he still finds time to read, and here I am a simple state employee bemoaning the "fact" that I just don't have the time to read. Shame on me. 

While his books may not be theological or Biblical in nature, it was not as if he was reading easy material. I have stumbled through a Halberstam book, and to see him reading one as part of his list, I realized that I do not have an excuse. The difficult must be read with the simple. The non-fiction with the fiction. The theological with the worldly.

So my challenge to myself this year, and to anyone else is to read at least a book every other week. One book every fourteen days. Surely it is possible. And my goal is to read biographies was well as theology. Fiction (a small dose) with non-fiction. The difficult with the not-so-difficult. And a book review with each. It is not enough to merely skim through, but to grasp what the author is trying to convey and share with others.

I told Laura I do not like new year resolutions, so this is not one. Instead I will call it a determination, a conviction if you will. Whatever it may be, it is a challenge to myself. Eleven days to finish When Grace Comes Home...

Any suggestions for my reading list?

5 comments:

Eron said...

Slade,

Dude, thanks for the post and challenge! I was challenged, fo sho.

Bush is respectable for sure as a disciplined reader. I often forget that presidents are truly geniuses and are worthy of much respect, regardless of their party. People who sit around a watch TV all day are in no place to speak as if they could be a better president. It is often the behind-the-scenes facts about a person's life that make him so inspiring, and convicting. Those who read will lead.

It also makes me appreciate Dr. Mohler so much, who reads 7-10 a week!!! It puts into perspective what (or rather, who) I encounter on a regular basis. Mohler for president!!

Thanks again. I hope to see you this weekend in Eldo. We are all looking forward to it.

Peace,
EP

Eron said...

P.S. The whole Mohler for president thing was just a joke. But, hey, "the land of opportunity" thing, right?

E

Jay Scott said...

Slade,

you can check out my Shelfari for one I like, but I recommend Give Us This Day by Sidney Stewart. It's a very fast read, it'll take you under a week. Every American should read this book. Period. It covers what happened to the survivors of the infamous Bataan Death March in World War II.

In April 1942, Sidney Stewart, a 21-year-old U.S. Army enlisted man, was captured at Bataan. For nearly three and a half years, until he was liberated by the Russians in Manchuria, he remained a prisoner of war of the Japanese. Everyone should read it to see what these men went through, and the sacrifices they made. There's actually a Bataan Death March survivor in San Angelo. He was still alive when I left San Angelo, but he may have passed now. I don't remember his name, but he's a member of Harris Baptist Church.

Slade said...

Just as an update: My lack of reviews does not mean that I have not been reading. I am on my third and fourth books of the year. I am reading two simply because one is quite large and difficult, therefore I figured it best to read one "easier" book along with it.

Anyone else making good progress?

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