I think this was an excellent year for reading: sixteen full length books, thirteen books from the Bible, my monthly Magnificat devotional magazine, and [twenty-one] short works. That’s more than last year. Several of the books were started the previous year and carried over into 2021. But I am also not counting books that are unfinished and carried into this year. So I would say that’s a net wash as to total reading. That’s one and a third books per month, not including the Biblical readings, the short readings, and the monthly devotional. 2021 was a good year for reading.
Of the sixteen full length books, twelve were
non-fiction and four were fiction. I’m really disappointed I only read
four novels. I wish I could change that ratio but obligations seem to
dictate I read more non-fiction. Of the twelve non-fiction I would
categorize three as works of spirituality, two as works of social commentary,
three as works of Catholic apologetics, one as political philosophy, one as a
personal memoir, one on art history, and one that could be classified as
history or apologetics.
Of the spiritual readings there was St. John
of the Cross’ Dark Night of the Soul, which is one of the great
spiritual classics. I must admit I found it difficult but it was
definitely worth reading. I read Christopher Carstens’ A Devotional
Journey into the Mass: How Mass Can Become a Time of Grace, Nourishment, and
Devotion, because I had just written a little treatise explaining the
Mass to someone who is not Catholic and I came across this book wondering if I
had forgotten anything. Cartsten’s had a few insights I didn’t think of
but for the most I was on the mark. I thought Carsten’s book was
good. Finally Dominican Life: A Commentary on the Rule of St.
Augustine was a series of meditations by Fr. Walter Wagner, O.P. on
life in the Dominican religious order through the understanding of the Rule of
St. Augustine. The Rule of St. Augustine is what governs Dominican life,
if you didn’t know. Wagner’s book was very insightful.
Of the books on social commentary there
were Things Worth Dying For: Thoughts on a Life Worth Living by
retired Bishop Charles J. Chaput and Confessions of an Islamophobe,
by Robert Spencer. Chaput’s book contemplates the integrity of the modern
Catholic faced with an adversarial society, and Spencer’s book, mixing memoir
with contemporary news, discusses what has made him such a critic of
Islam. Both very good reads.
The three books of apologetics include Catholicism:
A Journey to the Heart of the Faith by Robert Barron (now Bishop
Barron; he wasn’t bishop when he published it), Hail, Holy Queen: The
Mother of God in the Word of God by Dr. Scott Hahn, and Jesus
and the Jewish Roots of Mary: Unveiling the Mother of the Messiah by
Dr. Brant Pitre. Barron’s book has become a classic and we read it for
Adult Faith Formation class at my parish. The Adult Faith Formation at
the parish is what we call a class for adults to grow deeper in their knowledge
and faith. The Scott Hahn and Brant Pitre books are both on the Marian
doctrines in Catholicism and I read them because I am teaching it at Adult
Faith Formation this year. Both are very good but while Hahn’s book is
more entertaining the Pitre book is just a little deeper. I consider the
Pitre book the definitive book on the Catholic (and Eastern Orthodox) Marian
doctrines. And, yes, they are Biblical.
Both books of history, How Catholic
Art Saved the Faith: The Triumph of Beauty and Truth in Counter-Reformation Art by
Elizabeth Lev and Mystery of the Magi: The Quest to Identify the Three
Wise Men, by Dwight Longenecker are books that mix history with
apologetics. The Elizabeth Lev book is a historical response of the
Catholic Church to the Reformation through art. But the Reformation
occurred at the tail end of the Renaissance, so one can gain insight to the
historical transition from the 15th century to the 16th art.
It’s an excellent book. The Fr. Dwight Longenecker—he’s a Catholic
priest—book is a historical exploration on of the real persons of the
Magi. Fr. Longenecker quite convincingly shows the legends surrounding
the Magi were just legends—legends which by the way are not Biblical—and the
real Magi were diplomats from the Arabian nation of Nabataea. I haven’t
posted on these two books on the blog, but stay tuned. I expect to in the
coming weeks.
The two remaining non-fiction books were quite
superlative, though they had nothing in common. Conservatism: An
Invitation to the Great Tradition by Roger Scruton is a book of
political philosophy which traces the conservative inclination and governance
back to the Enlightenment. That is not to say modern conservativism was a
product of the Enlightenment but a counter to the Enlightenment. And
Roger Scruton was one of the most articulate and feisty conservative of our
day. He just passed away two years ago. I have to read more from
him. I do admire him so. The other book, Thirst For Truth:
From Mohammad to Jesus by Nikki Kingsley, is a conversion story from
Islam to Catholicism. Some conversion stories are intellectual and some
experiential. Kingsley’s story is not just experiential but
mystical. And courageous. It is not easy for a woman to leave
Islam.
As I look back, all twelve of the non-fiction
reads are highly recommended. There wasn’t a disappointment in any of
them
On the other hand, the paltry four books of
fiction that I read this year were of mixed quality. Graham
Greene’s The Power and the Glory was the standout. It is
one of the great novels of the 20th century and arguably in the
handful top of the novels in the Catholic tradition. I would check out my
posts on this novel; I think I give some particularly good insight into
it. Prince Caspian from C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles
of Narnia series is a delightful charm, as all in the series.
Also delightful is Rumer Goddard’s In This House of Brede.
It’s a story of reclusion of a worldly business woman into a Benedictine
monastery, and it portrays life there in exquisite detail. I won’t say
it’s a great novel, but it’s a good and enjoyable novel. Finally, Brian
Moore’s Catholics: A Novel was terrible. It didn’t know
what it was trying to be or what it was trying to say. At least I
couldn’t figure it out. I wrote up some posts on it if you want to get
more details, but I do not recommend it.
I read thirteen books of the Bible this year,
twelve from the Old Testament and one from the New. The twelve from the
Old Testament were of the twelve Minor Prophets which conclude the Hebrew
Scriptures: Books of Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk,
Zephaniah, Haggai, Zachariah, and Malachi. I read these in both the King
James Version and the Revised Standard Version, Catholic
Edition. That completes my reading of the Old Testament, which
started before I started this blog, some ten years ago. This means I have
now read the Bible from end to end. It also means I’ve completed a
reading in the King James translation. I’ve said this before but I have
mixed feelings about the KJV. It’s got some very beautiful passages but
it also has some stilted and archaic passages, which to me make it
opaque. It was an artificially constructed English to endow the writing
with a certain sacred sound. Some people like that. I prefer
clarity, that’s why I read the RSV in parallel. But I wanted to read the
King James end to end once in my life because of its historical influence on
the English language. Now that I have done that, I have no need to go
back to the King James. The one book of the New Testament that I read
this year was Acts of the Apostles, and I read it in the RSV only
since I had read it in KJV in the past.
Of the short reads, I’ll only address the two
non-fiction short reads here. They were both apostolic letters from two
different popes. Candor Lucis Aeternae, by Pope Francis,
this year commemorated the 700th anniversary of Dante
Alighieri’s death, a milestone. The other, Dei Verbum, an
apostolic letter by Pope Paul VI, was one of the important documents to come
out of Vatican II. I’m hoping to post something on it. Both were
relatively short, insightful, and worth reading.
The [nineteen] short stories will get its own
post, and there I will select the best short story read of the year. As
has been my tradition.
Finally I should say a word about my Magnificat magazine.
I truly love it. I look forward to that monthly arrival in the
mail. As far as I can tell it’s the best monthly devotional of its kind,
and I have seen several kinds. Not only do you get the daily Mass
readings, you get prayers, meditations, articles, lives of saints, and
art. I list them as part of my reads because I really do read several
hundred pages per month from it, which is in itself a book each month.
###
This year I’m going to provide the list of
reads by form upfront and give you by chronology at the end. Correct me
if you disagree, but I think it’s easier to identify the works this way.
Full Length Books: 16
Non-Fiction: 12
Dark Night of the Soul, a non-fiction work of spirituality by St. John of the
Cross.
Things Worth Dying For: Thoughts on a Life
Worth Living, a non-fiction work by
Charles J. Chaput.
A Devotional Journey into the Mass: How
Mass Can Become a Time of Grace, Nourishment, and Devotion, a non-fiction devotional concerning the Catholic Mass
by Christopher Carstens.
Catholicism: A Journey to the Heart of the
Faith, a non-fiction work by Robert
Barron.
Hail, Holy Queen: The Mother of God in the
Word of God, a non-fiction work by Scott
Hahn.
Conservatism: An Invitation to the Great
Tradition, a non-fiction book by Roger
Scruton.
Thirst For Truth: From Mohammad to Jesus, a personal memoir by Nikki Kingsley.
Confessions of an Islamophobe, a non-fiction book on Islam by Robert Spencer.
How Catholic Art Saved the Faith: The
Triumph of Beauty and Truth in Counter-Reformation Art, a non-fiction book by Elizabeth Lev.
Jesus and the Jewish Roots of Mary:
Unveiling the Mother of the Messiah, a
non-fiction book by Brant Pitre.
Mystery of the Magi: The Quest to Identify
the Three Wise Men, a non-fiction work
by Dwight Longenecker.
Dominican Life: A Commentary on the Rule of
St. Augustine, a non-fiction work by
Walter Wagner, O.P.
Fiction: 4
Prince Caspian, a novel from the Chronicles of Narnia series
by C. S. Lewis.
In This House of Brede, a novel by Rumer Goddard.
Catholics: A Novel, a novel by Brian Moore.
The Power and the Glory, a novel by Graham Greene.
Bible: 13
Old Testament: 12
Book of Hosea, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Joel, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Amos, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Obadiah, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Jonah, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Micah, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Nahum, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Habakkuk, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Zephaniah, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Haggai, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Zachariah, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Malachi, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
New Testament: 1
Acts of the Apostles, a book of the New Testament, RSV translation.
Magazines: 12
Magnificat, January thru December 2021, a monthly Catholic
devotional.
Short Works:
Non-Fiction: 2
Candor Lucis Aeternae, an Apostolic Letter from Pope Francis.
Dei Verbum, an apostolic letter from Pope Paul VI.
Short Stories:
“Baptism,” a (Don Camillio) short story by
Giovanni Guareschi, translated by Adam Elgar.
“The Coffee-House of Surat,” a short story by
Leo Tolstoy.
“The Presence,” a short story by Caroline
Gordon.
“Nimram,” a short story by John Gardner.
“Screwball,” a short story by William Baer.
“Swept Away,” a short story by T. Coraghessan
Boyle.
“Wintry Peacock,” a short story by D. H.
Lawrence.
“Acts of God,” a short story by Ellen
Gilchrist.
“In the Walled City,” a short story by Sewart
O’Nan.
“Granted Wishes: Unpopular Girl,” a short
story by Thomas Berger.
“Gods,” a short story by Vladimir Nabokov.
“The Manager of ‘The Kremlin,’” a short story
by Evelyn Waugh.
“A Snowy Night on West Forty-Ninth
Street,” a short story by Maeve Brennan.
“Dead Man’s Path,” a short story by
Chinua Achebe.
“The Sea change,” a short story by Ernest
Hemingway.
“The Unrest-Cure,” a short story by Saki
(H.H. Munro).
“The Curse,” a short story by Andre Dubus.
“Shower of Gold,” a short story by Eudora Welty.
“A Night in the Poorhouse,” a short story by
Isaac Bashevis Singer.
###
My 2021 reads arranged chronologically.
Completed First Quarter:
Prince Caspian, a novel from the Chronicles of Narnia series
by C. S. Lewis.
Magnificat, January 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
“Baptism,” a (Don Camillio) short story by
Giovanni Guareschi, translated by Adam Elgar.
Magnificat, February 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
In This House of Brede, a novel by Rumer Goddard.
“The Coffee-House of Surat,” a short story by
Leo Tolstoy.
“The Presence,” a short story by Caroline
Gordon.
Dark Night of the Soul, a non-fiction work of spirituality by St. John of the
Cross.
Magnificat, March 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
“Nimram,” a short story by John Gardner.
“Screwball,” a short story by William Baer.
Completed Second Quarter:
Magnificat, April 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
Things Worth Dying For: Thoughts on a Life
Worth Living, a non-fiction work by
Charles J. Chaput.
Magnificat, May 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
“Swept Away,” a short story by T. Coraghessan
Boyle.
“Wintry Peacock,” a short story by D. H.
Lawrence.
“Acts of God,” a short story by Ellen
Gilchrist.
Candor Lucis Aeternae, an Apostolic Letter from Pope Francis.
A Devotional Journey into the Mass: How
Mass Can Become a Time of Grace, Nourishment, and Devotion, a non-fiction devotional concerning the Catholic Mass
by Christopher Carstens.
Magnificat, June 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
Completed Third Quarter:
Magnificat, July 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
Catholics: A Novel, a novel by Brian Moore.
Catholicism: A Journey to the Heart of the
Faith, a non-fiction work by Robert
Barron.
“In the Walled City,” a short story by
Sewart O’Nan.
“Granted Wishes: Unpopular Girl,” a short
story by Thomas Berger.
Magnificat, August 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
Hail, Holy Queen: The Mother of God in the
Word of God, a non-fiction work by Scott
Hahn.
The Power and the Glory, a novel by Graham Greene.
“Gods,” a short story by Vladimir Nabokov.
Acts of the Apostles, a book of the New Testament, RSV translation.
“The Manager of ‘The Kremlin,’” a short story
by Evelyn Waugh.
“A Snowy Night on West Forty-Ninth
Street,” a short story by Maeve Brennan.
Conservatism: An Invitation to the Great
Tradition, a non-fiction book by Roger
Scruton.
“Dead Man’s Path,” a short story by Chinua
Achebe.
Magnificat, September 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
Completed Fourth Quarter:
Book of Hosea, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Joel, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Amos, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Obadiah, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Thirst For Truth: From Mohammad to Jesus, a personal memoir by Nikki Kingsley.
Confessions of an Islamophobe, a non-fiction book on Islam by Robert Spencer.
“The Sea change,” a short story by Ernest
Hemingway.
Magnificat, October 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
“The Unrest-Cure,” a short story by Saki (H.H.
Munro).
“The Curse,” a short story by Andre Dubus.
Book of Jonah, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Micah, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
“Shower of Gold,” a short story by Eudora
Welty.
How Catholic Art Saved the Faith: The
Triumph of Beauty and Truth in Counter-Reformation Art, a non-fiction book by Elizabeth Lev.
Book of Nahum, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Habakkuk, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Zephaniah, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Haggai, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Jesus and the Jewish Roots of Mary:
Unveiling the Mother of the Messiah, a
non-fiction book by Brant Pitre.
Book of Zachariah, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Book of Malachi, a book of the Old Testament, KJV and RSV translations.
Magnificat, November 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
Mystery of the Magi: The Quest to Identify
the Three Wise Men, a non-fiction work
by Dwight Longenecker
“A Night in the Poorhouse,” a short
story by Isaac Bashevis Singer.
Dei Verbum, an apostolic letter from Pope Paul VI.
Dominican Life: A Commentary on the Rule of
St. Augustine, a non-fiction work by
Walter Wagner, O.P.
Magnificat, December 2021, a monthly Catholic devotional.
Currently Reading:
The Intellectual Life: It’s Spirits,
Conditions, Methods, a non-fiction work
by A.G. Sertillanges, O.P.
Wisdom of the Desert Fathers and Mothers:
Ancient Advice for the Modern World, a
non-fiction book by Philip G. Bochanski.
K: A History of Baseball in Ten Pitches, a Non-Fiction book by Tyler Kepner.
I
should mention that you can find posts with my commentary on many of these
works if you do a search within the blog at the top of the left hand corner
here.
EDIT (2/18/22): In going through my short story reads I found that I
had missed logging in a story: “A Snowy Night on West Forty-Ninth Street,” by
Maeve Brennan. I’ve added that story to
the lists and have updated the numbers to reflect it. Corrections are in red font. So, I read nineteen short stories this year
and twenty-one short reads in all.
Amazing. Where do you find the time to read so much?
ReplyDeleteBest wishes and God bless.
I don't know. I'm not even a fast reader. But thank you for stopping by.
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