Christian Books – Page 6 – Michelle Lesley

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How do you evaluate a book (for instance if you know nothing about the author)? I have about half a bookshelf right now of books (both fiction and nonfiction) that I need to evaluate and I have no idea how to commence doing so. (The books range from children’s fiction to Bible study books and lots in between.)

A couple of the steps in this article would apply for any book: know your Bible and pray for wisdom as you research the book and author.

For Bible study, theology, or other non-fiction Christian books, I would vet the author pretty much the same way I described vetting teachers in the article. That will often be faster than reading the whole book. Also, go to Amazon and peruse all the other books the author has written. You might get a better idea of where the author stands, theologically, by reading all of his book titles and summaries. Many authors have an author page on Amazon, too. It’ll have a bio and customer reviews.

I don’t hold Christian fiction books to quite the same theological standard as non-fiction for discerning Christians who know their Bible really well (for example, see the section on Karen Kingsbury here). Some of them are really just clean “family friendly” fiction with the occasional cow pie of bad theology that you can “step over” as you’re reading, but some, such as The Shack are pretty egregious in their false doctrine. For Christian fiction, one quick “litmus test” that might be a possibility is to check out who’s endorsing it. If you flip to the back cover and see endorsements by a bunch of false teachers, it’s probably one to stay away from.

Asking around can help as well, especially with Christian books. Ask trusted friends if they’re familiar with the author or book and what they think of it. Join some theologically sound Facebook groups and ask about the book in the group.

For all books, another possible shortcut might be book reviews. Scads of bloggers review books. The key is finding bloggers and review sites whose opinions or theology you trust, and that may take a little time and effort. Tim Challies and Aaron Armstrong do a lot of trustworthy book reviews- mostly Christian non-fiction, but other genres on occasion. There are a lot of Christians on GoodReads that review all kinds of different genres. Finally, you might want to try a book summary web site like Books at a Glance. They’ll give you the “Cliff’s Notes” version of books.

If you go through all those “screening process” steps and still have books/authors you haven’t been able to vet, the only solution is to actually read the book and compare the concepts and statements in it to Scripture. Then you can write a review of it and post it on line for the next person who comes along wanting information about that book.

Let’s hear from you readers out there! Got a favorite book blog? A go to reviewer on GoodReads? Comment below!

If you have a question about: a well known Christian author/leader, a Bible passage, an aspect of theology, a current issue in Christianity, or how to biblically handle a family, life, or church situation, comment below (I’ll hold all questions in queue {unpublished} for a future edition of The Mailbag) or send me an e-mail or private message. If your question is chosen for publication, your anonymity will be protected.

I don’t write book reviews by request, but when I happen across a book (or in this case a series) I really like, I enjoy recommending it and giving the author kudos.

Such is the case with Chronicles of the Kings, a biblical history novel series by Lynn Austin. The five books in the series are:

Gods and Kings
Song of Redemption
The Strength of His Hand
Faith of my Fathers
Among the Gods

I originally picked up Gods and Kings because the blurb I had read about the series said it was about Hezekiah, who is tied for first place with Josiah as my favorite Old Testament king. Gods and Kings begins with the story of the evil, Molech-worshiping king of Judah, Ahaz. As the series progresses, we also walk through the reigns of Ahaz’s righteous son Hezekiah, who sets out to restore Judah both materially and spiritually after Ahaz’s idolatry, and its consequences, have ravaged the land. Hezekiah’s son Manasseh then takes the throne, bringing new meaning to the words polytheism and debauchery. Along the way, we meet with the kings’ contemporaries, Isaiah, Eliakim, Micah, and other biblical as well as fictional characters.

I could insert the obligatory gushing here about how well crafted the stories were and how Ms. Austin’s writing turned me into the literary equivalent of a chain smoker, but there were two things about this series that eclipsed how artfully it was written.

First, Ms. Austin did her homework. And she did it extremely well. As someone who had to research biblical culture, geography, customs, etc., myself for my own book, it is blindingly obvious that the books in the Chronicles of the Kings series were well and thoroughly researched. I can only imagine the hours Ms. Austin must have spent in the biblical text, commentaries, and extrabiblical historical sources. From details about dress to architecture to meals, Ms. Austin was attentive to the minor tidbits that helped me “see” what was happening and feel like I was part of the story.

On a more “macro” level, Ms. Austin’s description of Assyrian warfare, atrocities, and sweep to tyrannical domination over the Middle East gave me a clearer picture of the way events transpired that supported and even clarified the biblical text for me. If you have ever wondered why God used the Assyrians as an arm of judgment against Judah and Israel, or if you have ever wondered why God commanded that nations similar to Assyria be wiped off the face of the earth, you’ll understand after reading Chronicles of the Kings. Normally, I would never recommend that people go to a novel for clarity on details in God’s word, but Ms. Austin’s research is that good.

Finally, and most importantly, Ms. Austin gets the theology right, and in a way that is applicable to believers on this side of the cross. Her characters come to the realization that salvation is through grace, not through the works of empty ritual. That anything we put before God, even our own ideas of who God is, is an idol. That any sinner, no matter how despicable, can repent and experience God’s forgiveness. And on, and on, and on. I rarely read Christian fiction because I have found so much poor and even heretical theology in so many books in this genre. But somewhere around the middle of this series, I nearly came to tears as I realized that Ms. Austin was going to stay true to God’s word and not let me down by stooping to ear tickling or apostasy. And for that, I sincerely thank her.

All of the books in the series are available through Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com, and CBD. The Kindle, Nook, and e-version of the first book in the series, Gods and Kings, is currently free at these sites. You may also, as I did, be able to find Chronicles of the Kings at your local library.

I highly recommend the Chronicles of the Kings series. I can’t say enough good things about it.