Best Books of 2021

As usual, I've compiled a list of the most important books I read this year. The only criteria are that I read them in full and found them well written, helpful, and worth sharing. I read 42 books this year, ranging from youth fiction to published dissertations. Many of them were very good! These are the ten books I recommend most highly across several genres. (You can find brief reviews of all the books I read on GoodReads).

Children's Picture Book

The Story of God with Us is luminous and profound, grounded yet winsome. This is a children's book for a new generation of discerning parents and grandparents. Today more than ever, our world craves a unifying narrative and yet expects excellence. Aedan Peterson's illustrations bring delight to the biblical narrative so thoughtfully retold by Kenneth Padgett and Shay Gregorie. The Story of God with Us is a gift to behold! Best of all, this book is the first of many from a brand new publisher, Wolfbane Books. I love their Bible Project-esque vision of teaching biblical theology to kids in a captivating way.

Young Adult Fiction

Everything Sad is Untrue (A True Story) is the well-told true story of a 12-year-old Iranian refugee in Oklahoma. It's a gift to see the world through his eyes. You'll discover the beauty of Persian culture and become more aware of aspects of your own culture that you take for granted. Reading this book will help you develop empathy for the plight of those who are forced to leave their homes because of religious persecution. We listened to the audio book narrated by the author on a long drive. The book has won multiple awards, and it's no wonder why!

Adult Fiction

All the Light We Cannot See is a Pulitzer Prize winning work of historical fiction set in France during WWII. I listened to the audio book on our move from Canada to Southern California, and it made the hours fly by. Such an intricate plot and compelling characters!

Books in Biblical Studies

Abraham's Silence is the most important book I read this year in biblical studies, and I was so honored to have been able to endorse it. Richard Middleton revisits a familiar Old Testament story -- the binding of Isaac in Genesis 22 -- and turns it on its head. What if Abraham is not the hero of this story? What if this story demonstrates his failure rather than his faith? Middleton pairs a close reading of Genesis 22 with the book of Job and the lament psalms, suggesting that Abraham fell short of truly knowing Yahweh and what he desires. God invites prayers of protest, not silent and unquestioning obedience. I will never read this story the same way again!

Who Shall Ascend the Mountain of the Lord? was a rich read from one of my favorite Old Testament scholars. Michael Morales unlocks the book of Leviticus, showing its literary design and tracing its themes. I'm so grateful for his careful work.

Books on Christian History

Kristin Kobes Du Mez' Jesus and John Wayne ought to come with a gift certificate for therapy. As a child, I had a book by Ann Jonas called Round Trip. It is a picture book that you read from start to finish, then flip over and read upside down back to the beginning. All the images in the book work right-side up as well as upside down. Jesus and John Wayne turned my childhood narrative upside down. Du Mez resituated household names like James Dobson and Ronald Reagan -- even Billy Graham -- in a wider field of view to show me the shadows they cast. Christian retail, "family values," "law and order," homeschool networks, and men's retreats all changed shape, too, under Du Mez' careful scrutiny. For those (like me) who thought that Evangelical support for Donald Trump was a puzzling anomaly, Du Mez demonstrates that it fits squarely in the Evangelical narrative as it has developed over the past 50 years. She guides readers through decades of religious and political leadership to highlight the emergence of a militant, masculine version of Christianity that has captured the imagination of white Evangelicals. I'm thankful for Du Mez' careful work to expose the abuses and imbalances of white Evangelicalism. Her voice contributes to a collective day of reckoning. I pray it's not too late.

Robert Chao Romero's Brown Church approached the history of Christianity from a different angle, outlining centuries of Latina/o Christian social engagement and theological reflection. For Latinos who feel there is little room for them in the brand of evangelicalism described by Du Mez in Jesus and John Wayne and for others who long for authentic Christianity, Romero recovers a rich heritage. For those of us who have thought only of Latin America as a mission field rather than a model and source of inspiration, this book offers an invitation to flip the script and begin learning.

Books for Academics

The Flourishing Teacher was my companion through a year of teaching. I've written about it before, but it bears repeating. Christina Bieber Lake has an uncanny knack for knowing just how I'm going to feel at any given point in the academic year. She offers sage advice for professors with lots of grace. In this book, I gained a mentor and friend.

Another treasure this year was a book Lake recommends, The Courage To Teach by Parker Palmer. Palmer goes beyond technique to nourish the soul of educators. I read through it with a group of colleagues and found it inspiring and practically helpful.

BONUS: New Reference Tool

I must admit that I have not read all 1000+ pages of Gary Schnittjer's new exegetical resource, but I expect to keep turning back to it for years to come. The first of its kind, The Old Testament Use of Old Testament catalogues and discusses exegetical allusions, that is, places where the Old Testament unpacks or develops other passages from the Old Testament. Schnittjer has carefully assessed the strength of each potential passage and highlighted key issues for busy professors, pastors, and students.  

I have a tall stack of books I'm hoping to read in 2022. What's on your list to read?

Best Books on Historical and Cultural Backgrounds of the Bible

Although I had already been through four years of Bible College, in seminary a whole new world opened up to me. As an undergrad I developed a deep committment to reading the Bible as literature and on its own terms, without the potential distortion of outside sources. This was a wonderful season of training for me as I became sensitive to the literary contours of biblical stories.

In seminary, under the guidance of different professors, I discovered the value of studying the historical and cultural backgrounds of the Bible. Here's why: the Bible did not drop from the sky, leather bound, with our names embossed on the cover. Reading the Bible is a cross-cultural experience. We are guests in an ancient context, where people speak other languages, where people's hopes and dreams are profoundly shaped by their own contexts, and where society as a whole operates under different values and assumptions. 

In order to be competent readers of Scripture, we must attend to the contexts in which is was written. Every passage has a literary context, a historical context, and a theological context. Neglect of any of these dimensions results in a "flat" reading. In particular, if we ignore the historical context of a passage we run the risk of distorting it. Without interrogating our own cultural lenses, we are likely to impose modern values and assumptions on the text. I see this happen all the time in class, as students encounter stories that strike them as strange.

This is why I'm particularly passionate about training students to attend to both the literary and historical dimensions of the text. We practice developing skills in narrative and poetry analysis and we also consider the historical and cultural contexts of the Bible. We live in a wonderful era in which resources are more readily available than ever before! 

Here are five resources that I find myself repeatedly recommending:

The Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible - Available in the NIV, NRSV, and NKJV translations, this full-color study Bible includes a wealth of information at your fingertips, right where you need it when reading the Bible. It is not designed as a devotionally inspiring study Bible, but a reference tool to help readers understand the cultural context of Scripture. I require it for my Bible classes so that students have a solid resource for a lifetime of study.

The Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary - This is a more extensive (and of course, more expensive) resource than the study Bible above, with full-color photographs, charts, and insightful notes on every book of the Bible. Every church library should have this resource on hand for Bible studies and sermon prep.

The Dictionary of Daily Life - This gem is a more recent addition to my library that I've already used many times. It contains an alphabetized collection of articles on aspects of daily life in ancient Israel (and the Greco-Roman world). For example, if you're studying Exodus 2, you could read articles on Bathing, Midwifery, Infanticide, and Adoption. The articles are well researched and written.

The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery - This tool is more on the literary side of things (rather than historical/cultural), but it helps with precisely those images that are unfamiliar to modern readers. For example, if you're reading along in Daniel and want to know the significance of the beasts with horns, you could read the article on "horns" in the Bible. Each article traces the use and development of a particular image across the biblical canon, with sensitivity to cultural context.

Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament - I read this book in graduate school while taking a class on ancient Near Eastern Backgrounds with John Walton. It was immensely helpful in reshaping my imagination so that I could see what ancient people cared about. It's written for graduate students read, but even if you're not in school, if you're serious about understanding Bible backgrounds, it is well-worth your time.

If this list is two long for you, then I'd recommend this dynamic duo which should prove helpful no matter what part of the Bible you are studying: The Dictionary of Daily Life and The Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible. Both are well worth the sticker price, and both are currently on sale.