Briana’s Book Recommendations Part II

A few years ago, I wrote a short post about recommendations for books I’d read recently, seen here: https://brianasreflections.com/2014/09/24/brianas-book-recommendations/. Since publishing that post, I’ve read other books I’d like to add that list. They are here below, in no particular order:

1. St. Augustine’s Confessions – This is easily one of the most mind-blowing books I’ve read in my entire life, by a long shot. St. Augustine shares his personal battle against spiritual restlessness, misery, and sin that ends, ironically enough, when he stops fighting and surrenders his life to the Lord Jesus. His story is a brilliant reminder that there is hope for all of us to become saints. None of us are too far gone for the Lord to redeem us, if we would but turn to Him. It’s pretty long and a little dense at times, considering it’s written by an ancient philosopher. But it’s definitely worth the read.
2. Finding Chika – Mitch Albom. – Another home run by my one of my favorite contemporary authors, and easily his most heartfelt memoir hands down. Mitch, who has become involved with many different charitable organizations over the past 20 years or so, takes charge of the Have Faith Haiti orphanage and meets a little girl named Chika who is diagnosed with brain cancer. There are no doctors in Haiti who can treat her illness. Mitch and his wife, who were unable to have kids of their own, take Chika into their home in Michigan as she battles this disease. I won’t say whether Chika survives or not, but the story is ultimately about the special bond Chika and Mitch share with each other.
3. Something Other Than God – Jennifer Fulwiler. – This is the author’s story of converting to Catholicism as an adult after a lifetime of searching for answers to life’s big questions. Growing up as an only child in a nonreligious household and looking for happiness and purpose in everything she does, Jennifer eventually asks herself where the source of true happiness and meaning lies. What is the difference between right and wrong and how do we know that? Why does evil exist? Is there a God who created the universe and everything in it? What begins as late night blog posting to send these questions into cyberspace eventually leads her to the most unexpected place (in her mind’s eye) for answers: The Catholic Church. Definitely a great read for people who struggle with questions of faith and doubt.
4. Rome Sweet Home: – Scott and Kimberly Hahn – This book deals with similar themes as Something Other Than God, but the authors are non-Catholic Christians before beginning their conversions. Scott and Kimberly Hahn were both very devout Protestant Christians before coming into the Church, with Scott becoming a Presbyterian minister as a young man. He and Kimberly are both well educated people, being well-versed in Scripture and theology. But it gradually becomes clear to them that their Christian belief system doesn’t make much sense outside of a Catholic framework. Is Sola Scriptura the only true form of authority for belief within the Church? If yes, where does it say that in Scripture? Are we saved through faith alone? Is the Eucharist the true Body and Blood of Jesus? How do we know this? Through years of study and debate with Christians of various denominations, Scott and Kimberly share their personal perspectives on crossing the Tiber to the one Church that stands open wide as a home for all.
5. One Beautiful Dream – Jennifer Fulwiler – This story is a sequel to Something Other Than God. Freshly converted to the Catholic faith and raising a quickly growing family with her husband Joe, Jennifer Fulwiler shares her struggles to balance that with her aspirations to become a published author. Once again, she finds herself on a quest to answer big questions: What does work-life balance look like? What is God’s plan for my life? Am I truly following His calling or am I chasing my own dreams and desires under the guise of doing His will? What does having it all really look like? With a little help from family, friends, and God, Jennifer begins to figure out what this means for her. But it involves radically changing her perspective to make it happen.
6. Eight Men Out – Eliot Asinof – The incredible story of what happened when the Chicago White Sox threw the World Series in 1919, and a character study of some of the key men involved. What begins as an easy (though dishonest) opportunity for underpaid baseball players to earn extra money in the post season and retaliate against a stingy team owner quickly snowballs into a nightmare. It’s also a fascinating look at human nature, and how the smallest lapses in judgement we make in conjunction with others turns into something much more catastrophic than we could ever imagine.
7. The Magic Strings Of Frankie Presto – Mitch Albom – Another page-turning novel by one of my favorite authors. The title character is born as an orphan in Spain and raised by a musician, who teaches him how to play guitar. Frankie is given a special guitar as a gift. Its strings turn blue every time he has a significant encounter with another person. The story is told from the perspective of Music, who follows Frankie’s magical journey from his childhood to his meteoric rise as a star musician to his tragic death. The book is long, at about 489 pages, but definitely worth the read.
8. Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations – I read this book for Lent this past year, and it was very fitting despite the fact that it’s not from a Christian perspective. This book consists of journal entries from the ancient Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius. He wrote these passages while on a military deployment in ancient Hungary. It contains his thoughts on leading a good life, and staying calm and level-headed in times of trouble. The events of 2020 have caused much fear and anxiety around the world, but Marcus’s teachings help put some of those things in perspective.
9. Consolation Of Philosophy – Boethius – Another book I’ve read for Lent in years past. Boethius was a Christian philosopher living in the 500s. A government official who was arrested and sentenced to death after being wrongfully accused of treason against the Roman Empire, he wrote this meditation from his prison cell during his final days before he was executed. Philosophy takes the form of a woman to give him strong but much needed medicine, reminding him of what is truly important in life. The two converse about many topics: virtue and vice, money, fame, pleasure, the passage of time, and the existence of God. The urgency of his message should give every reader much to consider.
10. See You In A Hundred Years – Logan Ward – A true story from the author’s life. He and his wife are a young married couple living in New York City in the year 2000. As a freelance writer and public attorney, respectively, with very demanding and hectic work schedules; the pair barely have enough time for each other, much less their two year old son. They embark upon an experiment in which they take a year off from their jobs, move to the Virginia countryside, and attempt to live as a farming family would around the turn of the 20th century. Ward gives his readers an honest look at his family’s trials and triumphs during that year, and an interesting examination of what our world has gained and lost over the years for the sake of progress.

So here are some more reads for you to check out! If you’ve read any of them, let me know what you think! Or, even better, share some of your favorite books with me so I can look into them! Happy reading!