Summer Reading

Summer Reading. Ahhh, the phrase that strikes fear in the hearts of vacationing honors students everywhere. Last year, I set up an interactive message board for my rising tenth graders, so they could communicate about the book we were all supposed to be reading over the summer. It didn't work out quite the way I intended.

In June and July, only three kids posted to the board. Nobody else asked me any questions. There were no signs of life from any of the other seventy students. Nothing. Then in the last week before school began the message board lit up. There were so many posts that I couldn't read and respond fast enough. Can we say procrastination?

After that experience,  I abandoned the message board idea and changed the assignment this year. I put my email address at the bottom of the assignment page. In case you're wondering, I haven't heard a peep -- yet. In about a month, I'll probably get about twenty emails a day from panicking students. I'm resigned to it.

For me there's more to summer reading than just assigning books to my students. I read several books over the summer, and since I am fairly omnivorous, people often ask me for book suggestions. They ask partly because, if I know them, I'll probably be able to think of a book they'll really like. Plus, my standards are pretty high. Remember, I have the fifty page test.  In fact, I started reading a novel last night that I think is going to fail the test. It isn't a bad book, but it isn't great either. (Miracle at St. Bruno's Abbey by Philippa Carr) I was on the fence a little bit last night, but I've decided to toss it because I'm just not excited about it.

 

There are lots of books I could recommend to you for your summer reading. I love all of Sarah Addison Allen's books, like The Peach Keeper and Garden Spells. If you're looking for a good beach read, you'll probably like these Southern Chick Lit masterpieces with a twist of magical realism. If you like Sci-Fi,  and you haven't read The Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon, you should. I can't wait for the next volume to come out in December. If you like biographies, I just finished one on the life of Albert Schweitzer called Answering the Call.

If you enjoy a good novel, I hope you find exactly what you're looking for this summer. There is such joy to be found in a good book.

Maybe you don't have time for any of those fun books I mentioned, or maybe you don't really like to read and you're thinking, "Okay Bran, I've only got one book in me for this entire year or more like this entire decade." If either of those is true, let me make another suggestion.

 

 

I just finished this book, Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper. It isn't a new book; it was written in 2003. It isn't John Piper's only book; he's written quite a few. However, I think this book came to me at just the right time (Funny how God has a way of doing that!).  If you decide to read it, I won't promise that you'll be entertained or that it will make you feel good because it probably won't do either of those things. What it might do is get you thinking about your life and how much you don't want to waste it chasing after all the wrong things. This book will probably shake up the way you see yourself. It might even convince you to alter your life's course. In my estimation, that's what a really great book does.

 

Here's an interesting music video presentation of one of the examples Piper uses in the book.

 

 

I found that reading it pierced my heart and pushed me further along in my journey to all God has planned for me. If you decide to pick up this book, be warned. The vision you have for your life and your future will never seem the same to you after you get a glimpse of the vision God has for you and your future.