Tag Archives: posted

From My Armchair: 11 August 2012

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I really didn’t think I’d get too much read this week, but as you will see from the list below I have been able to read a fair bit.

I was able to get The Hunger Games trilogy completed, which is good given the DVD of the first movie will be out in a week or so here in Australia. I haven’t seen the movie yet, so getting the books read prior to the movie was something I wanted to do.

This coming week I’d like to get a few more books read – I’ll see how I go.

 

Social Networks, Web Applications & Other Tools

Not a lot done on social networks or web applications this week. I have added a few books to Goodreads, that is about all really.

 

Currently Reading:

Currently, I am reading the following books:

Discipline of Grace– Discipline of Grace, by Jerry Bridges

I’m hoping to actually make some good progress on this book today and tomorrow. I read it once or twice before, but not in a while. Looking forward to getting into it. Jerry Bridges is usually very good to read.

 

Collapse– Collapse, by Richard Stephenson

I’m just over halfway through this one, but it is a fairly long novel so it will take another day or two to complete at least.

 

Finished Reading:

This week I have been able to read the following books:

Phantoms on the Bookshelves– Phantoms on the Bookshelves, by Jacques Bonnet

I completed this book very early in the week and have written a review which can be found via the link below. Probably only really appeal to those of us who are really into books and have a library of our own. I quite enjoyed the read.

See also:
https://atthebookshelf.wordpress.com/2012/08/05/book-review-phantoms-on-the-bookshelves-by-jacques-bonnet/

 

Killing Calvinism– Killing Calvinism: How to Destroy a Perfectly Good Theology from the Inside, by Greg Dutcher

This was a great book and one I should read on a regular basis – perhaps once a year. A very challenging book, with many lessons for the church today (thinking of reformed churches).

See also:
https://atthebookshelf.wordpress.com/2012/07/31/book-review-killing-calvinism-how-to-destroy-a-perfectly-good-theology-from-the-inside-by-greg-dutcher/

 

Catching Fire– Catching Fire: The Hunger Games Books 2, by Suzanne Collins

I haven’t as of yet wrote a review on this one – will do soon hopefully.

 

Mockingjay– Mockingjay: The Hunger Games Book 3, by Suzanne Collins

I haven’t as of yet wrote a review on this one – will do so soon hopefully.

 

Purchased & Added to Library:

I again grabbed a heap of free ebooks from Amazon. These are all of the books I’ve posted on my Blog ‘The Book Stand,’ so all posted there I also downloaded for myself. I’ll certainly have more books than I can ever read that’s for sure, but certainly never wanting for choice. No harm in grabbing them while there free and in digital format – if I don’t read them all, what does it matter? At least I’ll have them if I want to read them.

Among the books I actually purchased this week:

– The Hunger Games – Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins
– The Hunger Games – Mockingjay, by Suzanne Collins
– In Christ Alone – Living the Gospel Centered Life, by Sinclair Ferguson
– Set Apart – Calling a Worldly Church to a Godly Life, by Kent R. Hughes

 

Article: Why Books Will Probably Never Die

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Francis Tan has recently posted on ‘The Next Web’ site a post called ‘Why Books Will Probably Never Die.’ It is about the future of the written word and ebooks. Worth a read.

To Read the article visit:
http://thenextweb.com/media/2011/04/22/why-books-will-probably-never-die/

 

The Sermons of the Right Reverend Father in God, and Constant Martyr of Jesus Christ, Hugh Latimer, Some Time Bishop of Worcester – Volume 2

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I have been working for some time at getting this work of Hugh Latimer up on the particularbaptist.com website. It was previously up on the site in conventional HTML, but that is no longer the case. With this work (and all current and future projects) I have posted the PDF file to Scribd and embedded the document from there into the website with a Scribd provided widget. The book is not yet complete, but as I add to the work revisions of it will be posted to Scribd and the widget automatically updated. The work is available for download via both the widget and at Scribd.

The page devoted to this work at particularbaptist.com within the site’s library simply known as ‘The Book Room,’ has also been updated and the format for it is the design I will now be using throughout The Book Room as books are added (or links to books at other sites). Obviously there is still a lot of work to be done throughout The Book Room, but work is progressing. The entire library site at particularbaptist.com is being overhauled and updated.

I am currently reading this second volume of sermons by Hugh Latimer as I work on the project. I have included a review on the page in The Book Room and this is what I have said there:

‘This book of sermons is like a trip into the past – a trip back to the English reformation. With this book it is possible to get a feel for the times in which the reformer Hugh Latimer walked. The sermons are of course locked into the period, with references to events well known then (and perhaps not so now) and framed in a manner unknown now.’

‘Though preached many years ago, I have found many of these sermons still profitable to my own walk with God now. They are well worth reading, though it must be said they can sometimes be a little difficult to stay with due to the cultural differences, language of the day, etc. Stick with it and these sermons will warm your heart.’

Visit this work online at:
http://particularbaptist.com/library/latimer_sermons_contents.html

Fresh Start

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I have neglected this Blog a bit – a fair bit – and for that I apologise. I am hoping to change that a bit from now on and post at least once a week, if not more. I have been really busy – which is the truth of the matter. I maintain a lot of sites and Blogs, with some of them getting major re-designs and so on. That is still an ongoing process, but I no longer want that to stand in the way of this Blog.

So a fresh start from today. I won’t post updates on what has been posted before, but begin with a fresh approach, etc. So on to the first post in my ‘reawakening’ here.

Thomas Nelson Book Reviewer

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I have this morning become a book reviewer for Thomas Nelson. This will involve me reading and reviewing books that Thomas Nelson send to me. It is an unpaid job, but I do get to keep the books I review. I guess this could be a good and/or bad thing, depending on the individual book I read and review.

Being a part of this program will allow me to keep current on trends in Christianity – at least to some degree, as I read and review the books that are sent to me. It will also save me money as I don’t have to pay for the actual books that are sent to me. So the library will continue to grow and my reading will span the length and breadth of the current ‘Christian’ scene.

I will be posting reviews of the books I read and review for Thomas Nelson here, so readers of this Blog will be able to ‘experience’ the journey with me. They will also be posted on commercial book selling sites.

My reviews, will of course, be from my Particular Baptist perspective – which I guess will be somewhat novel for a Thomas Nelson book reviewer.

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THE STORY OF THE ENGLISH BAPTISTS: John C. Carlile

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I have recently posted on the particularbaptist.com library site ‘The Story of the English Baptists,’ by John C. Carlile. The book can be found at the following link:

http://particularbaptist.com/library/englishbaptists_john-carlile.html

I own the 1905 edition which was printed as a hardcover by James Clarke & Co. in London, England. My copy is quite aged and is in quite poor condition. The version I have placed online is of course in pristine condition and will undoubtedly stay that way.

There are a number of illustrations and photographs in the book – all of which can be found in the online version.

The book provides something of an introduction to both the General and Particular Baptists, and as such is probably a useful book in that it whets the appetite to research deeper into the history of Baptists in England – which in my case is especially true of the Particular Baptists (of whom I am one).

There are some very interesting and useful chapters in the book, though the treatments of some of the ‘big’ names in Particular Baptist history are quite brief – as I say, something of an introduction. Perhaps an overview may be a better way to describe the book.

I don’t think everyone will necessarily agree with all of the conclusions and statements made by the author of the book. For example, there is something definitely hinky about his comments regarding possible unification of General and Particular Baptists. I’m not sure that he really grasps the significance of the differences between the two camps.

Out of 5 I’d probably give the book a generous 3. I think the book has merit, but is yet disappointing.