Good Books

The little church library I’ve been running is stuffed to the brim with books! I’m realizing I’ll have to cut down on how many new ones I bring in each year… a difficult task, since there are so many tempting titles being released all the time! I suppose I’ll just have to learn which books to add to the library, and which ones to save for my personal collection!

I’ve wanted to write many book reviews over the years, but found it takes dedication to write more than a few sentences. So I’ve come up with two lists instead: the first is books I’ve enjoyed that are in the church library; and the second is books I’ve considered getting for the church library.

In the Library…

In Awe of God: Memoirs of Missionary Life in Guatemala (Rita Peters Langemann)…

This one holds a special place for me, because I’ve worked with the author during short-term missions trips. My family started being involved with Impact Ministries back when they were newly formed, and it’s been amazing to see how God has grown and used the ministry over the years. You can read a more thorough review of it here.

“The Hole in Our Gospel” (Richard Stearns)…

Author Richard Stearns, CEO of World Vision, explores the issues of poverty and justice, and our role as the body of Christ in showing love to ‘the least of these.’

“Be the Bridge” (Latasha Morrison)…

I’ve browsed multiple books from Christians about racism and healing the racial divide. What I appreciate about Latasha’s approach is how well she connects racial reconciliation back to the gospel; and how she approaches the topic though spiritual disciplines such as truth-seeking, forgiveness, repentance, confession, and lament. The book includes prayers and discussion questions.

“Troubled Minds” (Amy Simpson)…

I read this one some time ago, but I recall the journey being eye-opening. The author is honest about her experience with having a mother suffering psychotic illness, and the pain of the stigma surrounding psychosis. She emphasizes the need for the church to learn how to better discuss mental illness, and to help those who are struggling.

“One Church, Many Tribes” (Richard Twiss)…

I wrote a longer review, or reflection, for this one, which you can read here.

“Where the Pavement Ends” (Marie Wadden)…

The problems faced by indigenous communities in Canada – high suicide and substance abuse rates – are epidemics among indigenous people in colonized countries worldwide. There’s something clearly traumatic about having one’s lands taken and culture belittled or exterminated. This book confronts these problems, and celebrates the indigenous leaders who are working to see their communities uplifted. I’m not sure if the author is Christian, but she interviews many Christians over the course of the book.

Could Be in the Library…

“Art & Faith” and “Culture Care” (Makoto Fujimura)…

I’ve bought both of these for myself, and have been enjoying them. Japanese-American artist Makoto Fujimura explores the role that creators have in pointing people to God, the only ‘true’ Artist. He calls “Art & Faith” his masterpiece; though I personally love “Culture Care,” where he explains his belief that we spend too much time fighting ‘culture wars,’ and not enough time finding ways to nurture beauty and truth in culture.

“God and the Pandemic” (N.T. Wright)…

When the coronavirus hit, I felt we were living in history-altering times; and to mark the occasion, I bought a collection of pandemic-related books. This one gave me a lot to think on, which I very much appreciated.

“Cherish” (Gary Thomas)…

Gary Thomas believes we are called to do more than love our spouse in a general sense: we are to learn how to cherish them, going above and beyond to value who they are.

“Confronting Christianity” (Rebecca McLaugin)…

I’ve read a few chapters of this book, and personally found it to be one of the more helpful apologetics books out there. The author speaks through personal experience about the topic of homosexuality, and knows enough scientists to challenge the notion that serious scientists are almost unanimously atheists.

“The Truth About Us” (Brant Hansen)…

A very funny way to explore the truth that we are all sinful, and to break apart any delusions that we hold otherwise. Did you know that the majority of people think they are better-than-average morally… and better-than-average drivers?? (An impossibility, statistically speaking.)

“Mixed Blessing: Embracing the Fullness of Your Multiethnic Identity” (Chandra Crane)…

I read much of the first few chapters and loved it! Multiethnic people have a unique perspective on racial relations, one that could be vital to helping North Americans achieve racial reconciliation. I am not multiethnic myself; but the author aknowledges that she’s also writing for those who want to understand the challenges faced by individuals who are multiethnic.

Paper Wasp Part 2

Paper Wasp forced her wings to flap, and she took to the air, abandoning her half-started nest. I will find myself some food, and lay down under a rock. And I will sleep, for as long as I can.

And when she woke up? I don’t know what I’ll do then.

She thought of the grasshoppers: always taking, always happy, never crying.

She thought of the scorpion: never trying, never failing, always fine.

And she thought of the ant: always practical, always confident, never praying.

Maybe, she thought, maybe I’m just the saddest, silliest, and stupidest of all creatures. Maybe, if I’m lucky, my life will end before tomorrow. Then, I’ll never have to wonder again if creating is worthwhile or beauty is real.

Her wings took her deep into the forest, past tree after tree.

She’d told herself she was looking for food, though her eyes never landed on anything. Instead, she gazed into the air before her, unthinking. Mindlessly, she flew on and on.

Soon, she’d gone deeper into the forest than she’d ever been.

Her heavy heart weighed her down, until at last, she could go no further. She landed on the ground, numb to her surroundings.

Paper Wasp sat there silently. A long time or a short time, she didn’t know. But after a time, she heard a Voice whisper through her mind.

“Get up,” the Voice encouraged. “Get up, and finish your nest.”

Is that you, God? She wondered. She remembered the ant’s words and thought scornfully: It could just be in my head, my own imagination playing tricks on me.

“Get up,” the Voice said again. “Get up, and finish your nest.”

“Why bother?” Paper Wasp replied aloud. “The world is owned by the people who take, not the people who build. Someone will just come and destroy all the hard work I’ve done.”

“Get up,” the Voice said. “Get up, and finish your nest.”

“But who needs a nest?” Paper Wasp argued. “I could live wherever I feel like it, free of cares and free of work. If I don’t bother trying, I won’t ever fail.”

“Get up,” the Voice said. “Get up, and finish your nest.”

“How do I know that I’m not just talking to myself?” She retorted.

Her mind filled with silence. Even the air around her felt still and empty. She waited there a moment, unsure what to do next.

I can’t live like this, she realized. What would be better? Should I sit around and soak in my anguish, wondering whether creating is silly, work is worthwhile, and beauty is real? Or should I get up and try to build my nest some more?

So she forced herself up, and flew out to gather some wood. She chipped away at a tree, then took back her bit of wood to her nest, and worked on another layer of paper.

Paper Wasp worked until the sun set that day. Weary, she settled down for the night.

When the sun rose again, she took in a deep breath of the new air. The new day didn’t cheer her sad heart. But she determined: I will press on.

So she made another layer of paper, and another. As she did, her sadness faded into the back of her mind. She focused on her work, on making her nest beautiful.

At last, she finished her job. She flew in circles around her nest, examining it from every angle.

“It is good,” she decided. And she felt a hint of joy slip into her tired heart. Then, she settled down to sleep.

She didn’t notice that a human had been watching her work. He stared at her intently as she chipped wood and molded her paper.

“What a useful thing, this wasp’s paper,” the man said to himself. “Useful, and beautiful. I wonder if I could make some of my own…”

And so, mankind learned the art of paper-making from the Paper Wasp. Yet, the Paper Wasp probably never learned how she changed the course of human history. She only continued to do what she was made to do.

Paper Wasp Part 1

There was a time, long ago, when paper had not been invented. At least, it hadn’t been invented by humans. There were no books, no sticky notes, not even things like paper towel.

But before humans were making paper, the Paper Wasp was. And long ago in Ancient China, the Paper Wasp helped change life as we know it…

Paper Wasp approached her task with joy and vigor. She’d chip little bits of wood off a tree, then carry those chips in her mouth, back to the spot she’d chosen for her nest. Then, she’d glue the chips together, turning them into paper.

Bit by bit, her project was taking shape. Layers of paper – coloured in various greys, depending the wood she used – curved around into the beginnings of a spherical nest.

There’s still a long way to go, she thought to herself. But it’s getting somewhere! When it’s finished, I’ll have created something new, something beautiful, a nest where I can rest and care for my children.

She was happily absorbed in her activities when someone called down from below.

“What are you doing?” a small voice asked.

Paper Wasp looked down to see a Little Grasshopper, staring up at her from the ground.

“I’m building a paper nest,” she called to him.

“Isn’t that a lot of work?” the grasshopper asked.

“It is,” Paper Wasp agreed, “but it’s what I feel God made to do.”

“If you need a nest so bad, why not just steal someone else’s?”

“I believe in adding to the world,” Paper Wasp explained.

Little Grasshopper shook his head, laughing. “When we grasshoppers want something, we just take it! No harm in that, right?”

Paper Wasp felt very passionate about her belief. “Here. I’ll come down to you and draw you a picture.”

She flew down, landing next to Little Grasshopper.

Paper Wasp began to draw circles in the dirt. “You see, these represent the things in this world. The people who make things add more to the world: that way, everyone has more! But the people who take merely move the circles from one spot to another…”

Pausing, Paper Wasp frowned. She heard crunching, coming from up where her nest hung.

Looking up, she gasped in horror. A group of grasshoppers had appeared on her nest. With their jaws, they were ripping apart its delicate paper.

When they caught her horrified gaze, they laughed, and so did Little Grasshopper.

“Fooled you! Fooled you!” Little Grasshopper giggled. “I was just distracting you, so my fellow grasshoppers could eat your nest!”

“Not very appetizing, though!” A grasshopper called down.

With an agonized cry, Paper Wasp rushed to her nest, stinger readied for attack.

The grasshoppers scattered at her approach, laughing all the more as they easily evaded her.

“Crying, crying!” The grasshoppers chanted. “Why all the crying? If you were half as clever as us, you’d have nothing to cry about!”

“Here’s the truth,” Little Grasshopper said. “The world is owned by the people who take, not the people who build! It’s not the bug who makes something, but the bug who ends up with that something that wins! Work as hard as you want, but in the end, you’ll wind up with nothing if you don’t learn to take what you want from others.”

With that, the grasshoppers all bounded away, racing off in different directions. Poor Paper Wasp couldn’t follow them all.

Paper Wasp turned back to her nest, heart dropping at the sight of the rips in her carefully-made design.

“Well,” she sighed, trying to keep herself calm, “at least it’s not completely destroyed.”

So she set to work repairing the damage.

The joy and vigor that once motivated her dimmed. Now, as she glued each tear, her frustration grow. Her soul wore fast, as did her body. Yet she continued to travel between the trees and her nest, determined to finish her work.

On one such trip, she passed by a Calm Scorpion, relaxing upon a pile of rocks.

“Hey there!” He called. “Why so weary, buzzing insect? Why not come down here and take a breather?”

Needing a rest, Paper Wasp conceded and landed near the Calm Scorpion.

“I’m making my nest,” Paper Wasp explained through heavy breaths. “It’s become hard work since the grasshoppers damaged it.”

She sighed. “Now I’m afraid some other bug will come along and destroy it, and all my work will go to waste again. But I really want to finish my nest.”

“What do you need a nest for?” Calm Scorpion asked. “To sleep in?”

“I can use it for that,” Paper Wasp said.

“To raise babies in?”

“I can use it for that too.”

Calm Scorpion chuckled. “If it’s so much work, and you just need it for sleeping and raising babies in, why not live under a rock instead? Or maybe tuck yourself into the cavity of a tree? It’s good enough for many other bugs, myself included! Why isn’t it good enough for you? Hmm?”

“Well,” Paper Wasp admitted, “I could just sleep under a rock, or in a hole in a tree, and raise my babies there too. But I’m not just making the nest for those reasons: I’m making it because I believe it’s what God made me to do.”

Shaking his head, Calm Scorpion told her: “Friend, it’s not necessary to work so hard to build something new. I live wherever I feel like it, free of cares and free of work. You won’t have to worry about all your hard work getting destroyed again, if you don’t bother to build a nest in the first place. You can’t fail if you don’t waste your time trying.”

Paper Wasp was taken aback. “You think it’s worthless?”

“You said it,” Calm Scorpion agreed. “You don’t need to make a nest.” With that, he tucked himself back under his rock.

For a moment, Paper Wasp stood still, not sure what to think. Then, she sighed. I think I need to get back to work, she told herself.

So she did… for a time. She found it hard to stay motivated, as thoughts of the thieving grasshoppers and stress-free scorpion floated through her head.

As she flew off to another tree, her flight meandered, and she found herself over an ant’s nest. Busy ants went to and fro.

One Busy Ant called up to her. “Friend, you’re looking very sad! What’s on your mind?”

Paper Wasp landed next to the Busy Ant.

“I was trying to build my nest,” she explained. “My nest made of paper. But it’s hard, and it feels like I’m wasting my time. You see, a group of grasshoppers ripped it. And then a scorpion told me it’s not worth building a nest anyways, because I could just hide under a rock like him.”

“Oh, don’t listen to them!” Busy Ant said. “Since when were grasshoppers and scorpions ever as clever as wasps and ants?”

“I just want to do well,” Paper Wasp sighed. “I’ve always believed that God made me to build paper nests. And I’m stressing over making it beautiful and good for him.”

“Why, my dear,” Busy Ant chuckled. “The solution to your problem is very simple.”

“It is?” Paper Wasp asked.

“Yes,” Busy Ant said. “I was told about a God growing up, but I have embraced logic and reason now. Now I know there is no God, and I am much better off. You see, if there is no God, then God doesn’t care if you build paper nests or if you don’t. You can do whatever you want!”

Paper Wasp wasn’t sure what to say to this. “But I believe there is a God.”

“Of course, you can believe whatever you wish,” Busy Ant conceded. “But as for making your nest beautiful, well, science tells us that beauty is all in the imagination. In ‘the eye of the beholder,’ as they say. There’s really no such thing as beauty.”

The ant motioned around the mound with her antennae. “Building with grains of dirt is far more practical, and I think you would have a much easier time if you just joined us in building our mound. What do you think?”

Paper Wasp’s heart felt very heavy. “I’ll think about it,” she said quietly. And with that, she flew off.

She returned to her nest, landing upon it. It seemed so frail, so insignificant, and so far from complete.

I have to keep trying, she told herself. I have to get more wood chips.

She flapped her wings until they buzzed. But they felt so sore, so weary. A tear slipped from her eye.

Then, her wings stopped buzzing.

There’s no point, she decided. It’s not worth it.

And she sat there, still and silent, for a long moment.

Concept: Awareness

For my ‘entry’ for the art contest, I decided to do a simple sketch.

So… SPOILER WARNING!

In The Loss, Jair becomes aware of his insanity, and has to face it. Though maybe it isn’t a major plot point in that book, it is significant to me. I decided to represent his moment of awareness, adding a mirror to reflect what’s going on inside him: how he now sees his mind as cracked and broken.

You could say the concept represented is “Mental Illness.” However, I think of it more as “Awareness.” Throughout Tales of the Diversity, various characters become more aware of their weaknesses, who they are, and where they want their lives to go.

It’s a theme that continues into the third book, which I’m still busily writing.

The art contest is open for submissions until June 15th: create an art piece (it can be a photograph, painting, model, whatever!) representing a concept from Tales of the Diversity, and send it in to author@karlissaj.com.