My Favorites From 2013

Below is a list of my favorite books, articles, and tweets from 2013. Not all of them were actually written in 2013, but I read them in 2013 and since this is my site, I get to make that kind of illogical decision. Enjoy!

Books

A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide

Winner of a 2003 Pulitzer Prize, Samantha Power’s A Problem From Hell weaves through several cases of genocide in the 20th century and contends that America’s response to such mass killing was shockingly indifferent. Well-researched, insightful and painfully poignant, I found her arguments to be overwhelmingly convincing. Power was recently appointed as the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, which was what prompted me to read the book, and this is a great way to introduce yourself to her and the point-of-view she brings to that position.

Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity

A finalist for a 2013 Pulitzer Prize, Katherine Boo’s Behind the Beautiful Forevers tells the story of families pushing for economic advancement in Annawadi, a slum community in India. From beginning to end, the book had me absolutely captivated. The stories are raw and often times gut-wrenching. This is a highly-readable book by an accomplished author (Boo has previously won a 2000 Pulitzer Prize for work published in The Washington Post) and I could not recommend it enough.

Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln

I’m not usually big on history/biography books, but I had heard too much about this definitive book of Abraham Lincoln’s presidency to ignore it any longer. Written by Pulitzer Prize winner Doris Kearns Goodwin, Team of Rivals tells the remarkable (and unlikely) story of Lincoln’s rise to the presidency in the midst of a fractured political landscape. What I found most surprising about this book was how easy it was to read. It’s not at all stuffy or dense and Goodwin does an excellent job of connecting you to each of the characters surrounding Lincoln. As an aside, Lincoln, the 2012 movie directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Daniel Day-Lewis, is based on the second half of Team of Rivals and makes an excellent companion to the book.

Fight: A Christian Case for Non-Violence

I’ve done a lot of thinking about the issue of pacifism vs. just war theory in the past year or so and I found Fight by Preston Sprinkle to be incredibly helpful. With arguments rooted deeply in scripture, Sprinkle does a great job of making his case for non-violence without shying away from any of the prickly points that the topic presents, especially considering the amount of violence found in the Old Testament. Sprinkle’s humble and honest approach to an issue that typically inspires an unhealthy amount of heated rhetoric shines throughout the book – this isn’t the angry writings of a scholar unhinged from reality, it’s an even-handed presentation that you would expect from a thoughtful pastor.

Status Anxiety

Alain de Botton’s Status Anxiety explores a fear we all inevitably confront – what is our standing in society? De Botton tackles five causes of this ‘status anxiety’ – lovelessness, expectation, meritocracy, snobbery and dependence – and then presents five solutions – philosophy, art, politics, religion and bohemianism. Akin to my stereotype that history books are stuffy and hard to read, I thought this philosophy book would be the same. I couldn’t have been more wrong. De Botton effortlessly pulls from a wide range of sources, making each section fun and highly readable. It’s not a shallow, preachy, approach to the subject either. The final result is less a definitive answer to status anxiety and more like a fresh of breath of air that works to alleviate our concerns.

Honorable Mention:

The End of Our Exploring: A Book about Questioning and the Confidence of Faith

Jesus, My Father, The CIA, and Me: A Memoir… of Sorts

Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church

For a full list of books I read this year, click here.

Articles

The Prophets of Oak Ridge from The Washington Post

An amazing piece of investigative journalism and new media presentation by The Washington Post about three activists who break into a nuclear-weapons facility.

David Foster Wallace on Life and Work from The Wall Street Journal

An adaption from a commencement speech that David Foster Wallace gave at Kenyon College in 2005. Wallace was as insightful as they come and this was him at his best.

From Here You Can See Everything in The Morning News

Part commentary on David Foster Wallace’s book Infinite Jest and part evaluation on our culture of obsessive media consumption. Critical and rightfully poignant.

Why We Have Debt from Timothy McSweeney’s Internet Tendency

A direct quote from the article: “If a candidate for national office says that the deficit and Federal debt is a crisis and out of control, but does not provide a plan to rectify the differences in healthcare spending and revenues, that candidate is being disingenuous.” Read this before you cast your next congressional, senatoral and presidential votes.

Redeeming Holy Days from Pagan Lies — Hallowe’en: A Short History from The Brothers of John the Steadfast

A highly-detailed explanation as to why Halloween isn’t a pagan holiday to be shunned and cursed. A little dense, but ultimately worth your time.

Tweets