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The Rev. Terence Elsberry, Rector

• God and Gold: Britain, America and the Making of the Modern World,  by Walter Russell Mead.
  
  • Walter Russell Mead is the Henry A. Kissinger Senior Fellow for Foreign Policy at the U S Council on Foreign Relations.  This entertainingly-written, challenging and controversial book asks why for four hundred years the Anglo-Saxon powers—the UK and the US and their allies—have dominated the world, militarily and economically.  Consider this theory of Mead’s:  “American society today is in this sense an Anglican society . . . Reason, revelation and tradition are the competing pluralistic sources of value and authority in American life.”  What do you think about that? 
• The Sistine Secrets: Michelangelo’s Forbidden Messages in the Heart of the Vatican, by Benjamin Blech and Roy Doliner.
  
  • Nancy and I saw a TV documentary based on this book, and I was so interested I bought the book!  The authors’ premise, to be challenged I am sure, is that Michelangelo secretly embedded messages of brotherhood, tolerance and free-thinking in his painting to encourage “fellow travelers” to challenge the repressive church of his time.  Lots of photographs!
    
• A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail,  by Bill Bryson. 
  
  • This book has been out for a few years, but if you haven’t read it I recommend it as a great summer read. If you’re  like me and always thought how fun and challenging it would be to make a really long wilderness hike, you must read this. Amusing. Entertaining. And the author grew up in Iowa not far from me and at the same time.

The Rev. Danny Lennox, Assistant Minister   

• What I talk about when I Talk about Running, by Haruki Murakami         

  • A fantastic meditation on running and writing from the author that has brought forth The Wind up Bird Chronicle and Kafka on the Shore.

• The Absolutely True Diary of A Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie

  • A phenomenal little book by a tremendous contemporary writer.  Likely to become the next Catcher in the Rye.

• Dreams and Shadows, by Robin Wright

  • This is a superb piece for anyone looking to acquire more knowledge about the Holy Land and its complex history.

• Netherland, by Joseph O'Neill

  • An interesting story about friendship, cricket, New York City and contemporary American Life.  Unique is all sorts of ways, Netherland is sure to become something of a modern existential classic.

The Rev. Susan Wyper, Assistant Minister

Family Fun for summer reading – from the Wypers

• The Match: The Day the Game of Golf Changed Forever, by Mark Frost. 
  • By the author of The Greatest Game Ever Played (another good read and great family movie), the story of the 1956 match that pitted amateur champions Harvey Ward and Ken Venturi against the then greatest living professionals Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson. Good to the last shot!   (George)
    
• The Last Wife of Henry VIII: A Novel, by Carolly Erickson 
  • A little easy with history, perhaps, but fun nonetheless, this novel tells the story of Catherine Parr, the sixth and last wife of King Henry VIII   (Susan)
• Dark Watch, by Clive Cussler/Jack duBrul 
  • A predictably fast-paced Cussler read featuring the Corporation, a group of highly specialized individuals who roam the world righting wrongs for fun and profit. This time the adventure includes piracy in the Far East. (James, age 18),
• The Power of One , by Bryce Courtenay
  •  In pre-WWII South Africa, the story of a young boy named Peekay who is caught in tensions between Afrikaaners and English residents and what he learns from a Zula wise man. (Robby, age 16)
• Ball Don't Lie, by Matt De La Pena
  • The story of a white foster kid, the black kids he runs with, a local rec center in L.A. and the allure of basketball. Written in a rhythmic dialect that takes a little getting used to, but ultimately adds to the story.   (Silas, age 11)

• Rev. Deacon Broaddus "Speed" Johnson
• Franklin and Winston: An Intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship, by Jon Meacham.
• The Plot Against America: A Novel, by Philip Roth.