Tag Archives: books

Posted on

How Many Books Are You Reading?

Last night, as Mike and I were going to bed, I read to him from a book I had just started. It was a book on marriage. It was debunking traditional advice given to people who desire to have a better marriage. Then this morning I read to him something I had read about Nihilism. It interested me because it applied to a problem a friend of ours was struggling with.

He said to me, “I thought you were reading the book about marriage.”

“I am,” I responded, “but I’m also reading about Nihilism.”

Then he thought for a minute. “And weren’t you just talking to me about something you read from A Wrinkle in Time?”

“Yep. I’m reading that too.”

I counted them up and admitted that I was actually reading six books at the moment.

He laughed, because he had five books of his own going at that time.

Now, before you put me in the “egg-head” category I need to make it crystal clear that I’m not a part of the new intelligentsia—as if that’s exactly what you were thinking. I do love books, but primarily because I need lots of help with life.

Sadly, I can’t take St. John Chrysostom, C.S. Lewis or David McCullough to lunch and pick their brains. I can’t literally surround myself with all the people smarter than me, or people who have traveled down roads on which I’m traveling. But I can surround myself with their words. So, when I have a question, when I need help, when I need to see life from a different perspective, I pick up a book.

I don’t always finish books. Occasionally I do, but more often than not I don’t. And that’s just fine. Sometimes it’s like meeting someone, getting the help you need and moving on without having to know everything they say about everything. And let’s be honest, some books aren’t worth finishing.

But many are and I just keep them going until I’ve gotten what I need, I get bored, something else grabs my attention, or until I finish them and grieve over their departure.

As I’ve thought about the number of books I tend to have at my side at any given time, I discovered three reasons why I don’t stick to just one:

1. Books come in a variety of formats. Each format fits a particular situation.

Traditional bound books:
Perfect for morning reading. I usually have a ruler and a pen in my hand. I ask questions, jot down comments in the margins and have a conversation with the author while I enjoy my morning coffee.

Audio books:
Great for road trips and long walks.

Electronic books:
Best for air travel and waiting rooms.

2. Books address the diversity of life’s circumstances. Life comes at you fast, from all angles.

Stories, Fiction, History:
For when I need some comic relief or a new perspective on life.

Practical Living:
For when I need to tap into someone else’s life experience and get concrete help for life’s challenges.

Personal Growth:
For when I need inspiration and an encouraging word from travelers who are ahead of me on life’s road.

3. Our days play out in a variety of settings. The different settings present different opportunities for learning.

Morning Reading:
My mind is the most alert and the most “teachable” in the morning. Consequently, this is when I tend to read “heavier” material.

On-the-go Reading:
If I’m likely to be distracted or interrupted I’ll gravitate toward fiction or stories that don’t require me to have a pen and paper in hand.

Bedtime Reading:
Because I’m already sleepy, I need a book that I can read in snippets. I rarely finish a chapter at night so I want to read bite-sized portions that will give my mind something positive to meditate on while I sleep.

So, there you have it. Three reasons why I read several books at one time and why it’s OK for you, too.

QUESTION: What about you? How many books are you reading right now?

P.S. Here are the books I’m currently reading:

A Wrinkle In Time by Madeleine L’Engle (Audio Book)

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald Miller (Kindle)

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work by John M. Gottman (Paperback)

Nihilism, The Root of the Revolution of the Modern Age by Eugene (Fr. Seraphim) Rose (Paperback)

Giver of Life, The Holy Spirit in Orthodox Tradition by Fr. John Oliver (Paperback)

The Melody of Faith, Theology in an Orthodox Key by Vigen Guroian (Paperback)

Posted on

My Two Cents: Why Seth Godin Shouldn’t Quit

An open letter to Seth Godin in resonse to his post Moving On.

Dear Seth,

I’m up early this morning, before Michael. And next to his reading chair is your little book THE DIP. Inside the book is wedged a yellow highlighter. When he’s done with this book, and all the highlights have been captured, it will slide into it’s place next to all the others on the Seth Godin  section of our bookshelf. These books get pulled out from time to time and blue highlighter marks may be added to the already present yellow ones. Later pink lines may join them.

Your books are read and reread. Sometimes they’re sent out on “mission trips” or get taken to spend a week with a friend. Most return home with a thank-you note stuck inside, some choose to relocate permanently. From there who knows where their journey takes them.

It’s no secret that my husband, myself, my daughters, son-in-laws, friends—almost everyone we interact with—will, at some point reference or recommend one of your “traditional” books. TRIBES and LINCHPIN are almost household words around here. Your blog posts also come up frequently in conversation and get forwarded in emails. If you Twittered your tweets would be retweeted and retweeted. Each has its unique job to do.

It’s true that things are changing drastically in the world of words and ideas. Nobody knows this better than you. You’re a big reason. The possibilities are being realized faster than we can absorb them. However, in my opinion, the end of traditional publishing has not yet come. Not at all. It has a most crucial and vital part to play in feeding our souls and our minds and challenging us to change our lives.

I see this fleshed out in my own home. Mike’s chair is the perfect example. Propped in the seat is his laptop, waiting to be awakened for the day. The iPad is perched on the side table next to THE DIP and the highlighter, and the is Kindle peaking up from his briefcase on the floor waiting to be compared to the newest Kindle which will arrive sometime today.

I want to encourage to rethink this “quitting.” You say one has to know when to quit and when to stick. Don’t quit that which is obviously sticking. You and your works have a place in our lives that will never be unstuck and we’re very grateful for that.

I think your best work is yet to come … and that’s saying A LOT! Maybe not right now. Maybe it needs to ferment for several years. Who knows? All I hope is that, when it does come, you don’t quit and you give it to us in every form possible—especially traditional publishing.

Please reconsider.

With thanks,

Gail Hyatt

Posted on

Stepping Onto The Water

istock_000002187415xsmall_3My friend, Shelia Mullican, gave me a birthday gift on Sunday. She gave me a copy of Walking On Water: Reflections on Faith and Art, by Madeleine L’Engle. I had never heard of it. Of course I have heard of Madeleine L’Engle. She’s right up there with C.S. Lewis. But, I must confess, I have never read A Wrinkle In Time. I tried, back in the sixth or seventh grade, but could never get into it. Everyone in my family loved it. They will tell you it’s still one of their all-time favorites.

For some reason I have always had a difficult time reading fantasy. Sometimes I wonder if I’m not handicapped when it comes to imagination. I’m more of a concrete person. On the Myers-Briggs profile I’m a strong S—Sensing. Creative and imaginative I’m not so much. I tend to look at life literally. But there is something in me that knows I would love Madelenine L’Engle’s books if I would just let go and let her take me where I could never go by myself. Unlike most of you Walking on Water will be my first real introduction to her. And it’s not fantasy. It’s just her, the deepest parts of her. I can’t wait.  I know I’m about to make a very dear friend.

My husband has encouraged me to write. And the fact that he is in the publishing business causes me to take his encouragement seriously—though I feel completely inadequate when I give it a try. I do not enjoy the process of writing. Occasionally, I like having written. I have many half-finished blog posts waiting in “the wings,” but I keep getting stuck.

I want to like writing. I want to push through the out-of-my-comfort-zone feeling. I want to know what it’s like to stop analyzing every word, and criticizing every thought and just let go. Nicole Nordeman, in the Introduction to Walking On Water, says that L’Engle helped her “remember how to slow down, how to let go, how to wake up to the voice of the Creator in [her].” Are we all meant to hear that voice and become “co-creators” on some level?

Nicole says,

Now somehow this book has landed in your hands. … Maybe, like me, one of your friends recommended it because for the fifteenth day in a row you’ve sat staring at an empty canvas, or a lump of clay on your wheel, or a blank piece of paper on your piano, and you’re stuck. …

Be encouraged. Close your eyes and let go. Remember, as Peter did, what it felt like when nothing was sustaining you in the small space between your feet and those daunting waves but the power of an unrelenting Love.

And walk on.

Thank you, Shelia. I’m walking into the pages. I feel as though I’m entering into a mystical land full of secret treasures, and I do love treasure hunting. But I’m a little scared.