Book Review - The Tipping Point: How Little Changes Can Make a Big Difference

Pop sociology at best, shallow science at worst, Malcolm Gladwell nevertheless had me rapidly flipping the pages of this now 10-year-old book. The phrase Tipping Point "comes from the world of epidemiology. It's the name given to that moment in an epidemic when a virus reaches critical mass." The book looks at products, societal changes, a certain Revolutionary War event and more through this prism. What made each go viral, become infectious, as it were? What creates a fad? A trend? A phenomenon? Is the importance of word of mouth dependent upon from whose mouth the word proceeds? Can ideas, products and behaviors become infectious?

Gladwell theorizes, "The success of any kind of social epidemic is heavily dependent on the involvement of people with a particular and rare set of social gifts." He asserts it requires three types of people: Connectors, highly social with a huge Rolodex of contacts usually crossing several socioeconomic levels; Mavens, who devour Consumer Reports and actually read the product manuals and who relish passing on their knowledge; and, finally, Salesmen, the persuaders who convince the general populace to act on their recommendations. At times, one or more of these 3 personality types may exist in one person, which may explain why Paul Revere is a household name while another midnight rider, William Dawes, is not.

Gladwell presents the story of Paul Revere in light of his Tipping Point thesis. Revere was very integrated in many communities and knew the movers and shakers across socioeconomic lines (Connector). He had a reputation as being in the know (Maven) an, as evidenced by the response his alarm generated, was persuasive (Salesman). Gladwell describes the latter as personified by a person he meets: "He seems to ahve some indefinable trait, something powerful and contagious and irresistible that goes beyond that comes out of his mouth, that makes people who meet him what to agree with him. It's energy. It's enthusiasm. It's charm. It's likability. It's all those things and yet something more."

What causes rapid, dramatic changes in the market or society? According to Gladwell, it's the Context (the situational environment), the Idea and its "stickiness" (has to resonate) and the People involved (Connectors, Mavens and Salesmen). He believes when an idea reaches key people in the appropriate context, dramatic change can occur.

The book reviews the near demise and subsequent rebirth of the Hushpuppies brand of shoes. Prior to 1994, sales were down to 30,000 pairs and the brand was in trouble. Then the sales went to 430,000 and in 1995 they were 4 x that amount! What happened? Gladwell presents the difference between a brand being phased out and explosive growth as individuals in the fashion forward New York neighborhoods of Greenwich Village and Soho began picking up the shoes in consignment shops. Fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi and others were spotted wearing the shoes. Soon the shoes were featured in fashion shows presenting designers' new lines. Suddenly everything old is new again and Hushpuppies became de rigueur for wannabee fashionistas. Gladwell recognizes we have trouble accepting these types of epidemics in terms of geometric progression because the end results seem far out of proportion to the cause.

New York City's drastic decline in crime is given the Tipping Point treatment. This is where a lot of the book's critics takes aim. Some of his assertions may be overly broad, but I did find his Broken Window theory discussion interesting. (In a nutshell - when broken windows aren't repaired in a neighborhood, it gives off a sense of apathy and the criminal element feels free to act believing no one will care enough to do anything about it.)

Some of Gladwell's claims do seem questionable, at times he makes rather large leaps, and his evolutionary perspective made me groin, but he redeems himself somewhat when discussing such drastic changes as the Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood going rapidly from a modestly successful book to a blockbuster bestseller or of the success of children's programming such as Sesame Street or Blues Clues.

Flawed but fun, The Tipping Point made me incredibly curious about the genesis of recent trends and bestsellers. If books like Freakonomics fascinate you or you are interested in marketing and haven't yet devoured it, The Tipping Point will be an interesting and quick read.

Whitney Houston: A Lesson on Addiction

Whitney Houston's debut album was the soundtrack of my summer in 1985. Along with about every other girl in her teens and twenties, I sang Saving All My Love into an imaginary microphone. I played her follow-up album and danced my heart out to I Wanna Dance with Somebody. The vocals soared and the melodies were infectious. She was incredibly talented.

Watching Whitney's character fall for Kevin Costner in The Bodyguard, I almost believed he was sexy (almost). Hearing her sing, I Will Always Love You inexplicably brought me to tears each time. I had loved the Dolly Parton song for years, but Whitney transformed it into something completely new. She was amazing.

Bobby Brown had three children by two different women and a rumored history of drug use before Whitney married him in 1987. Like a lot of her fans, I wondered what the daughter of a gospel singer who had grown up in church was doing with the New Edition bad boy. It wasn't long before rumors of Whitney's drug use started appearing in the tabloids. In 2000, she was arrested for drug possession and a succession of rehab stays began shortly thereafter. She was an addict.

Her long-time champion Clive Davis spearheaded an intervention for Whitney. In 2011, he worked with her for what was hoped to be her comeback. During several concerts, the woman with the angelic voice was booed off the stage. The damage to her vocal cords couldn't be hidden. By February 11, 2012, she was dead.

The callous, cruel jokes began almost immediately. You've read them - "Houston, we have a problem." "Whitney Houston died. Did she fall off the wagon and hit her head?". What surprised me was reading these cold-hearted remarks from some people who had battled their own demons. It seems, "There, but by the the grace of God, go I" is a forgotten saying.

"Whitney Houston caused her own death." "She had everything going for her and threw it all away." I won't argue with either of those statements. However, I will ask for at least a modicum of compassion for a person made in the image of God who fell into the pit of addiction and couldn't find her way back out.

In his excellent book, Addictions: A Banquet in the Grave, Ed Welch points out that addicts feel trapped and out of control. They feel they can't let go even when the addictive behavior yields few pleasures and a great deal of pain. Something or someone other than the living God controls them. That controlling object tells them how to live, think and feel. Drunkenness, for example, is a lordship problem. Who is your master? God or your desires? Creator or creature? At root, drunkards are worshiping another god, alcohol. The drunk is controlled by alcohol as if he is its subject and it was his ruler. The alcohol worship is a form of self worship. We worship people and things to get what we want even when what we are wanting is destroying us.

I have a great deal of respect for Houston's mother Cissy Houston and Clive Davis for never giving up on Whitney. Mel Gibson, who has publicly crashed and burned and battled back numerous times with his substance issues, reached out to Whitney several times, which is why his name was on the funeral guest list. Addicts need people to love them enough to confront them and keep confronting and caring - as long as it takes.

I pray those who mocked Whitney Houston's death never find themselves needing such longsuffering compassion.

Thank You Power

A few years ago, I saw a copy of Thank You Power: Making the Science of Gratitude Work For You in a clearance book bin. What intrigued me about the book was who its author was, Deborah Norville.

In 1987, University of Georgia suma cum laude graduate Norville was selected to replace Jane Pauley on NBC's The Today Show. Cries of ageism immediately sprang forth as people protested what they saw as the usurpation of the popular Pauley. Struggling to defend her credibility when Jane Pauley left the morning broadcast, the pressure became unbearable for Norville, who left the show during her maternity leave in 1991. For a while, to be replaced by a younger worker was even dubbed being "norville'd". Many people, including the Emmy-winning reporter herself, thought she would never return to television. A few years later, Ms. Norville would regroup and write a book about her experience, Back on Track: How to Straighten Out Your Life When It Throws You a Curve.

Thank You Power is a quick and simple refresher course on the importance of gratitude presented in the context of studies in "positive psychology" and its role in personal happiness and intrapersonal relationships. Norville discussed various studies done on this topic and what the researchers learned in an interview while promoting the book:

[Positive Psychology] is a fairly new field, this notion of counting your blessings and the quantifiable benefits of gratitude. But what gratitude does is it puts you in a positive affect. You feel good from counting your blessings, you're more optimistic, you're less pessimistic, you even exercise on average an hour and a half more per week...You feel good when you do all those things. If you feel good, your dopamine receptors are activated. You're a better thinker. You will do better on a test."

Ms. Norville made a profession of Christian faith at the age of 15 and this perspective permeates her writing. The last chapter covers Scripture's admonitions to give thanks in all things and hold fast to the promise of Romans 8:28: We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. She cites studies echoed in Arthur C. Brooks' Gross National Happiness.

Duke University's Center on Spirituality has done a great deal of research on [people of faith being happier]. Spiritual people and religious people live longer. Religious people are happier. There is even one study that encompasses many, many years called the Nun Study. It was published by researchers at the University of Kentucky...They took the writing of some sisters shortly after they took their vows and they looked at their explanatory style. They looked at their hopefulness. They evaluated the personality of these people based on their writings. Those who has a more hopeful explanatory style lived an average of ten years longer. So, simply being an optimistic person can add a full decade to your life. "

There's nothing new or profound in this little book. At times, the writing is cliched. However, I have enacted one of its recommendations. I now have a "Thank You" journal where every day I write down three things from the day for which I am thankful and who or what made these things possible. It is a wonderful way to be reminded to have an attitude of gratitude - regardless of whether it makes me live longer or not.

It's All Greek To Me! A Review of "The Classics: All You Need to Know from Zeus's Throne to the Fall of Rome"

I know I should have resisted that title, but I honestly just couldn't! I blame the breezy, sassy style of Caroline Taggart's writing. This isn't the book for you if you are looking for a serious review of all the classical literature and mythology you have forgotten since college. Taggart's obvious love of all things Greek (and by extension Roman), doesn't stop her from pithy quips and irreverent commentary on the gods and goddesses of ancient Greece. This is a fun refresher of the Greek and Roman names, places and phrases that have become part of our everyday lexicon.

Taggart defends the study of the Greeks right off the bat: "So the Greeks didn't invent art, architecture or culture, either. Why all the fuss? . . . They invented our art, architecture, culture and philosophy. In the 21st century Western world, there are classical influences all around us." If you doubt Ms. Taggart, take a walk around Washington, DC past the ionic, Doric and Corinthian columns on temples devoted to our dead heroes. Our language tips its hat towards these Greeks. Throw in a funny ad lib while working on an ad hoc committee and you might have a Herculean task to get back to work. "We are just statistics, born to consume resources." A quote from the latest environmental book? Nope. That's Homer writing in the 1st century.

Taggart reminds many who have taken the SAT or ACT why they thanked God for their high school Latin classes: Biology: bio (life) and logia (study); monogamy: monos (one) and gamos (union); telephone: tele (far) and phone (voice) are just a few examples of Greek words adopted in the English language.

Taggart gives her reader a crash course in mythology and provides plenty of witty remarks disguised as footnotes. She discusses historical (and maybe not so historical) figures, gives her readers Homer's background and generally fleshes out those problematic crossword puzzle Greek names and phrases.

A parting shot, or more correctly a Parthian shot, trivia abounds and some of it was really nifty. I now know if we raise a glass to nunc est bibendum ("now is the time for drinking"), we have Horace to thank. Arachne challenged Athena to a weaving contest and ended up being turned into a spider. (Yep, that's how it became arachnophobia.) Nebuchadnezzar built the hanging gardens of Babylon (Yep, same Nebuchadnezzar.) The running of the Olympic torch wasn't part of the ancient games. The man responsible for the 1936 Olympics came up with the idea and the PR guy ran with it. Did I mention it was the Berlin Olympics and the PR guy was Joseph Goebbels?

This, like Taggart's other books, is light reading. If you're looking for a fun way to pass the time (and discover how Hippocrates is associated with certain personality tests), pick up a copy.

Thoughts on Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl

As I read the back cover of Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl, I kept thinking of those TV chefs that reel off ingredients so quickly you can't remember them all, but you catch enough of them for your mouth to water in anticipation. Reading the book itself, my analogy shifts to that of being in a virtual ZORB and pushing it around our world as a way to see it from different perspectives.

The narrative is incredibly sensory. At times, I rolled my eyes at the abundance of metaphors, but then I realized this excess was purposeful. This book wasn't meant to be an intellectual exercise as much as a sensate experience. Being in the Reformed community, I'm used to using the ol' grey matter to analyze and discuss areas of Scripture and truths of God. However, the Lord also made us with a right side to our brain and if we are going to be fully developed, we must use it in these endeavors as well. He writes in the introduction, "A neutral observer would not find this world to be believable. Ergo, the cause of said unbelievable world must place similar stretch marks on the imagination.

Wilson begins by looking at the created world as art, especially the devalued artistry of snowflakes - each one unique and masterfully created and yet so plenteous as to be thrown around by shovels and plows! That says something about the God we serve. Without a microscope, we won't see all the intricacies of these snowflakes, but the Creator is an Artist who creates beauty for His own enjoyment. Wilson pushes us to see the wonder, the whimsy, and the magic in creation:

"What is the world? What is it for? It is art. It is the best of all possible art, a finite picture of the infinite. Assess it like prose, like poetry, like architecture, sculpture, painting, dance, delta blues, opera, tragedy, comedy, romance, epic. Assess it like you would a Faberge egg, like a gunfight, like a musical, like a snowflake, like a death, a triumph, a love story, a tornado, a smile, a heartbreak. . . This painting is by an infinite Artist. It is a reflection of Himself (could there be a better subject?), worked out in colors, lives, and constellations, in a universe that to us seems endless but is to Him a mere frame, a small space, a confining challenge for His artistry."

Wilson says instead of philosophers:

"Give me priests. Give me men with feathers in their hair or tall domed hats, female oracles in caves, servants of the python smoking weed and reading psalms. A gypsy fortune-teller with a foot peddle Ouija board and a gold fishbowl for a crystal ball knows more about the world than many of the great thinkers of the West. Mumbling priests swinging sink cans on their chains and even witch doctors conjuring up curses with a well-buried elephant tooth have a better sense of their places in the world. They know this universe is brimming with magic, with life and riddles and ironies. They know that the world might eat them, and no encyclopedia could stop it . . . Marx called religion an opiae, and all too often it is. But philosophy is an anesthetic, a shot to keep the wonder away."

If this world is God's art, His story, then what character are you? What role do you play? Would you like yourself if watching yourself portrayed on the silver screen? Do you respond the way you would want the character in the story to respond? More importantly, if we are characters in His story, then we have a story arc with all that implies - tragedy and comedy, good and evil, wins and losses.

Wilson address "The Problem with Kittens." Go into any Christian bookstore and you'll see cards or plaques with photos of adorable kittens in baskets with a comforting verse tacked on. The problem is: The same God who made kittens made the kittens grown up to be lions, cougars and tigers who kill Bambi and other adorable creatures to feed to their young. The same God who made bunnies made red-tailed hawks and eagles who rip the cottontails apart with their talons for food. We must have room for kittens and lions, bunnies and hawks in our concept of who God is. We struggle with evil in our lives, but we don't in our art. We understand the evil in a story moves the plot along. Wilson puts it this way:

"The Problem Part Two: The world is rate R, and no one is checking IDs. Do not try to make it Go by imagining the shadows away. Do not try to hide your children from the world forever, but do not pretend there is no danger. Train them. Give them sharp eyes and bellies full of laughter. Make them dangerous. Make them yeast, and when they've grown, they will pollute the shadows."

Notes from the Tilt-A-Whirl is rich in beauty and instruction. I loved the poetic look at our earth: "The ocean can never forget the Flood. It has tasted mountains. Waking and sleeping, it chews," and the four seasons as analogous to our lives: "My grandfather is like his house. Once strong and young, now his beams and timbers sag beneath the weight of long use, heavier even than the piles of snow on his roof and the fanged ice stretching down from the gutters . . . Let the Winter come. It is the only path to Spring. The house is battered with cold, but inside there is a warmth that cannot and will not die."

"Do you resent this world, this art? Do you hate Him for cancer, for car wrecks, and for the sudden shocking sleep of the young? . . . Go to Him or go to Hell. Those are the only two choices because Hell will be wherever He is not."

Our world is God's painting, sculpture and play. When the curtain is drawn on our role, we will walk off this stage and on to a greater stage - with Him or without Him.

Sun Studio Tour: Black, White & Blue Suede Shoes

This summer, we were "walking in Memphis," strolling down Beale Street and listening to blues at the home of the "Beale Street Blues Boy" - B. B. King's Blues Bar. As an admitted Elvis fanatic, I had to go to the South's Mecca and so off to Graceland we went. It was a wonderful, albeit bittersweet, experience. However, it was an impromptu stop at Sun Studios and subsequent tour that would make the biggest impression on me from our time in Memphis.

Owner Sam Phillips had worked as a DJ for an Alabama radio station which had an "open format" that broadcasted music from both white and black musicians. Living in the 21st century, it's hard for us to get our minds around the significance of that; however, being allowed to play the music of both white and black musicians in the segregated South was of monumental significance in shaping Sam Phillips as a music producer and, in the larger context, rock-n-roll itself. In fact, the generally accepted first rock-n-roll record, "Rocket 88" was recorded by Phillips. The band was Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats, a band led by 19-year-old Ike Turner, who also wrote the song.

Sun Studios recorded the "Prisonaires," an African-American blues group made up of prisoners in the Tennessee State Penitentiary. Phillips arranged for the group to be transported under armed guard to Memphis to record. A few weeks later, Just Walkin' in the Rain was released and quickly sold 50,000 copies. Their success was such they were allowed out on day passes to play around the state. The band became a favorite of then Gov. Clement and frequently played at his mansion. The group was reportedly the inspiration for a certain trio of jailbirds famously depicted in O Brother Where Art Thou.

Phillips' had a desire to record the music of the African-American community and did record B. B. King and numerous R & B pioneers. He discovered Johnny Cash, as well as a white boy with a black sound from right there in Memphis named Elvis Presley.

One of the best parts of the Sun Studio tour for me was the realization that Elvis' discovery wasn't by chance. Instead, Elvis fervently pursued a career in music. The story about recording a record for his Mom's birthday? Probably a PR mythology. The Presleys didn't own a record player and he could have recorded it cheaper at a local drug s tore. Elvis was trying to be discovered. Sam Phillips gets the credit, but it was his long-time assistant, Marion Keisker who championed the would-be singer. Elvis had recorded a ballad, My Happiness, but Phillips was looking for something new. Marion thought Elvis had something special and would bring his name up to Phillips at just the right time. She and Elvis had a famous exchange upon meeting: I said, "What kind of singer are you?" He said, "I sing all kinds." I said, "Who do you sound like?" He said, "I don't sound like nobody."

Unlike Graceland, where things are cordoned off and under glass, at Sun Studios you stand in the studio where rock-n-roll greats stood. On the same floor tiles. Under the same ceiling tiles. And you can hold the actual microphone Elvis used. It becomes to real to you.

When you hear That's Alright, Mamma juxtaposed with clips of music from that era, you realize just how revolutionary it was! Phillips gave a copy to a local DJ at WHBQ who had to play it 14 times in a row because of the overwhelming audience response. Elvis was persuaded to go to the radio station for an interview where the DJ made sure to include a question about which high school he attended as a way to let the audience know his race without directly asking the question.

It was providential that Phillips and Sun Studios were in Memphis, the home of the Civil Rights Museum, because they were part of that movement. As Michael Bertrand discusses in his book, Race, Rock, and Elvis, "An unprecedented access to African-American culture challenged Presley's generation to reassess age-old segregationist stereotypes." The recording of Elvis, a white boy with a black sound, the embrace of the music of Ray Charles by a white audience, and the merging of musical styles broke down the barriers of a segregated society. In that sense, in the '50s, there really was a whole lotta shakin' going on!

Christian = Reader (or Should At Least)

Several years ago, my husband began a Pastor's Book Club at our church. We have just ordered our 50th book, Notes From the Tilt-A-Whirl. The previous 49 books have enlightened, entertained, challenged and, most importantly, educated the book club members.

In our 1st book, A House For My Name, we read an overview of the Old Testament that looked at infallible Scripture as divinely-inspired literature replete with imagery, repeated themes and revealing composition styles. It made me excited to open the pages of the Old Testament.

Our 4th book, When People Are Big and God Is Small, made us examine for whom we were living. Is ours an "Audience of One" where our chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever or do we bow to others through peer pressure, codependency and fear? Far from a baptized psychobabble book, the author shows we are created with certain needs and desires that others' approval or self-actualization will not satisfy -they are God-shaped and only He can fulfill them.

Along the way, we have dealt with tough issues people living in the real world face every day through such books as When Good Kids Make Bad Choices, Real Sex: The Naked Truth About Chastity, How to Be Free From Bitterness, Depression: A Stubborn Darkness and Addictions: A Banquet in the Grave.

We've read fun books that defend snarky satire (Serrated Edge by Douglas Wilson), strolled through history (33 Questions About American History You're Not Supposed to Ask by Thomas E. Woods, Jr. and the Politically Incorrect Guide to the Sixties by Jonathan Leaf), and we now know that real men do read Jane Austen (Miniatures & Morals by Peter Leithart).

And there have been a few books that have stretched our minds and perspectives in wondrous ways - A Table in the Mist by Jeffrey Meyers and Saving Leonardo: A Call To Resist the Secular Assault on Mind, Morals & Meaning by Nancy Pearcey just to name two.

If you are a Christian, you should be a reader! As Nancy Pearcey brilliantly shows in Saving Leonardo, we can only be salt and light to the world when we interact with that world! The Proverbs tell us, "The first one to plead his cause seems right, until his neighbor comes and examines him." How do we examine a secular "ism" or belief system when we are ignorant of it? To transform our world, we must obey the words of Timothy to "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." To help you get started, here are some suggestions:

A House for My Name - Peter Leithart

Thinking Straight in a Crooked World - Gary DeMar

Hospitality Commands - Alexander Strauch

When People Are Big and God Is Small - Ed Welch

Biblical Healing for Modern Man - Frank Payne

God at Work - Gene Edward Veith

Serrated Edge - Douglas Wilson

The Battle Belongs to the Lord - K. Scott Oliphint

Market-Driven Church - Udo Middleman

My Life for Yours - Douglas Wilson

Blame it on the Brain 0 Richard Winter

The Lord's Service - Jeffrey Meyers

Still Bored in a Culture of Entertainment - Gene Edward Veith

Everyday Talk - John Younts

A Journey in Grace - Richard P. Belcher

humility: the forgotten virtue - Wayne & Joshua Mack

Trinity & Reality: An Introduction to the Christian Faith - Ralph Smith

When Good Kids Make Bad Choices - Elyse Fitzpatrick & Jim Newheiser

Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense - N. T. Wright

Real Sex: The Naked Truth About Chastity - Lauren Winner

Paedofaith - Rich Lusk

Angels in the Architecture - Doug Jones and Doug Wilson

A Table in the Mist - Jeffrey Meyers

For a Glory and a Covering - Douglas Wilson

How to be Free from Bitterness - Jim Wilson

Politically Incorrect Guide to Global Warming (& Environmentalism) - Christopher C. Horner

The Baptized Body - Peter Leithart

Why Baptize Babies? - Mark Horne

33 Questions About American History (You're Not Supposed to Ask) - Thomas E. Woods, Jr.

10 Books that Screwed Up the World - Benjamin Wiker

Gross National Happiness - Arthur C. Brooks

Faith, Reason & the War Against Jihadism - George Weigel

Meltdown: A Free Market Look at Why the Stock Market Collapsed - Thomas E. Woods, Jr.

Running Scared: Fear, Worry & the God of Rest - Edward T. Welch

The Liturgy Trap - James Jordan

Whatever Happened to Justice - Richard Maybury

Depression: A Stubborn Darkness - Edward T. Welch

God vs Socialism - Joel McDurmon

How to Argue with a Liberal & Win - Joel McDurmon

Jane Austen (biography) - Peter Leithart

Miniatures & Morals: The Christian Novels of Jane Austen - Peter Leithart

Addictions: A Banquet in the Grave

10 Books Every Conservative Must Read, Plus 4 Not to Miss & 1 Impostor - Benjamin Wiker

Five Cities that Rules the World - Doug Wilson

Good News for Anxious Christians: 10 Practical Things You Don't Have to Do - Phillip Cary

Rollback: Repealing Big Government Before the Coming Fiscal Collapse - Thomas E. Wood

Johann Sebastian Back - Rick Marschall

The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Sixties - Jonathan Leaf

Saving Leonardo: A Call to Resist the Secular Assault on Mind, Morals & Meaning - Nancy Pearcey

Notes From the Tilt-A-Whirl - Nathan Wilson

Fiction Squared - Book Review: Heat Rises by Richard Castle

ABC Television is trying the old tried and true "play within a play" formula to promote the dramedy series, Castle. They are doing it with a twist, however, by using a literary tie-in. Castle has as its title character hot-shot novelist Rick Castle, who uses his friendship with the mayor to gain permission to tag along on crime scenes with an NYPD homicide team led by Detective Kate Beckett. Although initially his presence is begrudgingly accepted, Castle's mystery writing sensibilities make him a helpful addition to the team. Before long, sparks begin to fly between the writer and the detective, sometimes not in a good way as, much to her chagrin, Castle writes a racy detective series based on Det. Beckett.

The marketing gurus at ABC started producing the books their

title character was supposedly writing on the show as a nifty little promotional tool. Rick Castle will be seen towards the end of the season with the mock-up of his latest book featuring a New York detective named "Nikki Heat" who is shadowed by a hot-shot journalist named Jamison Rook. (The marketing department is sending a wink to their readers: In chess, "castle" and "rook" are interchangeable names for the same piece.) The books have plots loosely based on the series season just ending: Heat Wave (season one, 2009); Naked Heat (season two, 2010); and Heat Rises (season three, 2011), which had its debut at #1 on the New York Times Bestseller List.

While I love the show, I had zero interest in the books until I came across a rumor Stephen J. Cannell, a writer whose work I have enjoyed for decades, might be one of the ghostwriters. The books were small, so I decided to give one a try. And with that, I was hooked. When I read the books, I actually hear the actors in the television show speaking the lines. The novels are written in the same style as the show and are a really fun read. If you're a fan of the television show, give one of the novels a try.

[Disclaimer: Unlike the television series, in the books Nikki Heat and Rook are romantically involved. The books are slightly racier than the show, but the writers keep it pretty PG. However, you have been warned.]

Book Review: The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Sixties

Blame it on Memphis. I have been in a 50s and 60s state of mind since our brief vacation to the home of the blues in July. My husband found himself dwelling on that era as well and thus came this selection for his Pastor's Book Club of The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Sixties by Jonathan Leaf.

The P.I.G. series (as the Politically Incorrect Guides are affectionately known) give readers what Paul Harvey would have referred to as "the rest of the story" on topics ranging from American History, the Constitution and English and American Literature to Hunting and the South.

The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Sixties is divided into three parts: The Social Sixties, The Cultural Sixties and The Political Sixties. Part One covers the student radicals, the sexual revolution and a chapter entitled, "Civil Rights to Uncivil Wrongs: From Freedom Rides to "Burn, Baby, Burn." Part Two of the book covers rock-n-roll, movies/TV, fashion and the space race. The final section explores the Warren Supreme Court, JFK's Camelot, LBJ's war on poverty, the Vietnam War and finally, "The Birth of the Counter-Counterculture."

This book is as entertaining as it is informative. No chapter is too long - just as you're ready to move on to another subject, so is the book. If you think you know all about the Sixties, Leaf's Guide may just prove you wrong.

And, as a member of the book club astutely noted, if you want to understand the underlying worldviews behind the radical sixties, our current selection should be on your To-Read List: Saving Leonardo: A Call to Resist the Secular Assault on Mind, Morals and Meaning.

Book Review: Juliet by Anne Fortier

Anne Fortier's debut novel, Juliet, takes her reader to Sienna, Italy in both the present day and as it was in the 14th century. A re-imagining of Romeo and Juliet with shades of The Da Vinci Code (without the gnostic gospels element).

Julie Jacobs is mourning the recent loss of her beloved Aunt Rose when more grief comes her way. Her Aunt has left her entire fortune to Julie's superficial and shrewish twin, Janice. The only things bequeathed to Julie are actually from her long-deceased mother - a key, a secret and a passport in Julie's real name - Giuletta Tolomei. She discovers she is a direct descendant of the 14th century Giuletta Tolomei who lived in Sienna, Italy and was half of the ill-fated pair of lovers immortalized in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

As Julie travels to Sienna in hopes of discovering what treasure is unlocked by her mother's key, she learns the "Curse upon both your houses," may be alive and well these 600 years later. She soon meets a wealthy woman from Sienna who is insistent on befriending her (and introducing her to the lady's handsome nephew). Armed with ancient diaries, relics, a fresco and a 14th century painting, she sets out to understand the past as a way to understand the present and perhaps her future.

The book moves along at a quick pace and I actually found it to be quite the page turner (until the end, but that critique comes later). The chapters alternate between events in the present and events in the 14th century which seem to correlate and pushes Julie further into danger. The whole re-imagining of Romeo and Juliet was very appealing and works to a large extent. There are lots of red herrings and false turns to keep the suspense going, but there are also abrupt changes and storylines that are simply abandoned that mar the story as well.

The ending is rather disappointing. While it ends the way the romantic in me says it should ultimately, it felt rushed with new characters introduced and familiar characters almost rewritten (to the point I wondered if a new heroine had been determined!). The transition from Julie and Janice's relationship at the beginning of the novel to the one at the end happened almost instantly and was not supported adequately in the narrative. The change was too abrupt and hurt believability.

Nevertheless, this is overall a fun read. It has enough history, romance, intrigue and mystery to keep the reader involved, but also enough holes, character underdevelopment and farfetched storytelling to make its reader long for what the novel could have been. Perhaps the movie in development will fill in these gaps.

Movie Reviews: The Fighter, True Grit, The Next Three Days and New In Town

The Fighter
Christian Bale's performance in The Fighter is incredible. His Oscar is well deserved. This movie will make you uncomfortable. It will make you wince. It will make you angry. In the end, it will make you glad you watched it. Mark Wahlberg's "Irish" Mickey Ward is another in what is becoming his trademark underdog roles. Wahlberg really championed this script and was right to do so.

True Grit
When you remake a John Wayne classic, you've already got a strike against you in my book. You just don't mess with The Duke. The Coen Brothers and Jeff Bridges didn't get that memo and the cinematic world is the better for it. This version of True Grit is grittier than the original and, for me, more poignant. Bridges' performance is outstanding and homeschooled Hailee Steinfeld is incredible.

The Next Three Days
You just can't go wrong with a Russell Crowe movie (The Quick and the Dead being a possible exception). This is an excellent suspense movie. It occasionally stretches believability to the breaking point, but it was clever, well-acted and had me on the edge of my seat, which is what I look for in this genre.

New In Town
While I love Harry Connick, Jr., I'm kind of holding a grudge against Renee Zellweger for the unceremonious dumping of Kenny Chesney. Nevertheless, this is a really cute, sweet movie. I don't need to tell you it's predictable - it's a rom-com afterall, but I will tell you it is surprisingly affirming of Midwestern values.

Top Ten Things I Learned in Memphis

10. Types of Elvis memorabilia could serve as a definition of ad infinitum.

9. The music of the 70s is the only thing about that era worthy of nostalgia.

8. The home of the Civil Rights Movement is a good example of how the South has put an ugly past behind her.

7. You don't listen to the music of blues musicians; you experience the music of blues musicians.

6. Young people need hard knocks in life to mature them.

5. Surrounding yourself with "yes" men is self-destructive. (see #6)

4. Barbecue is a noun, not a verb.

3. Barbecue is the genus; dry rub, sweet, spicy, etc. are species of that genus.

2. Memphis in the summer can serve as a staging area for transport to HELL!

1. Elvis is alive and well and living in Memphis, TN!

A Prayer For Those of Us Easily Annoyed

I used to say (in an obnoxiously chipper voice), "I'm a people person. I no longer say this. The truth is - people annoy me. People behind the wheel of an automobile annoy me a lot. I wish I could find the humor in it and just shake my head and invent a Bill Engvall "Here's Your Sign" comedy routine. Instead, my temper flares and my blood pressure rises.

So, of course, a friend of mine had to post "A Prayer For Those of Us Easily Annoyed" to Facebook! I may need to repent...

Here's a Great Article For Parents

While my hubby and I would have loved to have had children, I've written before about one of the advantages of not having them: we lack Parent Fog. It fascinates me to listen to parents talk about childrearing from my outside-looking-in position. A good friend linked to this article on Facebook and I think it is a wonderful word to parents. "The goal is to get them to love the standard. If you can’t get them to love the standard, lower the standard." Before you dismiss that as so much compromise, read the article.

Last Days Liars

May 22, 2011. Add Harold Camping's name (again) to a long list of false prophets proclaiming the end of the world.

I grew up with this viewpoint. Jesus was coming soon. Mine was the "terminal generation"/"Revelation Generation" and on and on it went. I'm happy to report my eschatological views have changed and I'm no longer thrown into emotional turmoil with the latest sensational proclamation from these doomsday seers. It infuriates me that another generation of young people are being fed this stuff. I know better now, but there was a time...

I could have drawn out in great detail the "prophetic events of the last days" - the Rapture, the Great Tribulation, the Millennial Reign, the Last Judgment. I knew all the steps in this dance, however I now believe if Scripture is the tune then that dance is not in time with the music!

There's a book by Francis Gumerlock, "The Day and the Hour" that reviews 2000 years of conjecture on the last days disclosing the dreams and delusions of those who believed their sect was the 144,000 of Revelation 7; that the 1290 days of Daniel 12 had expired in their generation; that the "Man of Sin" of 2 Thessalonians was reigning in their time; that the Rapture of the saints, Great Tribulation, and Battle of Armageddon were just around the corner; or that a millennial kingdom was about to dawn.

This is a great antidote to the Harold Camping's of the world. And if The Last Days is something that causes you anxiety, get a copy of Gary DeMar's book, 'Why the End of the World Is Not In Your Future."

This fiction continues in the church through repetition and assertion. In most circles it's accepted as absolute truth and people never know the Church hasn't always believed this. As Christians we are to search the Scriptures to see if something is true.

Book Review: The Knitting Circle by Ann Hood

Ann Hood lost her daughter to viral strep and learned to knit following this tragedy. The Knitting Circle is her semi-autobiographical novel that follows Mary Baxter, and to a lesser extent her husband Dylan, in the weeks and months after the loss of their five-year-old daughter Stella. Mary's idyllic life is ripped apart with Stella's death and she finds going on overwhelming. Reluctantly following her mother's advice, Mary joins a knitting circle and as she gets to know the other members, all of whom have their own story of loss, the reader realizes what is being knitted is not just wool. With each knit or purl, the members are re-knitting their lives together.

I don't know how people without a strong faith survive loss. How do you process the unexpected death of a love one from violence, disease or tragedy? How do you make sense of it all? Strikingly, on several occasions one or more of the book's characters refer to each stitch as a prayer, almost as if they look at their project as a woven rosary. Faith imagery was applied to the knitting process throughout the book and I was struck by this given the lack of discussion of loss in reference to God. None of the characters are sure of heaven, but all want to believe it exists.

The book draws you in and it will make you weep, it will make you laugh, and it may make you uncomfortable at times as you encounter abortion, casual sex and four-letter words. The supporting characters weren't as well-developed as I would have liked and the ending is a little cliche'd, but overall I liked the book.

Movie Reviews: The Tourist, Forever Shrek, Tangled and Get Low

Every once in a while a movie will surprise you - for me that movie was The Tourist. Angelina Jolie plays her trademark cool as ice mystery woman while co-star Johnny Depp surprises playing a tourist caught in a web of international intrigue who is vulnerable and at times seemingly overwhelmed by his circumstances. This Hitchcock-flavored movie offers twists, red herrings and a satisfying ending. The Tourist was nominated for three Golden Globe awards and deservedly so!

Our Netflix notices are sent to my husband's email account, but I'm the one who selects movies for our queue. My choices are generally well received, but recently I added a couple of cartoons to the list. As soon as the notification was received, I heard the disgruntled groan bellow from my hubby's office followed by, "A cartoon? A cartoon?!" Thankfully, the two I selected were entertaining animated feature films and even my doubting spouse admitted to enjoying them (well, at least a little).

Shrek Forever After is the concluding installment of the Shrek fairytale. What's so fun about

these movies to me is the deconstructed fairytale

becomes a traditional fairytale. As the movie opens, we get a glimpse into what "and they lived happily ever after..." looks like. The tedium of day-to-day living is taking its toll on Shrek and he finds himself pining for the good, o' days when he was an ogre of the decidedly unbeloved variety. Taking a cue from Capra, the film gives Shrek what he thinks he wants only for the ogre to quickly realizes his was a "wonderful life" just as it was. A fun, feel good movie.

The other cartoon I imposed upon my long suffering spouse was Tangled. The movie trailer had me giggling and my affection for Zachary Levi (star of the Chuck television series) put this film on my must-see list. It was thoroughly delightful. A sheltered princess who develops a spunky, take charge attitude and a hero who is a charming rogue with a heart of gold is right up this hopeless romantic's alley. (For an added bonus, they have thrown in a wonderfully animated duty-bound horse.)

The final film is a small, character-driven story starring Robert Duvall, Sissy Spacek and Bill

Murray. Really that's all you need to know. These three actors give wonderful performances.

Duvall is my husband's favorite actor and this performance only reenforced that admiration. Bill Murray has evolved into a wonderful character actor and holds his own against the veteran Duvall. Loosely based on a real-life story, the film is more about the journey than the destination. The ending had a nice

resolution to the story, but was a little unsatisfying from a dramatic standpoint. See this film just for Duvall, Spacek and Murray's performances if nothing else - they're that good.

Read This Book! - "Good News For Anxious Christians: 10 Practical Things You DON'T Have To Do" by Phillip Cary

My biggest complaint about Cary's book is that it wasn't available 30 years ago! How marvelous it would have been to have some of these evangelical traps exposed earlier in my Christian walk rather than having to wrestle with them for years.

The back cover gives this description as to content:

Like a succession of failed diet regimens, the much-touted techniques that are supposed to bring us closer to God "in our hearts" can instead make us feel anxious, frustrated, and overwhelmed. Phillip Cary explains that discipleship is a gradual, long-term process that comes through the Bible experienced in Christian community, not a to-do list designed to help us live the Christian life "right." He covers ten things we don't have to do to be close to God, skillfully unpacking the riches of traditional Christian spirituality to bring the real good news to Christians of all ages.

Christopher Hall, the chancellor of Eastern University wrote my thoughts in his endorsement of the book:

Evangelicals worry about lots of things, including the state of our spiritual health. Phil Cary is worried too: worried that evangelicals are suffering needlessly because they have imbibed a consumerist spirituality that offers much but provides little. Phil's prescription for spiritual indigestion? A turning away from the self to the One who continually speaks a healing, saving word to us, Christ himself. This is, quite frankly, one of the best books I've read on the spiritual life over the past twenty-five years. I heartily recommend it.

This is a quick, easy read and for the Christian struggling with a myriad of "how do you know" questions - it is a shelter from those spiritual storms. Below are a couple of excerpts.

On hearing God's voice:

"Nearly all of my students have been taught to listen for God's voice in their hearts, but most of them seem not to have been taught the basics of God's word. Many of them, for instance, could not tell you the Ten Commandments if their life depended on it. So with hearts largely unshaped and uninformed by God's word, they are nonetheless expected to find God in their hearts. This kind of teaching is a terrible thing to do to them. It makes them dependent on nothing more than the thoughts of their own hearts. This is not the Holy Spirit's way of teaching...the Holy Spirit's way of teaching is to teach the word of Christ...They [the fruit of the Spirit] come into our hearts by the hearing of the external word of the gospel, which the Spirit applies inwardly to our hearts, so that Christ may dwell in our hearts by faith, reshaping everything about us from the bottom up. According to this biblical account of the work of the Spirit in our hearts, we won't get a sanctified heart by listening for the Spirit, but by listening to God's word."

On giving God control of your life:

"Perhaps the most important replacement for Christian morality in today's churches is the idea that you're supposed to "give God control" of your life. An older way of saying pretty much the same thing was that you're supposed to "yield your heart to God." And then there's the motto, "Let go, let God," and all the various ways that people think they're supposed to "let" God work in their lives. What I want to look at is. . . how very different these concepts are from the concept of obeying God, which is at the core of Biblical morality. . .The crucial difference is who's doing the doing. Obedience means doing what God says. "Giving God control" means letting God do it for us. That's a fundamentally different notion from obedience and it undermines the very idea of a moral responsibility. You're not morally responsible for what's done if you're not the one doing it. . .The misunderstanding on which much of the new evangelical theology is based is the idea that when God is working in you, then you'renot working. It's as if His working replaces yours, so you're not doing anything - you're just letting God do it. But that doesn't really work, because then you have to make sure that you're really letting God do it - and so you get all anxious about whether you're really doing that . . .

The game doesn't really work, but let's look at how it goes: We're supposed to give control to God, which means we're the ones in control to start with. That means it's ultimately up to us - God has no control unless we give it to Him. It's often put this way: "God can't work in your life unless you'll let Him." This is an astonishing bit of fantasy. Where in the Bible or anywhere else in God's creation did people get the idea that God was so helpless? If God can't do anything unless we let him, then God is not really God, and indeed He is les real than any person we know. After all, you don't have to "let" real people work in your life. They have an affect on you whether you like it or not, precisely because they're real . . . so saying God can't work in your life unless you let Him is basically saying He is not real.

At the Movies: 11 Reviews

My favorites are covered last, but let's start with the Romantic Comedies:

Knight & Day - Cute little rom-com that comes off at times as a spoof of romantic comedies rather than an actual rom-com. It was fun, but only as a Red Box rental.

My Life in Ruins - Nia Vardalos probably hoped that lightning would strike twice in her second film set in Greece, however while the scenery is incredible, the story is just so-so. Richard Dreyfuss does his best to up the quality in a nicely done supporting role.

When in Rome - This was a really cute movie, but seemed to have two endings (and should have stuck with the first). It's an engaging little story that stars Kristen Bell and Josh Duhamel who have a nice chemistry between them. (Plus "Pedro" from Napoleon Dynamite makes an appearance.)

Killers - Katherine Heigl plays a lovelorn lady who falls for Ashton Krutcher's perfect man. Their idyllic married life is turned upside down when his past makes an appearance in his present life. It's a lightweight, fun movie with Tom Selleck in a fun role as Heigl's father.

Now for the Family Friendly Fare:

Around the World in 80 Days - This is a family-friendly take on a classic with Jackie Chan as is usual charming self. (Several star-studded cameos are fun bits)

Paul Blart: Mall Cop - I resisted watching this. I expected sophomoric humor and pratfalls. There were indeed some juvenile jokes, but it also had a surprising sweetness to it. Fun movie.

The Princess and the Frog - Billed as Disney's "last princess movie," this fairytale set in New Orleans is full of good music and an engaging story. Based on its box office take, I'd be really surprised if Tiana really was the last princess we meet from the Mouse House.

Action/Suspense:

The Losers - Basically the "A-Team" with lesser known actors. Fun action movie, but not for youngsters.

Body of Lies - Russell Crowe and Leo DiCaprio are excellent in this story of middle east espionage. It does a nice job showing the often disconnect between the powers that be in offices back home running the war and the people on the ground actually fighting the war. Gripping, well-acted movie.

Robin Hood - This is one of my favorite stories, so I had high expectations. The reviews had been mixed, but I am rarely disappointed when director Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe team up. I liked the way the Robin Hood mythology was handled and was surprised by how much I liked Cate Blanchett as Marion. [For another fun and lesser known Ridley/Crowe movie, try A Good Year.]

RED - This was such a fun movie! Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman, Helen Mirren and an hilarious John Malkovich star as retired black ops operatives who find themselves on the wrong side of a hit list. The movie is action-packed as well as at times hilarious. I loved this movie!

Unstoppable - Fast paced, well-acted and suspenseful, this train movie will have you on the edge of your seat. Denzel Washington turns in his usual fine performance and Chris Pine holds his own with the veteran actor. (In fact, Washington is the one who recommended Pine for the role.) The more I see of Chris Pine, the more I like him. I think he will prove to be more than a handsome face and develop into a respected actor.

Now back to the Blu-Ray player. . .

Love or Lust? Considering Ammon & Tamar

Sex. There! I've got your attention.

I recently taught a children's Sunday School class on a passage that was all about sex. I taught it very tentatively, choosing my words and analogies with care. The Bible, however, isn't a bit shy about discussing sex. Sometimes you don't realize the passage is about sex until the end. Take for instance the passage on Ammon & Tamar.

In II Samuel 13, Ammon is physically sick over his half-sister Tamar. He tells his friend Jonadab, "I love Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister." At first glance, it would seem the story is about forbidden love, a biblical Romeo and Juliet. But the story is much darker than that. Jonadab comes up with a scheme to allow Ammon to be alone with his half-sister. Ammon's love turns out to be only lust as he rapes Tamar and then tosses her out like yesterday's newspaper. This event will not only destroy Tamar's life, but will ultimately cost Ammon his life and the life of Tamar's brother Absalom, as well as come close to costing their father, King David, his kingdom.

Such is the deceitful and destructive nature of lust. And such is the way we can distinguish between love and lust. A simple comparison of attributes is a quick guide for determining whether the "love" being professed is truly love or the impostor lust. Lust deceives. It manipulates. It destroys. It consumes. It is selfish.

Scripture lists love's attributes as longsuffering, kind, not envious, not proud, doesn't behave rudely, isn't self-seeking, is not easily angered, doesn't hold grudges, doesn't delight in evil but rejoices in truth. Ultimately, we're told love never fails.

Jesus told his disciples, "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends." Love is self-sacrificing or as the Bible puts it, ". . . does not seek its own."

Good thing to remember on a day devoted to love.