Silence

Shūsaku Endō

Silence is a fascinating novel by the Japanese Christian novelist, Shūsaku Endō.  It is based upon true events concerning Jesuit missionaries from Portugal who began going to Japan in the 1500s for mission work.  The missionaries to Japan were able to establish a thriving beachhead of Christianity that grew to 300,000 Japanese believers.  But then Japanese leaders began persecuting Christians, including priests from other countries.

The novel contains the story of two Portuguese priests who come to Japan in search of their mentor, a Portuguese priest who had reportedly apostatized.  It is a poignant tale of their attempts to encourage and minister to Japanese Christians while at the same time avoiding capture by the Japanese authorities.  Ultimately, one of the two priests will be killed and the other captured.  The main character is forced to decide between apostatizing and hence freeing Japanese Christians from torture, or remaining steadfast to Christ.

The book raises more questions than it gives answers – questions regarding faith and doubt, regarding persecution and apostasy.  The book is well-written and powerful. 

Bowman and the Men of Oregon

Kenny Moore

Bill Bowerman was a remarkable man.  Among his accomplishments:

·      Was a World War II hero

·      Coached 16 sub-four-minute milers at the University of Oregon

·      Was a head US Olympic track coach

·      Ignited the running boom

·      Made Eugene, Oregon, the track capital of the world

·      Invented the waffle-soled running shoe and co-founded Nike

·      Was half of a passionate, 71-year-long love story

He had an incredible impact on the state of Oregon because of his long tenure as head coach of the track team at the university.  But he also had enormous influence on distance running and the world of track and field.   Many would say that he deserves most of the credit for the running boom that began in the United States in the 1970s and continues until the present.

He was a different man.  Unique.  Those who knew him well considered him a genius, for he was forever inventing things.  He was completely candid and honest with people, at times to a fault.  Of course he had weaknesses, such as being overly stubborn and even unforgiving.

The book is fascinating and is so well-written by Kenny Moore, who was one of his runners who was a two-time Olympian and who was a long-time writer for Sports Illustrated.  Kenny Moore can write.

This was my second time to read the book and I’m glad I re-read it.  I probably enjoyed it even more this time.  Why does the book appeal to me so?  Several factors:  My interest in distance running, my interest in Oregon, perhaps that I knew, at least casually, a lot of the people in the book.

The book is not simply on Bill Bowerman.  It is on Bowerman and the men of Oregon.  So many, many fascinating characters, with Steve Prefontaine at the top of that list and Phil Knight, the founder of Nike, somewhere near the top of the list.  But many others.

This is one of my all-time favorite biographies.

East of Eden

John Steinbeck

John Steinbeck is considered one America’s greatest novelists and East of Eden is considered one of his greatest two novels, along with The Grapes of Wrath.  Perhaps the best word to describe this novel would be the word powerful.  He deals with powerful things, good and evil, and he does so in a powerful way.

On the one hand there is a riveting story tracing two families through several generations, but it is not simply an interesting story.  It is full of tragedy and pathos, human goodness and human sinfulness.

The title of the book refers to Cain being exiled East of Eden.  It seems that Steinbeck was fascinated by Scripture, but it is hard to say what his view of Scripture exactly was.  Clearly, he spent time reading it.

This is not a quick and easy read.  It is a 600 page epic, mostly set in the rich agricultural land of California’s Salinas Valley near San Francisco.  It is a novel worth reading and probably worth rereading.

For the Glory: Erick Liddell's Journey from Olympic Champion to Modern Martyr

Duncan Hamilton

This is a superb biography of Eric Liddell, the famed Christian and Olympian who was featured in the 1980 movie “Chariots of Fire,” which won an Oscar for best picture.  The biographer did a superb job, including extensive research on Liddell in China, Britain and Canada, where his family moved after he was martyred in 1945. 

Liddell was born in China of missionary parents from Scotland.  He went to boarding school in Britain and later attended Edinburgh University.

He was a superb athlete and began winning races all over England.  He was named to the British Olympic Team for the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris.  However, the preliminaries of his main event, the 100 meters, were held on a Sunday.  It was his strong conviction that Christians should not compete in sports on Sunday.

Unlike the movie, which is mostly but not completely accurate, Liddell knew months in advance of this conflict.  British officials tried long and hard to dissuade him from his convictions about racing on Sunday.  He was also widely criticized in the press.  But it was to no avail.  Though Liddell was a gentle and humble man in many ways, he was also a man of iron convictions and he would not budge about racing on Sunday. 

Liddell did compete at the Paris Olympic games, but he competed in the 400 meters, which did not have the Sunday conflict.  There were four rounds in the 400.  In the first round, a runner from Switzerland set a world record.  In the next round an American runner broke that record.  There was no record in the third round, but in the final round, Liddell, who was not a favorite to win or even place in this event, won with a stirring upset of these two record holders.

Though he had previously been widely criticized for his refusal to run on Sunday, after winning a gold medal in the 400 he was widely acclaimed for his convictions.  He became the British hero of the 1924 Olympics, who could win a gold medal even when it wasn’t his main event. 

After the Olympic Games Liddell spoke widely for the gospel.  He turned down lucrative opportunities to make money through speaking fees, writing fees, and endorsements.  He was not interested in fame or money.  Rather he was resolute in going to China as a missionary.  As he put it, “God made me for China.”  He would stay another year at Edinburgh, finishing his work, before making the journey to China, where he would live the rest of his life except for a furlough.

Hero of the Empire

Candice Millard

Candice Millard is an engaging storyteller of historical events.  She has a riveting history of Theodore Roosevelt’s Amazon journey entitled, The River of Doubt:  Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey, his adventure in the rainforest of Brazil when he nearly died.

Now she takes up a slice of the life of the young Winston Churchill, when he fought in the Boer War in South Africa.

He had already fought in wars in India, Sudan and Cuba, and he now he lusted for another battle adventure.

He wanted to make a name for himself that would catapult him into Parliament and eventually the highest offices in the land.

Churchill, like Theodore Roosevelt, with whom he shares a number of traits, was completely fearless in battle.  He felt it was his destiny to be a great leader in England.  He journeyed to South Africa as a war correspondent for a London newspaper, but he wanted to both fight and report on the fighting.  Near the start of his time in South Africa, the train he was traveling in was derailed and ambushed by Boer soldiers.  He led the charge to try to escape, exposing himself to the fire of enemy soldiers.  Eventually Churchill and others were captured and sent to a prison in the capital, Pretoria.  Churchill hated it there, being a captive.  He didn’t want to miss out on the war.  He did not want to be subjugated to the Boers and he continually thought of escape.  A few months into his imprisonment, he scales a fence, drops quietly down, though an enemy guard was near, and begins a dramatic escape that takes him over the next several weeks.

He is in continual danger and the Boer government makes it a priority to recapture their escaped prisoner. When he is desperate for food, shelter, warmth and health, he takes a risk and knocks on a door in a little mining village.  He discovers that the owner is a Brit, who gladly helps him.  For a time he hides him deep in a mine, then several Britishers help him hide on a freight train that makes its way out of the country.  All of England rejoices at his daring escape. Then he goes back to the battle, where he serves as both officer and reporter for several months before he returns to England.  After his return, he runs for election in Parliament and wins, no doubt because of his fame in the Boer War.  His career takes off.

All fans of Winston Churchill will enjoy this book.  Millard is a great storyteller.  However, it feels truncated, only covering such a small slice of his life.  It is good.  It is worth reading.  It is not great.