John Knox

By Jane Dawson

When I began this biography of Knox, I had high expectations.  I was eager to learn more about the life of the famous Scottish reformer.  However, this book was quite disappointing.  It would probably be considered more of an academic biography than a spiritual biography.  That is, it dealt more with his influence and thought, rather than his heart, his spiritual life, his family life, his character.

It was almost a political biography because he was so involved with the politics of his day with Mary, Queen of Scots, Queen Elizabeth and other leading figures.

Certainly, he was a prominent influence in Scotland in the mid-1500s.

The Knox of this biography was confrontational.  Bold.  Even harsh.

River of Gods

By Candice Millard

River of the Gods is the fourth book by Candice Millard.  She is a superb historian and writer.  Her first three books included:

River of Doubt.  The Story of Theodore Roosevelt’s Near Fatal Journey in the Amazon Jungle.

Death to the Republic.  Her superb history of the under-appreciated James Garfield.

Hero of the Empire.  The story of the young Winston Churchill’s imprisonment and escape in South Africa during the Boer War.

Having read these three books I had high expectations for her next book.  River of the Gods, subtitled Genius, Courage, and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile is her account of the search for the source of the Nile in the nineteenth century.

The book focuses around two Brits, Richard Burton and John Speke.  These were men who journeyed together from Zanzibar, off the east coast of Africa, into the interior of Africa, looking for the source of the Nile.  They began as colleagues but over time they became enemies.  Speke would later make a journey without Burton.

These were not good men.  They were courageous.  But they also were men full of pride and self-centeredness.

I was expecting more from the book.  Perhaps because I have read about this search in the past it simply was not as fascinating to me. But perhaps because neither of the two protagonists, Burton or Speke, were virtuous men of character, the book grew tiring.

Though the search for the source of the Nile was enormously important in the nineteenth century, Millard failed to make a cogent case of why it was so important.

Unlike her previous three books, this book was good, but not outstanding.

A State at Any Cost: The Life of David Ben-Gurion

By Tom Segev and Haim Watzman

This biography by highly regarded Israeli historian and journalist Tom Segev is considered a major new biography of Ben-Gurion.  Perhaps it is the definitive biography. 

I have been intrigued by David Ben-Gurion, the founder of modern Israel.  He had such an impact on the events leading up to the founding of Israel on May 14, 1948, and in the decades following.  But I did not know a great deal about  him.

After reading the biography, I’m less impressed by him than I was before, which is a bit unusual.  Clearly, he did so much in the founding of the modern State of Israel, it is only fitting that Israel’s major airport in Tel Aviv is the David Ben-Gurion Airport. 

But on the other hand, he was not a good man in terms of character.  He was not virtuous. He was egocentric.  He’d lie to suit his purposes.  He could be ruthless.  He was a poor husband and father, and often unfaithful to his wife.  He was probably a lonely man, not even close to his wife and family.

Before reading the book, I would have regarded  him as a heroic figure, but he was not.  I would not say that he was a great man or that he was a great leader, but he was a great politician.  He was a visionary, and he was tirelessly devoted to the cause of his life:  establishing a nation for the Jews in Palestine.  He pursued this cause relentlessly from his youth, moving to Palestine as a young adult and giving his life for a new nation for the Jews.

He was born in Poland and basically lived in Palestine all of his adult years.  He did spend lots of time in London, in the U.S., and in other places.

He was smart, not brilliant.  A voracious reader.  He learned a number of languages.  He was curious.  Like most great leaders he had tremendous confidence in himself.

He had many colleagues and many enemies.  He had few, if any, friends.

He became an early leader in the labor movement in Palestine.  From his earliest years in Palestine he became one of the main political leaders among the Jews.  After a time he became the main political leader in Israel, and he became the first prime minister of Israel.

For many years he served as both prime minister and defense minister and represented Israel around the globe, interfacing with many heads of state.

Perhaps the biggest question is this:  Did the Zionists have a right to form a state in Palestine?  It is unclear.  Certainly there were many Arabs living in Palestine, but no real nation.  Britain was in control of Palestine after World War I, but they chose to leave on May 14, 1948 and the Jews declared a new nation in Palestine, the nation of Israel.  Certainly many Arabs were not treated well, as many were forced from their homes.  Of course there were a great many wrongs done by both Jews and Arabs.  It’s no surprise as neither included devout believers walking with Christ.

Would I recommend this book?  It was a good book.  Fair and balanced.  It was certainly hagiography, but it was not unfairly critical either.  I would recommend the book only for the person who has a serious interest in modern Israel.

Breaking the Age Code

By Becca Levy

This book was fascinating.  Becca Levy, a professor at Yale, is one of the leading experts on the psychology of successful aging.  She demonstrates many health problems that are commonly thought to be entirely the fault of aging, such as memory loss, hearing decline, and cardiovascular issues, are heavily influenced by negative age beliefs that are so prominent in many countries.  She argues that we must rethink aging.

An age belief is the way you think about aging and older people.  Are you basically positive or negative about older people and aging?  Extensive research by Levy, and many other studies around the world, demonstrate that having positive age beliefs can add an average of 7.5 years to your life.

One anecdote:  The longest-living people in the world are Japanese.  Not surprisingly, Japan prizes and esteems older people.  Having positive age beliefs corresponds to greater health, happiness, longevity, and other good results.

It is widely assumed that memory declines with age.  That is not necessarily true.  Research shows that certain aspects of memory can actually improve with age.  And many older people demonstrate incredible feats of memory, including the septuagenarian who memorized every line of John Milton’s Paradise Lost. 

She describes how ageism, prejudice or discrimination against older people, is not only common, but considered acceptable in the U.S. and many other countries.  In contrast to other kinds of discrimination, such as race, gender, sexuality, it is normally considered completely acceptable to discriminate on the basis of age.  She argues that we should be aware of ageism and negative age beliefs and counter them whenever possible.

For example, the phrase “senior moment” is inaccurate because everyone forgets things, not just older people.  This is just one example of ageism.  Another example would be to think that older people have more accidents than younger people.  The evidence establishes that senior citizens have fewer accidents per capita than younger citizens.

One striking remark found in the book is this one:  “Most people retire as soon as they get good at something.”

The mind-body connection is so strong that positive age beliefs can even overcome certain biological factors predisposing one to Alzheimer’s.

It is time to significantly re-think how we look at aging.

From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life (audio)

By Arthur C. Brooks

Arthur Books, writer and professor at Harvard, in this book encourages “strivers” that their addiction to success will not prove ultimately satisfying.  To find meaning and joy in the second half of their career they need to invest in relationships.  The key to happiness is love found in relationships.

Brooks accesses lots of research, includes fascinating stories and anecdotes.  The book is interesting.  He makes the point that there will be an inevitable decline in our ability, but we can make the changes and adjustments and still be effective and find meaning in the second half of life.

Brooks considers himself a Catholic Christian, and he has good examples from the Bible.  I felt it was annoying that he also peppered the book with examples from Buddhism and Hinduism.  I felt that perhaps he does not fully recognize the power of the gospel and sees Christianity more as a religion.  Either that, or he did not want to be accused of being intolerant of other faiths.