Martina Mannocchi Mannocchi itibaren Drumboe, Co. Donegal, İrlanda itibaren Drumboe, Co. Donegal, İrlanda

A cute, fun, easy, interesting read.

I think there is some merit to the claim that Keller is the C.S. Lewis of the the 21st century (now all he needs to do is write good children's book or two). In fact, I was close to giving this book 5 stars, but something stopped me... the book ended. I felt the book was a chapter short. There was a good introduction and a good exposition of the parable of the Prodigal Son. He even went past the strictly scholarly retelling and explained how the story was the gospel in a nutshell and reminded the reader of how that should transform their life. That is, he gave the reason it should and some signs that it was not, but he failed to suggest ways to begin to make the change happen. was so jarring that I am beginning to think that it was on purpose. Of course, I could have missed them, or I could be so used to people saying do a, b, and c and you'll be a Christian, which he was obviously speaking against. Regardless, my first instinct is that I would have liked some pointers on where to start on a practical level. From this point of view it may be a book you want to read in a group so you can discuss it. It is a relatively quick and flowing read (I can't call it easy because it's subject matter deals with the heart and therefore is not)and it is not technical at all. Overall I definitely recommend it, but prepare to be challenged.

I took a long time to read Open City. Not much happens and when it does it just glows momentarily and then fades out of the story. I struggled to remember from one reading session to the next what had gone before. Having said that it is ultimately a rewarding but unsettling book. The narrator wanders through the story in much the same way he wanders through the streets of New York and Brussels, a little aimlessly, observing but then moving on. I think this is a book about forgetting, forgetting things that are worth remembering as well as those that we really would rather forget.

I enjoyed the complexity of the relationship between the brothers.