These posts are a collection of reviews or commentary on movies I like, books I am reading, and/or music that I wish to recommend.

Superpowers

The greatest superhero of all is Superman, hands down. Ironman and Batman have cool gadgets, the Hulk is both a formidable and sympathetic foe, Captain America commands our respect, but Superman is pure other-worldly superpower channeled through a morally upright heart. You can't beat that.My ... Continue reading

The Meaning of Singleness

A review of the book by Danielle Treweek, Intervarsity Press, 2023I was determined not to get married, and my friend, Braxton, agreed with me. Marriage would tie us down. Children would take away the freedom to live our lives however we wanted, which for us meant taking off on a whim to sail ... Continue reading

All My Knotted-Up Life: A review

I grew up in a spanking new suburban community surrounded by woods and farmland. The forest was crisscrossed by meandering trails leading in all directions; I knew many of them by heart and spent hours every week wandering and exploring. One trail led to a stream that tumbled along a steep granite ... Continue reading

Lost in a world of my own

My favorite pastime has always been reading, and when I'm reading, I don't hear or see anything but the words on the page in front of me, as long as the story is well-written, the characters are interesting, and the plot is believable.It's a joke in my family that when I'm immersed in a book, ... Continue reading

Brothers in Arms: A review

"The Sherwood Rangers had begun the war as weekend part-time soldiers, then had been sent overseas on their horses, had performed cavalry charges with sabres drawn, had been converted to artillery, had survived the Siege of Tobruk, had been mechanized and had turned themselves into one of the finest ... Continue reading

The Martian and lifegiving hope

Imagine you're an astronaut, part of a team sent to explore Mars. Then imagine what you would do if by a weird and terrible set of circumstances, your team abandoned you and left you alone on the red planet.That's the premise of Andy Weir's engaging science fiction novel, The Martian, which has ... Continue reading

Everything Sad is Untrue: A Review

I have a memory of Thanksgiving at my grandparents’ house. I may have been seven or eight years old. The living room is crowded with adults who are taking turns telling stories from their shared past. My cousin, Paul Ticer, launches into one about my Aunt Addie that leaves her laughing so hard she ... Continue reading

Arrival and regret

Louise Banks: If you could see your whole life from start to finish, would you change things?Ian Donnelly: Maybe I'd say what I felt more often. I-I don't know. —from the movie ArrivalWe walk through life in a straight line. We remember the past, often vividly, but we do our living in the moment ... Continue reading