The little entry somewhere down to the right of here is hardly doing justice to the question of what reading material is currently taking up space on my night stand! Here's what it looked like:
I doubt it's the most esoteric collection of books ever assembled, but I think it'll do me some good to go through them and remember why they're there. This is a slightly more organized view of them:
And here's their "status", one at a time:
Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville - The "classic treatise on the American way of life". It's quoted in several other books in this list. I haven't started it yet...
At Home in Mitford by Jan Karon - A novel about a Protestant minister living in a cozy, southern town. Judy recommended it. I'm about 60 pages in...
The Road to Serfdom by F.A. Hayek - A "passionate warning against the dangers of state control over the means of production." I'm learning a lot about the differences between socialism and capitalism, but it's not easy to read. I'm in the third chapter of sixteen...
Victory over Vice by Archbishop Fulton Sheen - A commentary on each of the seven deadly sins with a look at how to embrace the corresponding virtues. If you only read one page, make sure it is 108. I finished this book, but it's worth reading over and over again...
Surrender by Carmen Marcoux - It's a Catholic novel Judy read. I started it, but I guess it wasn't that engaging. Maybe I'll get back to it when I finish
At Home in Mitford...
The Lies About Money by Ric Edelman - A book on personal finance, it's a well presented argument against the mutual fund industry with suggestions for creating an investment portfolio without mutual funds.
The Death of a Pope by Piers Paul Read - I remember starting this, but I don't remember finishing. Not sure what that says about it. Maybe I should try again...
Economics for Dummies by Sean Masaki Flynn, PhD -I got this more for the kids than myself, in case they wanted to learn a little about economics. It's an easy-to-understand overview of of the basic concepts, as you'd expect from a Dummies book. I did finish it...
Pensees by Blaise Pascal -A 400-year old defense of Christian beliefs. I'm only a few pages into it...
The Fatal Conceit--The Errors of Socialism by F.A. Hayek - This it to read after
The Road to Serfdom. It's one of several books I purchased so that I can better enunciate why I disagree with the policies of the current administration...
The Ballad of the White Horse by G.K. Chesterton - An epic poem about "King Alfred's heroic battle against the Danes in 878." I've read a chapter or so. Probably stopped when the book was buried...
The Travels by Marco Polo - You know it's time to clean when you have two different versions of the same book on your nightstand (see below). It appears I've only read the introduction and the prologue...
Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury - A classic story about life in rural Illinois during the summer of 1928. I'm about 2/3 of the way through it. Not sure why I stopped...
Frequent Confession--It's Place in the Spiritual Life by Benedict Baur - "Instructions and considerations for the frequent reception of the sacrament of Penance." I haven't started it yet. It looks like good material to have on hand during Eucharistic Adoration...
Fatherless by Brian J. Gail - I just received it on Epiphany and I haven't started reading it. It's a novel about the "Catholic experience in America in the late 20th and early 21st centuries." It's pretty likely the next book I'll actually finish...
Every Man's Battle by Stephen Arterburn and Fred Stoeker with Mike Yorkey - A "resource for overcoming the struggle and remaining strong in the face of temptation." I've read more than half of it, but it's best taken in small doses...
The Gargoyle Code by Dwight Longenecker - This is a book on spiritual warfare written in the style of
The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. It's an easy, but enlightening, read, designed to be digested slowly over the seven weeks of Lent. Since Lent does come to an end, I finished this book...
The Discernment of Spirits--An Ignatian Guide for Everyday Living by Timothy M. Gallagher, OMV -This must have been a gift from Judy. I haven't yet begun to read it...
The Heart--An Analysis of Human and Divine Affectivity by Dietrich von Hildebrand - Another gift and still not started...
The Travels of Marco Polo by Marco Polo - I've barely begun it. I suppose if I were to keep a travelogue, it would turn out something like this...
Listen, My Son--St Benedict for Fathers by Dwight Longenecker - It's the Rule of St Benedict divided into 120 pieces with the author's commentary on each. It could be read daily over four months. It took me longer, but I did finish it. I had thought I would continue to re-read it, but I haven't so far. Going through it once a year would be fruitful...
Love & Responsibility by Karol Wojtyla - A "remarkably eloquent and resourceful defense of Catholic tradition in the sphere of family life and sexual morality." I hear it's dense reading. I haven't yet worked up the energy to begin...
The Classic Fairy Tales by Iona & Peter Opie - I have no idea how this ended up on my nightstand, at the bottom of one pile, no less. Judy Gibbons inscribed her name at the top of the first page and the price was only $9.95. It must be hers from college...
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