A book I neglected to list on my “15 books that stick with me” (see July 2009 post) and that I have read at least three times, is In His Steps by Charles Sheldon.  In 1896, this Congregationalist pastor wrote the novel that spawned the question: What Would Jesus Do?

The story centers around Rev. Henry Maxwell, a pastor of a large church. One Sunday morning, at the end of the 11:00 service, a homeless man asks to speak to the congregation. He relates a commonly heard story of the day and asks some probing questions – then falls on the floor and dies. The last years of the nineteenth century was a time of depression in the United States, the beginning of the industrial age when many men lost their jobs. During this time, if you had no job, you had no income. Zero. Zilch. There was no welfare, no rehab, no stimulus package, nor any of the other programs that people today love to hate. When you were evicted for non-payment of rent, you moved in with family or you were homeless. Not living in a shelter. Homeless.

Churches had their mission projects but the worship services in the large affluent churches were for the rich. As the destitute man stood before the congregation that morning, he related how he was a Christian, knew he should follow Jesus, but he was puzzled as to how Jesus would have him live. What would Jesus do? Would he starve rather than beg? Would he watch his child go hungry rather than steal a loaf of bread? When employment opportunities came, were there certain jobs Jesus would have turned down regardless of his family’s need?

After this incident, Henry Maxwell was led to challenge his congregation to take a pledge to live one year asking themselves the question “What Would Jesus Do?” Many volunteered to take the vow and the book tells the story of what happened to those who undertook to live as a true disciple, following Jesus’ steps as closely as they could.  As I said, this was written in 1896, contemporary to the times. Some who pledged could not stick it out, found such a lifestyle impossible. Some suffered, all were changed.

In the early 1990’s a youth director in Holland, Michigan was taken with Charles Sheldon’s In His Steps. After sharing the story with the youth, she had bracelets with the words “What Would Jesus Do?” or “WWJD” printed on them, as a reminder to the youth to live as Jesus would. The idea caught on and you probably remember seeing displays of bracelets, key chains and magnets with this message.

Charles Sheldon had never copyrighted his work, and it has been reprinted numerous times without any compensation for the author or his heirs. Since the slogan WWJD was in public domain, the youth director was able to use it without cost. Though the opportunity was there, the youth director also did not seek to copyright the slogan. It’s not clear why, except that perhaps she, as well as Charles Sheldon, thought the message was more important that any profits they might see.  The youth director was later able to gain control of the WWJD Trademark in order to protect it from being misused or defamed.

Charles Sheldon’s book, In His Steps, has had 20 million copies published in 20 languages.

Writers are told . . . well, writers are actually given lots of rules. But one thing we are told is that, when asked what our book is about we should be able to answer with one sentence that gives a clear idea of plot and character. I thought it might be interesting to see if I can do that with the books I read in 2009.

Traveling Mercies by Anne Lamott. The author shares stories from her faith walk as she gropes her way to Christianity.

Love From Your Friend Hannah by Mindy Warshaw Skolsky. In this elementary level novel, Hannah’s story is told in letters to her grandmother, her pen pal and to President Franklin Roosevelt.

Church of the Dog by Kaya McLaren. A mysterious young girl enters the lives of an elderly farm couple to show them forgotten pleasures in their everyday existence.

The Shack, by William Paul Young. This is the story of a man who, after suffering a great loss, meets the Trinity personified in a way drastically uncharacteristic of the usual image of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

If You Can Talk You Can Write by Joel Saltzman. Techniques in free writing to help get the creative juices flowing.

Lawn Boy by Gary Paulsen. In this middle school novel a young man inadvertently becomes an entrepreneur when his lawn mowing business takes off.

Heidi by Johanna Spyri. The adventures of a young orphan girl who goes to live with her grandfather in the Alps.

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. The author’s story of her recovery from the grief of a failed marriage as she travels to Italy, India and Bali.

Twisted Creek by Jodi Thomas. A mystery about a young woman who inherits a bed and breakfast in Texas and moves there to start over.

Grace (Eventually) Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamott. Stories from the author’s spiritual walk and the insights she gained from the joys and sorrows she encountered along the way.

The Reading Group by Elizabeth Noble. A group of English women who read a book each month and gather for discussion are surprised to realize how their choice of literature mirrors their lives.

Without a Map by Meredith Hall. The author’s story of her life of shame and shunning following her pregnancy at age seventeen.

To Dance With the White Dog by Terry Kay. A mysterious white dog comes to keep company with an old man suffering from grief after the loss of his wife.

Worth by A. LaFaye. A family takes in a child from the orphan train.

Summer Sisters by Judy Blume. This book follows the life and loves of two young girls who, though from very different backgrounds, are best friends.

Second Glance by Jodi Picoult. Ghost hunter comes in contact and falls in love with a woman who died in 1933.

The Widows of Wichita County by Jodi Thomas. Four men are in an oilfield explosion and only one survives in this story of their wives’ reaction to the event.

delicious fatigue by Pat Laster. Chap book of delightful verse by Benton, AR poet and my BFF.

The Herring-Seller’s Apprentice by L.C.Tyler. A suspense story around the disappearance of a mystery writer’s wife.

The Last Time They Met by Anita Shreve. Story of two writers with plenty of history between them who meet again after twenty-six years.

Ghost in the Machine by Patrick Carman. Teen interactive mystery with clues sent every few chapters via logging into website.

No Bell Will Ring by Ruth Couch. Elementary school teacher meets the challenges of caring for an elderly parent while trying to have a life of her own.

Homer and Langley by E.L. Doctorow. A re-telling of the Collyer brothers story from the point of view of the younger Homer.

Growing Strong in the Seasons of Life by Charles Swindol. Moving through the year with devotional thoughts and exercises.

A friend recently loaned me this novel (written by Anita Shreve in 2001) saying, “I thought you’d like to read this – it’s different.”

The Last Time They Met is the story of Linda Fallon an Thomas Janes, writers who meet at a literary retreat after not having seen each other for 26 years. It’s obvious from the tension (well done by Ms. Shreve) that they have a history together.

Usually a flashback is used in a book to bring the reader up to date on the backstory before moving the events forward again. In this ambitious (and accomplished) effort, Anita Shreve moves the story, via flashbacks, from the end to the beginning of a love affair.

When their time together at the retreat is over, the tale of Linda and Thomas moves backward to when they were 26 years old, meeting again for the first time since they were teens. The last leap is back nine years, to when they were seventeen and fell in love.  Each glimpse into their lives gives us a deeper understanding of the characters and why they felt eternally connected.

While I found the ending disappointing and hard to believe, Anita Shreve’s technique of crafting a story and constructing a novel is brilliant.  This book is a worthwhile read.

This novel, written in 1964 by Don Robertson, is one of the 15 books that will always stick with me. (Noted in an earlier blog.)

The story takes place on November 1-3, 1948, election day and immediately before and after. Thomas Dewey, Republican, was challenging Harry Truman, Democrat incumbent, for the Presidency of the United States. Making fun of Harry Truman had become the nations’ favorite passtime and everyone assumed Dewey would win by a large majority.

But Truman and Dewey are not the main characters of this book. Instead this is a tale of common and not so common folk who each had something to gain or lose depending on which way the election went.  The small town politician planning to ride to victory on Dewey’s coat tails … the down-on-his-luck gambler playing a hunch and betting everything against the odds … the newspaper editor uncertain of which wire service prediction to follow as he writes his morning headline.  Don Robertson artfully weaves several sub plots together to keep the reader engaged, even though we know who won.

I received A Flag Full of Stars from the Book of the Month Club the year of its publication and then in 1968, an election year, I decided to read it again. I followed that practice until I don’t know how many times I brought the book out to re-read during an election year. I love the story of the pundits and predictors being wrong. I love an upset and wish that today there were still the excitement and mystery and surprise in our presidential election process as there was when Truman beat Dewey.

There are three reasons I am excited about buying and reading E.L. Doctorow’s latest book Homer and Langley.

The first is that of course, he is a famous writer and the book is already a best seller. I say he is a great writer, yet the only work of his I have read is Ragtime, the classic written in 1975.  The book was later made into a movie (well done) and a Broadway musical (fabulous). Therefore it’s easy for me to say that everything I ever read by E.L. Doctorow was good.

The second reason is that the Homer and Langley he writes about are the Collyer brothers. In 1947, these siblings were found in their Manhattan home surrounded (literally buried) by tons of rubbish they had collected and hoarded. These famous recluses became the poster boys for obsessive compulsive disorder and paranoia.  I was a child when their bizarre life style was discovered, but in 1955 I read My Brother’s Keeper, a novel by Marcia Davenport, based on the Collyer brothers’  lives. The story is fascinating and I can’t wait to read another take on it.

The last reason is E. L. Doctorow is 78 years old!  Go Edgar! At the time when lots of folks are kicking back and watching Game Show Network, he’s turning out a best seller.  So, I will applaud that in a way that every writer will understand. I’m going to buy and read his book.

This is on the list of 15 books that have made a lasting impression on me. Since I discovered Disciplines of a Beautiful Woman by Anne Ortlund about 25 years ago, I have read it several times. My copy is stained with some sort of a spill –  water or coffee.  The title is taken from Proverbs 31, where Solomon describes the ideal woman. Busy, organized, spiritual – a person in her own right, but supportive and caring for her husband and family. “Her husband calls her blessed, and her children also.”

This book was just what I needed in 1984 as I struggled to be wife, mother, stepmom, grandma, working woman, church woman, spiritual woman (there’s a difference), and trying so so hard to find out what God had planned for me. I was a mess of fragmented pieces. It may sound cliched to say a book changed my life, but this one did.

Anne Ortlund wrote this little book in 1977. It’s about the disciplines of getting to Christian maturity. She says, “Our sensuous age forgets that feelings come and feelings leave you but the disciplines of life are what get you to where you want to go.”  And it’s about organization. She devotes one chapter to describing her notebook/calendar  …  ten years before day planners went on the market.

She gives practical suggestions on everything from managing a schedule (to avoid being overwhelmed with activities) to maintaining a wardrobe (to avoid spending hours deciding what to wear).  But most importantly, she writes about choosing priorities.  Solomon says a beautiful woman gives her life to God, family (including church family) and the needy people of the world.

I Googled Anne Ortlund to see what she’s doing nowadays. She is still a part of Renewal Ministries, begun by her husband Ray, who died in 2007.  She continues to host spiritual retreats for women at her home in Newport Beach, California, and to disciple women one-on-one.