"A Closer Look At The Evidence" by Richard & Tina Kleiss

(I did a video review of this because it was such a rare thing for Spunky Doodle to let me pet her for so long sitting next to me in the chair. You really have to look close to see her tucked sweetly under my left arm.)

 A Closer Look at the Evidence is a collection of facts that support the truth and accuracy of the the Bible from different branches of science.  "The primary purpose of this book is to help people understand what makes Christianity so trustworthy."  This book is formatted as a devotional with one page for each day covering one shred of evidence in support of a creator and the accuracy and authority of the Bible.  It has a verse and references the source of the information shared for that day.  There is an Index by topic and subject in the back for easy reference.

Subjects include: Anatomy, Anthropology, Archaeology, Astronomy, Biblical Accuracy, Biblical Uniqueness, Biology, Botany, Changed Nature, Chemistry, Common Sense, Comparing Religions, Creation Foundation, Earth's Ecology, Fossil Record, Genetics, Geology, Great Scientists, History, Language, Mathematics, Microbiology, Physics, Prophecy, Psychology, and Worldwide Flood.

I recommend this to anyone who is interested in science, evolution, or curious about God, creation or the Bible.
(Karen's review)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

“Who Switched Off My Brain? Controlling toxic thoughts and emotions” by Dr. Caroline Leaf

I want to thank Rebecca at The Freaky Frugalite for recommending Who Switched Off My Brain? By Dr. Caroline Leaf when she commented on my Things I Learned This Week post.  I found this to be fascinating and very helpful.  I am interested in scientific research that relates to my everyday life which is in abundance in this short book about the brain.  The beginning chapters were pretty technical and had a lot of words related to the brain that I am unfamiliar with so that part dragged along a bit for me.  However, after reading those beginning chapters, I have a much better understanding of how thoughts are processed and stored. 

Caroline Leaf goes into a lot of detail in the first four chapters about how inter-related our thoughts are to our emotions and our health.  Who Switched Off My Brain gives scientific research that supports what the Bible has said relating to our thoughts and thinking on things that are positive rather than negative.  I liked the last two chapters best because those are the ones which focused more on how we can actually take control of our thoughts.

There are 13 techniques listed in the last chapter to implement to detox our brains.  The one that "jumped" out at me describes exactly how if feel Mondays through Fridays which I share with you here:

Rush, rush, rush!  Hurry, hurry, hurry!  Busy, busy, busy!  The ever-increasing pace of life is called the “acceleration syndrome,” and it is causing a global epidemic of hurry sickness.  The next time you think you don’t have time for exercise or relaxation, think again.  The reality is simply that you have chosen to fill your time with activities and things other than exercise and relaxation. P. 135-136

  
I really need to relax during the weekdays too!  Just to give you a sampling of some other things I learned by reading Who Switched Off My Brain?:  Laugh and play every day, exercise, take time alone for prayer, love others no matter what, forgive freely, don’t eat when angry, touch, and root of stress is fear. 

I do not normally purchase books, but this is one I would like to own.  I’ll be checking www.PaperbackSwap.com for it.  I would love to own this as a reference book.  I highly recommend this book!(Karen's review)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

Check out our Stephen King Book Spooktacular Giveaway but hurry--entries end 12:30 p.m. on Halloween, Oct. 31, 2010.

"The Language God Talks" by Herman Wouk

I won The Language God Talks--On Science and Religion by Herman Wouk in a giveaway over at Metro Reader.  

Publisher's Summary. More years ago than I care to reckon up, I met Richard Feynman." So begins THE LANGUAGE GOD TALKS, Herman Wouk's gem on navigating the divide between science and religion. In one rich, compact volume, Wouk draws on stories from his life as well as on key events from the 20th century to address the eternal questions of why we are here, what purpose faith serves, and how scientific fact fits into the picture. He relates wonderful conversations he's had with scientists such as Feynman, Murray Gell-Mann, Freeman Dyson, and Steven Weinberg, and brings to life such pivotal moments as the 1969 moon landing and the Challenger disaster.

This book was disappointing. I thought it would be more about science and the Bible but it actually was more intellectual and philosophical. The first half was primarily a history of science and theories and the authors conversations with scientists. The second half was more about Judaism and the author's life experiences.  Basically, I did not care for this. 

I am passing it on to Sarah over at Books Like Water since I saw she commented that she would have liked to enter the giveaway but was too late. Even after I told her what I thought of it she still wanted it so good--I hope she likes it better than I did.

Please tell us: What categories of literature do you like? What are you reading now? Who are your top five favorite authors? Have you read this one? What did you think of it?