EDITOR’S NOTEBOOK: Warren Smith’s Quarterly List of Books Worth Noting
Editor’s Note: Most Saturdays we will feature this “Editor’s Notebook” column. MinistryWatch President Warren Smith will offer his opinion on stories in the week’s news or, sometimes, offer a behind-the-scenes look at how and why we do what we do. 
However, once a quarter, we use the ‘Notebook” for Warren Smith’s list of books either released in the past quarter, or those he just got around to reading this quarter. To read last quarter’s list, published in August, click here.
Kingdom of Rage: The Rise of Christian Extremism and the Path Back to Peace by Elizabeth Newmann. Newmann began her anti-terrorism career as part of President George W. Bush’s Homeland Security Counsel in the wake of the September 11 attacks. She also served in the Department of Homeland Security under President Trump from 2016 to 2019. This book looks at what she calls the “unholy marriage of right-wing politics and Christian exceptionalism in America” that she believes is undermining both evangelical Christianity and American democracy.
From Bible Belt to Sun Belt: Plain-Folk Religion, Grassroots Politics, and the rise of Evangelical Conservatism by Darren Dochuk. Regular readers of MinistryWatch might remember that I featured Dochuk’s book Anointed With Oil on the MinistryWatch Podcast. You can find that conversation here. From Bible Belt to Sun Belt was written earlier, back in 2012, so I’m catching up here. But the book is as timely today as when it was published, perhaps more so as it explains how the rise of evangelism led to Goldwater, Nixon, and Reagan – an explanation that has plenty of analogues today, in the age of Trump.
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The Found Boys by S.D. Smith. When I was a kid in the 1960s, I developed a passion for reading and storytelling because of The Hardy Boys, Brains Benton, and Encyclopedia Brown. Today, though, it seems that too many children’s and so called YA (Young Adult) books have political or ideological agendas. That’s why the books of S.D. “Sam” Smith are so fun and refreshing. His Green Ember series, featuring “rabbits with swords,” now numbers 11 books, and many hundreds of thousands of readers. The Found Boys stars human heroes, and the book is full of adventure, heroism, and humor. If you are a parent or grandparent, you should check out his books. Even if you are not, I find Sam’s books to be a great read and, if you’re paying attention, a masterclass in how to tell a story.
The Alternative to Abortion: Why We Must Be Pro ABUNDANT Life by Roland Warren. Roland Warren been the president of Care Net, the nation’s largest network of pregnancy resource centers, for more than a decade. He’s been an advocate for the unborn for much longer than that. Roland Warren has also helped bring fathers into the pro-life conversation, in part because of a tenure as president of the National Fatherhood Initiative, a post he held before coming to Care Net. His new book is a challenge to the pro-life movement and to the church. I’ve also had him on the podcast, which you can hear here.
Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology by Neil Postman. Postman is probably best known for Amusing Ourselves To Death. Rightly so, for that’s a great book and has been hugely influential in the academic field of “media ecology.” But, for my money, this book is his best. It’s not a big book, but it is expansive in its argument, and it has a memorable turn of phrase on every page. I re-read it in preparation for the writing of my own book on the topic, and I’m glad I did.
Scripture Hymnal by Randall Goodgame. Modern hymn writing is having a moment, you might say. This book contains scripture set to music. Not paraphrases, but scripture unalloyed, word-for-word. The musical scores are included, and there’s even a website so you can hear the songs. All in all, this project is a remarkable achievement.
