A Messy, Early Morning Desk

Reading List 2009

Not every book I have read this year is a great book, but thus far no book on the list has been a waste of time. I am slowly learning that just because I start a book does not mean I have to finish it. Therefore there are several not on this list because, to be candid, they were wasting my time – life is short, right?

Non-fiction
Unpacking Boxes, by Donald Hall

Final Exam: A Surgeon’s Reflection on Mortality, by Pauline W. Chen

The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality, by Tenzin Gyatso

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, by Robert Pirsig

The Book of Dead Philosophers, by Simon Critchley

Brother to a Dragonfly, by Will Campbell

Walden, Henry David Thoreau

Essays
Eagle Pond, by Donald Hall

Spirituality
The Asian Journals of Thomas Merton, by Thomas Merton

Thoughts in Solitude, by Thomas Merton

Theology
Questions to all Your Answers: The Journey from Folk Religion to Examined Faith, by Roger E. Olson

Biblical Studies
Excavating Jesus: Beneath the Stones, Behind the Texts, by John Dominic Crossan and Jonathan L. Reed

Fiction
Siddhartha, by Herman Hesse

Ahab’s Wife: Or the Stargazer, by Sena Jeter Naslund

Unaccustomed Earth, by Jhumpi Lahiri

Peace Like a River, by Leif Enger

Robinson Crusoe, by Daniel Defoe

Pastoral Care
The Couple Checkup, by David H. Olson. I actually read this book in 2008 but forgot to put it on the list.

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