Glen Scrivener tells us in his book The Gift, that “when we offer and receive our Christmas gifts…we are resonating with something very deep and very old.”
Gift-giving is not only at the heart of Christmas, but also at the heart of life itself. Maybe you can use that as a conversation starter with a non-Christian this Christmas, to share the hope of God’s one and only Son, Jesus, the ultimate Christmas gift!
Here’s a roundup of reads, both secular and Christian, that our staff have loved this year and recommend gifting.
Kelly Keller, Customer Service Associate
I have read Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri twice in the last year. I rarely reread a book, but I found this one to be worthy. Daniel wrote this book from the perspective of himself at ten years of age, giving a report to his class in Oklahoma. Daniel's family had to flee Iran when his mother converted to Christianity. After some time at a refugee camp in Italy, they were granted asylum in the US.
The book's style can be difficult at first, since he jumps around in the style of the 1,001 Nights stories, but it is worth working through. Nayeri explores themes of loss, family history, and love. The book is a gritty, brilliant, moving tribute to his mother's story.
Caroline Napper, Proofreader
My pick is the fiction book The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh. It interweaves the present reality of the main character with episodes from her troubled youth as a foster child. Parts of it are wholly unbelievable and sentimental, but that doesn't take away from the enjoyment of reading it.
It was a good pick for my book club with lots of potential areas to discuss including the impact of the care system on those growing up in it, whether change is really possible when life seems to be full of challenges, and the huge influence we can make to others' lives if we take the time to get involved in messy situations. The bonus is you also learn the meanings behind various flowers, which is fascinating.
Geoff Dennis, Vice President of Sales
My pick for the year is The Memory of Old Jack by Wendell Berry, in which Berry brings "the earthiness of America's past to mind. The Memory of Old Jack conveys the truth and integrity of the land and the people who live from it. Through the eyes of one man can be seen the values Americans strive to recapture as we arrive at the next century." I appreciated the honesty with which Berry communicates regarding the frailty of our human existence, the existential beauty of the world in which God has placed us, and the quiet mystery that surrounds us. It truly created a longing for Home in my heart.
One of my favourite quotes from the book is, “The modern ignorance is in people's assumption that they can outsmart their own nature. It is in the arrogance that will believe nothing that cannot be proved, and respect nothing it cannot understand, and value nothing it cannot sell.”
Mus Yusuf, Junior Software Developer
This year I finished (but didn't start!) The Sickness Unto Death, by Soren Kierkegaard (published 1849). This book is a dense and penetrating think-through of what it means to truly be one's self and of the alternatives. You may think this has quite a contemporary ring to it. It does! Kierkegaard's work has had a lasting impact, on western society especially, and he was a follower of Christ. Put simply, his main point is that who we are in relation to God is our true self. If we are not truly ourselves we are in despair. This despair he calls “The Sickness Unto Death”.
I think he has much to say to our western contemporary society where we try to define who we are and that apart from God. It isn't the breeziest of reads, some of it may fly over the head, but I found it to be delightfully insightful and a spur to faith.
Calista Doty, Customer Service Associate
It was a joy to dig deeper into a familiar Old Testament story and understand the context – both cultural and canonical – more fully, with the help of Tony Merida's Ruth For You. He helpfully exposited the book of Ruth, drawing attention to the foreshadowing of Christ that was presented by the biblical author in foreshadowing King David. Looking at the whole of Scripture to better grasp the meaning behind a particular story is always a delight that draws my heart into deeper wonder of God's sovereignty and steadfast love to his people.
Ashley Cumbie, Finance Specialist
There were so many great books this year that I have loved! But to narrow it down, the one that has had a lasting impact on me this year would be the book Mama Bear Apologetics: Empowering Your Kids to Challenge Cultural Lies. This one has been eye-opening to me as a homeschool mom.
I loved their practical teaching of common-day ideas/teachings and what they are rooted in. Then they take a beautiful simple approach for how we as parents can counter false/non-biblical teachings with our kids. I believe in my children learning to "chew and spit" on information that the world feeds them. The idea is they will chew on the information given and keep what is good and true through the filter of what the Bible says and spit out what is not good and false. I believe this helps equip our children to defend their faith and own it for themselves. I can read lots of complicated books on apologetics, but how do I simplify it so it makes sense to my children? What questions are appropriate for my kids? This book is perfect for that!
This book is great for parents to help them discern their children's thoughts and questions, and then guide them in thinking critically and biblically about the postmodern culture they face.
Tim Thornborough, Founder and Executive Vice President for Rights
I’m part of an all-male secular book group in my neighbourhood. We meet every two months, and the choice of book circulates among members. I love that this exposes me to literature, ideas and discussions that I wouldn’t normally choose. Shuggie Bain is a fictionalised autobiographical novel about growing up in desperate poverty in Glasgow in the 1980s. It is set in communities that lost their industries, and along with them, all hope and sense of meaning. It’s an uncomfortable book to read as it charts the descent of Shuggie’s mother from being an attractive and vibrant personality to an addicted alcoholic. The writing is mesmerising, and the characters are drawn so powerfully that I actually started to hate some of them.
The group discussion was revealing about the the background of some of the men in the group and their brushes with similar experiences, but I valued the book for opening my eyes to the realities of life in these struggling communities, and the legacy this has left behind in terms of the pain borne by the children of this era. It won the Booker prize in 2020 and is due to be dramatised by the BBC in 2023.
Avery Powers, Marketing Engagement Specialist
I may be late to the party, but the best book I read in 2022 was Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie. The book was suspenseful and surprising, but (oddly) warm and comforting at the same time. I particularly loved that the characters were outlandish and fun and very much like long-lost (and very problematic) family members. If you haven't read it, you really should. Don't wait 88 years like I did.
Richard Roper, Senior Buyer
Historian Tom Holland has written an immense work that examines the world of late antiquity, that era that sees the decline and fall of the Roman empire in the West, the collapse of the Persian empire and the rise of the Islamic empire. Empire was the name of the game for all parties, but not just a political empire, a divinely founded and ordered global empire.
What makes In the Shadow of the Sword different from common political histories, is Holland’s examination of the religions and theologies of the times and their role in shaping society and world affairs. Holland traces the whirling currents of religious thought; Jewish, Christian, Zoroastrian, pagan, then prevalent in the middle east – and the effects of a radical new message resounding from the Arabian peninsula. His examination of the roots of Islam and its development and codification over succeeding centuries, which is radically different from the orthodox (sunni) presentation of Islam’s beginnings, has put him at odds with mainstream Islamic scholarship but is refreshing for those of us who have only ever heard the orthodox accounts concerning Mohammed. Seizing upon the weakness of both Rome and Persia, caused by famine and incessant warfare, united and empowered by the new religious message, the armies of Arabian tribesmen conquer lands for themselves. Rome was rocked to its heels, losing territories it had painfully re-conquered in North Africa and the West, leaving just a rump Byzantine empire centred in Constantinople. Persia was utterly annihilated, falling wholly into Arab hands.
However, as Holland points out, empires rise and fall. What has endured is not the achievements of emperors and generals but the work of the scholars, the Rabbis, Bishops and “ulama” who taught, codified, expanded and applied the religious teachings that drove the world – and still do so today. The pen is indeed mightier than the sword – which is great news for authors and those who publish them.
James Burstow, Commercial Director
My non-Christian highlight from this year was Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. Not very original as, according to the cover, at least 10 million people have read it, but I have to say I found it compelling and really beautifully written. I was intrigued by the descriptions of the marshland of the North Carolina coast (I plan to drive out there on the weekend when I’m next in Charlotte!) and the story raised some interesting moral dilemmas which were interesting to ponder. Highly recommended.
Matt McIlrath, Sales and Events Support
12 Things God Can’t Do is the best book I’ve read all year. Nick Tucker walks the reader through many of the wonderful truths that make God who He is. He is all-knowing, unchanging, and all-sufficient - and Nick explores each of these attributes (and more!) in the clever mode of observing what they necessitate God can’t do. It’s an excellent read, an exciting read, and a read that will affirm your trust in the One who promises to never change - because it’s something he simply can’t do.
Alison Mitchell, Senior Editor
I have always loved science fiction as it gives the author a way of creating a very different context from our own and then exploring what that might look like. Isaac Asimov’s “Three Laws of Robotics” is a classic example.
Michael Crichton is the author of Jurassic Park. If you have only ever seen the film, then I thoroughly recommend reading the book. It is cleverly structured and convincingly drops you into a world with living dinosaurs. I first read it while camping in a forest. That night, I was certain there was a velociraptor behind every tree!
Currently, I’m reading Timeline, another Crichton book. This one takes some modern archaeologists back in time to the middle ages in France. The contrast between modern thinking and medieval attitudes is fascinating. Not for the first time, I wish that time travel really was possible.
What books did you include on your gift list? Maybe this list has whetted your appetite for opening up a new book? Browse all our upcoming titles here.
Michael is our Digital Marketing Specialist, managing the company's video content and working alongside our authors to promote their books. Before joining TGBC, he spent time at CNN where he contributed to an Emmy award-winning animated series. He attends Cheam Baptist Church.
