I just found this series of Reading Interviews posted by Josh Sowin at Fire and Knowledge. He interviews various friends and folks including pastors, professionals of various stripes, and authors Doug Groothius and Justin Taylor. I’m very tempted to “borrow” his idea, tweak the questions, and interview some homeschool moms and others that I admire. Maybe, maybe not, in the meantime, read the interviews. They’re great.
Pick the Brain on 5 Types of Books That Increase Intelligence: “A great amount of time is wasted reading books that are forgotten a short time after they’re completed. But time spent reading books that cultivate intelligence and wisdom is a labor that yields continuous benefit over a lifetime.”
I don’t agree with everything in this article or at this website. Sometimes I read simply for entertainment and recreation. However, the article is interesting, both as to the types of books he included and the types he didn’t. (Biography, anyone? Or is that a part of history?)
The Headmistress on commonplace books.
Not exactly a book, but I am very much enjoying (chuckling audibly) Sarah Beth Durst’s take on Obscure Fairy Tales. This one involves cabbages, sentient household tools, and Death. Scroll to the bottom of the post for links to the rest of her Obscure Tales. Then, come back and tell me which one you liked the best. I choose the one I linked to, formally titled: Godfather Death.
The Happy Wonderer: “This year I took a suggestion to read through the Bible in a different way. Retention is not my strong point. I have to write things down and read them over and over to really get the point, so this Bible reading method was a great suggestion for me. I am reading every book of the Bible 20 times before I move on to the next. I’m starting with the shortest New Testament Books. At this rate I’ll not finish till I’m dead…but that’s OK. I find myself in 2 Timothy on my 17th read.”
I had planned to follow a method something like this one this year, but I haven’t done it. Maybe I can get back to reading one book at a time daily for a month or so. I think it might be quite profitable.
John Mark Reynolds’ list of 30 books every college student should read.
Joe Carter’s 30 Essential Books for Students and Autodidacts.
Both of these are good lists. Reynolds’ list is, commendably, skewed toward the classical and the ancient. Carter tries to cover important disciplines outside of literature, such as philosophy, military science, architecture, and business. I would make a quite different list, and of course, by the time we all got through making our lists, our poor college student would be overwhelmed with reading material. On second thought, not such a bad thing, to be overwhelmed with books. An embarrassment of riches.