8/10 (very good): A helpful guide to reading from a Christian perspective. I didn't enjoy the first part (a theology of reading) as much as the second (some practical advice), because although I was glad that Reinke did the theology, I felt he could have worn it a little lighter. The theology is certainly foundational, but it's normally best if you don't see too much of the foundations. That said, it was a helpful read, and should help to make me a better reader. ( )

In Tony Reinke's Lit! A Christian Guide to Reading Books, he helps Christians answer such questions as, “Should I put down my Bible to read this other book?” ”Is reading non-Christian books sinful?” “Where should I draw the line on what is too worldly?” His slang term, "lit," stands for three things: literature itself; the light of the "glow of God's creative power;" and the fiery conviction as Christians that we should shine for Him.

"Books will complicate your life," Reinke says in his first chapter. He goes on to explain that there is much that books will add to your life. At the very least they provide different experiences and worldviews, as well as the understanding of how to minister to people. He tries to convince his readers of the need for reading and the vitality of a life of words.

Reinke writes in an extremely intellectual way, digging deeply into theology and literary criticism. Whereas non-readers may not be inspired to become avid devourers of literature, he gives many helpful suggestions on how to fit reading into a busy schedule.

The only point of controversy is Reinke's belief that Christians should read non-Christian books as well as Christian. Readers who might disagree with this belief are encouraged to follow their convictions and draw their own conclusions. Just as 1 Corinthians 8:1-13 says, Reinke encourages his readers to not destroy themselves or others by reading if the material is too difficult to handle.

Overall, the book is...

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Lit! is the first book I've read on the subject of reading from a Christian perspective. I can already intuit that it is not the best in its genre.

Partly, this is because Reinke says as much. He credits Leland Ryken for the overall frame of his theology of reading, prompting the question of why we need a book to cover the same ground in the first place. I suppose Lit! is intended as a more introductory and less in-depth treatment of the subject, which I believe might be one of the reasons that I didn't enjoy it a lot, since I'm a fairly experienced reader. Although its stated goal is to be short and concise, it took me almost a month to read, seemingly dragging on forever.

The first part of the book concerns itself with the theology of reading. It is pretty hit-or-miss. I enjoyed the chapter on common grace and how this gives a framework for understanding and appreciating truth from non-biblical sources. I was pleasantly surprised that Reinke tied this in with the way in which the Bible itself draws from and engages pagan writings.

The rest of that first part is quite basic and frankly, banal. Reinke spends too much time reiterating truisms like the supremacy of the Bible and the outlines of our Christian worldview.

The second part of Lit! supposedly deals with practical considerations regarding reading, but, in fact, this section reveals a lot more about Reinke's philosophy of reading that the first does. Fundamentally, Reinke is a non-fiction, utilitarian reader. This is obvious in the way he structures his book - endless lists and subdivisions, without much literary flourish or skill. For reading non-fiction, he suggests asking a specific question, and evaluating whether the book delivers on that. There is no place for letting the book ask its own questions, for letting it answer questions we didn't know we had, for giving it the freedom to answer other questions than the ones we had. He tones this down in his discussion of fiction, where the focus is more on humanity and aesthetics, but this approach colors many of his suggestions and considerations.

Reinke falls into the "intentional" trap, this evangelical obsession with right motivation which has already infected the topic of dating and which, while not irrelevant, can lead to an excessive introspection that is not entirely healthy. Ch. 7, "Read with Resolve", is unsurprisingly my least favorite chapter, although it does make an good point about priorities. Ch. 8 on reading technique makes reading way too complicated and difficult, especially as this book is geared toward beginners. I liked the idea of cross-referencing books, although this only works with the ones you own, but reading doesn't have to be such a chore. Sometimes you can just read for the moment, and then forget, and that's okay. This kind of spontaneity keeps our reading appetite alive.

The chapter on marginalia (ch.12) is quite good, and in fact, once I started annotating back and forth through the book, it greatly increased my enjoyment of it. This is the one big takeaway I have from Lit!. I realized that I was conditioned by libraries to avoid physical interaction with a book as much as possible, but I came to see how fruitful and satisfying annotation can be. It is especially helpful when attempting to write a review, since the most important points are marked and commented upon. The idea of communal reading (ch.13) was also intriguing and convicting.

The main problem with Lit!, is that, voracious reading nonetheless, I don't believe that Reinke is an authority on reading and literature. Firstly, this is apparent in the fact that he has few original thoughts on the subject; he mostly just loans from other, better, thinkers. Lit! is largely derivative and bland. This is especially obvious when he quotes. The contrast between the liveliness of O'Connor, or Robinson, or even Piper, and Reinke couldn't be more jarring. Most of the best insights are present in quotations.

Secondly, Reinke appears not to have read extensively, especially in the realm of fiction. That doesn't mean he hasn't read many books, but hasn't covered a lot of ground in different genres. This is painfully obvious in his assertion that, aside from Cormac McCarthy's The Road, there is little contemporary fiction worth reading. U-Uh... what? His recommendations are uninteresting (Lewis, Tolkien, Dostoyevsky, Robinson) and he has no recommended reading list at the end of the book - one of my greatest disappointments with Lit!.

Overall, it was all right, but the best use of the book is its bibliography, which points to other authors and books that will be much more successful in addressing the topic at hand. So let's get reading. ( )

This is simply a fun read. I came away wanting to read it again!
Great advice and suggestions.

If this doesn't change how you read or look at books, you have missed the point. the first part seems almost too obvious. The second part is new and excellent. I will probably plan to read this annually. ( )