Book Reviews...

..at last! Here are reviews of some of the books I've read over the past months. Enjoy! (Edit on 12/15: I just added the links in the Sophie Scholl review...sorry about that.)



The Unashamed Accompanist by Gerald Moore

A very good, concise book about the art of accompanying. The author puts forward strongly the idea that accompanying is an art, not just a fall-back for those who can't quite cut it as soloists. ;) Good practical advice for practice, rehearsal, and performance, with special sections on working with stringed instruments (Mr. Moore primarily accompanied singers). All written with a touch of humor; a fun and profitable read for pianists, even if you aren't planning on going into accompanying. This one goes on my books-to-buy list.



The Path Of Loneliness by Elisabeth Elliot

One of the best Elliot books I have read so far. With kindness and honesty, Mrs. Elliot brings out the importance of offering whatever we are going through--be it loneliness or suffering or whatever--as a sacrifice to God and letting Him do what He will with it. She says "...my understanding of sacrifice has been transformed. It has also transformed my life. The emphasis now is not on loss, privation, or a price to be paid. I see it as an act of intelligent worship, and as a gift God has given me to give back to Him in order that He may make something of it."



A History of Wales by John Davies

Quite honestly, I doubt that many of you would be interested in this one. :) I enjoyed learning more about the history of Wales and Great Britain, especially through the earlier years of history. The author has a definite liberal bent that gets quite annoying, particularly in the later parts of the book (where coal mines, unions, strikes, government, and liberal political parties intermingle in an interesting way)...so I was glad to be done with this one. I would be interested in reading more British history (Churchill's History of the English-Speaking Peoples, perhaps?) though not right away. Some other kind of history will probably come first.



Sophie Scholl and the White Rose by Annette Dumbach and Jud Newborn

This book fit in well with my interest in those who resisted Nazi Germany (see here, here and here). It's a true story of a small resistance group, the White Rose, formed by a few college students and one professor. Though the title highlights Sophie Scholl, the youngest and the only girl of the core group, the book is really the story of all the members of their group--the struggles they went through, what brought them to the decision to resist, their secret activities against the Third Reich, their arrest, mockery of a trial, and execution. You may not agree with the decisions they make, but it will make you think.