My Top ten books of 2025

 With 2025 coming to a close, I think it’s time to count down my top ten books with honorable mentions.

Star Wars: Death Troopers 

I already wrote a blog about this book, so I’ll link to it.  

here

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/7207972660232719512/1203254104700170275 

Searching for Adam: Genesis & the Truth About Man's Origin 

If you want a good defense of young-earth creation, this is the book for you, understandable and takes the arguments for old-earth arguments seriously.

Faith and the Founding Fathers 

If you are a history buff and/or a faith buff, this Audible original is for you.

Okay, now off to the list

#10 Why I Am Protestant by Beth Felker Jones

From Goodreads: “What does it mean to be Protestant? How can its strengths shape faith in the modern world, and how should its challenges be addressed? With clarity, warmth, and theological depth, Beth Felker Jones explores these questions in Why I Am Protestant. This book offers a positive, theologically grounded reflection on both the beauty and complexity of the Protestant tradition, inviting readers into a deeper understanding of the Protestant faith and its place within the broader Christian community.”

This book is a masterpiece in terms of prose. Very pastoral in tone makes for a beautiful listening experience, 4.5 stars.

#9 Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson

From two of America’s most respected journalists, an unflinching and explosive reckoning with one of the most fateful decisions in American political life: Joe Biden’s run for reelection despite evidence of his serious decline—amid desperate efforts to hide the extent of that deterioration.

This book is... controversial to say the least, but regardless of your political beliefs, the writing is very compelling. The most in-depth book on Biden I have listened to , four stars

#8 Red Phoenix Larry Bond

Violent riots fomented by foreign agents are breaking out in South Korea. Seizing the opportunity, North Korea launches a lightning invasion, with heavy Soviet support, whose aim is to unite North and South under Communist rule. The second Korean War has begun, and World War III may be imminent.

It's so well done, it’s like an action movie in your head. not for the faint of heart 

4.5 stars

#7 The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War by Erik Larson 

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Splendid and the Vile brings to life the pivotal five months between the election of Abraham Lincoln and the start of the Civil War—a slow-burning crisis that finally tore a deeply divided nation in two. (Larson, 2020)

Now, as a history nerd, I really enjoyed this book. The pacing was top-notch, and the history was fun to read. (4.5 stars).

#6 Psychology, Theology, and Spirituality in Christian Counseling by Mark R. McMinn

The American Association of Christian Counselors and Tyndale House Publishers are committed to ministering to people's spiritual needs. This book is part of a professional series that offers counselors the latest techniques, theory, and general information vital to their work. While many books have sought to integrate theology and psychology, this book takes another step, exploring the importance of the spiritual disciplines in psychotherapy and helping counselors integrate the biblical principles of forgiveness, redemption, restitution, prayer, and worship into their counseling techniques.

This book was such a joy to read if you are interested in Christian psychology and theology. (5 stars)

#5 Beyond Evolution: How New Discoveries in the Science of Life Point to God by  Sy Garte 

Can one of the biggest obstacles to harmonizing science and faith finally be overcome? Respected biologist and former atheist Sy Garte says the answer is yes.
This book has something for everyone in the debate over creation and evolution. He doesn't bash other good-faith people. In fact, he points out people like Michael Denton and Stephen C. Meyer in Good Light, which is a breath of fresh air. Still, he's no dogmatic creationist, which I like (being a progressive creationist myself). He was a professor, which shows in these chapters; it felt like an evolutionary biology class with no homework, which is the best because I hated homework in high school. He boiled complex topics down, showed that evolutionary biology poses no threat to Christian theism, and made it very enjoyable to listen to.
Overall, a great listen. (5 stars)

#4  Opposable Thumbs: How Siskel & Ebert Changed Movies Forever by Matt Singer

 

In Opposable Thumbs, award-winning editor and film critic Matt Singer eavesdrops on their iconic balcony set, detailing their rise from making a few hundred dollars a week on local Chicago PBS to securing multimillion-dollar contracts for a syndicated series (a move that convinced a young local host named Oprah Winfrey to do the same). Their partnership was cut short when Gene Siskel passed away in February of 1999 after a battle with brain cancer that he’d kept secret from everyone outside his immediate family—including Roger Ebert, who never got to say goodbye to his longtime partner. (Ebert: A 'Life' Still Being Lived, And Fully, 2011) But their influence on in the way we talk about (and think about) movies continues to this day. (Jeon & Jiao, 2012) 

This book was terrific. It's a behind-the-scenes look at the Siskel and Ebert show. I really learned a lot about their show and Ebert's life, which makes me want to read "Life Itself." Ebert's autobiography. If you are a fan of film criticism and or movies, you'll like this book, if not love it (5 stars)

#3 The Marriage You Want: Moving Beyond Stereotypes for a Relationship Built on Scripture, New Data, and Emotional Health by Sheila Wray Gregoire, Keith Gregoire

We all want a marriage that feels like home. We long for a partner who is there for us through all of life's challenges and griefs, who is in on all our inside jokes, who delights in the family we've built together, who looks toward the future with hope, with a shared faith and an arm firmly around our shoulders. But how do we get there? What actually works in the real world and honors the picture of marriage found in Scripture?

Based on the findings of their meticulous research, Sheila Wray Gregoire and Dr. Keith Gregoire dispel the pervasive myths about what makes a happy marriage. Rather than relying on gender stereotypes, they look at what actually creates intimacy, emotional health, and connection, asking deeper questions that lead to real healing and growth in your relationship with your spouse.

With enlightening stories, survey results, and practical tools, this book will help readers create a marriage they love. And with the evidence-based, Scripture-honoring advice in this book, that just may be closer than you imagine.

If you want to get married one day ( like I do), this is a great audiobook to learn from (5 stars)

#2 The Creationists: From Scientific Creationism to Intelligent Design, Expanded Edition

In light of the embattled status of evolutionary theory, particularly as "intelligent design" makes headway against Darwinism in the schools and in the courts, this now classic account of the roots of creationism assumes new relevance. Expanded and updated to account for the appeal of intelligent design and the global spread of creationism, The Creationists offers a thorough, clear, and balanced overview of the arguments and figures at the heart of the debate.
Forty-seven percent of the American people, according to a 1991 Gallup Poll, believe that God made man, as man is now, in a single act of creation, and within the last ten thousand years. (In U.S., 46% Hold Creationist View of Human Origins, 2013) Ronald L. Numbers chronicles the astonishing resurgence of this belief since the 1960s,

Being an old-earth creationist myself, I found this book interesting and a must-read, no matter where you stand on evolution and creation. (5 stars)

#1 Everything Is Tuberculosis: The History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection

John Green, the #1 bestselling author of The Anthropocene Reviewed and a passionate advocate for global healthcare reform, tells a deeply human story illuminating the fight against the world’s deadliest infectious disease.

Having loved John and Hank Green's work for a long time, I listened to this one read by John himself, and it was a truly moving human story. In this book, you learn how TB works in the body, its history, and then you'll discover Henry Rider's story of survival. And you gain a fondness for him as I did. There is also a strong focus on social justice in this book  (5 stars), and this book still sticks with me

Thanks for Reading!