Y.S. Stephen - Reader | Casual Observer

J.R.R. Tolkien (Christian Encounters Series) By Mark Horne Thomas Nelson (paperback, 176 pages) Christian Encounters is a series of biographies made by Thomas Nelson. The biographies is based on people whose influences shaped the Church in glaring or understated ways. The books, all fewer than 200 pages, are to give us a glimpse into these peoples’ desires, struggles, and perspectives. Christian Encounters, JRR Tolkien , was written by Mark Horne. The author book starts from the country of Tolkien’s birth, South Africa , and proceeds to his permanent move to England. The author explores the impact of his environment on him – mostly the climate and the vegetation, which fuels Tolkien’s love for hills, green lands, forests, and his growing distrust of modern machinery. More prominent is the influence of Tolkien’s mother and the sacrifices she makes so that her children can go to school and attend a catholic church. Even when times are tough, she home-schools Tolkien to...

This is one of the most impactful and biblical illustration I have ever heard on the subject of happiness. Tim Keller says, “ Happiness can never be found directly…..happiness is always and only a by-product of seeking something else more than happiness…..The person who is happy is always the one who has stopped trying so hard to be happy...” I am honoured to share it here. From Kellers sermon 'The Search for Happiness' If you are interested in the full sermon, please check Bear Creek Church.

Makeda tells the story of a special bond between Gray and his grandmother . Gray’s grandmother is named Mattie Gee Florida March, but she confides to her grandson that her real name is Makeda Gee Florida March. Though Makeda is blind, she fires up Gray’s imagination with stories she “sees” in her dreams. One of the stories features her as a daughter of a Dogon priest in 12th Century where she tells her grandson of the religious and astrological knowledge of the Dogon. These dreams spark a quest in Gray, who goes to lengths to corroborate her grandmother’s story visiting the Dogon tribe in Mali , West Africa . The book, Makeda, deals with the subject of race, religion, love, and family. The author, Randall Robinson , takes us through the civil rights movement in America through the eyes of Gray. We feel his innermost thoughts, passion, and confusion about the world he lives in. I was glad I did not put Makeda down after reading the first five chapters. The opening was tedious an...

Cover of The Children of Hurin   The Children of Hurin was first written as a condensed version in other Tolkien’s books, i.e. Unfinished Tales and The Silmarillion . The longer version of the tale was put together by the help of Christopher Tolkien, the third son of J.R.R. Tolkien , who in his own words wrote that the reason for the long version was so that: “…a window might be opened onto a scene and a story set in an unknown Middle-earth that are vivid and immediate,...: the drowned lands in the west beyond the Blue Mountains where Treebeard walked in his youth, and the life of Turin Turambar , in Dor-lomin , Doriath , Nargothrond, and the Forest of Brethil.” The long version of The Children of Hurin opens up the fate of one of the earliest human family in Middle-earth during the Elder Days and what becomes of the family. Hurin, the lord of Dor-lormin and husband to Morwen , departs for war with his allies against Morgoth, a Valar who escapes from the Blessed ...