John Bookman

Kindles the flame, 11 Aug 2012

I have read a number of accounts of revivals, including Wesley Duewel's 'Revival Fire' and 'Revival fires and Awakenings' by Matthew Backholer, and 'In the Day of thy Power' by Wallis, and I would say that this would be a pretty good starting point to the literature on revival.

I admit I've not read it all so far, but what I have read is accurate with other accounts, and Geoff Waugh clearly has a heart to see God move. He helpfully summarises the features of biblical revivals as well as historical ones, and recognises that revival has often not been documented because revivals have been suppressed by established church and also those who have led revivals were not writing things… Read more

A quality waste of time, 26 Oct 2011

I approve wholeheartedly of this book, partly because it contains genuine letters and revives the flagging fortunes of the art. Read this if you have some time to waste and want to be amused. It consists entirely of letters from pseudonym Robin Cooper and replies from the organisations that he hunts down. The tell-tale 'end of correspondence' stamped at the bottom of a page gives away that here the unwitting victim gave up the game.

I suppose the art of writing a good letter involves giving several points at which the reader is itching to get their fingers on a pen and reply. Robin Cooper is an expert at this. How he gets responses from some of his unsolicited letters is… Read more

A misspent childhood regained, 24 Oct 2011

The truth is, the books you remember as a kid were probably not remembered because they were great, but because you read them when you were a kid. Anyone else remember the story Apple Pigs? No... exactly. But I remember it with fondness.

The brilliant thing about this 1001... franchise is that it does give you the original artwork of the covers. And just when you couldn't remember whether it was Joan Aiken or Ursula Le Guin you wanted, the index or the page on the book will clarify.

Some of my childhood favourites: the Moomins, the Uncle books about the millionaire elephant (with the absurd Quentin Blake illustrations), Henry Treece's Viking sagas, Mrs Frisby and… Read more