The best books that explore Christianity in creative and engaging ways

I love that the subject of this book is about beginnings—THE beginning, in fact. As someone who became a believer at the age of fourteen, I felt secure in my understanding of the Bible and had little need or desire to be challenged on my understanding of controversial Biblical topics.

This is the book that changed all that for me. It introduced me to apologetics. I admire the gentle and noncombative way the astrophysicist author discusses how Genesis can literally describe an earth that is 4.5 billion years old. It was a fascinating exploration of Biblical analysis, Hebrew, and scientific study. I became so much more confident in my understanding of Genesis after reading this book.

I was shocked at how this book opened my eyes to the overwhelming challenges and difficulties of being an American missionary in India during the early nineteenth century. I felt as though I was reading a very personal autobiography of one of the first Christian missionaries as well as a history lesson about how people struggled to survive in a remote and often uncivilized part of the world.

I was left with a feeling of gratitude and perhaps a bit of guilt regarding those believers who gave everything they had, including their very lives, to help those less fortunate than themselves.

The title of this book seemed nothing more than a gimmick to get attention. Fortunately, I decided to read the book anyway. In hindsight, the title was perfectly fitting for the subject matter behind the cover. The creative and scripturally sound musings concerning our departure from this world warmly touched my heart about a subject matter no one likes to think about.

The author has tough things to address, but they are all extremely enlightening. It’s been a while since I read it, but I do believe a tear or two might have been shed toward the end. I have given this book to many friends and family.

I read this book for the first time in my thirties. I think I appreciated it more as an adult than I would have as a child. The story is often categorized as an allegory, but the author never intended it to be read as such. C.S. Lewis referred to Narnia as a “supposal”.

What a gloriously refreshing way to read a book full of wonderful characters, familiar truths, and exciting plots—supposing it all could have happened in another time or place. I adored the innocent places this book took me, places in my own memories, dreams, and hopes.

I was immediately taken in by the author’s simplistic approach to addressing the most common question skeptics have about Christianity. Apologetics doesn’t always need to be overly heady information about science, prophecy, archaeology, or manuscripts. I was pleased by the ease at which the aforementioned subjects were explored by various intellectuals in related fields of study.

This book left me with greater confidence that there are other people, smart people, who share the same faith as myself, a faith that is not blind but backed by a plethora of evidence.