The 2011 Faith and Fiction Round Table Books

This year, the 2011 Faith and Fiction Round Table will be reading the following six books. The group of participants have agreed to read each book and we will be hosting various discussions on the topics and themes of the books. That way, you can pick and choose which books you want to read with us and there will be plenty of places for you to discuss it!

Our schedule is below. We sincerely hope you'll join in for the discussions that interest you!



Certain Women by Madeleine L'Engle

Emma Wheaton has interrupted her successful stage career to attend to her dying father--the legedary screen actor David Wheaton. As the master performer grapples with an obsession over the one great role that has eluded him--that of the biblical King David--Emma confronts both the painful and healing memories of her tumultuous past. The stories of these two Davids and the women in thier lives are simultaneously woven together and unraveled in a narrative rich in theatrical tradition and archetypal wisdom. In Certain Women, Madeleine L'Engle gives us an unforgettable portrait of the private struggles and blessings of family life.

Discussion Date: February 26th


What Good is God? by Philip Yancey

Journalist and spiritual seeker Philip Yancey has always struggled with the most basic questions of the Christian faith. The question he tackles in WHAT GOOD IS GOD? concerns the practical value of belief in God. His search for the answer to this question took him to some amazing settings around the world: Mumbai, India when the firing started during the terrorist attacks; at the motel where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated; on the Virginia Tech campus soon after the massacre; an AA convention; and even to a conference for women in prostitution.

Discussion Date: April 30th



A Canticle for Liebowitz by Walter Miller Jr.

Winner of the 1961 Hugo Award for Best Novel and widely considered one of the most accomplished, powerful, and enduring classics of modern speculative fiction, Walter M. Miller, Jr.'s A Canticle for Leibowitz is a true landmark of twentieth-century literature -- a chilling and still-provocative look at a post-apocalyptic future.

In a nightmarish ruined world slowly awakening to the light after sleeping in darkness, the infant rediscoveries of science are secretly nourished by cloistered monks dedicated to the study and preservation of the relics and writings of the blessed Saint Isaac Leibowitz. From here the story spans centuries of ignorance, violence, and barbarism, viewing through a sharp, satirical eye the relentless progression of a human race damned by its inherent humanness to recelebrate its grand foibles and repeat its grievous mistakes. Seriously funny, stunning, and tragic, eternally fresh, imaginative, and altogether remarkable, A Canticle for Leibowitz retains its ability to enthrall and amaze. It is now, as it always has been, a masterpiece.

Discussion Date: June 11th



Small Town Sinners by Melissa Walker

Lacey Anne Byer is a perennial good girl and lifelong member of the House of Enlightenment, the Evangelical church in her small town. With her driver's license in hand and the chance to try out for a lead role in Hell House, her church's annual haunted house of sin, Lacey's junior year is looking promising. But when a cute new stranger comes to town, something begins to stir inside her. Ty Davis doesn't know the sweet, shy Lacey Anne Byer everyone else does. With Ty, Lacey could reinvent herself. As her feelings for Ty make Lacey test her boundaries, events surrounding Hell House make her question her religion.

Discussion Date: August 13th



A Passage to India by E.M. Forster

When Adela and her elderly companion Mrs Moore arrive in the Indian town of Chandrapore, they quickly feel trapped by its insular and prejudiced British community. Determined to explore the real India', they seek the guidance of the charming and mercurial Dr Aziz, a cultivated Indian Muslim. But a mysterious incident occurs while they are exploring the Marabar caves with Aziz, and the well-respected doctor soon finds himself at the centre of a scandal that rouses violent passions among both the British and their Indian subjects. A masterly portrait of a society in the grip of imperialism, A Passage to India compellingly depicts the fate of individuals caught between the great political and cultural conflicts of the modern world.

Discussion Date: September 24th

Forbidden by Ted Dekker and Tosca Lee

Four hundred eighty years have passed since civilization's brush with extinction. Perfect order reigns. Humanity's greatest threats have all been silenced. There is no disease, no malice, no hate, no war. There is only peace.
Until the day when one man discovers the truth: Every single soul walking the earth is actually dead. The human heart has been stripped of all that makes it human. Now only he is alive and only he has the knowledge that can once again awaken humanity.
But the way is treacherous and the cost is staggering. For, indeed, in that day life itself is...Forbidden.

Discussion Date: November 12th

That's it! I hope you will all join in on at least one of these really different sounding books!

Please note this Monday Deborah and I will be hosting a Twitter chat about Christian fiction. You can read the details on this post, What Can Be Done About Christian Fiction (Part One). We'd love to have you join in. Next week's Faith and Fiction Saturday will recap some of the discussion and bring in new points. Check out the schedule for Faith and Fiction Saturday.



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