Above Five Stars–Sets a Standard
I needed books to read on a flight out of Dallas, which is now a totally Christian airport. This book, and When to Speak Up and When To Shut Up were the best options for a non-fiction fanatic.
My first note is “PHENOMENAL. Overview, charts with key ideas, photos, maps, a Gold Standard.” This is an extraordinary reference in every sense of the word, and I consider the price to be at cost or gift levels, particularly with the full color nature of all the charts and maps.
I am NOT one of the “the only book I read and need is the Bible” crowd. Certainly they already know of this book and love it. For me, this book represents the very art and science of perfection in opening the Bible and its meaning to those that are NOT steeped in the arcane passages or that have NOT memorized passages over time.
As an intelligence officer, I found myself studying the maps and ultimately noting the following:
a. The Israelites drove out the Cananites, the Philistines (precursors to Palestinians), the Ammonites, the Moabites, and the Edomites. I found myself wanting a book that made the cultures and the history of those “enemy” peoples as clear to one as this book makes the Bible family.
b. I also noted the centrality of the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea, and the fact that the Philistines (Palestinians) have never really been dislodged from the Joppa to Gaza coastline and beyond to Pelusium; as well as the area south of Gaza.
Section after section, this book kept me totally focused and attentive–other than wanting to see “alternative” or “competing” story lines in a side by side fashion, this book is as perfect a depiction of knowledge as one could want. The amount of intellect and time and no doubt love that went into creating this absolutely incredible reference volume is to me stunning–I know what it takes to get to this kind of perfection, and it is inspiring to both be able to buy it, and to be able to buy it at an affordable price.
Thomas Nelson is now branded in my mind as synonymous with high quality intelligence in the public interest.
Another book in this line:
Leadership Lessons of Jesus: A Timeless Model for Today's Leaders
A few other non-fiction books I recommend that are mostly secular but each in their own way provocative:
Reflections on Evolutionary Activism: Essays, poems and prayers from an emerging field of sacred social change
Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny
Conscious Evolution: Awakening Our Social Potential
The Compassionate Instinct: The Science of Human Goodness
Worldchanging: A User's Guide for the 21st Century
The Leadership of Civilization Building: Administrative and civilization theory, Symbolic Dialogue, and Citizen Skills for the 21st Century
I published the below books, they are also free online but sold at cost in hard-copy.
Collective Intelligence: Creating a Prosperous World at Peace
INTELLIGENCE for EARTH: Clarity, Diversity, Integrity, & Sustainaabilty
