Do you use i.e. and e.g. correctly? Here is a handy guide to doing it right.
Summer is a good time to read books or articles on improving your academic writing. Look for more recommendations coming soon from this blog!
Grammar Tips
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Monthly Archives: May 2014
Sheila’s Next Five
Sheila is our other resident classicist and customer service representative. She teaches dead languages and is writing a thesis about the resurrection; make of that what you will.
Lectures on the Christian Sacraments by St. Cyril of Jerusalem
Sheila is about to start this book on the sacraments. She reads extensively on sacraments as seen by this book, also near the top of her to-be-read pile:
Thank God it’s Thursday by William H. Willimon.
Remember that thesis on the resurrection? That might explain the next two books in Sheila’s pile of reading.
The Theology of Suffering and Death by Natalie Kertes Weaver
Theology, Death and Dying by Ray S. Anderson
Finally, to assist in Sheila’s reading of Karl Barth on creation (again for the thesis) this book:
Saving Karl Barth by D. Stephen Long
previous The Next Five
Alain’s Next Five
Alain is one of our classics scholars. He works in customer service at Crux, but will, sadly, be leaving us later this summer to start his Ph.D studies. These are the five books he might have time for before an advanced degree takes over his life:
Getting What you Came For: The Smart Student’s Guide to Earning a Master’s or PhD by Robert L. Peters. There’s no mystery around why Alain might make this book a priority in the next few months!
Simple & Direct: A Rhetoric for Writers by Jacques Barzun
Augustine of Hippo: A Biography by Peter Brown. The definitive Augustine biography.
Constantine and Eusebius by Timothy D. Barnes.
Faith, Science & Understanding by John Polkinghorne
Cindy’s Next Five
Our fearless leader, Cindy, thinks she might get to some of these books this summer.
Rome & Jerusalem by Martin Goodman was recommended by Terry Donaldson for summer reading in 2013. Cindy has her eye on it for this summer’s reading.
Bonhoefer: Paster, Martyer, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas. Cindy plans to read this on the dock at the cottage some long weekend.
7 Men and the Secret of their Greatness by Eric Metaxas.
The Contemporary Christian by John R.W. Stott.
Seeds of Hope: Wisdom and Wonder from the World of Plants by Jane Goodall. Cindy’s farm family roots are showing in this selection. She looks forward to reading the wisdom and wonder of the plant world, especially as Jane Goodall wrote the book.
Carolyn’s Next Five
Carolyn is our local philosopher. She works in customer service and shipoing. These are the next five books she thinks she might read when she’s not writing her thesis this summer.
Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis
Learning to Walk in the Dark by Barbara Brown Taylor
The Brothers Karamazov by Fydor Dostoyevsky
Becoming Human by Jean Vanier
Take this Bread by Sara Miles
The Next Five Books
Here at Crux, the staff members have put together lists of the next five books we might read. All of us have the habit of drifting off into what looks interesting at the moment, so these lists may not actually reflect what we read over the summer. They do reflect books that are on our current reading horizons and in our To Be Read piles.
Dr. Heather’s Next Five:
Jesus and the Victory of God by N.T. Wright
This is the one book on my list that I am confident that I will finish this book this summer. I’ve already started reading, and am into the second major section. I once had a discussion with a colleague about whether Wright’s big books are actually serious scholarship because they are readable. I argued that the readability factor makes them Very Serious Scholarship because more people may actually understand what Wright is saying, thus his ideas have a better chance of intelligent acceptance, or intelligent rebuttal.
The Pleasures of Reading in an Age of Distraction by Alan Jacobs
This is my book about reading for this summer. The one I read last summer was a great disappointment, and it has taken a while for me to pick a book about books again. We’ll see how this one goes.
One Was a Soldier by Julia Spencer-Fleming
I need at least one mystery to read in the summer. I’ve enjoyed Spencer-Fleming’s series featuring the detecting duo of an Episcopal Priest and the local Police Chief, and this is the one I’ve not read yet.
Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis
People keep telling me that this is the best novel Lewis wrote. I haven’t read it yet. I’ll let you know if I agree with my friends.
C.S. Lewis, A Life by Alister McGrath
I’ve had this book on my to-be-read pile for too long. I hope to actually read it this summer. I’ve heard good things about it. I’ll let you know what I think after I’ve read it.
The Next Five next post
May Staff Picks: Relaxing Reading part 4
Alain:
A Preface to Paradise Lost by C.S. Lewis
Alain appreciates this book as a work of general literary criticism, particularly on the epic poems. Before Lewis even begins to talk about Paradise Lost he sets the poem in the contexts of its genre. Alain read this long before attempting Milton, and recommends it highly.
(Has anyone else noticed that Crux staff have a fondness for Lewis no matter what he writes?)
Ed:
May part 3 Monthly Staff Picks
May Staff Picks: Relaxing Reading Part 3
Cindy:
Homeless at Harvard by John Christopher Frame
While the author was a student at Harvard, he decided to spend one summer living on the streets with the homeless people that he had become acquainted with through his volunteer work. He became “homeless” becoming part of the Harvard Square community. This book is the story of that summer and the stories of three individuals who befriended him, taught him how to survive and shared their lives with him.
Sheila:
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
There is a great joy in rereading a beloved book from one’s childhood. You are transported through time to remember again the awe and wonder such tales invoked and, simultaneously, are brought to realise how the work has shaped and reshaped your thinking and your imagination from the first encounter.
Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time offers to its readers first and foremost an excellent story. The characters are engaging, the writing evocative and at times even lyrical. Without giving away too much, we encounter, through the characters, a cosmic battle between good and evil. The dangers of conformity and the importance of standing on the side of truth even, and perhaps especially, when it costly are unfolded. This is a book for adults and children alike. If you have not read it before, please do. If you have, try re-reading it. I promise you that you will enjoy it still more.
May part 2 Monthly Staff Picks May part 4
May Staff Picks: Relaxing Reading Part 2
More iced tea and sunglasses books for your spring and summer reading:
Dr. Heather:
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallowsby J. K. Rowling
This conclusion to the Potter series by Rowling, filled with theologically significant images and incidents, makes a great summer read. The ultimate battle of good vs. evil with some interesting twists thrown in for good measure.
Carolyn:
Traveling Mercies by Anne Lamott
I love a good spiritual memoir. Lamott shares her story with candor, reminding us that the road to faith is as unique as the individual traveling it.
May part 1 Monthly Staff Picks May part 3
Staff Picks for May: Relaxing Reading Part 1
Here in the Crux-world, the winter term is over. This means we can do some relaxing reading! Hammock! Sun-glasses! Relax! Here are the first couple of relaxing reading recommendations. Look for more in the next few days.
Rev. Heather:
A Wee Worship Book
As we head into the summer months and things start to slow down, it is a perfect time to get creative in worship. Maybe you’re planning a contemporary service at night with a jazzed up Liturgy, or perhaps a campfire prayer service at a summer camp, this book can help you plan those services ans many more! From special prayers for creation, peace, and healing to liturgies broken down by the time of day of the service, this book has something for any priest, pastor, or worship leader looking to try something new!
Andrew:
The Chosen by Chaim Potok
This is a great read. It has baseball, biblical studies, fathers and sons, and friendship. What more could you want in a relaxing summer read?
April Monthly Staff Picks May part 2
Crux Books 