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(Jerusalem, Israel) — Earlier this week, I was asked by some folks on Twitter what I’ve been reading this year. Here’s my list, as well as a more extended list of what I’ve been reading since we moved to Israel (exactly four years ago this month).
Typically, I’m working on several books at once — a mixture of fiction and non-fiction, along with my daily Bible reading. Many of these I’ve devoured as audio books. I love to download books on my iPhone and listen when I’m driving in the car, flying back and forth to the U.S., whatever. Even a quick trip to the grocery store lets me listen to another 10 minutes of a book, each way. What a great way to use time wisely and get to books I’d otherwise have no time to get to. I highly recommend the practice.
So, what are you reading? I’d love to know. Please post your recent list on my Facebook page or on Twitter. And don’t forget to tell me what city/country you’re writing from. Thanks!
CURRENT
- Spymaster by Brad Thor — Odd as this may sound, I don’t read much fiction. So, in recent years, I’ve been sampling more. Way overdue reading anything by Thor, a #1 NYT best-selling novelist, so thought I’d get his latest.
- Into The Hands Of Soliders: Freedom and Chaos In Egypt and the Middle East by David Kirkpatrick — Not sure I’ll agree with all of this NYT journalist’s conclusions, but he lived through the Arab Spring as bureau chief in Cairo so I’m curious what he has to say.
- Desiring God by John Piper — One of my sons recommended this to me a few years ago. Never got to it. Wish I had. Loving every page.
FINISHED THIS YEAR
- Bibi: The Turbulent Life and Times of Benjamin Netanyahu by Anshel Pfeffer — Ever since making Aliyah (becoming a citizen of Israel), I’ve been reading a wide range of biographies of Israeli leaders. This biography of Israel’s current and controversial Prime Minister is by a columnist for the left-wing Israeli newspaper, Haaretz. Pfeffer is no fan, but it’s interesting and informative read, nonetheless.
- My Country, My Life: Fighting For Israel, Searching For Peace by Ehud Barak — Autobiography by Israel’s most decorated general since King David, and himself a former Prime Minister and Defense Minister. Captivating.
- Twelve Ordinary Men: How the Master Shaped His Disciples for Greatness, and What He Wants to Do with You by John MacArthur — How many Christians can actually name all twelve disciples, and have really studied who they were and how Jesus changed their lives and gave them the ultimate mission of taking the Gospel to the whole world? I absolutely loved this book. Read it twice — in a row.
- JFK and The Reagan Revolution: A Secret History of American Prosperity by Lawrence Kudlow and Brian Domitrovic — Larry Kudlow is an old friend from when I worked for Steve Forbes. Well written, and especially interesting given that Larry now runs the White House’s National Economic Council.
- Jack Kemp: The Bleeding Heart Conservative Who Changed America by Morton Kondracke and Fred Barnes — I used to work for Jack Kemp and Bill Bennett in the early 90s. Yet I learned more about Kemp from this excellent book than all my years in Washington. Didn’t agree with him on everything. But loved his optimism, his passion and compassion — to grow the economy for everyone, care for the poor, heal the racial divide, and welcome more minorities into the GOP.
- Delta Force: A Memoir by the Founder of the U.S. Military’s Most Secretive Special-Operations Unit by Charlie Beckwith — Autobiography of the man who created Delta Force. Fascinating.
- The Conviction of Richard Nixon: The Untold Story of the Frost/Nixon Interviews by James Reston, Jr. — Added so much more detail and nuance to the film and Frost’s account.
- Frost/Nixon: Behind the Scenes of the Nixon Interviews by David Frost — Loved the movie, Frost/Nixon. Intrigued with its genesis.
- Transfer of Power by Vince Flynn — The publishing industry lost a real treasure when Vince passed away a few years ago. I’ll always be grateful to him. He endorsed my first thriller without ever having met me. We did meet later, at a book launch party for him held at the home of Mary Matalin and James Carville. Decided it was time to read more Mitch Rapp novels.
- Kill Shot by Vince Flynn — Mitch Rapp rocks (though Vince used language and some other scenes I have chosen not to).
- American Assassin by Vince Flynn — The best Mitch Rapp novel of them all. (And far better than the eponymous movie.)
- Rise and Kill First: The Secret History of Israel’s Targeted Assassinations by Ronen Bergman — Incredibly researched. Brilliantly told. Sobering to read. But definitely worth it.
- The Daniel Prayer: Prayer That Moves Heaven and Changes Nations By Anne Graham Lotz — Loved every line. Must read.
- And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie — Okay, I admit it. Until this year, I’d never read a single Christie novel. With some two billion sold, I must be the last guy on the planet. So I binged on a bunch of them. This is my favorite.
- The Murder of Roger Akroyd by Agatha Christie — Hercule Poirot rocks.
- Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie — Liked it, didn’t love it.
- Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie — Much better than the movies.
- Fire and Fury: Inside The Trump White House by Michael Wolff — No comment.
- No Room For Small Dreams by Shimon Peres — Enjoyed this a great deal. Peres was most effective (and beloved) not during his years in government, but as Israel’s elder statesman, as the nation’s President, and later in retirement. Met him once and interviewed him briefly at a peace conference in Netanya years ago. Wish I’d had the chance to really have gotten to know one of Israel’s founding fathers. A flawed but fascinating man.
OTHERS FINISHED SINCE MOVING TO ISRAEL IN AUGUST 2014
- The Less You Know, The Better You Sleep by David Satter
- Red Notice by Bill Browder
- Putin’s Master Plan: To Destroy Europe, Divide NATO, and Restore Russian Power and Global Influence By Doug Schoen
- Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity by Nabeel Qureshi
- Understanding Trump by Newt Gingrich
- The Angel: The Egyptian Spy Who Saved Israel by Uri Bar-Joseph
- The Netanyahu Years by Ben Caspit
- Ben-Gurion: A Political Life by Shimon Peres
- Killing Floor by Lee Child
- Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel’s Economic Miracle by Dan Senor
- The Armageddon Code: One Journalist’s Quest for End-Times Answers by Billy Hallowell
- Doomed To Succeed: The U.S.-Israel Relationship From Truman To Obama by Dennis Ross
- Thirteen Days: The Dramatic Story of the Struggle for Peace In September by Lawrence Wright
- The Field of Fight: How We Can Win the Global War Against Radical Islam and Its Allies by General Michael Flynn and Michael Ledeen
- Killing Christians: Living the Faith Where It’s Not Safe to Believe by Tom Doyle
- To the Jew First: The Case for Jewish Evangelism in Scripture and History by Mitch Glaser and Darrell Bock
- In the Secret Service: The True Story of the Man Who Saved President Reagan’s Life by Jerry Parr
- Winter Is Coming: Why Vladimir Putin and the Enemies of the Free World Must Be Stopped by Garry Kasparov
- Within Arm’s Length: A Secret Service Agent’s Definitive Inside Account of Protecting the President by Dan Emmett
- My Journey So Far by Andrew White
- Dreams and Visions: Is Jesus Awakening the Muslim World? by Tom Doyle
- Ally: My Journey Across the American-Israeli Divide by Michael Oren
- Black Flags: The Rise of ISIS by Joby Warrick
- American Dreams: Restoring Economic Opportunity for Everyone by Marco Rubio
- The ISIS Apocalypse: The History, Strategy and Doomsday Vision of The Islamic State by William McCants
- War with Russia: An Urgent Warning from Senior Military Command by General Sir Richard Shirreff
- More Than A Carpenter by Josh McDowell
- Abraham: One Nomad’s Amazing Journey of Faith by Chuck Swindoll
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- PRE-ORDER — To pre-order a copy of THE PERSIAN GAMBLE on Amazon, please click here. (Note: Right now, Amazon is the only place I can find online that is pre-selling the novel. I will post links to others sales options when they become available.)
- To order a copy of The Kremlin Conspiracy — the New York Times best-selling political thriller, now available in hardcover, e-book and audio formats — please click here, or order from any of your favorite general market or Christian bookstores.
- To order copies of the new mass market paperbacks of the J.B. Collins novels — my most recent trilogy of novels about ISIS plotting attacks on the U.S., Israel, Jordan and Egypt — please click here.
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