Interdisciplinary Book and Film Reviews

  UNBROKEN A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience,   and Redemption By    Laura Hillenbrand Reviewed by    Geoffrey W. Sutton Unbroken is the true story of Olympian Louis Zamperini who survived the crash of his plane in the Pacific Ocean and endured severe abuse at the club wielding hands of his captors. Hillenbrand provides key elements of Louis biography. He was in trouble with the law as a youth but became a track star in High School. Eventually, he was chosen to be on the 1936 US Olympic Team, which competed in Berlin. A few years later, Louie enlisted in the military. Zamperini became an airman. On a mission in 1943, his plane crashed in the Pacific. He and two other men floated on a raft for 47 days punctuated by severe thirst and starvation, sharks aboard the raft, Japanese machine-gun fire, and even a typhoon.  They were captured by Japanese and sent to a POW camp where they were severely tormented until he was near death by the time the war ended. His particular ordeal w

  Forgive for Good A Proven Prescription for Health and Happiness      By   Fred Luskin Reviewed by Geoffrey W. Sutton   In Forgive for Good , Luskin invites us to forgive for our own benefit. His well-written book reads like a story—indeed, he has many stories to tell as he reveals each of the three-part scientific-how-to drama. In part one, we learn about grievances. We create grievances when we review the times we have been mistreated. Luskin calls this replaying of hurts “renting space in our minds.” We tend to focus on blame rather than recovery. And we focus a lot on the pain we have experienced.   Another problem we may have is creating rules or expectations that are unenforceable yet, despite our lack of power to force someone to abide by these rules, we can become obsessed with punishing the offender for breaking the rules. Luskin isn’t denying our right to feel angry or pain. He wants to help us avoid hurting ourselves.   Part two is the story of forgive

  Forgiveness is a Choice A Step-by-Step Process for    Resolving Anger and Restoring Hope By   Robert D. Enright Reviewed by    Geoffrey W. Sutton In Forgiveness is a Choice , psychologist Robert D. Enright provides “a self-help book for people who have been deeply hurt by another and are caught in a vortex of anger, depression, and resentment.” Enright begins by explaining what forgiveness is, what forgiveness is not, and what happens if we do not forgive. His explanations include examples to help understand how people come to terms with offenses and what it means to forgive an offender. For his definition of forgiveness, Enright quotes British philosopher, Joanna North. When unjustly hurt by another, we forgive when we overcome the resentment toward the offender, not by denying our right to resentment, but instead by trying to offer the wrongdoer compassion, benevolence, and love; as we give these, we as forgivers realize that the offender does not necessarily have a right to

  Moving Forward Six Steps to Forgiving Yourself      and Breaking Free from the Past By   Everett L. Worthington Jr. Reviewed by   Geoffrey W. Sutton   Ev (Everett L. Worthington Jr. Ph.D.) has a real life story to tell. Ev is an internationally recognized forgiveness scholar who has studied forgiveness as a scientist, helped others forgive as a psychologist, and spread the good news freely in workshops and on his website. But Moving Forward is different. Moving Forward helps us to forgive ourselves. And more than that— Moving Forward is intensely personal. Ev tells his own struggle with self-forgiveness as he dealt with his mother’s murder and his brother’s suicide. Worthington shares six steps to self-forgiveness. He blends science, stories, and faith as he reveals how to forgive ourselves. I will briefly describe the steps below. 1. Receive God’s forgiveness. Ev is a Christian so it is natural that he would begin the process by confession of past wrongdoin

  Living Well 10 Big Ideas of Faith and      a Meaningful Life   By       Geoffrey W. Sutton Reviewed by    Various Quotes from reviewers of:   Living Well: 10 Big Ideas ofFaith and a Meaningful Life “As a Christian and a psychological professional, it’s rare to find resources which address the interaction of my beliefs and scholarly knowledge. I’m encouraged by Geoff Sutton’s, Living Well , as it offers a unique perspective on Biblical virtues from multiple, complementary views. In a time where many want to divide faith and science, a harmonious combination is found in this book.”    — Chelsea L. Greer, Ph.D ., Assistant Professor, Counseling Psychologist, USA  ***** “In the long and noble tradition of virtue ethics, Geoffrey Sutton provides a valuable resource for living the good life. Bible study meets scientific inquiry meets practical how-to, this is a helpful tool for congregation and classroom alike.”     — Dr. Howard N. Kenyon , Vice President, Ecumenical Mi

  FORGIVENESS & RECONCILIATION:   BOOK REVIEWS In the course of conducting research on forgiveness and reconciliation, I have read a number of books. Some I have reviewed are included in this list with links to the reviews. READ FREE :   Some books are on KINDLE UNLIMITED and can be read at no additional charge. Amish Grace : How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy   by Kraybill, Nolt, and Weaver-Zercher   Read Review BUY on AMAZON BUY on GOOGLE The Art of Forgiving  by Lewis Smedes         Read  Review BUY on AMAZON BUY on GOOGLE   Forgive for good : A proven prescription for health and happiness by Fred Luskin   Read Review BUY on AMAZON BUY on GOOGLE   Forgiveness is a Choice:    A step-by-step process for resolving anger and restoring hope   by Robert D. Enright. Read   Review BUY on AMAZON BUY on GOOGLE F orgiveness: Psychological Theory, Research, and Practice  by Ev Worthin