Karl's Reading List

Published by Zondervan Publishing House: Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1967 (1966). A non-fiction book, Fire on the Mountains tells the story of the spread of Christianity among the Wallamo people of Ethiopia, particularly during, and after World War 2. Western missionaries had been in the Wallamo region leading up to the war (with early parts of the book unpacking this season), but found themselves banned from the country by the occupying Italians, leaving only the small number of partially trained native believers behind, without even a completed bible in their language. The majority of Fire on the Mountains highlights stories of how these native believers spread the gospel, leading to a massive increase in Wallamo people accepting Jesus into their lives. Chapter 12 opens with a native believer telling the returning missionaries: "When you missionaries left, it was difficult to find a Christian in Wallamo country. Now it is difficult to find a man who is not a Christian" (page 10...

Published by Penguin Books Limited: Middlesex, England, 1977. First published 1973. This is a book that took a long time to get through, partially because it is quite dense, and partially because it was the book I was reading while we were in the process of moving from my parents' house in Monaco to our new house in central Stoke. When you're busy packing and unpacking boxes, it can get in the way of turning pages... The topic of Cape to Cairo is quite interesting, though. In various sections - based on sections of railway track - it traces the history of the attempt at building a cross-African railroad from Cape Town all the way to Cairo, originally envisioned to show the spread and power of the British Empire. Each section covers a period of time and shows not only the building of the railway, but everything leading up to that point. This adds to the denseness of the book, and - although the book's focus is clear - also means that it can feel a little disjointed at times,...

Published by Century/Random House: London, 2016. This is the first ever James Patterson book I've read, and I have some mixed thoughts. Firstly, the book is very easy to read. The chapters are short, the sentences are simple, and as a result, I flew through the book at pace. If this is what other Patterson books are like, then I can see why he would be a popular author to read. Secondly, being a co-written book, I am unsure how much of the plot and writing  is Patterson and how much is his collaborator. Apparently, Patterson has written over 200 books, but as many of them are co-written, it is likely that many of his co-writers do the heavy lifting. Thirdly, although the book is easy to read, I'm not sure I would call it 'well-written.' With the chapters being short - and with a lot of plot to get through - the book doesn't dwell very long on any given scene, meaning that the reader doesn't have a lot of time to emotionally invest in anything that is going on. W...

Published by Penguin Books: London, England, 1992. Sacred Hunger has an interesting topic, an interesting theme, and interesting characters.  The majority of the narrative takes place aboard a slave-ship as it leaves England, travels to Africa, and begins 'trading' for slaves. Our main protagonist in this section of the ship is doctor Matthew Paris, the nephew of the ship's owner, who has come on the voyage to atone - or punish himself - for actions in his past that he believes led to the death of his wife and unborn child. Paris dislikes the whole venture, but is still willing to be a part of it... this will impact events as they unfold. This part of the book is powerful, fairly graphic in patches, far too coarse for my liking but with enough interest that I decided to give it a bit more time than I normally would have. Scattered throughout this narrative, we also get chapters focussed on Eramus Kemp, the son of the ship's owner, who has a strong and fairly irrational ...

Published by Gefen Publishing House Ltd: Jerusalem, Israel, 2026. A very interesting book about a little-known community of people, Endless Exodus tells the history of Ethiopian Jews, from the stories about their possible historical origins, to the the modern desire for many of them to undertake ' aliyah ', or emigration to the nation of Israel. The book is presented in coffee-table format, with wide pages and prominent photographs throughout. Indeed, the history - while interesting - is less of the focus than the photographs themselves, providing a context for the photographs rather than the other way around.  I found this book fascinating, in highlighting a faith community that I had very little knowledge of, and providing an insight into how people in other parts of the world live. Recommended for anyone who enjoys history, geography, religious studies, and anthropology. Completed 10 February 2026. Previous Book ~ Next Book (LibraryThing Prize Books) Previous Book ~ Next B...

Published by Potomac Books/University of Nebraska Press: USA, 2025. Each month on LibraryThing, an 'Early Reviewers' list is posted with books that you can win, in return for reviewing them. I have occasionally won eBooks to review through this format, and although the eBook format is not my favourite, I realise that being in New Zealand means that I'm less likely to win physical books. Indeed, usually physical books that are a part of the 'Early Reviewers' list are simply listed as 'Not Available in Your Country.'  Towards the end of last year, however, I noticed that a physical book was available in my home country! It looked interesting, so I put my name into the draw for it, despite the fact that with only a handful of copies available, over 100 people had registered interest. Lo and behold, I won it! And after waiting about eight weeks (international postage takes time) it finally arrived! And this is that book! Aside from being the first physical book ...

I have officially decided to give up my Bookerworm quest. I still intend to at least try to read the majority of the books, but after truly disliking some of the Booker books, I have also decided not to bother pushing through ones that I begin to get 'funny' feelings about. This is also tied a bit to my faith; I want to grow in my sensitivity to the voice of God, and that does at times meaning walking away from worldly things. I'm sure this will be an ongoing conversation I have with God, but for now, this plot is to acknowledge which books I have begun and subsequently have decided not to finish, along with a (much smaller, as I want to at least give books a chance to surprise me) number I have decided not to bother with in advance. I will also give brief reasons why these books have made this list, rather than my actual 'completed books' list. Ironically, although I felt to give up on the books I'm going to list below, most of them weren't as bad as som...

Published by Knight Books/Brockhampton Press Ltd: England, 1971.  First published 1963. Book 6 in the 'Adventure' series. Preceded by ' Whale Adventure. ' Followed by 'Elephant Adventure.' In this book, Hal and Roger are reunited with their father in Africa, once again with the purpose of collecting live animals for various zoos and circuses. Of course, with the book's main focus being the brothers and not their father, the older Hunt is quickly side-lined. As with the earliest entries in the 'Adventure' series (particularly  Amazon Adventure ), the role that the Hunt family have is the part that feels the most dated; a family of giraffes is destined for a zoo, a mother and child baboon are destined for a circus. And once again, if the reader can cope with that type of job, the storyline is informative (about the habits of animals), mildly exciting, and fairly straightforward.  These books have clear villains and problems to overcome, and the brother...

Published by Harpertorch/HarperCollinsPublishers: New York, NY, 2002. Originally published in 1988 as O Alquimista in Portuguese. English translation by Paulo Coelho and Alan R Clarke, 1993. I've had this book recommended to me in the past, and finally got around to reading it. It is not a long book (167 pages) and is an easy read - in fact, I read it in a single sitting. It is also a simple story, told in a style that is allegorical or "parable-ic." The protagonist of the story is a boy introduced on the first page as Santiago, but from then on only referred to as "the boy." He has taken up the life of a shepherd in order to see the world, after having learned reading and writing when his parents desired for him to become a priest. After having a vivid dream, 'the boy' seeks to learn its meaning, firstly from a gypsy fortune-teller, and then by meeting Melchizedek, the king of Salem - a historical figure found in Genesis 14, and often seen as a metaphor...

Published by Dean and Son Ltd: London, 1963. I needed a book with an animal protagonist, and remembered this book I read a few times as a child. After rereading it, I'm not super convinced that Brer Rabbit is a protagonist in the traditional sense - more of an anti-hero or even an antagonist at times - but the book still fits the brief over all. This is a collection of short fable-like chapters, each starring a somewhat anthropomorphised animal (usually Brer Rabbit) and usually having some sort of conflict where the smarter creature defeats the dumber creature. It is not always clear how anthropomorphised these animals are; they live in houses, they smoke cigars, all of them eat both meat and greens, and the male animals seem to be quite keen on 'Miss Meadows and the girls' (who might be human??) and yet the "carnivores" are often trying to eat the "herbivores", and at times they live in their traditional locations, such as ponds or briar-patches. Each s...

Published by Ferguson Publishing: Nelson, New Zealand, 2024. Once a month, the Nelson Ministers Fraternal meets on a Tuesday morning. I try to attend as often as I can. Last time, another minister had brought this book along with them, and was offering it around for someone to read. I jumped at the chance, especially when I realised it kinda fitted the brief for 'Black History' in my Reading Challenge this year.  I mean, it's about the history of an African man! Neither writer is a professional author - Ross Ferguson is actually a local dentist and retired minister - and that lack of professionalism does show at times - there are random quotation marks at times; some sentences are incomplete; the authorial voice changes from Ross to Custodio and back without warning or reason - and yet the story is an interesting one, if (sadly) similar to others you may have read. Custodio was born in Angola, grew up during a civil war in the country, had both parents die when he was young...

Published by Verso: London, UK, 2014. It wasn't as easy finding a book featuring pirates as I thought it was going to be. I've read plenty in the past -  Treasure Island is a classic I thought of revisiting, and more recently enjoyed Tress of the Emerald Sea had a good sci-fi twist to the pirate tale - but in the end I decided to read this non-fiction nautical history that I had on the classroom library shelf. It did take a while to get the hang of what was being written about in this book - the endnotes clarified that originally each chapter was published separately, and that makes a lot of sense! - but overall Rediker seems to be focussing on the lesser told stories of nautical history, often focussing less on the prominent figures (the Columbuses and Cooks of history) and more on the crew and slaves who also featured heavily at these times. Two chapters even focus on individual accounts, and these are fascinating, especially when giving a different perspective on the polit...

Published (as an e-book) by YorShi Publishing, 2024. So, I won a book! An e-book, but still!! In order to keep track of the books I own  (numbering over 1000 now) I used to have a particular book app. However, when that became obsolete I joined a separate app/website called LibraryThing, which - among its other features - has a monthly book giveaway competition. Living in New Zealand, I am not eligible for physical books, sadly, but I am able to apply to receive a copy of an e-book, as long as I review it when I get it. Gosh, what a sacrifice to make. So, anyway,  My Name Is Nkechukwuọma is the debut novel of a Canadian-Nigerian author named Gloria, and follows a young Canadian-Nigerian woman as she deals with the usual older-teen issues of dating, rebellion against parents and family dynamics. She also has to deal with the traditional Nigerian elements of her upbringing, including aunts that have quite a large deal of influence over her choices in life, as well as gradually ...

Published by Picador: London, UK, 2001. First published 1971. An odd book, containing three different narratives (along with separate prologue and epilogue narratives) all on the theme of feeling displaced in a different culture and environment.  The first main story is told from the perspective of Santosh, an Indian servant who moves to America, only to find himself questioning his life choices. The next story follows a West Indian man who travels to England to support his brother, only to become disillusioned and eventually murder someone.  The third main narrative - which is the longest and also the titular 'In a Free State' - follows follows two English expats - Bobby and Linda - as they road trip south through a progressively more war-torn African nation. On the way we learn a lot about each character - mostly through their conversations - and witness their interactions with each other and those around them. As with many of the  Booker books I have read, there is an ...

Published as an audiobook by Blackstone Audio, Inc in 1998. Uploaded to Audible 18-04-2012.  Originally published as 'An Authentic Narrative of Some Remarkable and Interesting Particulars in the Life of John Newton. Communicated in a Series of Letters to the Rev. Mr. Haweis, Rector of Aldwinckle. And by him, at the request of friends, now made public' in 1764. Updated after Newton's death. Narrated by William Sutherland. Inspired by having heard a bit of John Newton's story in The Roots of Endurance , I decided to give this audiobook version of his autobiography a go. As the extended original title states, this is written as a series of letters from Newton to Reverend Haweis, obviously at the request of Haweis to tell some of his story.  Newton, as befits a man overcome by the grace of God in his life, focuses a lot on God's providence and sometimes as a result (and suiting the style of the day) doesn't go into details about his life  as much as a modern reader ...

Published by Recorded Books, 2014. Released on Audible 09-06-2014. Narrated by Simon Prebble. Originally published serially from 1912, as a novel 1914. Followed by "The Return of Tarzan." So... Elise is a fan of Tarzan, specifically the music of the Disney version. She suggested that our next audiobook be the first Tarzan story, and as I have never read any of these stories, it seemed fun. Tarzan of the Apes is nothing like the Disney version. It is very bloodthirsty. It is quite racist at times. It only just shies away from having Tarzan become a cannibal. And Jane doesn't appear for a long time either. The fact that this was a serialized story definitely comes through at times, when a chunk of chapters on one theme will sudden pivot to a chunk of chapters with a new focus.  Clayton! That's an interesting twist. If you consider different adaptations of Tarzan in the past, the character of William Cecil Clayton will sometimes turn up. Usually he is the villain, someti...

Published by Pickering & Inglis Ltd: London, Glasgow, Toronto, 1967. Wanting a break from some of the heavier or denser books I've been reading lately, I picked up this book from one of my bookshelves when doing some cleaning. As a 'palate-cleanser' book, The Witchdoctor's Revenge is much more appropriate than its title might suggest. It is written for children, mildly old-fashioned, and very simple in storyline.  Barney is the 12 year old English cousin of 14 year old David, the latter of whom is the son of a District Commissioner in Boma, a remote northern region of Zambia, at a time soon after the country has renamed itself from Northern Rhodesia. Returning to Zambia after a furlough home, David's parents agree to bring Barney along for a holiday as well as to recoup some strength after a bout of polio has left him mildly lame. Barney is excited to go on this holiday, and is also mildly apprehensive of how to share his faith with his cousin, as Barney has rec...

Published by Faber and Faber Ltd: London, England, 2008. Originally published 1968. The very first Booker Prize winner, Something to Answer For follows Townrow, a protagonist that for the first section of the book I kept misreading as “Tomorrow.” I bring that up, because it reflects, on a smaller scale, the feeling of confusion and disorientation that permeates this book. Very early on, Townrow (who has travelled to Egypt to either help or swindle an elderly widow) gets knocked on the head and left for dead, and as a result has ongoing memory problems. He forgets things that we, the readers, already know, or he remembers sequels to earlier scenes much later, and on occasion even “remembers” as having happened events that we know are fictionalised, or that may have happened to another character. The concept is clever, but having an unreliable narrator who also makes spontaneous and reckless decisions throughout the narrative also makes the book very difficult to follow. For example, at...

Published by Transworld Publishers: London, 2009.  Translated by Tiina Nunnally, 2008. First published in Danish 2007. This occasionally dark novel is set in Denmark, where a lawyer named Jon Campelli is drawn into a secret society of 'Lectors', individuals who have the power to either influence the actions of those they read to (transmitters) or of those who are themselves reading (receivers). Jon's father Luca, himself a powerful Lector, has been found dead, and blame has fallen on the local receivers. Jon must use his relative outsider status to his advantage and investigate the death while protecting himself against the mysterious enemies out to get him.  This novel took me a few chapters to get into, but by the end I was gripped. There are elements of the plot I found a little predictable, figuring out, for example, who the traitor was before they were revealed, but the plot did take a few unexpected turns and the idea of readers having that much power was a fun one. I...

Published by Hodder & Stoughton: Great Britain, 2007.  First published 1885. This well-known novel is the story of Allan Quartermain, a hunter and trader living in Africa, who joins Sir Henry Curtis and Captain John Good on a journey to search for Curtis' missing brother. The three white men and their native servants travel into 'uncharted' Africa and enter the unknown country of Kukuanaland. Here they get caught up in the politics of the nation, face off against the sinister with-doctress Gagoola, and search for the lost diamond mines of King Solomon. As an English novel written in the Victorian era, King Solomon's Mines does contain moments that could be uncomfortable for the modern reader, particularly in the superiority shown by the main white characters to their African allies (one native is complimented as being intelligent 'for his race' and it is meant sincerely) yet Haggard is perhaps less 'arrogant' than many of his contemporary writers, an...