Coach Wooden's Forgotten Teams - Book Review

Book:  Coach Wooden's Forgotten Teams

Author:  Pat Williams with Jim Denney

Publisher:  Revell

196 pages, paperback


This is a very well written book, consisting of 9 chapters.  Coach Wooden was a legendary basketball coach.  He not only trained his players in the game, he also trained them for life with his godly wisdom.  This book brings to light the summer basketball camps many were privileged to attend.

We hear stories from some of the coaches who worked at the camps.  We also hear from many of the campers themselves, as they look back over the years to when they were younger enjoying the basketball lessons.

The book is inspiring as it shares many of the wise sayings of the coach.  We also get the sense that he was a very humble man with a great Christian faith.

Here are a couple of my favorites from the book:

Page 65, "The example Coach set by doing things like that made a big impression on me. Coach didn't preach.  He lived his lessons. He set an example. Whenever you were around him, it was lesson after lesson. He'd never say, "This is how you should  lead,' but if you had eyes to see and ears to hear, you'd learn by watching the man."

Page 75, "He would say, 'Drink deeply from good books, first and foremost, the Bible.' I think he spent a lot of time there, and his faith was a grounding point."


Reading this book will make you want to be a better parent. It will make you want to be a better person, in general.   You might even start taking notes, or highlighting passages in the book, for later reference.

* Disclosure - This book was provided for review purposes. *

Practicing the King's Economy - Book Review

Book:  Practicing the King's Economy

Author:  Michael Rhodes and Robby Holt with Brian Fikkert

Publisher:  Baker Books

317 pages, paperback


The book consists of 12 chapters.  There is also a lengthy preface and acknowledgements section. This may be because all three of the authors share their thoughts in each section.  This part did help me get to know the writers a bit better. When I first started reading this book, I had never heard of any of them, so it was helpful to see their background and introductory thoughts.

The introduction was very difficult for me to read. I think it went over my head.  There was just so much information that it seemed like a small book in itself.

Each chapter has sections on the Bible.  There is interpretation that was bold at times, with wording that I didn't think really represented the meaning of certain Scripture.

The message of the book is to make the reader take a long look at how they handle money, both in business and in personal matters.  It is a very good and commendable topic.  However, as for me, I could not relate to much of the book.  There are some references to such things as "Narnia" and football that I know nothing about.  Yet, there were some passages that I thought were insightful. Here is one example from page 132, where they are discussing Ephesians 4:28. . .

"It is interesting what Paul does not say.  He doesn't say thieves should start working so they can get off welfare rolls or achieve the ancient world's version of the American Dream of middle-class independence.  Paul says they should work so they can have something to share."

I think people who are earning good money in America, but think they need more, are the target audience.  There are a few helpful examples throughout the book sharing a vision of using money for the Lord, with the goal of doing the Lord's work with our money. But it was very hard for me to glean these insights.



*  Disclosure - This book was provided for review purposes. *