Victor Ezigbo
Assistant Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies, College of Arts & Sciences photo by Scott Streble
Books from a theologian on how our context shapes our understanding of God One book that opened my eyes Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe Like me, Achebe is a Nigerian. I first read his book when I was 12 years old. It talks about the experiences of Nigerians when they encountered Western missionaries and colonists. This story shaped me and still influences what I do today.
Best book recommendation I received Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman’s Quest to Make a Difference by Warren St. John It’s about a soccer team of refugee kids in Georgia, and if you know anything about me, you know I love soccer. I resonated with it as a soccer player, but also as a theologian because it demonstrates how two groups of people can witness the same things but interpret them differently because of their own stories.
Best book about the human side of theology Confessions by St. Augustine For me, Confessions reflects the humanity of theology. St. Augustine weaves together his own personal life and experiences and struggles, but uses them as a medium to reflect God as well. It’s important that we see theology as a human enterprise—as something that human beings do.
The book that shaped my theological vision Theology and Identity by Kwame Bediako Growing up I believed that doing theology meant staying in the library and constructing something that would shape the life of the church. But Bediako helped me see that good theologians are those who are aware of how their context shapes their theology.
Judi Landrum
Assistant Dean of Education Programs and Professor of Education, Graduate School
Books from a literacy expert on just about everything Best book about my field for the lay reader Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain by Maryanne Wolfe It’s about the morphology and background of reading and literacy, and it’s extremely well written. It’s usually a book my students hang onto when they’re done. photo by Scott Streble
Best recent nonfiction The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates by Wes Moore This book features two gentlemen named Wes 14
Summer 2013