Lawrence O. Richards

Father Richards challenges men to be strong, without putting on a mask of false strength or machismo. He calls men to admit their weaknesses and limitations, while urging them to find strength in faith and genuine love to overcome their sins and faults.

I was ultimately disappointed, both by the author's style, which would be something I could ignore if the content were better, and the complete lack of any actual content relating to masculinity. This is a generic Christian self-help book, not really one for men as men. There is a wealth of such information available now, for example Brett McKay at the Art of Manliness, that would have vastly improved this book.

A classic reference, though a bit dated on archaeological matters. All my Baptist relatives had a copy, and so did my church and my dad. It was my youthful introduction to whole swathes of Scripture and interpretation.

The NIV lived up to it’s billing. It is much more readable than the KJV. The NIV is easier to read and I had new insights as I read it. Many times I would read something and wonder what the KJV said. Then, if they were different, I copied a verse or so from the NIV into the KJV that I use.

I bought the NIV Teen Study Bible, kindle version because it was cheaper that the adult version, and Amazon said they were both the same number of pages, so I figured the essential text must be the same. show more After a while I stopped reading the commentary that was directed at teens and concentrated on the biblical text plus the notes on the text.

If I did it over again, I would buy the regular version instead of the ones with short essays for teens. show less