Book Review: Bonhoeffer

As my regular readers know, I have been reading Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas for a book review on behalf of Thomas Nelson Publishing. When I first received this 548 page book my husband laughed at me and said, "this book will be the end of your book reviews." I knew he was going to be either very right or very wrong; I would either love this book or it would become a great paperweight. I LOVED the book and I was riveted on page one and honestly loved every single page of it.

Eric Metaxas did an excellent job weaving a seamless story of Dietrich's life. This book gives you an in depth look not only of the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer but also an in depth view of the worldwide church at this time in history, an inside view of Nazism and its horrors, and how the church at large really sat on its hands at a critical time. Dietrich's early life was fascinating and theologically informative and I would have enjoyed reading just about this. The events from 1930 until his death in the 1940's showed a man who had not only "theories" about God but a man who was willing to walk out what he believed even to his death.

Two thing I wished I had done while reading:

1. I wish I had my journal with me, so I could have taken notes while reading. I was often completely absorbed and couldn't set it down. So I plan on going through the book again more studiously.
2. I realized when I finished the the book that there was an index containing everyones' name and the pages they were found on. There were so many people mentioned in a book, I would often have a hard time remembering who was who and it would take awhile to figure it out. The index would have proved helpful to me while I was reading.

I highly recommend this book. As a current homeschooling mom, it has made my children's senior reading list:) In fact, they will be reading it whether or not I am still homeschooling at that point.


Hebrews 11:13-16 is a perfect description of the life of Bonhoeffer:

All these great people died in faith.

They did not get the things that God promised his people,

but they saw them coming far in the future and were glad.

They said they were like visitors and strangers on earth.

When people say such things, they show they are looking for a country

that will be their own. If they had been thinking about the country

they had left, they could have gone back.

But they were waiting for a better country—a heavenly country.

So God is not ashamed to be called their God,

because he has prepared a city for them.

In Christ,

For more thoughts on and quotes by Dietrich Bonhoeffer click on this link.

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”