A few days ago I posted a sermon from Donald Miller. If you’ve never heard of Don Miller, he’s a Christian writer, and one of my favorites.
The first book that comes to my mind when I think of Don Miller is Blue Like Jazz. I think it’s fair to say that even if you’re not a Christian there’s a strong chance you’ll really enjoy this, Don’s best known book. I came to this book with some apprehension, fearing it was a bandwagon-book, but my fears were quickly allayed. I read Blue Like Jazz last summer, and maybe it was just the time in my life, or maybe the sum of a lot of things on my mind at the time, but I cannot say enough about how much I enjoyed reading it.
One of the best things about Donald Miller’s books is his writing style. He has a very natural writing style, very conversational, and at the same time very poetic. He writes like a person who enjoys writing, and like a person who enjoys reading the writings of others. I think this is, for me, one of the reasons I so enjoy reading his books, because it’s a small connection (not that I think I write as well as The Donald…). Relating to the audience is the author’s primary task, and I think most people can and do relate to the questions Don Miller writes about, the struggles that define his life. He describes in his writings how he grew up a Christian culturally, but didn’t like it. He talks about deciding to walk away from God, about seeing God as a slot machine that grants wishes, and many other anecdotes that bring a sense of both the mundane normalcy and the sublime to his conversations with the reader.
I’m currently reading a re-write of his first book, Through Painted Deserts. So far I would only recommend this book to someone who loves Don’s other books and is looking for a less deep, much more roundabout discussion of the issues he presents in Blue Like Jazz. Through Painted Deserts is, as I see it, less about faith and more about Donald Miler; it is very much a memoir of a time in his life. Still, there are some glimpses of the deep sense of who-Don-is-as-a-Seeker, and I am enjoying reading this little re-write.
Don Miller’s other book that I’ve read is sort of a follow up to Blue Like Jazz and it’s called Searching for God Knows What. In this book there’s definitely a more refined presentation, easier to follow, and at times it seems that Don Miller has backed away from (or at least clarified) some of his more controversial theological positions (from Blue Like Jazz). I also really enjoyed this book, arguably even more than BLJ, but I think if you’re only going to read one book by Donald Miller it should be Blue Like Jazz.
For more info on Don Miller check out his website at donaldmillerwords.com or read his blog at donmilleris.com.
Posted by Micah McMillan 
