What I’m Reading

https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/25536404-grant-swanson

Grant’s Top 10 Albums of 2025

Top 10 Albums

Rainbow Kitten Surprise, “bones”

Lord Huron, “The Cosmic Selector Volume 1”

KPop Demon Hunters Cast, “KPop Demon Hunters”

Taylor Swift, “The Life of a Showgirl”

Joywave, “Permanent Pleasure”

Samantha Crain, “Gumshoe”

Banks, “Off With Her Head”

Beach Bunny, “Tunnel Vision”

Kesha, “.”

Zara Larsson, “Midnight Sun”

10 Honorable Mentions

Madi Diaz, “Fatal Optimist”

Lady Gaga, “Mayhem”

Mø, “Plæygirl”

Ken Pomeroy, “Cruel Joke”

Of Monsters and Men, “All is Love and Pain in the Mouse Parade”

Maribou State, “Hallucinating Love”

Purity Ring, “purity ring”

Lorde, “Virgin”

Tame Impala, “Deadbeat”

Robert Plant, “Saving Grace”

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Grant’s 6 Favorite Books of 2025

1. Best Practical Devotional: For Such a Time as This: An Emergency Devotional by Hanna Reichel

2. Best Scripture Interpretation Text: Reading the Bible on Turtle Island: An Invitation to North American Indigenous Interpretation by H. Daniel Zacharias and T. Christopher Hoklotubbe

3. Best Book of Poetry: Bluff: Poems by Danez Smith

4. Best Collection of Essays: The Lord and Giver of Life: Perspectives on Constructive Pneumatology edited by David H. Jensen

5. Best Academic Text: The Coloniality of the Secular: Race, Religion, and Poetics of World-Making by An Yountae

6. Best Fun Novel: Disco Witches of Fire Island: A Novel by Blair Fell

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Book Review: “Engaging the Old Testament: How to Read Biblical Narrative, Poetry, and Prophecy Well” by Dominick S. Hernández

Book Review: Engaging the OT

Check out my book review of Engaging the Old Testament: How to Read Biblical Narrative, Poetry, and Prophecy Well by Dominick S. Hernández. This review can be found in the January 2025 issue of the Religious Studies Review: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/rsr.17566

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The Top 11/80 Books Grant Read in 2024

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1. Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

2. Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology by Shane Hawk

3. God for Us: The Trinity and Christian Life by Catherine Mowry Lacugna

4. After Method: Queer Grace, Conceptual Design, and the Possibility of Theology by Hanna Reichel

5. The Development of the Doctrine of the Holy Spirit in the Yoruba (African) Indigenous Christian Movement by Caleb Oluremi Oladipo

6. On First Principles by Origen

7. The Spirit Poured Out on All Flesh: Pentecostalism and the Possibility of Global Theology by Amos Yong

8. So We and Our Children May Live: Following Jesus in Confronting the Climate Crisis by Sarah Augustine

9. Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

10. Theology in the Capitalocene: Ecology, Identity, Class, and Solidarity by Joerg Rieger

11. The World We Used to Live In: Remembering the Powers of the Medicine Men by Vine Deloria Jr.

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Grant’s Top Ten Albums of 2024

1. Gracie Abrams, ‘The Secret of Us’

2. Omar Apollo, ‘God Said No’

3. Kacey Musgraves, ‘Deeper Well’

4. Glass Animals, ‘I Love You So F***ing Much’

5. Beyoncé, ‘Cowboy Carter’

6. Charlie XCX, ‘BRAT’

7. girl in red, ‘I’M DOING IT AGAIN BABY!’

8. Local Natives: ‘But I’ll Wait For You’

9. Taylor Swift, ‘The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology’

10. Madi Diaz, ‘Weird Faith’

Honorable Mentions

1. Maggie Rogers, ‘Don’t Forget Me’

2. Zara Larsson, ‘VENUS’

3. Conan Gray, ‘Found Heaven’

4. Waxahatchee, ‘Tigers Blood’

5. Bleachers, ‘Bleachers’

6. Orville Peck, ‘Stampede’

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Book Review: “Jesus, Paul, Luke-Acts, & I Clement: Studies in Class, Ethnicity, Gender, and Orientation” By David L. Balch

"Jesus, Paul, Luke-Acts, & I Clement: Studies in Class, Ethnicity, Gender, and Orientation" By David L. Balch

Check out my book review of Jesus, Paul, Luke-Acts, & I Clement: Studies in Class, Ethnicity, Gender, and Orientation by the late David L. Balch. This review can be found in the December 2024 issue of the Religious Studies Review: https://doi.org/10.1111/rsr.17433.

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For Native American Heritage Month, the General Commission on Religion and Race (GCORR) asked me to write a study guide for Sarah Augustine’s powerful text, “The Land is Not Empty: Following Jesus in Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery.” I’m very happy with the collaborative outcome and wanted to share it with folks in case the book study fits with what your church, faith community, or book club is looking for this month and beyond.

Here is the link to the resource: https://www.r2hub.org/library/the-land-is-not-empty-book-study

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Book Review: “Original Sin and the Evolution of Sexual Difference” By Megan Loumagne Ulishney

"Original Sin and the Evolution of Sexual Difference" By Megan Loumagne Ulishney
"Original Sin and the Evolution of Sexual Difference" By

Whoops! I totally forgot to post about this publication:

Check out my review of Megan Loumagne Ulishney’s book, Original Sin and the Evolution of Sexual Difference, in the February 2024 issue of the Religious Studies Review, Volume 49, Issue 4: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/rsr.16820

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Review of “Theology in the Capitalocene: Ecology, Identity, Class, and Solidarity” by Joerg Rieger

Check out my review of Joerg Rieger’s book, Theology in the Capitalocene: Ecology, Identity, Class, and Solidarity, in the latest issue of Religious Studies Review, Volume 50, Issue 1: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/rsr.16962

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Grant’s Top Ten Albums of 2024

1. Javelin, Sufjan Stevens

2. Living In a Haze, Milky Chance

3. The Valley of Vision, Manchester Orchestra

4. Something to Give Each Other, Troye Sivan

5. The Age of Pleasure, Janelle Monáe

6. The Record, Boygenius

7. Guts, Olivia Rodrigo

8. Time Will Wait For No One, Local Natives

9. Chris Black Changed My Life, Portugal. The Man

10. Gag Order, Kesha

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