This is the third “Stories Behind…” book I have on my bookshelf, but the first I actually sat down to read the whole way through (the others I hit the songs I was interested in). It was very interesting. I expected it to be more of a historical approach, covering the biographies of the composers and the history of the individual songs. Instead, some of the songs had more of a devotional lean.
Some of the songs I was familiar with the composers, but I enjoyed learning about so many more! In some ways, it felt like the author “Christianized” a few of the composers who maybe didn’t live a godly lifestyle, but the song they wrote is popularized in Christian circles.
A few times, things also seemed a bit ecumenical or extrabiblical (especially since it’s dealing with songs about heaven). They were just small thoughts sprinkled throughout the book, but enough to where I was going, “Okay, the Bible doesn’t exactly say this…” (but then and again, a few of the songs that were covered in this book are songs I don’t particularly care for, because their words don’t line up exactly with Scripture). This wasn’t for the entirety of the book, just portions of it.
I think I would have preferred if the book had stuck more to the basic facts instead of presenting each song with a glorified story, but I realize this is just me as a history nerd.
*I received this book from the publishers and provided my honest review*
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Amanda Tero Books 