HOW SWEET THE SOUND: The Message of Our Best-Loved Hymns

Nearly everyone has heard the story of John Newton, a slave trader who, in the midst of a furious storm at sea, called out for mercy to a God he didn't really believe in. Convinced by his own survival, he converted, became a celebrated preacher and wrote Christendom's most famous hymn, "Amazing Grace." Tales like this populate a host of recently published hymn-story books. These volumes are plain in diction and pious in tone—not theologically deep, but not harmful, either: chicken soup for the church musician's soul. This book fits right into the genre. A pastor and musician, Farmer looks at 25 spiritually nourishing hymns to explore their meaning for the Christian journey. Each three- to four-page essay contains, in a homiletic style, some exposition of the hymn text, a bit of background information, a few illustrative stories and other supporting material. Sometimes Farmer offers helpful information or insights—for example, a nice explanatory turn on the word "Ebenezer" raised in the hymn "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing." But given the theological depth and complexity of these hymn texts (including standards such as "A Mighty Fortress," "How Firm a Foundation" and "For All the Saints"), the simplicity of his treatments is somewhat disappointing. Sometimes he tackles only a small portion of the text, and sometimes the hymn is simply the jumping-off point for what feels like a practiced spiel. Still, one could do far worse, devotionally, than to start with these well-chosen hymns, read Farmer's commentary and then return to the hymns themselves. (Jan.)