literary criticism – Scott J. Pearson’s Book Review

The Science of Storytelling: Why Stories Make Us Human & How to Tell Them Better

By Scott J. Pearson | July 13, 2025July 13, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

When inventing plays, the ancient Greeks noticed stories often healed audiences of their psychological ills. Stories remain some of the first historic signs of civilizations the world over. Even today, weekends for many often consist of movies and/or fiction. What fascinates us so about them? Will Storr takes a gambit to explain this deeply human topic. He wants us to understand stories – and ourselves – better so that we can tell the next tale…

Reading Black Books: How African American Literature Can Make Our Faith More Whole & Just

By Scott J. Pearson | June 25, 2022June 25, 2022 by Scott J. Pearson

The year 2022 resides in an era where there is renewed interest in the African American experience. That experience, of course, is incredibly rich and deep and historically spans Slavery, Reconstruction, the Harlem Renaissance, and the Civil Rights Movement. Atcho, a Christian pastor, brings out that spiritual depth by highlighting ten pieces of literature that illuminate the African American experience and the African American perspective on theology. This book in unabashedly in the Christian tradition.…