Wednesday, October 26, 2005

Book Review: The Thinking Toolbox

Before I began reading The Thinking Toolbox by Nathaniel and Hans Bluedorn I decided to conduct a little experiment. Since the book is supposed to be for children age 13 through adult, I decided to allow my daughters (who are 10 and 8 and both avid readers) to take a look at the book and give me their impressions of it. Was it a book they would want to buy if the saw it at a bookstore? Did it interest them? Little did I know that I was going to be causing a fight as both of them were immediately drawn to the book and decided to read it on their own.

This experience at least proved to me what I suspected when I first received the book: that the Bluedorns had done a great job of making logic fun and entertaining which is not necessarily an easy thing to do. In fact, when I think about a logic textbook I think of something that is dry and boring to read. The Thinking Toolbox is anything but boring.

The book is divided into four sections:  tools for thinking, tools for opposing viewpoints, tools for science, and projects you can complete to help reinforce the principles taught throughout the book. Each lesson is brief and ends with a practical exercise to help the reader understand how to apply the principle that is being taught.

This book can either be read individually or as a group and can easily be incorporating into a classroom or homeschool setting. Anyone who invests in this book will be picking up a valuable resource that will help them not just understand logic but how to apply a biblical worldview to thinking tasks.

The Thinking Toolbox is published by Christian Logic and was provided to me for review through Mind and Media. No consideration was received for this review apart from the book.

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