Sean Lucas, writing at Ref21 about Bruce Gordon's Calvin (Yale University Press, 2009):. . . it is not too much to claim that what George Marsden did for Jonathan Edwards, Gordon did for Calvin: produce a well-written biography, rich in primary and secondary source material, which actually penetrates to the man himself. This is a high achievement.Sean writes that"Gordon has produce "a critically sympathetic portrait that is more real to life than any other Calvin biography in print."
Here's the conclusion:
Many of our people in Reformed and Presbyterian churches are woefully ignorant of Calvin's contribution; the few that know something about him are as likely to idolize him as to understand him. Bruce Gordon's Calvin is a marvelous corrective to both faults: informative, accessible, and realistic, it is the book to give to interested church members. And read with the eyes of faith, Gordon helps us move from seeing Calvin as a hero to seeing the True Hero, Jesus himself, whom Calvin loved and served.
