Where to Begin?: 10 Emergent Must Reads

I came across an old blog post from an Emergent and thought it would be neat to come up with my own list of the 10 most important books about/from the Emerging Church. These are not in any specific order, although I do consider number 1 to be the most important.

1. "Emerging Churches" by Eddie Gibbs and Ryan Bolger - both proponents and opponents of the movement agree that this is the best book defining and describing the movment.
2. The Great Emergence by Phyllis Tickle - Tickle's book has been hailed by many Emergents as an important book She lays out the basic argument of the Emerging Church and why it will remain with us for some time. She clearly connects the ECM with the culture.
3. A New Kind of Christian by Brian McLaren - though a work of fiction, McLaren lays out the basic premise of the Emerging Church.
4. "A Generous Orthodoxy" by Brian McLaren - This is perhaps the closest thing to systematic theology available in the movement even though McLaren and other Emergents hate systematic theologies.
5. The New Christians by Tony Jones - Jones offers one of the best descriptions and histories of the movement.
6. Becoming Conversant With the Emerging Church by DA Carson - although it has its many holes, Carson offers a fairly good survey, analysis, and critique of the movement. Many who want to know more about the movement begin here.
7. Signs of Emergence by Kester Brewin - although most would overlook this book it certainly deserves to be on the list. Brewin is honest about how he views the church. The Church needs to adapt (borrowing language from evolution) to the culture before it dies. He adds that the Church needs to evolve as God evolves.
8. Jesus Wants To Save Christians by Rob Bell - Bell offers a "biblical" critique of empire and the dangers with the Evangelical gospel. In the end, Bell offers great insight into the movement and essentially concludes that the gospel is helping the poor, not warning others about hell.
9. The Secret Message of Jesus by Brian McLaren - this is the most thorough treatment of the Kingdom of God in Emergent theology. Emergents emphasize the Kingdom of God and this is perhaps the best discussion on the topic from an Emergent.
10. Why We're Not Emergent - a strong critique that always deals with the surface rather than the root problem with the movement. This is a great place to start if one wants to learn more about the movement.

For more:
Tall Skinny Kiwi: The 50 Books on My Emerging Church Bookshelf
Emerging Church Book Reviews