Peter Ackroyd declares at the outset of ‘The English Soul: Faith of a Nation’ that Christianity has been “the reflection, perhaps the embodiment of the English soul.” But his book is not about Christianity so much as it is about some notable figures in Protestant England.
Books
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Review: Poetry of the seeking soul
A tourist who is out of time approaches the end of his or her trip and must return home soon. This is how the Rev. David May describes himself through his poems.
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Review: The end of neoliberalism
In ‘Tyranny, Inc.,’ Sohrab Ahmari supplies a framework and examples of what has shaped the desperate plight of a growing number of Americans.
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Review: Julia Alvarez riffs on ‘Arabian Nights’
‘The Cemetery of Untold Stories’ reads like a novel made up of all the stories that Julia Alvarez no longer wants to carry in bits and pieces in her head,. And Alvarez knows that we all are—and need to be—story creatures.
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Review: Vinson Cunningham’s debut novel takes us deep into presidential politics, divine providence and the NBA
Vinson Cunningham’s constant application of a critical eye in his work for The New Yorker must have helped in composing his first novel, “Great Expectations.”
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‘Septology’ is one long reflection on the nature of God
Jon Fosse’s ‘Septology’ is a literary masterpiece imbued with mysticism and theological insight.
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Review: The intersection of faith and mental illness
Anna Gazmarian’s ‘Devout’ is an emotional, vulnerable portrait of a woman who was failed by two institutions, both science and religion, that she rightfully believed would help her.
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Review: Are we all liberal protestants?
In ‘Citizens Yet Strangers,’ Kenneth Craycraft argues that the American political order presupposes the goodness of the Fall, rather than our original created goodness.
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Review: How to fix the dome of St. Peter’s?
A major takeaway from ‘Saving Michelangelo’s Dome’ is that it is a miracle any pre-modern church is still standing.
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Review: A Catholic prayer for racial justice
Bolstered by extensive research and passionate prose, ‘In the Shadow of Freedom’ makes a compelling argument for Catholics in particular to pay more heed to reconciliation and healing for the racist history of the United States.