Longman: 151 books

A new wave of abuse is happening behind the doors of family homes but it's one that many are too ashamed to discuss. Domestic violence used to mean an angry man beating a helpless female partner and child. But last year in the region of 12,000 parents called ParentLine to report violent children landing...

A lot of us can feel at different times as though we are sleepwalking through life, perhaps opting for a safe narrow path which neither challenges nor hurts us. Equally, there are moments of truth; moments of being woken up. A realisation both that how we have been living has a lack and that we are...

‘Lord, When the night is darkest, when I can see no end to this tunnel, lift my soul with the remembrance of things beautiful.’ ~ This simple book offers short items of information, support and advice about depression, each accompanied by a suggested prayer. It is divided...

Many people are almost confined to their homes by their fear of panic attacks in public spaces. When Grace Sheppard, the high profile wife of David Sheppard, former test cricketer and Bishop of Liverpool, wrote about her own struggle with agoraphobia, it made a huge impact. Many thousands of readers...

119: the number of words dedicated to bisexuality in the Church of England statement Issues in Human Sexuality. The words state that bisexuality inevitably leads to unfaithfulness, and prescribe celibacy, abstinence, heterosexual marriage or counselling ‘to achieve inner healing’. ~...

Comedian Paul Kerensa is a church-hopper. Not because he can’t settle, but because his job sends him all over the country, every weekend. Every Friday and Saturday night he’s hurling jokes at audiences in different towns – it can be hen parties in Birmingham one weekend, a Cornish arts centre...

Stuart Wood has one of Christianity’s more unusual jobs – in addition to being the minister of a small Baptist church to the North of the city, he is official chaplain to Cambridge United FC. In this book, Stuart writes an honest and heartfelt diary of his season, from pre-season (and the World...

‘Tina Beattie is a fresh and exhilarating new voice in the current debate on religion who challenges atheist and believer alike’. Peter Stanford From its gradual decline during the latter part of the twentieth century, religion has been catapulted back into public consciousness, not least...

In 2004 a public attitudes survey suggested that 31 per cent of British people believed that all or most MPs told the truth. In 2012 this had dropped to 20 per cent.In 2004 50 per cent of respondents believed that all or most MPs did not use their power for personal gain. In 2012 this had dropped...

The work of René Girard is hugely influential in literature and cultural studies. But it is in understanding the relationship between religion and violence that his theory has created the greatest impact. Girard’s understanding of mimetic rivalry and conflict and of scapegoating are seen by many...

Stress is a massive issue in our 21st century culture, and the Church is by no means exempt. There is some evidence that people involved with the church might be at particular risk of stress related illness and burn out. How do we get the balance right when there’s so much more than work and life...

Doctor Who has always contained a rich current of religious themes and ideas. In its very first episode it asked how humans rationalise the seemingly supernatural, as two snooping school teachers refused to accept that the TARDIS was real. More recently it has toyed with the mystery of Doctor’s...

‘The mark of a healthy and authentically Christian community is not large numbers, inspiring worship, or dogmatic theology, but the way in which power is exercised within it.’ In recent years churches have found themselves all but overwhelmed by safeguarding concerns and allegations of...

Let there be light (entertainment)! Find out why God called it a day. Try Eve’s apple crumble recipe. Wave an Allen key at Noah’s ARKEA instruction manual. Study the scripts of CSI: Eden, The Jeremiah Kyle Show and Pharaoh’s Apprentice. Bibluff your way through the Good Book’s first...