American Idol star Fantasia Barrino Taylor and her businessman husband Kendall Taylor share lessons on marriage in No Crowns in the Castle, a new commentary by Karen Swallow Prior, and more new books are coming from religion and spirituality publishers in April.
Nonfiction
April 1
The Flag and the Cross: White Christian Nationalism and the Threat to American Democracy by Philip S. Gorski and Samuel L. Perry (Oxford Univ., $22.95, ISBN 978-0-1976-1868-4). Sociologists Gorski and Perry take a critical look at the mixture of Christian imagery with what they call antidemocratic actions, from the earliest days of American history up to, and beyond, the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Modern Musar: Contested Virtues in Jewish Thought by Geoffrey D. Claussen (Jewish Publication Society, $35 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8276-1350-8). Eight Jewish thinkers—including men, women, rabbis, activists, and more—offer differing ideas on 10 virtues, among them love, truth, and justice.
A New Heaven: Death, Human Destiny, and the Kingdom of God by Harvey Cox (Orbis, $28, ISBN 978-1-6269-8458-5). Theologian Cox looks to the Bible and to his own life while exploring ideas of heaven, the afterlife, and Jesus’s concern for love and justice.
How Religion Evolved: And Why It Endures by Robin Dunbar (Oxford Univ., $29.95, ISBN 978-0-1976-3182-9). A scholar of evolution explores how spiritual thinking and rituals emerged and diverged in human society, why some are more inclined than others to be religious, and the impact of this impulse to believe.
You Are Gods: On Nature and Supernature by David Bentley Hart (Univ. of Notre Dame, 2022, $25 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-2682-0194-4). Eastern Orthodox theologian and author Hart presents metaphysical meditations on his idea that nature and the supernatural are a unified whole.
April 4
Two Billion Caliphs: A Vision of a Muslim Future by Haroon Moghul (Beacon, $25.95, ISBN 978-0-8070-2465-2). Muslim professor and essayist Moghul reflects on Muslim theology and looks forward to suggest how followers can reclaim their faith with a new interpretation of Islam.
April 5
The Scarlet Letter: A Guide to Reading and Reflecting by Nathaniel Hawthorne, with commentary by Karen Swallow Prior (B&H, $17.99, ISBN 978-1-4627-9668-7). English professor Prior examines Hawthorne’s work through a gospel lens, adding footnotes, reflection questions, and more alongside the full original text.
Present Evil, Active God: Can This World’s Evil Ever Be Resolved? by Jered Gritters (Blackstone, $15.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-0941-4948-6). Drawing on theology and philosophy, Gritters argues that God is always working to resolve humankind’s struggle with evil.
Buddha and the Bard by Lauren Shufran (Mandala, $16.99, ISBN 978-1-6472-2456-1) fosters a dialogue between Western and Eastern ideas of the human condition by pairing Shakespeare’s views with the Buddha’s philosophy.
Heretic: Savior, Lover, Killer—The Many Lives and Deaths of Jesus Christ by Catherine Nixey (Mariner, $28, ISBN 978-0-3586-5291-5) examines many diverse versions of Jesus from early Christian traditions and how they were wiped out by fourth-century Christian orthodoxy’s vision of Christ.
What Is Home, Mum? by Sabba Khan (Street Noise, $19.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-9514-9117-8). In her graphic novel memoir, Khan addresses what it means to be a young Muslim woman today.
How to Heal Our Racial Divide by Derwin L. Gray (Tyndale Momentum, $22.99, ISBN 978-1-4964-5880-3). Pastor Gray posits that God desires a multiethnic, loving Christian community, and looks to the Bible for instruction.
Journeys to Heaven and Hell: Tours of the Afterlife in the Early Christian Tradition by Bart D. Ehrman (Yale Univ., $32.50, ISBN 978-0-3002-5700-7). Ehrman traces current ideas about ethics, faith, life’s meaning, heaven, and hell back to Greek and Roman poetry, early Jewish writings, and Christian apocryphal texts on the afterlife.
April 6
Jesus and Gender: Living as Sisters and Brothers in Christ by Elyse M. Fitzpatrick and Eric Schumacher (Kirkdale, $24.99, 978-1-6835-9587-8). In contrast to today’s culture wars over gender roles, the authors cite Jesus’s model of service with love and humility for both men and women.
April 8
Anxious Experts: Disaster Response and Spiritual Care from 9/11 to the Climate Crisis by Joshua Moses (Univ. of Pennsylvania, $29.95, ISBN 978-0-8122-2513-6). An anthropologist tracks the rise of spiritual expertise—ranging from meditation to activism for social justice—in dealing with trauma over the past two decades.
April 12
Becoming the One: Heal Your Past, Transform Your Relationship Patterns, and Come Home to Yourself by Sheleana Aiyana (Chronicle Prism, $27.95, ISBN 978-1-7972-1167-1). Aiyana aims to teach women a holistic, spiritual approach to all relationships, based on their essential, divine qualities.
Around the Bible in 80 Days: The Story of God from Creation to New Creation by John Mark Hicks (Leafwood, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-6842-6461-2). Theologian Hicks highlights points in the Bible that trace the story of redemption.
I Guess I Haven’t Learned That Yet: Discovering New Ways of Living When the Old Ways Stop Working by Shauna Niequist (Zondervan, $26.99, ISBN 978-0-3103-5556-4). In her new memoir, Niequist describes coming to grips with chronic pain by engaging curiosity, cultivating acceptance, and relying on Jesus.
April 19
Revising Eternity: 27 Latter-Day Saints Men Reflect on Modern Relationships edited by Holly Welker (Univ. of Illinois, $19.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-2520-8642-7). A series of essays by men in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints offer insights on the beauties and challenges of marriage today.
April 26
Finding the Heart Sutra: Guided by a Magician, an Art Collector and Buddhist Sages from Tibet to Japan by Alex Kerr (Penguin UK, $17.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-1419-9420-8). Kerr consulted widely in his quest to understand an ancient Buddhist scripture extolling the idea of emptiness.
No Crowns in the Castle: Building a Strong Relationship and a Harmonious Life by Fantasia Barrino Taylor and Kendall Taylor, with Hilary Beard (Worthy, $27, ISBN 978-1-5460-1263-4). The American Idol– and Grammy-winning singer and her businessman husband describe the challenges that came with fame, financial pressures, and their daughter’s premature birth in order to share what they’ve learned about faith, marriage, and family.
April 30
Magic in Merlin’s Realm: A History of Occult Politics in Britain by Francis Young (Cambridge Univ., $39.99, ISBN 978-1-3165-1240-1). Young argues that monarchs throughout British history feared hostile sorcery and yet were drawn to astrology, alchemy, and spellcraft.
Fiction
April 5
Feathers of Hope by Sharon Garlough Brown (IVP, $18 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-5140-0062-5). Brown, a spiritual director, speaker, and the author of several bestselling series, offers a new installment in her Shades of Light series, this time following retreat center director Katherine Rhodes and her great-niece, Wren Crawford, as they endure sorrow and search for hope.
Sea Glass Cottage by Irene Hannon (Revell, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8007-3616-3). Forgiveness is in question when Christi Reece comes to Hope Harbor—the Oregon coast setting of many of Hannon’s books—looking for help from Jack Colby, who believes she once betrayed him.
Dark Angel by Brian Andrews and Jeffrey Wilson (Tyndale, $25.99, ISBN 978-1-4964-5139-2). This second book in the authors’ Shepherds series features a former Navy SEAL who joins the elite Shepherd warriors and is afraid a former Shepherd has joined the enemy.
April 19
Shadows in the Mind’s Eye by Janyre Tromp (Kregel, $15.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8254-4739-6). Tromp’s debut novel is a suspenseful tale of a troubled veteran who sees visions and his worried wife, who misses the loving, responsible husband he once was.
