Forthcoming books this season look at the Hebrew Bible and the Talmud from a mix of historical, literary, and theological perspectives. There are also new titles from heavy hitters like Rachel Held Evans, Kathie Lee Gifford, and Lysa TerKeurst.
Top 10
Benedict XVI: A Life, Vol. 2
Peter Seewald. Bloomsbury Continuum, Nov. 9 ($35, ISBN 978-1-4729-7921-6)
The second volume of historian Seewald’s comprehensive life of Pope Benedict covers the period from the Second Vatican Council (1965–1968) to the present.
The Book of All Books
Roberto Calasso, trans. by Tim Parks. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Nov. 16 ($30, ISBN 978-0-374-60189-8)
Italian scholar Calasso retells stories of the Old Testament, with additional commentary on the historical roots of biblical events and on the storytelling techniques that make the lessons effective.
Come and Hear: What I Saw in My Seven-and-a-Half-Year Journey Through the Talmud
Adam Kirsch. Brandeis Univ., Oct. 26 ($27.95, ISBN 978-1-68458-067-5)
Literary critic and journalist Kirsch reports on what he learned during years of studying the Talmud, exploring how the text is organized, its preoccupations and insights, and particular moments of strangeness or profundity.
Crazy Faith: It’s Only Crazy Until It Happens
Michael Todd. WaterBrook, Sept. 21 ($26, ISBN 978-0-593-23919-3)
Todd, pastor of Transformation Church in Tulsa, Okla., asks Christians to dream in ways they formerly thought impossible by being alert to God’s voice and choosing hope over fear.
God: An Anatomy
Francesca Stavrakopoulou. Knopf, Nov. 23 ($32.50, ISBN 978-0-525-52045-0)
Stavrakopoulou, a professor of religion at Exeter University, considers God as originally envisioned by ancient Hebrew and early Christian worshippers.
I’ll Start Again Monday: Break the Cycle of Unhealthy Eating Habits with Lasting Spiritual Satisfaction
Lysa TerKeurst. Thomas Nelson, Jan. 4 ($14.99, ISBN 978-0-7852-3248-3)
Bestseller TerKeurst aims to help readers connect their desire to be healthy with the spiritual empowerment necessary to make it happen, arguing that food fixations are misplaced cravings for God’s love.
Is Atheism Dead?
Eric Metaxas. Salem, Oct. 12 ($26.99, ISBN 978-1-68451-173-0)
Radio host Metaxas presents arguments, including from C.S. Lewis and G.K. Chesterton, intended to prove the existence of God, and contends that atheism is implausible and intellectually sloppy.
The Jesus I Know: Honest Conversations and Diverse Beliefs About Who He Is
Kathie Lee Gifford. Thomas Nelson, Nov. 30 ($26.99, ISBN 978-0-7852-5476-8)
TV presenter Gifford shares conversations she’s had with celebrities—including Hoda Kotb, Al Pacino, Dolly Parton, and Howard Stern—about who Jesus was and what his legacy means.
On Consolation: Finding Solace in Dark Times
Michael Ignatieff. Metropolitan, Aug. 31 ($25.99, ISBN 978-0-8050-5521-4)
Booker Prize–finalist Ignatieff explores how we console one another and ourselves in an age of unbelief.
Why Christian
Rachel Held Evans. HarperOne, Nov. 2 ($26.99, ISBN 978-0-06-289447-2)
These original writings by the late author offer reflections on faith and life, including thoughts on God’s grace, unsparing looks at the flaws of modern Christianity, and explorations of questions about becoming and belonging.
Religion & spirituality Listings
Fiction
Atria
Forgiving Paris by Karen Kingsbury (Oct. 26, $26.99, ISBN 978-1-9821-0441-2). Ashley Baxter Blake returns to Paris 20 years after a reckless affair and unexpected pregnancy nearly derailed her life. After Ashley’s niece runs into someone Ashley knew during those trying times, a flood of memories forces Ashley to confront her past.
Barbour
Behind Love’s Wall by Carrie Fancett Pagels (Nov. 1, $12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-63609-069-6). Willa, a successful interior decorator, is chosen to consult for the Grand Hotel’s possible redesign and discovers a journal detailing the struggles of a young singer who visited the hotel 100 years prior.
The Walnut Creek Wish, Vol. 1 by Wanda E. Brunstetter (Aug. 1, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-64352-741-3). Orley and Lois Troyer, owners of an antique store in Walnut Creek, Ohio, have a knack for mentoring others in their small Amish town. After a married couple—one a restaurateur, the other a hotel manager—moves to Amish country for a new experience, their already-strained marriage suffers, and Orley and Lois step in to help.
Kregel
The Unlikely Yarn of the Dragon Lady by Sharon Mondragón (Sept. 21, $15.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8254-4702-0). Four women who meet every week to knit prayer shawls get more involved in community issues when a pastor forces the knitting group out of the quiet comfort of their chapel and into a local mall.
Paraclete
Chasing Manhattan by John Gray (Aug. 10, $24, ISBN 978-1-64060-671-5). Following the success of her first novel, Chase Harrington takes an assignment covering what will happen to Briarcliff Manor after the death of millionaire Sebastian Winthrop. Once there, she starts to find cryptic messages about the mysterious mansion’s past.
Mr. Nicholas by Christopher de Vinck (Sept. 21, $22, ISBN 978-1-64060-735-4). Mr. Nicholas, the eccentric owner of the local hardware store, takes JB, a boy with Down syndrome, on a series of miraculous adventures to help JB’s skeptical parents remember the magic of Christmas.
Revell
The Girl Who Could Breathe Under Water by Erin Bartels (Jan. 4, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8007-3837-2). An anonymous letter from a disappointed reader sends a novelist back to the lake where she spent her childhood summers in order to prove that what she wrote happened the way she’d remembered.
The Healing of Natalie Curtis by Jane Kirkpatrick (Sept. 7, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8007-3613-2). In 1902, pianist and singer Natalie Curtis visits her brother in the West and discovers the melodies, rhythms, and stories of Native Americans. When she learns these traditional songs are under threat from a government law, she does all she can to stop the forced assimilation.
Sunrise by Susan May Warren (Jan. 4, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8007-3982-9). After para-rescue jumper Dodge Kingston returns home to Alaska he rekindles his relationship with Echo. But when Echo goes missing, Dodge must use all his skills to reach her.
Tyndale
Provenance by Carla Laureano (Aug. 3, $25.99, ISBN 978-1-4964-4591-9). After interior designer Kendall Green inherits a group of properties in a tiny Colorado town, she is thrown into a battle between a man trying to preserve the historic town and a developer trying to create a summer resort.
The Wish Book Christmas by Lynn Austin (Sept. 7, $12.99, ISBN 978-1-4964-5252-8). In 1951, best friends Audrey Barrett and Eve Dawson set out to teach their toy-obsessed five-year-old sons about the true significance of Christmas.
Waterbrook
Freedom’s Song by Kim Vogel Sawyer (Oct. 19, $16 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-525-65370-7). Indentured servant Fanny Beck, who has been forced to sing for riverboat passengers since childhood, escapes with a group of enslaved people and meets a farmer who helps her pursue her singing dreams.
Zebra
Christmas Comes to Morning Star by Charlotte Hubbard (Aug. 24, $8.99 mass market, ISBN 978-1-4201-5183-1). Five unmarried and enterprising Amish women start the Morning Star Marketplace in small-town Missouri and prepare for a busy Christmas season.
First Christmas on Huckleberry Hill by Jennifer Beckstrand (Sept. 28, $8.99 mass market, ISBN 978-1-4201-5205-0). This prequel to Beckstrand’s Matchmakers of Huckleberry Hill series features matchmaking grandparents Anna and Felty Helmuth’s own love story, set in 1951, when the couple spend their first Christmas together.
An Unexpected Amish Christmas by Rachel J. Good (Oct. 26, $8.99 mass market, ISBN 978-1-4201-5040-7). Two lonely pen pals—a grieving woman with too many responsibilities and a shy man paralyzed in a buggy accident—fall in love through their letters.
Nonfiction
Ave Maria
Seriously, God? Making Sense of Life Not Making Sense by Michael White and Tom Corcoran (Oct. 1, $16.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-64680-084-1). Priest White and lay church associate Corcoran explore the denial, doubt, and betrayal people experience when faced with hardship and encourage readers to use difficult circumstances as a chance to learn more about God.
B&H
Humbled: Welcoming the Uncomfortable Work of God by David Mathis (Sept. 14, $9.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-0877-5173-3) offers examples from scripture of those who either personify or lack empathy—including the pharaoh of Exodus, Rehoboam, Josiah, Ahab, Hezekiah, Manasseh, and even Christ himself—to provide Christians lessons on how to live humbly.
Barbour
Rest, Girl: A Journey from Exhausted and Stressed to Entirely Blessed by Jami Amerine (Nov. 1, $14.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-63609-066-5). Amerine, a blogger, explores how to move from restrictions and unrealistic expectations into a fulfilled life through seeking God’s love.
Becker & Mayer
City Witchery: Accessible Rituals, Practices & Prompts for Conjuring and Creating in a Magical Metropolis by Lisa Marie Basile (Sept. 7, $18.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-7603-7081-0) provides writing prompts, reflections, and practical rituals for practicing magic while living in a city or traveling.
Bloomsbury Continuum
The Spirit of Catholicism by Vivian Boland Op (Jan. 25, $28, ISBN 978-1-4411-7802-2). Boland, a professor of theology at the Angelicum University in Rome, stresses the social and “embodied character of Catholicism” as a way to combat the “privatization and spiritualization” of religion in modern times.
Broadleaf
A Complicated Choice: Making Space for Grief and Healing in the Pro-Choice Movement by Katey Zeh (Jan. 18, $26.99, ISBN 978-1-5064-7349-9). By focusing on the experiences of those who have abortions, Reverend Zeh asks readers to turn away from the stalemate of the anti-abortion vs. pro-choice debate and into a spiritual response rooted in compassion for those who end pregnancies.
Cato Institute
Why, as a Muslim, I Defend Liberty by Mustafa Akyol (Sept. 7, $14.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-952223-17-4). Akyol, an opinion writer for the New York Times, combats authoritarian interpretations of Islam that defy human freedom, reinterpreting Islamic law and politics under the Koran maxim, “No compulsion in religion.”
Chalice
Faithful Families for Lent, Easter, and Resurrection: Simple Ways to Create Meaning for the Season by Traci Smith (Nov. 9, $12.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8272-1141-4). Pastor Smith provides practices and prayers to help parents, teachers, and faith leaders celebrate the Easter season with their kids.
Chicago Review
Brujas: The Magic and Power of Witches of Color by Lorraine Monteagut (Oct. 5, $26.99, ISBN 978-1-64160-399-7) chronicles the magical lives of a growing subculture of younger witches, led by Afro-Latinx immigrants and Indigenous Americans, as they extend personal rituals to larger self-care and activist movements.
Chicken Soup for the Soul
Chicken Soup for the Soul: Devotional Stories for Women: 101 Daily Devotions Combining Scripture, Real-Life Stories, and Custom Prayers by Susan M. Heim and Karen Talcott (Oct. 5, $16.95, ISBN 978-1-61159-084-5) brings together Christian devotions from an eclectic group of women, including stories of friendship and faith that affirm God’s love.
Columbia Univ.
The Struggle to Stay: Why Single Evangelical Women Are Leaving the Church by Katie Gaddini (Jan. 18, $35, ISBN 978-0-231-19674-1). Gaddini, lecturer in sociology at University College London, grapples with the complexities of obedience and resistance for women within a patriarchal religion against the backdrop of the #MeToo movement, exploring how women choose to leave or remain in environments that constrain them.
Convergent
The Genius of Jesus: The Man Who Changed Everything by Erwin Raphael McManus (Sept. 14, $24, ISBN 978-0-593-13738-3). Drawing on scripture, history, and personal stories, McManus, a minister, considers Jesus’s words and actions on humility, freedom, and purpose.
Where the Light Fell by Philip Yancey (Oct. 5, $28, ISBN 978-0-593-23850-9). Journalist Yancey details an upbringing in the fundamentalist South during the 1950s and ’60s. In looking back through family history, he also makes the case for a faith rooted in grace instead of fear.
Dundurn
The Rebel Christ by Michael Coren (Nov. 16, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-4597-4851-4). Toronto Star columnist Coren seeks to correct misconceptions about Christ by returning to Jesus’s original words, exploring how notions of care for the poor and equal treatment of others were radical.
Eerdmans
Bad Faith: Race and the Rise of the Religious Right by Randall Balmer (Aug. 10, $16.99, ISBN 978-0-8028-7934-9). Balmer, a journalist, explores the convoluted history of modern Christian conservatism, beginning with American evangelicalism as a progressive force opposed to slavery, then later forming an isolated apolitical movement that coalesced around phrases like “religious freedom” and “family values” in the mid-20th century.
Reading Evangelicals: How Christian Fiction Shaped a Culture and a Faith by Daniel Silliman (Oct. 5, $27.99, ISBN 978-0-8028-7935-6). Silliman considers how Christian fiction—alongside the growing influence of Christian publishing and bookselling it helped build—is key to understanding the formation of evangelical identity through close readings of five bestselling novels.
End Game
Revived & Renovated: Real Life Conversations on the Intersection of Home, Faith, and Everything in Between by Victoria Duerstock and Paige Rien (Nov. 9, $19.99, ISBN 978-1-63797-008-9). Blogger Duerstock and Rien, an interior designer for HGTV, look at the roles of revival and renovation in one’s spiritual journey, including faith-filled DIY home projects.
Europa Compass
Mary Magdalene: Women, the Church, and the Great Deception by Adriana Valerio, trans. by Wendy Wheatley (Nov. 16, $18 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-60945-705-1). Valerio, an Italian historian of religion, looks at history, art, and literature to explore how centuries of misinterpretation and willful distortion have stripped Mary Magdalene of her complexity as a historical figure.
Excelsior
Unruly Catholic Feminists: Prose, Poetry, and the Future of the Faith, edited by Jeana Delrosso, Leigh Eicke, and Ana Kothe (Sept. 1, $19.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-4384-8500-3), explores how women are coming to terms with feminism and Catholicism. Personal essays focus on reforms and potential for progress.
Focus on the Family
Made to Worship: Empty Idols and the Fullness of God by Phil Stacey (Oct. 5, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-58997-709-9). Former American Idol contestant Stacey shares how his quick rise to fame and the resulting emptiness he found led him to realize he must use his talents and skills to worship God.
Fordham Univ.
What Is Theology? Christian Thought and Contemporary Life by Adam Kotsko (Sept. 7, $27.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8232-9782-5) grapples with the Christian theological inheritance of the modern world, arguing Christian theology demonstrates continued relevance as a creative and constructive pursuit.
Green Books
Pilgrimage for Peace: The Long Walk from India to Washington by Satish Kumar (Aug. 1, $13.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-85784-529-0). Activist and spiritual writer Kumar details the 8,000-mile peace pilgrimage from India to Washington that he embarked on with a friend at the height of the Cold War, and shares stories of the generosity of those who helped.
Hampton Roads
How to Be: A Monk and a Journalist Reflect on Living & Dying, Purpose & Prayer, Forgiveness & Friendship by Judith Valente and Paul Quenon (Nov. 1, $16.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-64297-034-0). Quenon, a Trappist monk, and Valente, a journalist, present their conversation on how ancient prayer practices of monasticism can bring a sense of contemplation to scattered modern living.
Harper Horizon
Practically Divine by Becca Stevens (Sept. 14, $27.99, ISBN 978-0-7852-4174-4). Stevens, a social justice activist, shares her ways for detecting the signs of God’s in everything, including while on walks in the woods, in a church or temple, or during her experiences working in refugee camps.
HarperOne
After Jesus, Before Christianity: A Historical Exploration of the First Two Centuries of Jesus Movements by Erin Vearncombe, Brandon Scott, and Hal Taussig (Nov. 2, $29.99, ISBN 978-0-06-306215-3). Three scholars connected to the Jesus Seminar inquiry into the historical Jesus look at the roots of Christianity, arguing there were multiple Jesus movements rather than a singular one.
Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet by Thich Nhat Hanh (Oct. 5, $27.99, ISBN 978-0-06-295479-4). Buddhist spiritual leader Hanh shares wisdom on how to become the change one wants to see in the world, sharing examples of actions he’s undertaken, Buddhist parables, and daily meditations.
Image
Introduction to the Spiritual Life: Walking the Path of Prayer with Jesus by Brant Pitre (Nov. 2, $27, ISBN 978-0-525-57276-3). Pitre, a professor of Scripture at the Augustine Institute, draws on biblical scripture and the writings of Christian mystics to explore forms of prayer and Jesus’s contemplative practices.
Ink & Willow
Simply Christmas: A Busy Mom’s Guide to Reclaiming the Peace of the Holidays by Tama Fortner (Sept. 28, $14, ISBN 978-0-593-23338-2) offers 31 devotions geared toward helping moms consider the lessons and significance of the Christmas season.
Inner Traditions
Unmasking Your True Self (or the Lone Ranger and Tonto Meet Buddha): Masks, Meditation, and Improvised Play to Induce Liberated States by Peter Coyote (Dec. 7, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-64411-356-1) shares mindfulness techniques and improv exercises intended to help readers suppress their ego, calm their mind, and allow spontaneous playfulness to take over.
IVP
You Are Not Your Own: Belonging to God in an Inhuman World by Alan Noble (Oct. 12, $22, ISBN 978-0-8308-4782-2). Noble, the editor-in-chief of Christ and Pop Culture, argues against modern notions that it’s up to each person to forge identity and meaning. Instead, he claims the Christian gospel offers a more cohesive, meaningful way forward.
IVP Academic
Discovering Biblical Equality: Biblical, Theological, Cultural, and Practical Perspectives, edited by Ronald W. Pierce, Cynthia Long Westfall, and Christa L. McKirland (Nov. 2, $45 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8308-5479-0), presents a positive defense of gender equality, bringing together opposing positions to consider how norms are changing or continue to remain unequal.
Jewish Publication Society
A Year with Martin Buber: Wisdom on the Weekly Torah Portion by Dennis S. Ross (Dec. 1, $24.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8276-1465-9). Rabbi Ross brings together teachings of the 20th-century Jewish thinker Martin Buber, broken into 54 weekly Torah portions and 11 Jewish holidays.
Judson
New Rules for Radicals: TNT for Faith-Based Leaders by Willard W.C. Ashley Sr. (Sept. 1, $17.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8170-1826-9). The cochair of the Interfaith Anti-racism Coalition shares his experiences, collaborations, and strategies for leaning on faith in order to encourage “new radicals” who embrace conflict and fight for the marginalized.
Laurence King
Your Spiritual Almanac: A Year of Living Mindfully by Joey Hulin (Sept. 7, $19.99, ISBN 978-1-78627-734-3) serves up information and guidance on crystals, essential oils, affirmations, meditations, recipes, moon phases, yoga poses, fables and inspirational quotes, all tailored to the months of the year.
Kregel
Love Is: A Yearlong Experiment of Living Out 1 Corinthians 13 Love by Kim Sorrelle (Nov. 23, $17.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8254-4674-0). Sorrelle, executive director of nonprofit Rays of Hope International, details changes in her perspective while living out the biblical passage, “Love is patient, love is kind, love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude.”
Spouse in the House: Rearranging Our Attitudes to Make Room for Each Other by Cynthia Ruchti and Becky Melby (Sept. 21, $18.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8254-4678-8) explores how partners can coexist without exhausting each other, drawing on biblical lessons to help turn one’s home into a place of peace.
Leaping Hare
The Witch of the Forest’s Guide to Natural Magick: Discover Your Magick. Connect with Your Inner & Outer World by Lindsay Squire, illus. by Viki Lester (Sept. 14, $19.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-7112-6683-4), features beginner-level rituals, spells, and potions that use simple tools and ingredients corresponding to the witch’s wheel of the year.
Little, Brown Spark
The Good Spell Book: Love Charms, Magical Cures, and Other Practical Sorcery by Gillian Kemp (Sept. 14, $18, ISBN 978-0-316-29714-1) brings together 85 spells from the Romani people that make use of common ingredients like candles, flowers, ribbon, and string. Included are spells for attracting romance, improving health, and landing a dream job.
Llewellyn
Becoming the Witch: The Art of Magick by Danae Moon Thorp (Sept. 8, $18.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-7387-6918-9) aims to teach beginner witches the must-know components and practices of witchcraft, including the elements, spells, tools, deities, and rituals.
Earth Magic by Dodie Graham McKay (Oct. 8, $17.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-7387-6432-0). This fourth book of the Elements of Witchcraft series teaches readers how to enrich connections to the Earth. Witch and filmmaker McKay explains deities, sacred sites, animal guides, herbs, crystals, and stones associated with the “earth element.”
Multnomah
Jesus Followers: Real-Life Lessons for Igniting Faith in the Next Generation by Anne Graham Lotz and Rachel-Ruth Lotz Wright (Oct. 5, $24, ISBN 978-0-525-65120-8). The daughter and granddaughter of Billy Graham open up about their family life, sharing stories of spiritual wisdom and insight from a family steeped deeply in faith.
NavPress
Embracing the New Samaria: Opening Our Eyes to Our Multiethnic Future by Alejandro Mandes (Aug. 3, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-64158-434-0). Pastor and church planter Mandes considers what the Bible says about ethnic diversity and how the church can accommodate multiethnicity, community development, and theological diversity.
Thomas Nelson
At the Table with Jesus: 66 Days to Fortify Your Mind by Louie Giglio (Sept. 28, $18.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-7852-5610-6) offers 66 daily devotions geared toward facilitating a stronger relationship with God.
The Daily Check-In: A Sixty Day Journey to Finding Your Strength, Faith, and Wholeness by Michelle Williams (Jan. 25, $19.99, ISBN 978-1-4002-2339-8). Singer and actor Williams strives to help readers process overwhelming emotions and provides strategies for creating more personal freedom through this 60-day guided journaling plan.
Divine Disruption: Holding on to Faith When Life Breaks Your Heart by Tony Evans et al. (Nov. 9, $24.99, ISBN 978-0-7852-4114-0). Pastor Evans, a former NFL player, presents a conversation with his four children on how God uses difficult moments to draw believers into a deeper faith and relationship with God.
New Page
Confessions of an Egyptologist: Lost Libraries, Vanished Labyrinths & the Astonishing Truth Under the Saqqara Pyramids by Erich Von Daniken (Sept. 1, $18.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-63265-191-4). Historian Van Daniken shares the story of 16-year-old grave-diver Adel H., who discovered a labyrinth under one of the pyramids of Saqqara. This account, based on first-hand interviews, details Adel’s days spent trapped and the strange spiritual events he experienced underground.
New World Library
The Afterlife Frequency: The Scientific Proof of Spiritual Contact and How That Awareness Will Change Your Life by Mark Anthony (Oct. 5, $16.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-60868-780-0). Anthony, a columnist at Best Holistic Life magazine, explores the science connected to spirit communication, near-death experiences, and deathbed visions.
Nourish
The Witch’s Feast: A Kitchen Grimoire by Melissa Madara (Oct. 26, $35, ISBN 978-1-84899-403-4). Chef Madara, co-owner of occult bookshop Catland Books, provides pagan dishes, recipes corresponding to the wheel of the zodiac, and seasonal feasts to celebrate solstices and equinoxes.
Oxford Univ.
God, Grades, and Graduation: Religion’s Surprising Impact on Academic Success by Ilana Horwitz (Jan. 3, $29.95, ISBN 978-0-19-753414-4). Drawing on 10 years of survey data with more than 3,000 teenagers and more than 200 interviews, Horwitz, an education fellow at Stanford University, offers an account of how teens’ religious upbringing can influence their educational pathways from high school to college.
A Short History of Islamic Thought by Fitzroy Morrissey (Oct. 1, $21.95, ISBN 978-0-19-752201-1). Historian Morrissey provides an introduction to the origins and sources of Islamic thought, explaining key teachings of the Koran and hadith, Islamic theology and law, and the mystical writings of the Sufis.
Paraclete
Monastery Mornings: My Unusual Catholic Boyhood Among the Saints and Monks by Michael Patrick O’Brien (Aug. 17, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-64060-649-4). O’Brien shares how a community of Trappist monks provided him with an extended family while he struggled with his parents’ divorce as a boy, describing the lasting impact of mentoring and the comfort spiritual life offers.
Stability: How an Ancient Monastic Practice Can Restore Our Relationships, Churches, and Communities by Nathan Oates (Sept. 7, $16.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-64060-546-6). Drawing on personal experience and writings from Benedictine spirituality, Oates, a pastor, invites readers to find inner peace and stillness in local communities through nurturing one’s roots and connection to God.
Park Street
The Poison Path Herbal: Baneful Herbs, Medicinal Nightshades, and Ritual Entheogens by Coby Michael (Oct. 5, $19.99 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-64411-334-9). Part grimoire and part herbal formulary, this guide from herbalist Michael aims to teach readers how to safely work with poisonous, consciousness-altering, and magical plants.
Rockpool
The Enchanted Moon: The Ultimate Book of Lunar Magic by Stacey DeMarco (Oct. 1, $18.95, ISBN 978-1-925946-14-7) includes meditations and spells, crystal suggestions, and gardening guidelines for each of the 28 phases of the moon.
Running Press
Practical Witch’s Love Spell Book: For Passion, Romance, and Desire by Cerridwen Greenleaf (Dec. 7, $18, ISBN 978-0-7624-7589-6) collects spells and incantations focused on bringing more love into one’s life.
RANDOM HOUSE
The Awakened Brain: The New Science of Spirituality and Our Quest for an Inspired Life by Lisa Miller (Aug. 17, $28, ISBN 978-1-9848-5562-6). Psychologist and researcher Miller explains recent developments in the neuroscience of spirituality and offers a new paradigm for brain health, healing, and resilience.
Salem
Facing the Fire: The Faith That Brought America’s Fire Chief Through the Flames of Persecution by Kelvin J. Cochran (Oct. 19, $24.99, ISBN 978-1-68451-161-7). The former chief of the Atlanta fire department shares how he relied on faith in God after being fired following his publication of a book explaining his orthodox Christian beliefs.
Shambhala
Dogen: Japan’s Original Zen Teacher by Steven Heine (Dec. 21, $24.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-61180-980-0). Translator and scholar Heine chronicles the life of 13th-century Buddhist monk Dogen, founder of the Soto school of Zen in Japan.
Secularizing Buddhism: New Perspectives on a Dynamic Tradition, edited by Richard K. Payne (Aug. 3, $24.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-61180-889-6), provides an overview of the development and influence of secular expressions of Buddhism and explores whether secular Buddhism is purely a Western invention.
Simon & Schuster
How God Works: The Science Behind Religion’s Benefits by David DeSteno (Sept. 14, $28, ISBN 978-1-9821-4231-5). Chronicling religious rituals from around the world, psychology professor DeSteno argues religious practices and rituals are beneficial to the emotional and physical health of those who follow them.
Snow Lion
Tales of a Mad Yogi: The Life and Wild Wisdom of Drukpa Kunley by Elizabeth L. Monson (Aug. 24, $19.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-61180-705-9). Researcher Monson tells the life story of Drukpa Kunley, a 15th-century Tibetan Buddhist master and yogi known for carousing, philandering, and breaking social norms to rouse people out of habitual ways of thinking.
Sorin
Return to the Root: Reflections on the Inner Life by Joyce Rupp (Oct. 1, $19.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-932057-25-6). Retreat leader Rupp provides reflections, prayers, and poems based on the seasons and the church’s liturgical calendar as a means to help readers find the divine in the small moments of everyday life.
St. Martin’s Essentials
Muhammad, the World-Changer: An Intimate Portrait by Mohamad Jebara (Oct. 12, $29.99, ISBN 978-1-250-23964-8). Scholar and calligrapher Jebara tells the personal story of Islam’s founding prophet and places Muhammad’s life in a broader historical context.
Sterling
The Founding Myth: Why Christian Nationalism Is Un-American by Andrew L. Seidel (Aug. 3, $17.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-4549-4391-4). Constitutional attorney Seidel considers the role of religion in America’s founding, comparing the Ten Commandments to the Constitution and contrasting biblical doctrine with America’s founding philosophy to show that the Declara-
tion of Independence contradicts the Bible.
Sterling Ethos
The Druid Path: A Modern Tradition of Nature Spirituality by John Michael Greer (Jan. 4, $16.95, ISBN 978-1-4549-4356-3). Practicing druid Greer explores the history and basics of druidry, including how to perform druidic rituals, meditation, and divination.
Tarcherperigee
Lighting the Wick: An Intuitive Guide to the Ancient Art and Modern Magic of Candles by Sandra Mariah Wright and Leanne Marrama (Sept. 7, $16 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-593-41834-5) provides readers with suggestions on how candles can be used to improve one’s relationships, achieve success, furnish protection, increase health, and honor the dead.
Tyndale
Enemies and Allies: An Unforgettable Journey Inside the Fast-Moving & Immensely Turbulent Modern Middle East by Joel C. Rosenberg (Sept. 7, $26.99, ISBN 978-1-4964-5381-5). Rosenberg, founder of Jerusalem-based Christian educational nonprofit The Joshua Fund, explains the shifting landscape in Israel and the Muslim world for a Christian audience.
Tyndale Momentum
Believing Is Seeing: A Physicist Explains How Science Shattered His Atheism and Revealed the Necessity of Faith by Michael Guillen (Sept. 7, $24.99, ISBN 978-1-4964-5557-4). Emmy Award–winning journalist and former physics instructor Guillen recounts his journey from atheism to Christianity, citing discoveries in neuroscience, physics, astronomy, and mathematics that explain the mysteries of faith.
Ulysses
The Little Book of Tibetan Rites and Rituals: Simple Practices for Rejuvenating the Mind, Body, and Spirit by Judy Tsuei (Oct. 12, $17.95, ISBN 978-1-64604-252-4) combines yantra yoga exercises, Buddhist wisdom, and Tibetan philosophy in an effort to help readers live happier, healthier lives.
Univ. of Illinois
The Spirit of Soul Food: Race, Faith, and Food Justice by Christopher Carter (Nov. 16, $24.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-252-08617-5). Blending a history of Black American food with a Christian ethical response to food injustice, Carter, a professor of religious studies at the University of San Diego, argues that racism and colonialism have guided the development of U.S. food policy.
Univ. of Massachusetts
American Sage: The Spiritual Teachings of Ralph Waldo Emerson by Barry Andrews (Sept. 24, $26.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-62534-607-0). Unitarian minister Andrews explores Emerson’s writings, including journals and letters, with an eye toward the American transcendentalist writer’s thoughts on the conduct of life and spiritual truth.
Univ. of Notre Dame
Sin by Gregory Mellema (Aug. 15, $30, ISBN 978-0-268-20133-3). Mellema, professor emeritus of philosophy at Calvin University, summarizes contemporary philosophical commentary on the relationship between the theological category of sin and philosophical ethics.
Univ. of Pennsylvania
Clare of Assisi and the Thirteenth-Century Church: Religious Women, Rules, and Resistance by Catherine M. Mooney
(Sept. 6, $28.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-8122-2507-5). Historian Mooney cites previously unanalyzed sources in an effort to upend the common account of Clare of Assisi’s founding of the Order of San Damiano, explaining how Clare and the sisters struggled against a papal program designed to regiment religious women in the 13th century.
Waterbrook
On Living Well: Brief Reflections on Wisdom for Walking in the Way of Jesus by Eugene H. Peterson (Nov. 16, $20, ISBN 978-1-60142-979-7). Peterson, a pastor, provides essays about faith meeting the rigor of daily life, including his thoughts on generosity, community, relationships, worship, and inner peace.
Watkins
Signposts of the Spiritual Journey: A Practical Road Map to a Meaningful Life by John Siddique (Dec. 14, $16.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-78678-517-6). Siddique, a meditation leader and poet, lays out his guide to the spiritual path, exploring the indications of progress and preparing readers for potential blocks like object consciousness and spiritual bypassing.
Weiser
Yemaya: Orisha, Goddess, and Queen of the Sea by Raven Morgaine (Sept. 1, $18.95 trade paper, ISBN 978-1-57863-743-0) delves into the origins of Yemaya, a goddess of the seas who first emerged in Yorubaland (now in modern Nigeria), who is a prominent spirit of Candomblé, Santeria, and other African diaspora traditions.
Wellfleet
Goddess Magic: A Handbook of Spells, Charms, and Potions Divine in Origin by Aurora Kane (Oct. 5, $19.99, ISBN 978-1-57715-237-8) is a directory of deities (including Hecate, Kamala, Oya, and Trivia) as well as 50 spells, altars, and exaltations to help readers amplify happiness and attain success.
Westminster John Knox
God and Guns: The Bible Against American Gun Culture, edited by C.L. Crouch and Christopher B. Hays (Nov. 2, $25 trade paper, ISBN 978-0-664-26682-0), collects essays from seven biblical scholars and theologians centered on gun violence in America, arguing that guns are incompatible with the God’s love.
Worthy
God Is a Grunt: And More Good News for GIs by Logan M. Isaac (Oct. 26, $26, ISBN 978-1-5460-0050-1). Isaac provides a guide for Christian soldiers returning from war, using biblical lessons to process the experience of taking a life, serving one’s country, and moving on from life after the military.
Yale Univ.
Hell Hath No Fury: Gender, Disability, and the Invention of Damned Bodies in Early Christian Literature by Meghan R. Henning (Sept. 21, $65, ISBN 978-0-300-22311-8). Henning, a professor of religion at Dayton University, argues that Christian depictions of hell have preserved ancient notions of gender and bodily norms that continue to inform Christian identity.
The Popes Against the Protestants: The Vatican and Evangelical Christianity in Fascist Italy by Kevin Madigan (Aug. 17, $35, ISBN 978-0-300-21586-1). Madigan, a professor of history at Harvard Divinity School, uses archival materials to tell the story of a post-WWI anti-Protestant campaign throughout Italy by the Catholic church, which saw Protestants as instigators of such dangers as heresy, secularism, modernity, and Americanism.
