The University Bookman

Reviewing Books that Build Culture

What the American Revolution Secured: Order, Justice, and Freedom

Throughout the semiquincentennial year celebrating America’s independence, The University Bookman will invite a range of writers and speakers to contribute to a series drawing upon Russell Kirk’s work on the American Revolution and the constitutional order it secured.

Britain at the Turning Point

“A major theme that runs through Allport’s study is the shifting equilibrium of power relations between the United States and Britain. The war demonstrated that, as British power and resources dwindled, Britain became dependent on material and financial supplies from the United States.”

Shakespeare Forever

“…in his rich and thorough exploration of not only Shakespeare’s thoughts but also the course of Western thinking, David Womersley demonstrates that ideas do matter, and that Shakespeare is bigger than the harsh but ultimately timid emotions of our age.”

The Innocence of Imagination

“…the innocence that Blake’s poetry sings of is the awe, wonder, and imagination of a child who can conceive of boundless relationships with everything from a flower or butterfly to sister, brother, mother, and father. ‘Growing up,’ Vernon writes in addressing Blake’s poetic philosophy of innocence and imagination, ‘need not mean losing innocence and wonder.’ In fact, a mature innocence that can blend realism with imaginative creativity is key to a good and joyful life.”

Reclaiming the ‘Higher’ in Higher Education

American Heresies and Higher Education by Peter Augustine Lawler. St. Augustine’s Press, 2016. Paperback, 224 pages, $20.Any appreciator of permanent and higher things who has gone to the university has very likely encountered the ugliness of political correctness,...

On Not Conserving Liberalism

Conserving America?: Essays on Present Discontents by Patrick J. Deneen. St. Augustines Press, 2016. Paper, 192 pages, $19.The title of the book—Conserving America?—tells us much of what we need to know about Deneen’s thesis. For much of conservative intellectual...

Books in Little: Lewis as Political Thinker

C. S. Lewis on Politics and the Natural Law by Justin Buckley Dyer and Micah J. Watson. Cambridge University Press, 2016. Hardcover, 170 pages, $45.C. S. Lewis, although a conservative, can surprise the reader, especially the evangelical one, with some of his...

Roy Campbell: A Poet for Our Time?

Matthew Robare looks at the work of poet Roy Campbell on the fiftieth anniversary of his death, exploring why he has been blacklisted by the literary establishment and his fight against the elitist snowflakes of his own time.

When Science Opens to Faith

Particles of Faith: A Catholic Guide to Navigating the Sciences by Stacy A. Trasancos. Ave Maria Press, 2016. Paper, 192 pages, $15.95.Ever since the Scientific Revolution, religious faith has withstood a steady assault of scientific discoveries that seem to undermine...

From Marxist to Black Conservative

Black and Conservative: The Autobiography of George S. Schuyler by George S. Schuyler. Arlington House, 1966. Hardcover, 362 pages, $5.95. George S. Schuyler (1895–1977) is one of the most consequential black conservative columnists in American history. His...

Love and the Law Professors

Law Professors: Three Centuries of Shaping American Law by Stephen B. Presser. West Academic Publishing, 2017. Hardcover, 502 pages, $48. Reviewed by Allen Mendenhall As improbable as it sounds, someone has written “a love letter to the teaching of law.” At least...

H Is for Heritage Rejected

H Is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald. Grove Press, Reprint Edition, 2016. Paper, 320 pages, $16. Reviewed by Jason Morgan In her beautifully crafted H Is for Hawk, Helen MacDonald’s readers meet a sensitive woman—broken on the wheel of bad relationships, family tragedy,...

The Book Gallery

A collection of conversations with Bookman editor Luke C. Sheahan and writers and authors of imagination and erudition. Click on the icon in the upper right corner of the video to see more episodes in this series or check out our YouTube page.

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