The Presence of the Counterkingdom
The Year of Our Lord 1943: Christian Humanism in an Age of Crisis by Alan Jacobs. Oxford University Press, 2018. Cloth, 280 pages, $30. Reviewed by Adam Schwartz John Henry Newman once dubbed the Christian Church a “counter-kingdom.” As the historical embodiment of...
The Unexpected Political Philosopher
Faith and Politics: Selected Writings by Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI). Ignatius Press, 2018. Paperback, 269 pages, $19. Reviewed by Casey Chalk Poor Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. The retired pope isn’t even dead yet, and pundits speak endlessly of his legacy....
The Love of Living
James V. Schall, S. J. David Yost mentioned a famous essay of Robert Louis Stevenson, “Aes Triplex.” He said that it was a favorite of Chesterton and assumed that I had read it. I had not. But the better-late-than-never doctrine certainly holds in this case. It...
The Life Behind the Dance
Anthony Powell: Dancing to the Music of Time by Hilary Spurling. Hamish Hamilton, 2017 (Knopf 2018). Hardcover, 509 pages, $29.70. Reviewed by James Baresel Over four decades ago the novelist Anthony Powell asked his friend Hilary Spurling if she was willing to be his...
What We Once Knew About Global Influence
Oceans Ventured: Winning the Cold War at Sea by John Lehman. W. W. Norton & Company, 2018. Hardcover, 368 pages, $28. Reviewed by Francis P. Sempa There are still many foreign policy “experts” who refuse to credit the policies of President Ronald Reagan for the...
A Woman Who Reads
Book Girl: A Journey through the Treasures and Transforming Power of a Reading Life By Sarah Clarkson. Tyndale Momentum, 2018. Paperback, 288 pages, $16. Reviewed by Ashlee Cowles What does it mean to be a woman who reads? This is the primary question Sarah Clarkson...
Judging as Realpolitik
The Judge: 26 Machiavellian Lessons By Ronald K. L. Collins and David M. Skover. Oxford University Press, 2017. Cloth, 296 pages, $28. Reviewed by Stephen B. Presser As the controversies surrounding the nomination of Brett Kavanaugh, President Trump’s second nominee...
Supporting Statecraft
The Secret World: A History of Intelligence by Christopher Andrew. Yale University Press, 2018. Hardcover, 960 pages, $40. Reviewed by Michael J. Ard “The further backwards you look, the further forward you can see.” This quote by Winston Churchill sums up the guiding...
Why Moral Revolutions Matter
Revolution and Resistance: Moral Revolution, Military Might, and the End of Empire by David Tucker. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2016. Paperback, 152 pages, $25. Reviewed by Brian A. Smith When social scientists attempt to explain events in history, moral causes...
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