The masque of Africa : glimpses of African belief

 by V. S. Naipal. In his engrossing new work of nonfiction, Nobel Prize winner Naipaul (A Writer's People: Ways of Looking and Feeling) recounts his travels through six African countries and the religious and spiritual beliefs he encountered in each. The journey begins in 2008 with Naipaul's return to Uganda, where he had been a visiting professor in the 1960s. From there he takes us to Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Gabon, and, finally, South Africa. In each country, Naipaul visits sacred places and talks with people-from cab drivers to witch doctors and diviners-about their beliefs and spiritual practices. Naipaul narrates the journey with finely wrought detail, transporting the reader to the landscapes and city scenes he describes. Naipaul is witty, and his writing can be quite charming and delicate. He is also disarmingly frank in his assessments, a quality often not found in discussions of belief. Verdict A sharply written and engrossing exploration of the effects of religious and spiritual belief on societies. Effective both as a vivid piece of travel writing and for its glimpses of belief in Africa. --Library Journal (Check Catalog)

Hope will find you : my search for the wisdom to stop waiting and start living

 by Naomi Levy. Levy, one of the first women to be ordained as a Conservative rabbi, often counseled her congregants when they faced problems. But when her daughter, Noa, was diagnosed with a potentially fatal degenerative disease, she found herself unprepared for the crisis. Putting her life on hold, Levy focused on finding a way to heal her daughter. As she moved through her journey of pain, she eventually realized that she needed to restart her own life and learn to live well despite her family circumstances. Ironically, Noa supplied the necessary inspiration, accepting her physical and learning disabilities while persevering and maintaining an optimistic attitude. An honest account of a family struggle as well as a tribute to a very strong mother-daughter bond, this will appeal to those who gravitate toward self-help books based on Jewish wisdom. --Booklist (Check Catalog)

Twelve steps to a compassionate life

 by Karen Armstrong, It takes courage for a religious historian and writer of Armstrong's stature to step out from behind the scrim of scholarship and analysis to offer guidelines for a spiritual practice designed to make humanity a kinder and saner species. With the boon of the prestigious TED Prize, Armstrong (The Case for God, 2009) worked with leading thinkers from a variety of major faiths to compose a Charter for Compassion, which calls for the restoration of compassion to the heart of religious and moral life in a dangerously polarized world. Not content with merely stating lofty goals, however, Armstrong, a revered genius of elucidation and synthesis, now tells the full and profound story of altruism throughout human history. She turns to neuroscience and tracks the evolution of our brains and our natural capacity for empathy, and performs her signature mode of beautifully clarifying interpretation in a mind-expanding discussion of the history of the Golden Rule ( Always treat others as you would wish to be treated yourself ), the essence of compassion and the kernel of every religious tradition. Exquisite and affecting explications of Buddhist, Confucian, Judaic, Christian, and Islamic commentary prepare the ground for meditation exercises meant to engender open-mindedness and the cultivation of compassion, making for the most sagacious and far-reaching 12-step program ever. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: A hefty print run is planned for renowned religious thinker Armstrong's bold approach to teaching the compassionate ethos. --Booklist (Check Catalog)

The form of practical knowledge : a study of the categorical imperative

 by Stephen Engstrom. This important, densely argued book by Engstrom (Univ. of Pittsburgh) repays careful reading. The first half derives Kant's categorical imperative from the conditions of practical knowledge, whereby Kant's concepts of desire, intention, wish, choice, and practical judgment are rigorously distinguished. These foundational concepts are rarely explained so thoroughly, and are essential to understanding Kant's philosophy and his ethics in particular. On this foundation, the second half argues for the full equivalence of Kant's many formulations of the categorical imperative. In particular, it argues that Kant's "formulation of universal law" can derive not only "perfect" but also "imperfect duties," and not only duties to others but also duties to oneself. This is an important rejoinder to much recent scholarship (e.g., Allen Wood's Kantian Ethics, CH, Aug'08, 45-6705) that denies the equivalence of Kant's formulations. This book will be very difficult for undergraduates, but is necessary reading for graduate students and faculty who study Kant's ethics or teach Kant's Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals. Summing Up: Highly recommended. --Choice (Check Catalog)

The abacus and the cross : the story of the Pope who brought the light of science to the Dark Ages

 by Nancy Marie Brown. The story of Gerbert of Aurillac, later Pope Sylvester II, not only is a rags-to-riches saga but also captures how the direction of history can be influenced by one person. Gerbert entered the monastery early and thrived on learning and reading. Mastering grammar, rhetoric, dialectic, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, and music, he also possessed a sophisticated command of Latin and later taught at major cathedral schools and tutored the sons of kings. In Cordoba, the crossroads for the exchange of knowledge between the Arabic world and Europe, he learned the abacus and higher mathematics and astronomy. Brown (Far Traveler: Voyages of a Viking Woman) captures the court and church intrigues, disputes, politics, wars, marriages, and backroom maneuvering that drove events before and after 1000 C.E. Had Gerbert lived longer and been more politically savvy, Brown's portrait makes one believe his ability to teach might have jump-started science before the Dark Ages enveloped Europe. VERDICT Enjoyable to read, informative, and highly recommended for all history and history of science buffs. --Library Journal (Check Catalog)

Pragmatism : a reader

 Pragmatism, which editor Menand says "is an account of the way people think," is the most American contribution to philosophy, albeit, as he explains, one that many think is nearly an antiphilosophy. The foremost pragmatists were and are Americans. The great progenitors were C. S. Peirce and William James. Their immediate followers include the father of progressive education, John Dewey; the jurist Oliver Wendell Holmes; social worker Jane Addams; and the father of social psychology, George Herbert Mead. Contemporary avatars of what can seem a pragmatic revival include critic of philosophy Richard Rorty, philosopher of religion Cornel West, and legal scholar Richard A. Posner. The most important papers by all those and several less generally known figures are the contents of this reader. They aren't easy reading, but Menand's introduction is considerably more accessible; he is to be thanked for it as well as for bringing the most influential pragmatist writings together for those who feel up to their challenges. --Booklist (Check catalog)

Striking a balance : a primer in traditional Asian values

 by Michael Brannigan. Brannigan (College of Saint Rose) draws on various narratives in a discussion of Hindu, Buddhist, Zen Buddhist, Taoist, and Confucian ethics, with an emphasis on bridging Western and Eastern understanding of Asian religions and balancing opposites. Hinduism's core teaching is that the true self is one with Brahman; morality consists in the ability to view others as one views oneself. The common ground of Buddhist schools is found in the Four Noble Truths and the Middle Path--also expressed in the ubiquity of suffering and the impermanence of all things, even the permanent self. Buddhist ethics' Eightfold Path is its centerpiece. Zen Buddhism emphasizes the direct experience of satori, or enlightenment, as essential. Taoists hold that breaches in the natural harmony with the Tao, the Way, mean that people must reconnect with their original nature to live in balance with all. Ren, the inner attitude of humaneness or benevolence, is the cornerstone of Confucian values; it is a balance of individual and communal values. Both Huston Smith in The World's Religions (rev. and updated, 1991) and Brannigan affirm the wisdom traditions; Smith explores both Western and Eastern religious thought. Brannigan's style is clear and engaging. Included are questions and philosophical excerpts. --Choice. (Check Catalog)

Amish peace : simple wisdom for a complicated world

 by Suzanne Woods Fisher Suzanne Woods Fisher's interest in the Anabaptist culture can be directly traced to her grandfather, W.D. Benedict, who was raised in the Old Order German Baptist Brethren Church in Franklin county, Pennsylvania. Suzanne has contributed to several nonfiction books, is the author of three novels, and lives in California. (Check Catalog)

Pragmatism's advantage : American and European philosophy at the end of the twentieth century

 by Joseph Margolis. This is the third book from Margolis (Temple) providing his assessment of philosophy's problems and prospects, following Reinventing Pragmatism (CH, Oct'03, 41-0859) and The Unraveling of Scientism (CH, May'04, 41-5226). A leading voice for 40 years, Margolis explains how pragmatism works as well as anyone, and he expertly exposes core philosophical issues at the intersections of pragmatism, analytic philosophy, and Continental philosophy. This book describes pragmatism's capacity for translating and bridging intellectual divides, its assistance with naturalism's maturity, its inheritance of moderate Kantian and Hegelian contributions, and its prospects for sustaining cross-tradition conversations. Because Margolis uses a wider backdrop of lingering post-Kantian controversies, he can interpret seemingly unrelated philosophical arguments from different traditions as variations on fundamental themes. All along, Margolis has his own rich and complex pragmatism, and he ably defends its merits, which consist chiefly of avoiding metaphysical dead-ends, synthesizing points that other traditions get right, and supplying leadership on ways to work out some remaining tough problems. Pragmatism, in Margolis's hands, proves to be surprisingly adaptable. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Academic libraries; lower-level undergraduates through faculty/researchers.

Frithjof Schuon and the perennial philosophy

 by Harry Oldmeadow. Schuon was one of the leading thinkers connected with the philosophia perennis, which holds that a common teaching and wisdom is at the core of all the world's most well-known religions and mystical traditions. This truth, as Schuon described it, does not belong to any particular system but is shared by all metaphysical systems insofar as they are true. During his long life, Schuon argued for this claim and taught it in a long series of highly influential publications. In the process, he became, along with Rene Guenon, its best-known advocate, attracting students and disciples from around the world. In the present study, Oldmeadow (La Trobe Univ., Australia), after providing a helpful biographical sketch and a discussion of other 20th-century perennialists, offers a comprehensive description and explication of Schuon's basic metaphysical assumptions and the large claims he built on them. Oldmeadow's familiarity with the wide range of Schuon's work and his clear expository style make this a valuable introduction to Schuon's thought. The serious problem he does not address adequately is whether Schuon's position is true or was built on a series of very suspect assumptions. Readers of Schuon will have to make this judgment for themselves. --Choice (Check Catalog)