Philosophy

Looking back on a long and active life, Anne Deveson draws on a rich vein of public and private experiences to reflect on what made her the bold social commentator she became. Central among her lifelong preoccupations have been the questioning of war, and the promotion of peace.
Deveson describes her childhood durin... read more

A measure of our need for integrity, John Beebe writes, is that "we rarely allow ourselves an examination of the concept itself. To do so would betray an unspoken philosophic, poetic, and psychological rule of our culture: not to disturb the mystery of what we desire most."
In this book, Beebe reveals much about the nat... read more

First published in the 1920s, this book attempts to provide the reader with an inspirational, allegorical guide to living.
Gibran has his protagonist, called simply the prophet, deliver spiritual, yet practical, homilies on a wide variety of topics central to daily life: love, marriage and children, work and play, posse... read more

"The Prophet" is known and loved by readers all over the world. It is a wise and warm testimony to life, whose wisdom speaks to us all. This beautiful edition of Kahlil Gibran's timeless classic is illustrated with the author's own mystical drawings.

'This is easily the most impressive of the present crop of atheistic and anti-theistic books: clever, broad, witty and brilliantly argued.' - Sydney Morning Herald . Christopher Hitchens has been hailed as 'one of the most brilliant journalists of our time' (UK Observer ). Here he makes the ultimate case against organised rel... read more

Benedictine nun, poet and musician, Hildegard of Bingen (1098 1179) was one of the most remarkable figures of the Middle Ages. She undertook preaching tours throughout the German empire at the age of sixty, and was consulted not only by her religious contemporaries but also by kings and emperors, yet it is largely for her apo... read more

A haiku is a short Japanese poem, mostly of just three lines, which expresses many subtle aspects of Japanese culture and sensibility - the falling of plum blossom, the splash of a frog as it leaps into a pond. This extraordinary phenomenon was part of a great flowering of Japanese arts a thousand years ago encouraged by the ... read more

Argues that the supernatural claims of religion are of course entirely false - and yet that religions still have important things to teach the secular world. This book proposes that we should look to religions for insights into how to build a sense of community, make our relationships last, overcome feelings of envy and inade... read more

The way that we feel is governed by two separate and often conflicting dispositions: instinct and emotion. Instincts are inherent and unlearned; they provide us with deeply ingrained patterns of response to different kinds of stimuli. Emotions are subjective and personal; they govern our thoughts and behaviour, and are inextr... read more

Alain de Botton's The Consolations of Philosophy takes the discipline of logic and the mind back to its roots. Drawing inspiration from six of the finest minds in history - Socrates, Epicurus, Seneca, Montaigne, Schopenhauer and Nietzsche - he addresses lack of money, the pain of love, inadequacy, anxiety and conformity. De B... read more

First published in the 1920's, The Prophet, Gibran's hugely popular guide to living, has sold millions of copies worldwide and is the most famous work of religious fiction of the twentieth century. The Prophet became the bible of 1960s culture and was credited with founding the New Age movement, yet it still continues to insp... read more

In this autobiography, published in 1975, the private Andy Warhol talks about love, sex, food, beauty, fame, work, money, success; about New York and America; about himself - his childhood in McKeesport, Pennsylvania, good times and bad times in the Big Apple, the explosion of his career in the sixties, and life among celebrities.

The Dalai Lama is one of the world's greatest spiritual leaders. This is a fascinating book bringing together some of his Holiness' most powerful lectures and talks. Serving as the perfect introduction to the Dalai Lama's philosophy, both Buddhist and secular, this is just the book for gleaning insights into the mind of one o... read more

Bestselling author, Alain de Botton has written about love, travel, status and how philosophy can console us. Now, he turns his attention to one of our most intense but often hidden love affairs: with our houses and their furnishings. He asks: What makes a house truly beautiful? Why are many new houses so ugly? Why do we argu... read more