Photograph copyright Jane Mingay - 8th December 2011

The Scotsman has hinted that they hope to publish ‘The Higgs in One Sentence’ – a piece by Nicholas Mee in the Saturday edition of their fine newspaper. The piece attempts to do exactly what it says on the tin; however, being a dense matter – if you’ll pardon the pun – I have a feeling the piece may be slightly more substantial than one sentence.

Also

Live mag by the Daily Mail has announced that this Sunday they will be running a piece by Nicholas Mee! Presenting a  ‘Bluffer’s Guide to the Higgs’, Mee will again explain a very large idea in relatively few words. I’m sure there’s a whole cosmology of micro/macro jokes to be made there, but I’ll spare you the agony.

Keep your eyes peeled for our man in the press; rumour has it that he might make an appearance in the Economist! We’ll keep you posted as news comes in and reviews will be posted in the Links We Love section of this site.

“Never work with children or animals” the saying goes, but the media doesn’t do too well with science either.

It seems that if you can’t fit your explanation in 140 characters or less the general public is at a loss. Personally I don’t believe this to be true, but to when all you’re fed is sound bites and headlines its hard to understand what all the hype’s about – especially when they haven’t even found it yet, and what is IT anyway?!

Rather than jumping in at the deep end of particle physics, Higgs Force tells you a story, a story that starts with a great, big BANG!

What better way to introduce the forces at work in the universe? And from there the introduction of ideas, discoveries, inventors and inventions, scientists and theories is so gradual and well presented that even the hardest concepts – quarks and quantum fields – become comprehensible.

Don’t be mislead by the popular science label, Mee knows his muons from his gluons and the final chapters of this book defiantly exercise the dark matter upstairs (or is that just grey matter?). Even so, what makes this book fantastic is that you don’t need a PhD to understand it, and even better, once you do you will be able to astound your friends with your knowledge of just about everything from plum pudding (models of the atom) to quantum chromodynamics!

For more information on the book, the author or how to buy it, click the relevant underlining or email me at sales@lutterworth.com.

Remember to watch this space for announcements, reviews and other exciting news on this and all our other publications. It’s been a while but we’re back and with lots to tell you!

John Aplin is of course author of the much celebrated Thackeray Family Biography, comprising two volumes: Memory and Legacy and The Inheritance of Genius. Click the images below for more details, reviews and buying power.

Memory and Legacy: A Thackeray Family Biography 1876-1919

The Inheritance of Genius: A Thackeray Family Biography 1798-1875

At this juncture I feel the need to confess that Solaris (the 2002 remake of the book originally written by Lem in 1961) forever holds a place in my heart for being the only film I have ever walked out of having paid to see at the cinema.

Although we have not (yet) been attacked by the inhabitants of Venus as the plot of The Astronauts celebrated today depicts, interstellar travel is an area which is no less removed from our thoughts now as it was 60 years ago. Indeed, with NASA announcing earlier this month that they are again looking for candidates to train as astronauts, the dream of space travel is very much alive.

It is amazing to think that what so often starts as science-fiction over time becomes science fact. The Washington Post agrees.

Remember that bit in Demolition Man with the Schwarzenegger Presidential Library ?!

But on a more serious note, so much of the technology we use today could have been little more than the stuff of science-fiction even only as far back as when Lem was first writing.

What is even more interesting is when the things that scientists themselves consider fiction start to appear to be fact.

While we wait to see if there really are particles travelling faster than the speed of light, scientist Nicholas Mee has been busy writing about another possible contender for transfer from fiction to fact- the Higgs boson.

COMING SOON!

Higgs Force tells  a very human story while remaining true to the science. Swept along by eccentric scientists, suspense, passion and drama, readers learn about the colossal technology involved in the quest for the Higgs particle and the major implications for science (and our knowledge of the world that we live in) if the Higgs particle is found.

The book tells the story of the scientists who have elucidated the structure of matter, culminating in the amazing modern synthesis of the laws of nature into a single theory. It tells the story of the fundamental constituents of matter themselves and the forces that bind them together.

Ultimately the book is about the symmetry at the heart of matter; the mystery of how this symmetry is broken; and the enormous efforts at CERN to complete the picture by tracking down the Higgs.

Higgs Force is divided into three parts. The first three chapters provide the broad historical and philosophical background to particle physics The next three focus, in turn, on each of the forces that are important in particle physics: electromagnetism, the weak force, and the strong or colour force. The final three chapters are about the modern synthesis of the particles and forces and the search for the last missing piece in the particle physics jigsaw.

In the final chapter, Mee describes the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), how it came into being, and how it works. Higgs Force ends on a hopeful note foreseeing the likely discovery of the Higgs particle in the near future and the dramatic implications this has for modern-day science.

Of course, such a crucial discovery will prompt scientists to ask even deeper questions and to probe the boundaries of understanding even further. Physicists will continue with patience and determination – and increasingly precise and powerful instruments – their quest which started several thousand years ago: the human endeavour to understand the cosmos and to turn science-fiction into science fact.

For more information on Higgs Force visit the author’s website and of course keep checking here. If you would be interested in writing a review of Higgs Force contact Fiona Christie at sales@lutterworth.com .

Monintated for the Maritime Foundation Media Award 2011

It’s an old saying but a true one, and it transpires that the Maritime Foundation Media Award judges are equally difficult to sway.

Despite the best efforts of the Of Seas and Ships and Scientists team the Maritime Media Award went to “The Great Sea:  A Human History of the Mediterranean” by David Abulafia.

Despite missing out on the prize a small victory was won by way of the publication of Dr John Gould’s piece in the event’s brochure.

For those who did not attend the glitzy event, we have obtained the author’s permission to share it with you.

Taking the Oceans’ Pulse

If you want to know more about the remarkable story of the UK’s National Institute of Oceanography click here.

For those without angelic vision the text is as follows:

Angels, it seems, have a PR problem. Not in the ‘News of the World forced to shut down after a public outcry’ sort of way, but rather that they find themselves strangely misrepresented. Enter ‘angels’ into the search bar on Amazon and of the top fifty books that appear only a couple explore the subject from a biblical standpoint. There’s a few novels that have Angels in their title, but the list is dominated by self-help, spiritual-discovery missives with names such as ‘An Angel Held My Hand’, ‘Angel Therapy Oracle Cards’, and ‘Angels in My Hair’. Seriously. How ironic that God’s chosen messengers should suffer from problems of communication.

One of the most popular writers on the list is the wonderfully named Doreen Virtue, who has authored such classics as ‘Messages From Your Angels’, ‘Signs From Above: Angelic Messages to Guide Your Life Choices’, and ‘Magical Messages From The Fairies’. Most of her books receive four or five star reviews from grateful readers and you can be sure that her publishers also view her as something of a blessing.

In ‘Messages From Your Angels’ she depicts a pastoral and kindly vision of the spiritual beings, who are loving and have a close, personal, tangible relationship with their charge. God is hardly mentioned and when He is it’s never with much focus. He is seen as distant whereas the angels are close and can be asked for answers to a range of problems we might have. These include ‘How can I discover my life’s purpose?’, ‘How can I know if my current lover partner is my soul mate?’, and our personal favourite ‘Dolphins seem to be unearthly, and I wonder what their origin is and if they have a special purpose on Earth?’. Yep, from love lives to porpoise history angels are there and will give you beautifully crafted answers which affirm you from head to toe, inside and out. Glory be.

So why is it that when an angel appears in the bible the first thing they often say is ‘Don’t Be Afraid’? Why would their witnesses fear them? Surely the only thing they’d be in danger of was discovering whether sharks drive cars on their home planet, or a practical solution to bed-hair? Yet both Zechariah and Mary are reassured by Gabriel before he delivers the news that will change their lives forever. Maybe there’s more to these celestial beings than Ms Virtue would have us believe?

Mary and Zechariah, as good God-fearing Jews, would have known the Old Testament reputation of angels, and so had every right to be afraid. Today, thanks to a few thousand years of art, film, and books which have portrayed the angelic as harp wielding, clothes eschewing, floating babies, or languid looking, androgynous beings usually found near beams of sunlight, it can be hard to understand their terror. But the Old Testament showed them as less than benign. More importantly they were less than tame, less than predictable – beings to truly fear.

As Gabriel appeared before them he would have radiated the Father’s holiness and glory – in a similar fashion to Moses after his return from Sinai – due to having stood in God’s presence. His trembling audience would also have known that often angels came when the creator was unhappy and needed something sorted out. They’d have heard about the Cherubim that blocked the way back to Eden, and the angel of the Lord that led the Israelites around the desert for decades until all but two of the original party had died. Then there were the really scary stories. The 70,000 Israelites killed by an angel-administered plague in response to David putting his faith in the size of his army rather than the power of his God (2 Samuel 24:15-16). How Jerusalem only survived a similar fate due to David’s repentance and God’s mercy. Not to mention the 185,000 Assyrians slain by one, solitary angel over the course of a night (Isaiah 37:36). Whatever went through their minds you can pretty much guarantee that the eternal purposes of dolphins didn’t feature highly.

Perhaps one of the most disorienting elements to angelic visitations is that things rarely turn out how you might expect. 2 Kings 6:8–23 is a good example of this. Israel was being attacked by the Syrians, and the Syrian king knew that his only chance for success was to get rid of Elisha. So, as is often the case with kings, he sent his army. Elisha’s servant saw the massed forces approaching and did what most normal people would…he panicked. The odds were insurmountable! Surely they’d be killed! Elisha, however, was very relaxed. Why? He could see the angelic army of the Lord that were positioned around the city to protect them. Then God, in his mercy, opened the eyes of Elisha’s servant to share the vision.

At this point you can imagine the now confident servant mentally pulling up a deck chair, making popcorn, and preparing to watch the slaughter from the safety of the city ramparts. But as the Syrian army attacked, Elisha prayed not for a bloodbath to ensue, but for blindness to fall on the army. This may have prompted a slight adjustment in the servant’s plans, along the lines of ‘Ok – this will make them easy pickings for the heavenly host. Pass the nachos’. No. Instead Elisha took the visually impaired aggressors to their intended victim’s stronghold for a spot of tea. From then on the Syrians did not raid Israel and good relations were restored between the nations. The land was returned to both peace and safety, yet the angels did not have to destroy the enemy army to accomplish this.

Instead of acting up to their image of ones who simply judge, here, under God’s direction, they kept their swords sheathed and acted as a reminder of His power and mercy rather than his wrath. God struck the enemy blind and under divine direction Elisha did the rest.

Another prominent case of angels refraining from convenient smiting is that of the early days of Jesus himself. It’s perfectly reasonable to ask why the angel who came to Joseph warning him to take his family and flee to Egypt didn’t simply kill Herod’s soldiers and be done with it? Easy and effective. Except in this instance it appears that the role of the angels was to get Jesus safely to adulthood so he could start his ministry, be crucified, raised, ascended, and then send the Holy Spirit to bless His Church. An angelic slaughter of soldiers would merely have brought attention to Mary, Joseph and Jesus too early.

As the perfect father God knew the advantages of a child being raised in a peaceful context, rather than one where you are always looking over your shoulder. The constant distraction of watching out for either one of Herod’s thugs or an annoying angel-watcher wanting to grab a glimpse of some mighty act of God, isn’t an ideal environment in which to nurture an infant. Egypt would provide that safety, allowing people to return to normal life, and the horrible events of the nativity fade into memory.

As we follow the life of Jesus we see that angels are often involved in the key moments. During his trials in the wilderness Satan tempts him to throw himself off the temple for the angels to catch him, Jesus of course resists and once the devil leaves, defeated, angels come and tend to their lord. In Gethsemane, at Jesus’ lowest moment, an angel is sent to strengthen him, not in a ‘Yay, Jesus, you’re the best! We believe in you! You can do it! type way, but rather in an actual physical sense. The Greek word in the bible is Eniskuon, which is usually used to indicate the strength one receives from eating. The angel didn’t get him out of trouble but did help prepare him for the path ahead.

After his death it’s an angel who rolls away the stone of the tomb and tells the terrified women that Jesus has risen. Then once Jesus ascends into heaven it’s a couple of angels who tell the disciples that he’ll return again, a return that will be accompanied by the trumpet blast from, you guessed it, an angel. If Jesus is the perfect example of how to live, and he is, then it would seem arguable that the angelic should feature in any who seek to emulate him.

The answers-on-demand nature of the angels described by the likes of Ms Virtue is, of course, appealing. Whereas the rather random behaviour of the biblical examples is a little perplexing. Are they just being awkward? Do angels have some kind of behavioural disorder? Or is something wider going on?

One thing that characterised the later ministry of Jesus was it’s non-conformity and unpredictability. For example he never healed a blind man the same way twice, and if you’re looking for something non-conformist then the saviour of the world wiping gob and mud in someone’s eyes to make them see again is a pretty good shout. In fact there was no model of ministry or prayer which he employed and stuck slavishly to. Why? Because Jesus did only what he saw the father doing, and the father is inventive in his approach to creation. Christ worshiped and emulated a creative creator…and so do the angels. They too see the face of the Father (Matt 18:10), and it’s no surprise that when they serve Him and do His will their ministry exhibits a similar sense of unpredictability and discomfort for those around them.

As we see in the life of Jesus, God uses angels as a part of his loving pastoral care toward his creation. How He employs them though can be a bit confusing. He can use them visibly or invisibly, and even if he uses them visibly, we are told that sometimes we don’t see or even realise it is an angel! Hardly seems fair, but it’s certainly a useful motivation for treating strangers in a more Godly fashion.

If we return to Zechariah and Mary, both nervously about to receive similar messages – the impending birth of a very important son – we see that the outcomes are different and surprising. Poor old Zechariah is struck dumb for asking Gabriel a question, resulting in a rather comical game of Give Us A Clue taking place outside the temple as bemused passersby try to understand the clearly enthusiastic old man. While Mary is told that she, a young virgin preparing to be married, is now pregnant with the son of God, and is then left to explain this to her future husband. That would have been a tricky conversation if there ever was one. Gabriel does finally visit Joseph but only after Mary has faced the shame of being doubted and nearly jilted by her distraught fiancee.

Gather together the greatest marketing minds in business and ask them for ideas on how to announce the coming of world-changing events and I’ll guarantee you that using a mime-artist or a knocked up teenager will not make the list. Thankfully God isn’t interested in trends, focus groups, or market positioning. He knows what needs to happen, to whom he can entrust the task, and has devoted servants who will deliver the news in whichever fashion will work best in the end.

In truth you might never see an angel throughout your whole life, and you would lack nothing in your walk with God because of this. However, knowing more of how they move and minister opens our eyes to catch a glimpse of the splendour of heaven. The depths of God’s creation are exposed and the creativity in how he works is revealed to us. Modern writers may tell you that their version of angels can bring you riches, but if God allows us to see the real angelic realm, with all its mystery, power, majesty, and dedication to Him then we will indeed be richer in a way that really matters.

Jonathan Macy’s book on angels In The Shadow of His Wings is available here and to see what the critics have been saying, check out the Links We Love page on here under News and Reviews.

This new biography of the renowned, Roman Catholic theologian Adrian Fortescue reconsiders the man, perceived by contemporaries to be a very symbol of Roman Catholic traditionalism. Although remaining throughout his life what he called: ‘The Latin Clerk’ Nicols discovers that Fortescue was far from the pillar of continuity he appeared to be, and that in fact, ‘Don Adrian was a mass of inconsistencies, and the greatest of all was that between the arrogant being he often appeared to be and the humble priest he really was’ [from Conclusion].

Faced with a severe crisis of faith during the course of his eclectic career, Fortescue moved away from the intellectual and spiritual traditionalism of the Papacy towards Liberal Catholicism. Combined with an admiration of the Christian East, this struggle lead him so far as to consider transferring his liturgical allegiance to the Byzantine Rite but in the end only gave him the benefit of insight as seen in his 1912 work The Mass.

Through Fortescue’s personal concerns The Latin Clerk reveals the often hidden internal discords within the Church as a whole; for example the tensions between attempts at reformed liberalisation as against the forces of reaction and traditionalism, which are still relevant today. In this way the reader understands how the internal conflicts faced by Fortescue on matters of faith are as relevant today as a century ago

The main purpose of this book is to examine multifaceted dimensions of Fortescue’s extensive works as an Orientalist and Liturgist, set against a backdrop of the exotic riches of the ancient Eastern Churches, the Greek Fathers and the history of the liturgy. In his lust for life and multifaceted character, Fortescue set an example of a priestly life inspiring to his flock. A cornerstone of Fortescue’s life was his pastoral work in Letchworth Garden City, demonstrating his determination to break the dichotomy between high culture and culture of the demos. To the great mass of the people; to show people, both in theory and in practice, the best of the Roman Catholic Church’s liturgical patrimony. Despite his enduring influence on litergy, the early triumphs of a successful scholarly career belied the tragedies that would make his life a difficult one: early bereavement, uncongenial postings, self-questioning as a pastoral priest and serious criticism at the perceived entrenched caution of the Church authority.

Informative and educational far beyond the narrow confines of traditional biography, this book will be of interest to both theologians and historians concerned with the Eastern Rite, English cultural developments and Anglo-Catholicism.

About the Author: Aidan Nichols O.P is the author of forty books, including the recent G.K. Chesterton:,Theologian (2009), and From Hermes to Benedict XVI: Faith and Reason in Modern Catholic Thought (2009). A member of the Dominican Order, he now resides in Blackfriars,Cambridge.

To pre-order this book simply visit our website. If you would interested in reviewing this title, please contact Fiona by emailing: sales@lutterworth.com

It’s easy not to think too much about these things, but the horrors of war and conflict are never, in reality, far away.

My remembrance will happen on Sunday, with family and neighbours, gathered round our village war memorial after church. The combination of War and Faith is exceedingly complex these days but always has and will raise important questions about society, morality and ethics which must be addressed. The most common question faced by Christians when talking of war is the title of Luis Palau’s book, ‘Where is God When Bad Things Happen?‘

Below is a list of titles around the themes of conflict and faith. Simply click on the images for more details, and don’t worry, they’re not all macabre

  After War, Is Faith Possible?
 An Anthology
By Geoffrey Studdert Kennedy and Kerry Walters (editor)

This timely volume brings together many of the most important writings of Geoffrey Studdert Kennedy, the influential Christian pacifist and campaigner for social justice.

Brewing for Victory
Brewers, Beers and Pubs in World War II By Brian Glover

A lively and entertaining popular history of breweries and public houses in Britain, showing how brewers and pubs helped the war effort and maintained morale during the Second World War.

   Justpeace Ethics
A Guide to Restorative Justice and Peacebuilding
By Jarem Sawatsky

A straightforward and practical guide to the ethics of resolving the problems that arise in the aftermath of conflict.

Fiftieth Royal Tank Regiment
The Complete History
By Stephen D Hamilton

A comprehensive history of one of the most reputed and active tank regiments of the Second World War, from their formation in 1939 through their actions with the Eighth Army in North Africa and Italy, to their disbandment in 1946.

The Germans We Trusted
Stories Which Had To Be Told
By Pamela Howe Taylor

An inspiring collection of thirty six true accounts of friendships formed between German prisoners of war and their ‘enemies’ during the Second World War.

In a Sailing Ship of War
By Ian Morrison

A lively and approachable account for young readers of life on board a Royal Navy vessel at the time of Trafalgar. Illustrated by the author.

Not Mentioned in Despatches
The History and Mythology of the Battle of Goose Green (Paperback Edition)
By Spencer Fitz-Gibbon

A controversial, detailed examination of the decisive events of the Falklands war, focusing on the Battle of Goose Green and questioning the media’s presentation of the heroic victory for the British.

Everybody loves listening to Sir David Attenborough but how many of us have read him?

Way back in 1980, before he was knighted, Lutterworth Press published The Zoo Quest Expeditions.

114 photographs, including 17 in colour and 3 maps

Bringing together Attenborough’s accounts of three journeys – to Guyana where he explored the broad savannahs of the Rupununi, the creeks and swamps of the coast, and the remote forest reserve of the Amerindians; to Indonesia in search of the Komodo dragon; and to Paraguay to seek, among other animals, the elusive giant armadillo.

Looking through this book now, one can’t help but wonder what has happened, not only to the animals he sought for but to the people he met a long the way.

Attenborough’s narrative tells of faraway places, back when the world seemed larger, stranger and exotic was more than a mixed fruit flavour.

This book is an absolute must for any traveller, any animal lover or simply anyone who harbours a love for Sir David. (Christmas presents SORTED!)

For details on how to buy the book, simply click on the image.

Everything we publish here at Lutterworth Press, and the same goes at our sister imprint James Clarke and Co, is fantastically thought provoking and a little off the beaten track. This said, when we heard about Jonathan Macy’s book In the Shadow of his Wings, even we were surprised: angels do not often enter academic publishing.

However, independent soul that he is, Macy has changed all that and as a result has found that people want to hear about angelology!

Having spoken at the New Wine conference this summer Macy is building up quite a schedule of speaking events. The next is at 7:30pm on the 16th, at the Church of Christ the King in London (who by-the-way have a very swanky website).

Anyone interested in hearing Jonathan Macy talk about angels is welcome to attend the event and if people would like more info they can email Jamie Lee info@ccklondon.org.