by Claire Bowen & Éva Németh Flowers are incredible. They have the power to calm, to heal and they allow us to express our deepest emotions without saying a word. They can boost your mood, reduce stress and improve well-being. By crafting thoughtful, personal bouquets, or choosing a flower for its traditional meaning, natural energy or holistic properties, you can bring the benefits of the natural world into your home or workplace, and into the lives of loved ones. Picking the ideal bloom for the moment can become an act of self-care and arranging a colourful bouquet can be a form of ther ..read more

By Jonathan Stedall I wonder what sort of a person Winnie the Pooh would be like if he reincarnated as a human being. Would he still write poetry, and still be fond of honey? I suspect he wouldn’t be slim! And would Piglet be someone who continued to see danger round every corner, and Eeyore be as gloomy as ever? And what about Tigger? Maybe his Indian roots would surface in the form of an interest in karma? These are some of the playful questions I’ve been living with over the past year, while writing a story in which A.A.Milne’s much loved creations do indeed find themselves alive and well ..read more

The Secret of The Alchemist by Colm Holland is the first book to expose the real meanings buried within the bestselling The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. In this article, Colm gives an insight into the ‘magic secret’ and how it changed his life beyond all recognition. by Colm Holland Over 20 years ago, I was part of the team that published The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, with sales to date of over 86 million copies in 70 languages. When I met Paulo, however, he was an author unknown outside of Brazil, with books published only in Portuguese. I read the story of Santiago the shepherd boy, who follo ..read more

by Kevin Walker   As a professional oral storyteller, researching, creating and writing a collection of Buddhist folk tales, was an exciting prospect. I have been telling stories for a living for well over twenty years but only writing since 2018.  My first book, also published by The History Press, is a collection of short stories entitled Queer Folk Tales and I relished creating and writing those original stories. Buddhist Folk Tales was a totally different project. Most of these tales are retellings of stories already told by one of the greatest storytellers ever known, Buddha him ..read more

by Jason Pack Is humour more like wine or more like a magic trick? Worded differently, if you are a comedy lover, is it better to know more about how humour works as then you can appreciate it more? Or, does knowing more spoil the wonder? Knock, Knock: In Pursuit of a Grand Unified Theory of Humour by William Hartston (2023, Watkins Books) is a fantastic and wide-ranging investigation of how humour works. Firstly, the book is a potted history of Western philosophical inquiries into the nature of humour. Secondly, the book attempts to synthesize its own universally applicable theory of hum ..read more

by Bianca-Jade Brown   Life itself is transformation. Everything we see in and around us is in constant movement, transforming from one thing to the next. On the molecular level, chemical reactions cause transitions from one state to the next, from liquid to solid to gases; everything is in a state of transition. Change and transition seem to be the natural state of the universe, to be in constant movement or flux.  Despite the obvious reality, of the facts, it seems as if humans have a massive problem with change, transformation and evolution, when ..read more

by Evelyn Foster   My new book, Land of Hope and Story aims to raise spirits in these challenging times. It is a celebration of rural Britain’s landscape, history and legend. It contains little-known historical facts and little-known fairytales from the Great British countryside. Many of the tales are set in National Trust owned areas, and proceeds from the book will help to raise money for the National Trust – especially its outdoor spaces. Fairytales, of course, have always been good for mind, body and spirit. Readers are uplifted by happy endings and the messages that adversity can be ..read more

By Delcia McNeil To have been asked to review Chakra Healing Therapy: Awaken Spiritual Energies and Heal Emotional Wounds (Destiny Books) by Glen Park has been a real pleasure and privilege. Having been introduced to the Chakra system in the early 1980s and fascinated by it ever since, I am always on the look-out for in-depth and well researched books on this topic. A major concept that the Chakra system offers us is a model or map to describe the evolution of human consciousness. What Glen has been able to skilfully do is weave together contemporary personal, social and political concerns wit ..read more

By Clare Martin The word alchemy is commonly used to describe how, when two entities or energies come into contact, both are changed by the encounter, and a new entity, or third force, is created. The four pillars of western esotericism – alchemy, astrology, hermeticism and the kabbalah – share the common belief that the universe is alive, active and fundamentally inter-actional. In other words, we live in an intelligent, participatory universe which responds to our engagement with it. Alchemists and astrologers are in constant dialogue with nature, and dialogue is a two-way process of alignme ..read more