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Mugged By Reality. By John Agresto John Agresto, who now considers himself a "neoconservative mugged by reality," spent nine months in post-war Iraq helping to assist the Iraqis in rebuilding their once distinguished system of higher education. The Iraq he encountered was a very different place from what he had expected. In Mugged By Reality, Agresto documents his efforts and how they were consistently thwarted, not only by Iraq's pervasive culture of violence, but also by American ignorance, incompetence, and naivete. Mugged By Reality is a unique and valuable contribution to the current debate about the American led-invasion and continued occupation of Iraq, one that laughs at the superficiality of the "if we only had more troops" mentality. -- May 24, 2007 [ Available at Amazon.com ] 
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Why Catholic Bibles Are Bigger. By Gary G. Michuta As hard as it might be to believe, there is still a significant segment of Christian society that buys into the age-old myth that the Catholic Church added books -- like Machabees, Sirach and the Epistle of St. James -- to the Bible. In reality, it was the Protestant Reformation, particularly in the person of Martin Luther, that shaved the Deuterocanonical books from the Bible, largely in an attempt to justify an idiosyncratic theology that included the doctrine of Sola Scriptura. Catholic apologist Gary G. Michuta cuts through the theological balderdash to give us the "untold story of the lost books of the Protestant Bible." -- May 23, 2007 [ Available at Amazon.com ]
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The Vatican's Exorcists. By Tracy Wilkinson Tracy Wilkinson, Rome bureau chief for the Los Angeles Times, is the type of religious skeptic who finds the Catholic Church's rite of exoricism both embarassing (for the Church) and fascinating (for her and her readership). Though her journalism career has had more to do with wars and guerrilla movements, her years in Rome have immersed her in the world of Catholic faith and devotion. In The Vatican's Exorcists she hurdles the obstacles of her inexperience and cynacism to explore the difficult world of evil -- particularly demonic possession and the growing phenomenon of Satanic cults. Includes interviews with Catholic exorcists, including the Vatican's Father Gabriele Amorth, and a personal account of an exorcism she witnessed -- screams, vomitting and prayers included. -- May 22, 2007 [ Available at Amazon.com ]
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The Politics of Abortion. By Anne Hendershott Despite the strong pro-abortion views of the academy as well as the media and other centers of elite opinion, the politics of abortion, so long tilted toward the "pro-choice" movement, have started to shift. In The Politics of Abortion sociologist Anne Hendershott frames this often slow-motion political change by looking at the influence of the advocates on both sides of the abortion wars, identifying their funding sources, their beneficiaries, and their political activities, in an attempt to measure their success in promoting new policies. The central question is: Who is winning the public-opinion and public-policy debates surrounding abortion? This book is a report from the trenches. -- May 21, 2007 [ Available at Amazon.com ]
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Infidel. By Ayaan Hirsi Ali Somalian-born Ayaan Hirsi Ali, now a Dutch parliamentarian, is one of the most outspoken and influential political figures in Europe today. She is also demonized by Muslims worldwide, including members of her own clan and family, for speaking out against the extreme injustices of the Islamic faith. Hirsi Ali made international headlines in 2004 following the murder of Theo van Gogh (with whom she made a short film extremely critical of Islam) on an Amsterdam street by a Muslim radical. The murderer pinned a note to van Gogh's body warning Hirsi Ali that she would be next, which has compelled her to live under 24-hour police protection ever since. In Infidel, Hirsi Ali recounts the disturbing history of rampant abuse and deep-seated intellectual and spiritual deprivation that led her to flee her family, her religion, and her country. -- May 18, 2007 [ Available at Amazon.com ]
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Pascal's Wager. By James A. Connor The laws of probability were first set down by Blaise Pascal, the 17th-century mathematician, physicist, and mystic who believed that "choosing" is part of the human condition. One night in 1654, Pascal had a visit from God, an experience that changed his life. Pascal applied his mathematical work to religious faith, arguing for the existence of God not based on rigorous principles like Thomas Aquinas or Anselm of Canterbury, but on outcomes -- Pascal's famous wager that challenges the folly of unbelief: Are you willing to bet your eternal soul that there is no God? By placing the existence of God under the same rules of probability, Pascal paved the way forward to the new world of modern science -- and without leaving God behind. -- May 17, 2007 [ Available at Amazon.com ]
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Mother Angelica's Little Book of Life Lessons During her public life, Mother Angelica, foundress of EWTN, taught that holiness did not require perfection, that all are eligible, and that we need not check our personlities at the door of sanctity. Rather than getting lost in speculative concepts and theological hairsplitting that is the business of others, Mother Angelica always presented a no-nonsense approach to spirituality and daily living of the Catholic faith. Who else could so succinctly -- and humorously -- capture the gravity of the Final Judgment that awaits each of us: "Everyone drags his own carcass to market. So be careful." In Mother Angelica's Little Book of Life Lessons and Everyday Spirituality Raymond Arroyo collects more than 200 pages of Mother's wisdom, homorous and accessible all the way. -- May 16, 2007 [ Available at Amazon.com ]
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