'But then-he is such a presence, such an other person, a thing she has honestly never been good at coping with, the sheer massiveness of a whole other human. If he comes to visit then everything will be different, all this, this chilled bright space in her head.' Practice shows us just one day. One day in which Annabel, sitting in a small university room, attempts to write an essay about Shakespeare. She follows a meticulously controlled routine, but one that is repeatedly thrown off course. By family and friends who demand her attention and time; by thoughts of her much older boyfriend and his impending visit; by wild sexual fantasies and stories of her own invented characters; and by darker crises, obliquely glimpsed, but capable of derailing Annabel's carefully-laid plans.

First English translation of the chivalric biography of the foremost knight of the late Middle Ages. Jacques de Lalaing (c.1421-53) was undoubtedly the most famous knight at the court of the Burgundian duke, Philip the Good, one who was celebrated in his own lifetime for the dazzling feats of arms that he performed in jousts across Europe during the 1440s. Serving the duke first as a councillor and ambassador to launch a new crusade and then as a fearless military leader on a campaign to put down a revolt by the town of Ghent, Lalaing tragically met his death at the siege of Poeke at a relatively young age. The chivalric biography of Lalaing, written in the early 1470s, offers an entertaining and informative account of the life of a late medieval knight. Drawing on a variety of sources, it was designed not only to commemorate Jacques's deeds for posterity but also to encourage other young noblemen to imitate his shining example, with lavishly illuminated copies being made for members of his own family and other noble readers. This first English translation of the text, accompanied by an introduction and extensive notes based on new research into both archival and literary sources, aims to offer the reader an in-depth portrayal of Lalaing in the context of the chivalric, dynastic and political culture of his day.

The nation's favourite annual guide to the short story, now in its seventh year. Best British Short Stories invites you to judge a book by its cover - or more accurately, by its title. This critically acclaimed series aims to reprint the best short stories published in the previous calendar year by British writers, whether based in the UK or elsewhere. The editor's brief is wide ranging, covering anthologies, collections, magazines, newspapers and web sites, looking for the best of the bunch to reprint all in one volume. Featuring stories by Jay Barnett, Peter Bradshaw, Rosalind Brown, Krishan Coupland, Claire Dean, Niven Govinden, Francoise Harvey, Andrew Michael Hurley, Daisy Johnson, James Kelman, Giselle Leeb, Courttia Newland, Vesna Main, Eliot North, Irenosen Okojie, Laura Pocock, David Rose, Deirdre Shanahan, Sophie Wellstood and Lara Williams.

Thoroughly interdisciplinary in approach, this volume examines how concepts such as the exercising of power, the distribution of justice, and transgression against the law were treated in both textual and pictorial terms in works produced and circulated in medieval French manuscripts and early printed books. Analysing texts ranging from romances, political allegories, chivalric biographies, and catalogues of famous men and women, through saints' lives, mystery plays and Books of Hours, to works of Roman, canon and customary law, these studies offer new insights into the diverse ways in which the language and imagery of politics and justice permeated French culture, particularly in the later Middle Ages. Organized around three closely related themes - the prince as a just ruler, the figure of the judge, and the role of the queen in relation to matters of justice - the issues addressed in these studies, such as what constitutes a just war, what treatment should be meted out to prisoners, what personal qualities are needed for the role of lawgiver, and what limits are placed on women's participation in judicial processes, are ones that are still the subject of debate today. What the contributors show above all is the degree of political engagement on the part of writers and artists responsible for cultural production in this period. With their textual strategies of exemplification, allegorization, and satirical deprecation, and their visual strategies of hierarchical ordering, spatial organization and symbolic allusion, these figures aimed to show that the pen and paintbrush could aspire to being as mighty as the sword wielded by Lady Justice herself.

‘Philosophers, poets and orators too numerous to mention all speak with one voice and are unanimous in their view that female nature is wholly given up to vice’.

It was this misogynist consensus that Christine de Pizan (c. 1364–1430), France’s first professional woman of letters, confronted head-on in the City of Ladies. Here, with the help of Reason, Rectitude and Justice, Christine constructs an allegorical city in which to defend womankind, using examples of female virtue and achievement both from the past and her own day as the stones with which to build the city’s walls and towers.

A key text in the history of feminism, the City of Ladies not only provides powerful positive images of women, ranging from warriors, inventors and scholars to prophetesses, artists and saints, but also offers a fascinating insight into the debates and controversies about the position of women in medieval culture. In her Introduction to this new translation for Penguin Classics, Rosalind Brown-Grant sets the work within its historical and intellectual context.

An astonishing first novel about a day in the life of a young student who experiences her thoughts, her fantasies, her wishes, as she writes about-or tries to write about-Shakespeare's sonnets.

Six o'clock in the morning, Sunday, at the worn-out end of January. In a small room in an Oxford college, cold and dim and full of quiet, an undergraduate student works on an essay about Shakespeare's sonnets.

Annabel has a meticulously planned routine for her day - work, yoga, meditation, long walks; no apples after meals, no coffee on an empty stomach - but finds it repeatedly thrown off course. Despite her efforts, she cannot stop her thoughts slipping off their intended track into the shadows of elaborate erotic fantasies.

And as the essay's deadline looms, so too does the irrepressible presence of other people: Annabel's boyfriend Rich, keen to come and visit her; her family and friends who demand her attention; and darker crises, obliquely glimpsed, all threatening to disturb the much-cherished quiet in her mind.

Exquisitely crafted, wryly comic, and completely original, Practice is a novel about the life of the mind and the life of the body, about the repercussions of a rigid routine and the deep pleasures of literature.

Reflections for Daily Prayer has nourished thousands of Christians for a decade with its inspiring and informed weekday Bible reflections. Now, in response to demand, Reflections for Sundays combines material from over the years with new writing to provide high-quality reflections on the Principal Readings for Sundays and major Holy Days. Contributors include some of the very best writers from across the Anglican tradition who have helped to establish it as one of the leading daily devotional volumes today. For each Sunday and major Holy Day in Year A, Reflections for Sundays offers: * full lectionary details for the Principle Service * a reflection on the Old Testament reading * a reflection on the Epistle * a reflection on the Gospel It also contains a substantial introduction to the Gospel of Matthew, written by renowned Bible teacher Paula Gooder.

This comprehensive guide focuses on much more than the practicalities of preaching and will be welcomed by clergy, ordinands and lay preachers from all denominations. It emphasises the spiritual formation of preachers by the Bible, by life experience and by the Christian tradition and the development of wonder and discusses the many resources available for this before going on to examine the significance of the liturgical and pastoral contexts in which preaching takes place. An overview of past approaches to preaching includes an examination of various strands in the transformation of preaching over the last forty years and consideration of theologies of preaching. From these wide resources, various methodologies are explored culminating in a worked example of the practicalities of preparing and giving a sermon, from first engagement with the Scripture readings to voice control.

Presents work on priestly identity embracing the contemporary varieties of priestly ministry. Aimed at priests, priests in training and those considering the ministry, this title examines the root, the shape and the fruit of priestly identity, and is applicable to various denominations. It takes into account the new Church of England Ordinal.

This collection of essays examines how the paratextual apparatus of medieval manuscripts both inscribes and expresses power relations between the producers and consumers of knowledge in this important period of intellectual history. It seeks to define which paratextual features - annotations, commentaries, corrections, glosses, images, prologues, rubrics, and titles - are common to manuscripts from different branches of medieval knowledge and how they function in any particular discipline. It reveals how these visual expressions of power that organize and compile thought on the written page are consciously applied, negotiated or resisted by authors, scribes, artists, patrons and readers. This collection, which brings together scholars from the history of the book, law, science, medicine, literature, art, philosophy and music, interrogates the role played by paratexts in establishing authority, constructing bodies of knowledge, promoting education, shaping reader response, and preserving or subverting tradition in medieval manuscript culture.

Reflections for Daily Prayer has nourished thousands of Christians for a decade with its inspiring and informed weekday Bible reflections. Now, in response to demand, Reflections for Sundays combines material from over the years with new writing to provide high-quality reflections on the Principal Readings for Sundays and major Holy Days. Contributors include some of the very best writers from across the Anglican tradition who have helped to establish it as one of the leading daily devotional volumes today. For each Sunday and major Holy Day in Year B, Reflections for Sundays offers: * full lectionary details for the Principle Service * a reflection on the Old Testament reading * a reflection on the Epistle * a reflection on the Gospel It also contains a substantial introduction to the Gospels of Mark and John, written by renowned Bible teacher Paula Gooder.

Fresh From the Word gathers together Rosalind Brown's acclaimed reflections on the Sunday Lectionary readings which appeared in the Church Times every week for three years. Now expanded and arranged for use in any liturgical year, and with an additional section for saints' days and festivals, this comprehensive preaching companion provides an inspiring resource for worship throughout the year. Noted for their insightful, distilled wisdom and practical focus, these scripture reflections draw on the breadth of the Christian spiritual tradition to illuminate the Lectionary readings and open up their meaning for Christian living today, offering a trusted guide for all who share in the ministry of the word.

This important book on priestly identity embraces the many contemporary varieties of priestly ministry: male and female, paid and unpaid, parish and work-based, catholic, evangelical, charismatic. Examining the "root," the "shape," and the "fruit" of priestly identity, On Being a Priest Today is essential reading for priests, priests in training, and everyone considering the ministry. Part One "roots" a priest's human and church life in the theological convictions derived from the Christian understanding of God as being for and with others. Part Two explores the "shape" of priestly life in relation to worship, word, and prayer, each supported by the three key virtues of love, faith, and hope. Part Three examines the "fruit" of priestly life by focusing on three fundamental features of priestly identity: holiness, reconciliation, and blessing. With its applicability to various denominations, this exciting book offers welcome new perspectives on what it means to be a priest today.

Christine de Pizan's Livre de la Cite des Dames (1405) is justly renowned for its full-scale assault on the misogynist stereotypes which dominated the culture of the Middle Ages. Rosalind Brown-Grant locates the Cite in the context of Christine's defence of women as it developed over a number of years and through a range of different texts. Arguing that Christine tailored her critique of misogyny according to the genre in which she was writing and the audience she was addressing, this study shows that Christine's case for women nonetheless had an underlying unity in its insistence on the moral, if not the social, equality of the sexes. Whilst Christine may not have been a radical in modern feminist terms, she was able to draw upon the cultural resources of her day in order to construct an intellectual authority for herself that challenged the prevailing orthodoxy of the day.

Christine de Pizan's Livre de la Cite des Dames (1405) is justly renowned for its full-scale assault on the misogynist stereotypes which dominated the culture of the Middle Ages. Rosalind Brown-Grant locates the Cite in the context of Christine's defence of women as it developed over a number of years and through a range of different texts. Arguing that Christine tailored her critique of misogyny according to the genre in which she was writing and the audience she was addressing, this study shows that Christine's case for women nonetheless had an underlying unity in its insistence on the moral, if not the social, equality of the sexes. Whilst Christine may not have been a radical in modern feminist terms, she was able to draw upon the cultural resources of her day in order to construct an intellectual authority for herself that challenged the prevailing orthodoxy of the day.

Thoroughly interdisciplinary in approach, this volume examines how concepts such as the exercising of power, the distribution of justice, and transgression against the law were treated in both textual and pictorial terms in works produced and circulated in medieval French manuscripts and early printed books. Analysing texts ranging from romances, political allegories, chivalric biographies, and catalogues of famous men and women, through saints' lives, mystery plays and Books of Hours, to works of Roman, canon and customary law, these studies offer new insights into the diverse ways in which the language and imagery of politics and justice permeated French culture, particularly in the later Middle Ages. Organized around three closely related themes - the prince as a just ruler, the figure of the judge, and the role of the queen in relation to matters of justice - the issues addressed in these studies, such as what constitutes a just war, what treatment should be meted out to prisoners, what personal qualities are needed for the role of lawgiver, and what limits are placed on women's participation in judicial processes, are ones that are still the subject of debate today. What the contributors show above all is the degree of political engagement on the part of writers and artists responsible for cultural production in this period. With their textual strategies of exemplification, allegorization, and satirical deprecation, and their visual strategies of hierarchical ordering, spatial organization and symbolic allusion, these figures aimed to show that the pen and paintbrush could aspire to being as mighty as the sword wielded by Lady Justice herself.

In very practical and helpful terms, Rosalind Brown explores what it means to be a deacon in today's church. All too often the time spent as a deacon is seen simply as the prelude to priestly ordination. Yet the Bible defines three orders of ministry -deacon, priest, and bishop - each with its own distinctive characteristics and responsibilities. In Being A Deacon Today, Brown explores the three places where deacons minister (the church, the world, and at the margins), the three strands of their ministry (in liturgy, in pastoral care, and as catechists), and the three actions of their ministry (praying, loving, and remembering). This book, excellent for classroom use and for transitional and permanent deacons, will restore a fuller understanding of the diaconal ministry and nurture deacons in their work and spiritual life."