‘Some day the war will be over and we shall meet again – or we shall meet if we can bear to face the chairs that will stand empty.’ Rev J H Hopkinson –Hulme Hall Warden 1905–1914 writing in January 1916 to the Hulme Hall community Established in 1870 as a Church of England Hall of Residence for students of Owens College, Manchester, Hulme Hall has grown and adapted to meet the changing face of university life in Manchester over the past 147 years. The Hulme Hall community faced its biggest examination throughout the First World War. 250 students and staff of Hulme Hall served in the armed forces between 1914 and 1919. This figure accounts for over 50% of the total number of students who passed through the Hall after it reopened in 1887. Forty did not return home. The first to be killed was Second Lieutenant Wilfred Trevelyan who was hit by shrapnel whilst repairing a support trench near Ypres in May 1915. The last was Major Ernest Cunliffe who passed away in the Lake District in March 1919 after contracting an illness whilst serving at Military hospitals in Manchester and France. Very few books focus on the life and times of a particular hall of residence during the First World War. Piecing together never before published letters, photographs and documents, Chairs that Stand Empty captures the characters and heart-breaking stories behind the names on the Hulme Hall War Memorial. Stories such as those of; Charles Hamilton Murray Chapman; whose family posthumously published the children’s book he had painstakingly written and illustrated before the start of the war. Friends Wilfred Treveylan and James Henderson; who went off to war together in 1915. Wilfred was killed shortly after arriving in France whilst James went to on win the Military Cross only days later when fighting desperately against wave after wave of enemy attacks. Robert Bedford; who wrote vividly of his time in Gallipoli, Sinai and finally France; particularly touching is his record of seeing bodies his friends lying in the Gallipoli heat after failed attacks in August 1915. Harold Swift’s wife, Muriel; who discovered the heartbreaking news her husband had died a month after his death when reading the casualty lists published in the Australian press. Arthur Lord; who fought overseas underage. Wounded twice and prompted to Captain by the age of 19, he twice lied about his age on his medical board forms to avoid questions back in England. Kenneth Barry; who reluctantly gave up his studies to enlist. He was hoping the war would soon be over so he could continue at Hulme Hall. He never returned.

Reowned criminalist Lincoln Rhyme is pitted against Amelia Sachs, his own brilliant protegee, as they disagree on the analysis of a crime they began working together.

Composed of two companion novellas, The Empty Chair is a profound, heart-wrenching piece of spiritual storytelling from Bruce Wagner, the internationally acclaimed author of such novels as Dead Stars, I’m Losing You and Force Majeure. In First Guru, a fictional Wagner narrates the tale of a Buddhist living in Big Sur, who achieves enlightenment in the horrific aftermath of his child’s suicide. In Second Guru, Queenie, an aging wild child, returns to India to complete the spiritual journey of her youth. Told in ravaged, sensuous detail to the author-narrator by two strangers on opposite sides of the country, years apart from each other, both stories illuminate the random, chaotic nature of human suffering and the miraculous strength of the human spirit. A deeply affecting and meditative reading experience, The Empty Chair is an exquisitely rendered, thought-provoking, and humbling new work.

Through eight compelling stories we get to know the Gestalt therapist Vikram Kolmannskog and some of his clients. These include the businessman Carl who is suffering from chronic burnout, the overwhelmed Marianne who believes she may have been the victim of sexual assualt, the trans woman Annette who breaks with dominant gender norms, the prisoner Jonny who is now encircled by his own self-made wall of isolation, and the beautiful Ask, who falls in love and others fall in love with - including the therapist Vikram. Through these tales of psychotherapy we see how both suffering and healing can occur. With increased awareness and through dialogue we can experience more of ourselves, the other and our world. We become more whole - and that is a good definition of health.

Losing a loved one--whether a spouse, parent, child, sibling, or friend--leaves people feeling overwhelmed and hopeless. Holidays and other special occasions seem to intensify the pain. Whether the occasion is Christmas or Easter, a birthday or anniversary, these celebrations force the bereaved to again face the reality of a loved one's absence. Susan Zonnebelt-Smeenge and Robert C. De Vries know firsthand the sorrow of bereavement: Both lost a spouse. Yet as they faced their pain and gleaned insights from their professions--Susan is a psychologist, Robert, a minister--they found renewed richness on special days that once brought heartache. In The Empty Chair, the authors share a comforting blend of emotional support, spiritual guidance, and personal experience to help readers honor their loved one on important days. Those who support the bereaved--mental-health professionals, pastors, funeral home staff, and others--will also appreciate this book for its reflective yet practical approach.

Why aren't Jewish women circumcised? This improbable question, first advanced by anti-Jewish Christian polemicists, is the point of departure for this wide-ranging exploration of gender and Jewishness in Jewish thought. With a lively command of a wide range of Jewish sources—from the Bible and the Talmud to the legal and philosophical writings of the Middle Ages to Enlightenment thinkers and modern scholars—Shaye J. D. Cohen considers the varied responses to this provocative question and in the process provides the fullest cultural history of Jewish circumcision available.