Books over the centuries have taken many forms. Indeed some kinds of books do not have to have any narrative to be most revealing. I came across one of these a little while ago in an Oxfam shop, a green cloth-bound item for which I see I paid 39 cents. The title page revealed that…

The Curious Fox by Ross McDonagh, illustrated by Conor M. O’Brien (Veritas, €8.99 / £6.99)

Saint Oliver Plunkett: Journey to Sainthood by Tommy Burns (St Oliver Plunkett for Peace and Reconciliation Committee, €10.00)

C. S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity: A Biography by George M. Marsden (Princeton University Press, £16.95)

I Was a Boy in Belsen by Tomi Reichental (O’Brien Press, €11.99)

Ever Seen a Fat Fox? Human Obesity Explored by Mike Gibney (UCD Press, €20.00)

Naturama: Open Your Eyes to the Wonders of Irish Nature by Michael Fewer, with illustrations by Melissa Doran (Gill Books, €22.99)

The Gaze of Love by Ruth Patterson (Veritas, €14.99)  Ruth Patterson is an Ulster Presbyterian minister long associated with the Restoration Ministries, who have worked in the North as well as elsewhere since the 1980s, in a non-denominational way to promote not just peace and reconciliation, but also healing.  But the key to this healing…

Kerry 1916: Histories and Legacies of the Easter Rising: A Centenary Record edited by Bridget McAuliffe, Mary McAuliffe, Owen O’Shea (Irish Historical Publications, €25 pb / €35 hb)

James Joyce’s talented cousin