How to be Wise opens with an unexpectedly entertaining survey of the philosophical and religious roots of wisdom, before focusing on the brooding text of Ecclesiastes. Illumination of a more uplifting kind is then found in the sublime language of the Prologue of St John's Gospel, and the life and letters of St Paul. The second part of the book turns intriguingly to a number of less obvious topics. The author considers what it means to be a serious reader and how literature can enable us to discover more about ourselves; he probes the spiritual dimension of music and its power to speak to deep human longings; he offers valuable insights into the significance of the human emotions in relation to our wellbeing and moral imagination and, finally, a personal testimony to the place and significance of silence in matters of faith and our human journey.
