You may remember that last year, Doug Wilson participated in an online debate with Christopher Hitchens (hosted by Christianity Today). At the time the debate generated a fair amount of buzz in the blog world, and also garnered media attention (from American Spectator and others).

We’re excited to announce that we are publishing the debate in book format this fall, along with brand new prefaces from both authors. The book, titled Is Christianity Good for the World?, will drop on September 2nd, and it’s now available for pre-order on our website. This book is an important contribution to the New Atheism discussion, partly because of its unique debate format, and partly because it features two keen minds going head-to-head on a brutally pertinent topic.

By now, you faithful readers have probably figured out that this blog is kind of our bulletin board to let you know what’s new at Canon Press. The trouble is, we don’t want you to think that the blog is just a series of advertisements. After all, who really wants to read that? So, we’ve been trying to spruce up—solicit a few guest posts, quiz some of our authors on their books, and give you all a taste of what’s it like to work at Canon. (And no, you have no idea yet. Trust me.)

But there are also a lot of little updates and additions to our website: new books from other publishers, sneak previews for what’s ahead, new covers on classic Canon titles, and more. And since all those little things aren’t enough for a blog post on their own, I thought I’d post a collection here, just to make sure you don’t miss out on what’s up. (more…)

To kick off April and say “Goodbye!” to winter (we hope!), we’re releasing two new audio sets from Pastor Wilson this week.

The first, Loving Little Ones, is a four-part series on the fatherhood of God. Pastor Wilson calls parents to look at the example that God has given us in the Bible. Our God is a loving heavenly Father whose every action is motivated by the great love He has for His children. If we reflect on that, then we’ll learn a great deal, not only about our responsibility as parents but also our responsibility as God’s children.

The other is Practical Christian Living: Volume 2. Building on the first volume, this set of sermons branches out to offer answers to common but difficult questions: “How do I live according to the will of God?” “How do I deal with the weight of sexual guilt?” “How do I tell others about this amazing grace I’ve been given?” Turning to the Scriptures, Pastor Wilson offers clear and simple admonitions about walking in the footsteps of Christ.

We’re about a month-and-a-half away from the release of The Book Tree (Second Edition), and here at Canon, we’re all excitedly looking forward to watching this book make its way into new homes, schools, and libraries. But some of you may be scratching your heads and wondering, “What’s all the fuss?” or worse, “Why should I be interested in some stuffy reference book?” So, we’ve put a few questions to authors Elizabeth McCallum and Jane Scott, asking them to explain where their vision comes from and what excites them about children’s books.

What first sparked your interest in children’s literature, and what led you to turn that interest into a reference book?
Our love of children’s literature developed over many years of bedtime stories. Our family has always been a reading family, and we have enjoyed many wonderful stories together. We discovered first hand the value of reading books aloud, not only to develop vocabulary and build cultural literacy but perhaps more importantly to build memories and community within the family. Children who are read to from their earliest years are much more likely to see the value of reading good books themselves. (more…)

The following guest post has been adapted from an original post from Dr. David Field’s blog on 10 February 2008. David lives and lectures in London and will be returning to speak at this year’s Trinity Fest (on Great Cities of the Bible). To view the rest of the post and visit his blog, click here. To download the talks, click here.

The Blenheim Manifesto
We had a splendid afternoon at Blenheim Palace yesterday, hearing three
lectures from Doug Wilson on

• The Gospel and Your Church
• The Gospel and Your Family
• The Gospel and Your Government

The talks will be available from Canon Press as The Blenheim Lectures before long but, as in the title of this post, they could easily be regarded, together, as a “Blenheim Manifesto”—a three-talk description of and agenda for the display and implementation of the total rule of the Lord Jesus Christ in all of life. Get hold of these and listen carefully to them all the way through—the argument of the talks (individually and as a series) is compelling and exhilarating. Here are a few snippets to give a taste:

(more…)