From the Library - our latest acquisitions

Are you reading books? Should you be reading? Where do you start?

Welcome to our blog post. Use this website to your advantage, there is a whole lot more content coming in near future, when I can spare some time to provide you with food for thought in a way that’s current and interesting. Think of it as an ongoing conversation where you we can share ideas, news, and more.

Until our Members Only page is available, here are some of the great new books we've recently added to our library. Paper books!

Designa

by Adam Tetlow, Daud Sutton, Lisa DeLong, Phoebe McNaughton, David Wade, John Martineau (Editor)

From the geometric patterns of Islamic art and design to the swirling floral motifs of Celtic art, Designa brings together six elegant and insightful short volumes from the Wooden Books series on art and design including Islamic Design, Celtic Pattern, Curves, The Golden Section, Symmetry, and Perspective. Lavishly illustrated with engravings, woodcuts, and original drawings and diagrams, Designa will inspire readers of all ages to take an interest in the interconnected knowledge of art and design from different cultures throughout the world.

Trivium: The Classical Liberal Arts of Grammar, Logic, & Rhetoric

by John Michell, Rachel Grenon, Earl Fontainelle, Adina Arvatu, Andrew Aberdein, Octavia Wynne, and Gregory Beabout

The Trivium refers to the three liberal arts considered in classical Greece to be the pillars of critical thought: grammar, logic, and rhetoric.

Following on the success of Quadrivium and Sciencia, Trivium gathers six Wooden Books titles together into a beautiful six-color package that presents ancient wisdom in an accessible way. Trivium will include the books Euphonics, Grammar, Logic, Rhetoric, Poetic Meter and Form, and Ethics.

Quadrivium: The Four Classical Liberal Arts of Number, Geometry, Music, & Cosmology

by Miranda Lundy, Daud Sutton, Anthony Ashton, Jason Martineau, John Martineau

The quadrivium-the classical curriculum-comprises the four liberal arts of number, geometry, music, and cosmology. It was studied from antiquity to the Renaissance as a way of glimpsing the nature of reality. Geometry is number in space; music is number in time; and cosmology expresses number in space and time. Number, music, and geometry are metaphysical truths: life across the universe investigates them; they foreshadow the physical sciences. Quadrivium is the first volume to bring together these four subjects in many hundreds of years.

Sciencia: Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Astronomy for All

by Matt Tweed, Matthew Watkins, Moff Betts, Burkard Polster, Gerard Cheshire

From basic mathematical and physical formulas that govern much of our world to the components of matter; from the structure of the cosmos to that of the human body-the discoveries of scientists over the last millennium have been remarkable.

Sciencia gathers together Useful Mathematical and Physical Formulae, Q.E.D, Essential Elements, Evolution, The Human Body, and The Compact Cosmos, six elegant and insightful short volumes spanning the realms of mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, evolution, and astronomy, offering invaluable information to today's readers. Lavishly illustrated with engravings, woodcuts, and original drawings and diagrams, Sciencia will inspire readers of all ages to take an interest in the interconnected knowledge of the modern sciences.

The Golden Section: Nature's Greatest Secret

by Scott Olsen

What was the golden secret known to Leonardo da Vinci, Kepler, Plato and the ancient magicians? Can there really be a key to nature and life itself? In this small but compact volume internationally renowned divine proportion supersleuth Dr Olsen unravels perhaps the greatest mystery of all time, a code that seems to underly life, the universe and everything, a pattern we instinctively recognise as beautiful, and which nature herself uses at every scale. Designed for artists and scientists alike, this is the smallest, densest and most beautiful book on the golden section ever produced.

Sacred Number: The Secret Quality of Quantities

by Miranda Lundy

Numbers permeate every aspect of our lives; very little happens without a basic ability to manipulate the simple whole numbers we all take for granted. Beautifully illustrated with old engravings as well as contemporary imagery, Sacred Number introduces basic counting systems; significant numbers from major religious texts; the importance of astronomy, geometry, and music to number quality; how numbers affect architecture. Lundy explains why the ideas of Pythagoras still resonate, and she profiles each number from one to ten to show its distinct qualities: why, for example, the golden section is associated with five, and seven with the Virgin Mary.

Ruler and Compass: Practical Geometric Constructions

by Andrew Sutton

How do you draw a heptagon? What about a heptakaidecagon? How do you fit circles perfectly into triangles? And around them? If the computer is down - could you do it with ruler and compass? In this unique little book, Andrew Sutton guides you through the once treasured principles of ruler and compass constructions, used for centuries by architects, carpenters, stonemasons and master craftsmen. Designed to last until the lights go out, this is a timeless book.

Sacred Geometry

by Miranda Lundy

Is there a secret visual language all around us? What’s so special about the shape of the Great Pyramid? Why is there something so sixy about circles? How many ways can you tile the plane? Lavishly illustrated by the author, this enchanting small introduction to one of the oldest and most widely-used ancient traditions on Earth will forever change the way you look at a triangle, arch, window, fabric repeat, ceramic pattern, graphic design, painting, spiral or flower.

Logic: The Ancient Art of Reason

by Earl Fontainelle

How do you tell what’s right from what’s wrong? Can you always? What’s the difference between deduction, induction, and abduction? What are the best techniques for making an argument logically sound? In this fascinating little book, the smallest on its subject ever produced, philosopher Earl Fontainelle explores the ancient art of discursive Logic and demonstrates some of the techniques that have long been used to triumph over the debates and deceptions that assail us every day. Filled with helpful examples of good and bad reasoning, Logic is an invaluable introduction to a defining human characteristic.