One of the best things about having a term off college is having the time to read some of the books I have wanted to read for ages but which I haven't been able to get to. Here's another; David Bebbington's contribution to the 'History of Evangelicalism' 5-part series (of which parts 2, 4, and 5 seem rather reluctant to appear).
The book presents a nice overview of the period, ideas, politics, theology and some main characters analysing why they developed as they did; and the effect that developments of this period have had for the church. It's easy reading, with themes all nicely illustrated anecdotally from primary sources. So much of what happens in church life today harks back to this period, that understanding us requires understanding them. As my history tutor at Uni used to say, "if you want to be a leaf that doesn't know it is part of a tree - don't study history".
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