Ethiopian Devotions: Paintings, illuminated manuscripts, and processional crosses from the fourteenth to the twentieth centuries, edited by Marilyn E. Heldman (Smithsonian Books/National Museum of African Art, £38 (£34.20); 978-1-58834-807-4)

“Written by distinguished scholars in the field, the book’s exploration of Ethiopia’s cultural, artistic, and religious traditions is authoritative, and its more than 100 images reveal the depth, beauty and detail embodied in the artwork. Ethiopian Devotions offers readers the opportunity to understand and admire radiant art and learn about its long and remarkable history.”

Wisdom in Christian Tradition: The patristic roots of modern Russian sophiology by Marcus Plested (OUP, £25 (£22.50); 978-0-19-898751-2). New in paperback

“Following a survey of the biblical and classical background, Wisdom in Christian Tradition offers a detailed exploration of the theme of wisdom in patristic, Byzantine, and medieval theology, up to and including Gregory Palamas and Thomas Aquinas in Greek East and Latin West, respectively. Three principal levels of Christian wisdom discourse are distinguished: wisdom as human attainment, wisdom as divine gift, and wisdom as an attribute or quality of God. This journey through Wisdom in Christian Tradition is undertaken in conversation with modern Russian Sophiology, one of the most popular and widely discussed theological movements of our time.” 

Across the Narrow Straits: Place and pilgrimage, poems by Rosemary Power (Wild Goose, £9.99 (£8.99); 978-1-80432-399-1)

“Historian and social justice advocate Rosemary Power maps the stormy crossings of the human spirit. Drawing on her deep connection to the Hebrides and a lifetime of advocating for the vulnerable, she offers poems that go to the heart of human experience and illuminate the most difficult straits of our lives.”

Selected by Frank Nugent, of the Church House Bookshop, which operates the Church Times Bookshop.