A wry, macape tale of simple country living, putal murder, and a reasonably happy couple, from our “most startlingly offbeat suspense novelist” (Gore Vidal).In their lovely old Cotswolds village, Janet and Susan are known to all the other villagers as “the girls”—a fixture. Partners in love and work, co-proprietors of a picturesque shop specializing in the work of local artisans and farmers, they lead an enviable, enviably settled life.So it’s no catastrophe when Sue, the y...

*A WATERSTONES PAPERBACK OF THE YEAR 2026*'Such great dialogue and action...a frisky murder story and terrific reading' John Self, The TimesTwo women. One baby. And a man in the septic tank.In their lovely Cotswolds village, Janet and Susan are known simply as ‘the girls’. Partners in love and work, proprietors of a picturesque shop, they lead an enviably peaceful life.But after one moment of surpri...

First published in 1958 After the Rain was described by Angus Wilson as a 'cataclysmic novel . . . as exciting as any deluge you can hope to find; but if you think deluges are too trivial, John Bowen has a surprise for you: his novel turns out to be satire of the first order.'Beginning in the basement of Foyle's bookshop in the Charing Cross Road in London and moving to rainmaking in Texas, love in Chew Magna, a camp in the Mendips, a storm at sea, sharks, sunstrok...

Low-Cost Airline Carriers in Emerging Countries traces the development of low-cost carriers (LCCs) in Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa, examining airlines that have become significant players in their home markets but little known at a global scale. The book maps the geography of the LCC phenomenon, explaining the starkly varying success of budget airlines, and assessing their current social, economic and environmental impacts. The book concludes with insights into the futur...

In John Bowen's The Birdcage Peter Ash and Norah Palmer have been living together for nine years. Having never seen the point in getting married they are the epitome of a modern successful career-oriented couple; Peter is the compere for a series of 'art' films and Norah is the Script Editor for the Drama Department of a commercial television company. Why then when holidaying in Venice does Peter decide to break up their long-lasting relationship? What happens to their order and s...

First published in 1959 The Centre of the Green is John Bowen's third novel. The story centres around the Baker family: the father Justin is a retired Colonel; the mother, Teresa, is over-possessive and refuses to admit that her sons have grown-up; the sons Julian and Charles - one is a married advertising copywriter with a penchant for extra-marital affairs while the other is withdrawn and suicidal, desperately looking for human contact in the vast anonymity of London.

Set in the world of a large advertising company Storyboard focuses on the decision by the agency's clients, Hoppness, Silch & Co. ('the soap people') to destroy one of their competitor's products. Into this scheme are thrust copyeditor Sophia Last and her boss Hugh Grover, as well as over-conscientious Account Executive Keith Bates, his wife Sylvia and their son Stephen. Also caught up in these events is Ralph Cavell, a young research graduate turned journalist.

The French government's 2004 decision to ban Islamic headscarves and other religious signs from public schools puzzled many observers, both because it seemed to infringe needlessly on religious freedom, and because it was hailed by many in France as an answer to a surprisingly wide range of social ills, from violence against females in poor suburbs to anti-Semitism. Why the French Don't Like Headscarves explains why headscarves on schoolgirls caused such a furor, and why the furor...

In this rich account of a Muslim society in highland Sumatra, Indonesia, John Bowen describes how men and women debate among themselves ideas of what Islam is and should be--as it pertains to all areas of their lives, from work to worship. Whereas many previous anthropological studies have concentrated on the purely local aspects of culture, this book captures and analyzes the tension between the local and universal in everyday life. Current religious differences among the Gayo stem from d...

Many congregations and their leaders are discouraged about the future of the church. John Bowen's conviction is that the solution is to be found not in new programs or strategies but in a recovery of theological vision--that of Jesus and his gospel, which transforms every aspect of life. This vision restores hope in the only way realistically possible. Words like mission, discipleship, church, evangelism, renewal, and church planting...

On British Islam examines the history and everyday workings of Islamic institutions in Britain, with a focus on shariʿa councils. These councils concern themselves with religious matters, especially divorce. They have a higher profile in Britain than in other Western nations. Why? Taking a historical and ethnographic look at British Islam, John Bowen examines how Muslims have created distinctive religious institutions in Britain and how shariʿa councils interpret and apply Islamic...

For forty years, John Bowen has been a popular speaker, teacher, and preacher on university campuses, in churches and in classrooms, and at conferences across Canada. This book brings together forty of his best sermons, talks, and articles. You will be encouraged and you will be challenged. You will laugh and cry, think and pray--sometimes all at the same time. The topics are wildly various: "The Spiritual Quality of Craziness," "Vacuum Cleaner Church," "The Vocation of a Garbage Collector...