STEVEN ANDREW is moved beyond words by a historical account of mining in Britain made from the words of the miners themselves

Free, Equal and Mutual: Rebalancing Society for the Common Good
Edited by Martin Large and Steve Briault
(Hawthorn Press, £20)
STARTING from a premise few would deny — the world is in a state of chaos — this collection of essays, based on the philosophical ideas of Rudolf Steiner, attempts to offer a way forward.
The “Threefold Approach” argues that our societies are comprised of three main pillars, the state (in the realm of polity), business (economics) and civic society (culture) and a meaningful and collaborative system involving all of them is the way forward to ensure our survival.

JOHN GREEN recommends a German comedy that celebrates the old GDR values of solidarity, community and a society not dominated by consumerism

JOHN GREEN welcomes an insider account of the achievements and failures of the transition to democracy in Portugal

Mountains of research show that hardcore material harms children, yet there are still no simple measures in place

Peter Mitchell's photography reveals a poetic relationship with Leeds