Space to Create: A Writer’s View on the Housing Crisis
Part memoir, part in-depth report, Space to Create charts the hilarious and heartbreaking journey of one young writer trying to live – and make a living – in the midst of Britain’s housing crisis. Reflecting on his own chaotic course from one dodgy dwelling to another – including stressful shared houses, a bed in a shed, a barn in the middle of nowhere, and his childhood home – Ben Irvine examines the political ideologies and widespread social attitudes that have stripped millions of young people of the right to settle down in a place they can call their own. His conclusion – that socialist policies, peddled by Labour and Conservative governments alike, are responsible for the housing crisis – sheds new light on a dark time in Britain’s economic and social history, and offers a path forward for anyone liberal enough to want to take it.
Mindfulness and the Big Questions: Philosophy for Now
Existential anxiety – a fear of our very existence – is something we all have to deal with in our lives. Some of us try to escape from this fear, through hiding in the distractions that modern life offers us. Some of us turn to philosophy, but, alas, philosophers throughout the ages have rarely offered good advice on how to face up to life. Mindfulness and the Big Questions explores how mindfulness can enhance our understanding of who and where we are, enabling us to come to terms with our existence, and to embrace being here now. Author Ben Irvine argues that the so-called Big Questions of philosophy – Why am I here? Do I really know anything? Am I free? Is there a higher power? What makes a life good? What does it all mean? – have Small Answers that are hiding in plain sight. These common sense, down-to-earth, life-embracing answers can help us all live more wisely and happily.
Scapegoated Capitalism
Ben Irvine’s latest book, Scapegoated Capitalism, has been published on Amazon Kindle. Click here to buy a copy. **If you live outside the UK, you may have to buy a copy directly from your kindle device.**
Scapegoating is one of humankind’s most unpleasant and unspoken practices. From witch-hunts and whipping boys to ritual sacrifices and genocides, our past abounds with shameful examples of individuals and minorities being forced to atone for the misdeeds and misfortunes of the powerful. In this groundbreaking book, philosopher Ben Irvine explores the history and psychology of scapegoating, identifying the tragic forces that tempt us to make culprits of the innocent. In turn, Irvine shines a spotlight on the shocking prevalence of scapegoating today. Confronting popular misconceptions about the source of our modern ills, he makes a compelling and controversial claim: that those who are the most vociferous in their condemnation of modern life have the most to answer for. A book for our times, from beyond the pale, Scapegoated Capitalism is a call for self-examination and responsibility.
Einstein and the Art of Mindful Cycling
“In connecting Einstein, meditation and the bicycle, Ben Irvine artfully expresses something so many cyclists have wondered about for so long. The book is a delight to read.” – Rob Penn
Ben Irvine’s first book, Einstein and the Art of Mindful Cycling is all about how inspiring cycling can be.
Through stories, fascinating facts and a few lessons in mindful living, Ben shows how cyclists can develop an enlightened outlook similar to Albert Einstein’s – practical, creative, communal and global all at once.
The outcome is an exhilarating philosophy for our times, and a celebration of balance, in more ways than one.
Einstein and the Art of Mindful Cycling is available to buy now. Delivery worldwide.