Rajan rethinks life after Covid with star-studded line-up

BBC Books has landed Rethink: Leading Voices on Life After Crisis and How We Can Make a Better World, a star-studded collection on life after Covid, edited and introduced by journalist Amol Rajan. Contributors include Pope Francis, the Dalai Lama, Prince Charles and others.

Albert DePetrillo, publishing director, acquired world rights, including e-book and audio, from Ellie Caddell at the BBC and Andrew Gordon at David Higham Associates. Rethink, inspired by Rajan's BBC podcast, will publish as a demy hardback and e-book on 27th May 2021.

The publisher said: “In a time of increasing uncertainty, Rethink offers a guide to a much-needed global ‘reset moment’, with leading international figures giving us glimpses of a better future after Covid. Each contribution explores a different aspect of public and private life that can be re-examined, from Pope Francis on poverty and the Dalai Lama on the role of ancient wisdom, to Lady Hale on the courts and Tara Westover on the education divide; from Elif Shafak on uncertainty, and Steven Pinker on human nature, to Xine Yao on masks and Jarvis Cocker on environmental revolution. Collectively, they offer a roadmap for positive change after a time of unprecedented hardship.”

Rajan said: "It is exhilarating to see Rethink in print. Long before the pandemic, I felt that we were living through one of history's hinge moments, when so many of the old certainties seem to be melting away. Then Covid-19 solidified and strengthened that feeling for millions of people worldwide. This is a bewildering era, and making the best of what comes next requires us to improve the quality of public conversation, and the calibre of ideas in circulation. In that spirit, assembling and editing so many of the world's wisest souls and sharpest minds has been an honour and, I'd humbly submit, shows Radio 4 and BBC Books at their Reithian best.”

DePetrillo added: “'Rethink' is an amazingly ambitious series, with a stunning list of contributors, and I’m thrilled to be working with Amol and the BBC on the accompanying book. After perhaps the most challenging year in recent memory, we hope this book will help start a national conversation about where we go next, and shine a positive light after unsettling times.”