'Wittgenstein and reason.' John Preston (ed). Wiley Blackwell, 2008.

‘Reason’ is not one of Wittgenstein’s usual words (this is pointed out by more than one of the contributors to this collection). Despite this, his insights into the nature of rule-following, the basis of religious belief and our capacity to understand and interpret both the mundane and ritualistic practices of others sheds important light on what we might possibly mean by talk of what is reasonable and rational. This is clearly brought out, in different ways and contexts, by the various contributions to this volume. Each chapter offers a tightly argued, beautifully written and illuminating take on issues of this kind.