The question this book asks concerns a whole generation . . . Not only a fascinating sociological study and religious memoir, but a profound look at the power of ritual and communion with others . . . I feel so different to the person I was when I started this research, Ash concludes. Readers may find they close this book feeling different too -- Laura Hackett * Sunday Times * A twenty-first-century version of Rural Rides, except that in place of William Cobbetts horse, Ash set off in a twenty-year-old Toyota Corolla . . . A captivating narrative of discovery . . . Dont Forget Were Here Forever is a Pilgrims Progress for our time -- Catherine Pepinster * Telegraph * In this smart and heartfelt book, one of our most talented young writers takes to the road to meet them, all around Britain, and discover whats afoot * Telegraph, Best Books of 2025 * Lyrical, reflective . . . A rare and arresting book -- Pippa Bailey * New Statesman * Ash's first book, on the Cornish fishing community, written with wide-eyed wonder when she was in her early 20s, was excellent, and her second is even better . . . Ash has that great skill of writing narrative non-fiction in a nuanced way, subtly revealing the complexities of humanity -- Patrick Galbraith * Daily Mail * In ancient abbeys and modern meeting houses, in silent retreats and garrulous reading groups, Ash meets born-again evangelicals and utopian Quakers and all sorts in between . . . Offers scintillating insight into how faith works in an age of intense self-fashioning * Financial Times * Meticulously crafted . . . Through her personal experiences and reflections Ash illuminates the inadequacy of mere statistical measures of religious attendance . . . The author pursues her quest through intelligent observation and exploratory conversation . . . These reflections on a new generations search for religion will be rewarding reading for many -- Alister McGrath * Times Literary Supplement * Inspired by the abrupt embrace of religion by two friends, Lamorna Ash has investigated how many young people are now turning towards faith, not away from it. Dont Forget Were Here Forever takes in every facet of this, from youth festivals put on by evangelicals to monasteries on Scottish islands. Along the way, she touches on her own relationship to religion too * GQ, Best Books of 2025 * An important and human book about the state of Christianity in contemporary Britain -- Stuart Kelly * Scotsman * It is not surprising that at a time like this, people should turn to older sources of meaning. Dont Forget Were Here Forever is therefore a book for our moment . . . Subtle, self-conscious and beautifully wrought . . . A literary performance of a high order; it is also a deeply humane book -- Kevin Power * Irish Times * I finished Dont Forget Were Here Forever in 48 hours, because the stakes are so real and so recognisable . . . What lingers is the vulnerable expression of raw existential longing and the sheer beauty of the sentences . . . The most honest and moving account of the wrestle of faith that I have read since Christian Wimans My Bright Abyss, and I have never heard anyone describe the interior experience of prayer more powerfully -- Elizabeth Oldfield * Church Times * Gentle, lovely . . . Ashs faith is at its core a matter of curiosity . . . Ash started working on Dont Forget Were Here Forever when she was only 26, but the tender grace of her tone makes her seem much older, perhaps because she writes from the vantage point of newly discovered faith. In addition to a journalistic portrait of many young believers, Dont Forget Were Here Forever is a memoir of sorts, charting Ashs passage from doubt to a refreshingly fluid and undogmatic brand of Christianity . . . Even when she is exploring the cruellest and crudest forms of Christianity, Ash often finds something of value in them . . . Over the course of Dont Forget Were Here Forever, Ash becomes an example of the kind of radical openness that reading (and religion) should demand -- Becca Rothfeld * Washington Post * A lyrical and remarkably compassionate picture of faith -- Emily Lawford * Prospect * A book of rare quality: Lamorna Ash is not only a writer of exceptional grace and energy, but a movingly good, compassionate listener -- ROWAN WILLIAMS, former Archbishop of Canterbury Beautiful as a piece of writing, beautiful too as a record of a soul wrestling in the present with what faith might be -- FRANCIS SPUFFORD Spellbinding . . . An incredible exploration of how young people are navigating the complex world we find ourselves in today -- KATY HESSEL, author of The History of Art Without Men Humane, curious and unexpectedly moving, Lamorna Ashs book is as much an account of the human condition as it is an investigation of faith. Quietly radical in its empathy, this is a book I have waited years and years to read, without even knowing it -- SEÁN HEWITT, author of All Down Darkness Wide Smart and stylish and occasionally transformative . . . Ashs mission to find out what the religion signifies and her good faith engagement with believers will surely stay with her, and her readers, for some time -- Franklin Nelson * Tablet * Written with great candour and self-awareness . . . Ashs book is itself a comfort: an opportunity to see the Church through the eyes of someone newly awakened to its potential -- Madeleine Davies * Church Times * In this elegantly written work of non-fiction, she travels around Britain to see how our young people turned back to religion, exploring everything from Quaker meetings to monastic communities on the Hebridean Isles. We read a lot of waffle about "the youth today", and what they do (or dont) believe: Ash paints a fascinating, and more realistic, picture -- Lucy Thynne * Telegraph, The Best Books of 2025 * Lamorna Ash wonders why and how so many young people are converting to Christianity in Britain today. Its no spoiler to say that Ashs search for answers leads to some self-questioning too, but, crucially, she remains clear-eyed about her subject throughout. This is religion in the 21st century -- Peter Hoskin * Prospect, Books of the Year * Explores faith with honesty, depth and a storyteller's eye . . . Candid and unflitered . . . Near-essential reading for anyone hoping to understand how Gen Z might approach faith -- Derek Walker * Premier Christianity * Radically empathetic, this is a reminder of the joy of collectivism and feeding the soul -- Lena de Casparis * Elle, The Cult Books We Can't Wait to Read in 2025 * Inspired by the abrupt embrace of religion by two friends, Lamorna Ash has investigated how many young people are now turning towards faith, not away from it. Dont Forget Were Here Forever takes in every facet of this, from youth festivals put on by evangelicals to monasteries on Scottish islands. Along the way, she touches on her own relationship to religion too -- Josiah Gogarty * GQ, The Most Anticipated Books of 2025 * Serious, luminous and profound, Lamorna Ash has written a book thats honest without self-pity, moving without becoming sentimental, clear-sighted, considered and animated by an intuitive intelligence. Shes a wonderful companion and this is an important book for an age that so often feels atomised -- LUCY CALDWELL, author of Openings She has that great skill of writing narrative non-fiction in a nuanced way, subtly revealing the complexities of humanity Britains youngsters are turning to faith in surprising numbers. Ash embarks on a journey around Britain, from Evangelical youth festivals to Quaker meetings to a silent Jesuit retreat to find out why * Financial Times, What to Read in 2025 * A very persuasive and compelling account of the cultural shift happening right now in Britain and elsewhere with respect to religion, especially Christianity. As the book tells its story, there is also a shift from an open-minded curiosity about religion to a much more intense focus on religious practices like prayer and devotion, particularly in the context of compassion for the suffering of others, near and far. An excellent book -- SIMON CRITCHLEY, author of On Mysticism Dont Forget Were Here Forever introduced me to a Christianity far richer and stranger than the faith I thought I knew. Lamorna Ash is the best of guides through our new spiritual landscape: clear-eyed, compassionate and truly wise. And, from the first page to the last, she writes like an angel -- MATT ROWLAND HILL, author of Original Sins Provides a very human portrait of young people wrestling with the idea of religion -- Shannon Mahanty * Elle * Ashs slow courtship with faith is moving, both because its colored by her impending loss and because of how she embraces the uncanny -- Lauren Boersma Harris * New Yorker *
