Graham Speake is founder and Chairman of the Friends of Mount Athos. He is a regular visitor to the Mountain and was received into the Orthodox Church there in 1999. Trained as a classicist, he holds a doctorate in Greek from the University of Oxford and is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. His first book, Mount Athos: Renewal in Paradise (2nd edition, 2014), was awarded the Criticos Prize.

Part I: 1. Introduction; 2. The monastic life; Part II: 3. St Athanasios the Athonite (c.925-1000/1): founder of cenobitic monasticism on Athos; 4. The enlighteners of Georgia; 5. St Antony (983-1073) and St Theodosius (1035-1074) of Kiev: fathers of Russian monasticism; 6. St Sava (1175-1236): illuminator of Serbia; 7. St Gregory of Sinai (c.1265-1346): initiator of the 'Hesychast International'; 8. St Gregory Palamas (1296-1359): champion of hesychasm on Athos; 9. St Theodosius of Trnovo (c.1300-1363) and the Bulgarian school of hesychasm; 10. St Nikodimos of Tismana (1320-1406): transmitter of hesychasm to Wallachia; 11. St Sergius of Radonezh (1314-1392) and St Nil Sorsky (c.1433-1508): revivers of Russian monasticism; 12. St Maximos the Greek (c.1470-1556): enlightener of Russia; 13. St Kosmas the Aetolian (1714-1779): teacher of the Greek nation, apostle to the Albanians; 14. St Paisy Velichkovsky (1722-1794): reviver of hesychasm; 15. St Nikodimos of the Holy Mountain (1749-1809): editor of the Philokalia; 16. Athos and the West; Epilogue.