love2learn.net

There is nothing like a nice new book for children about... Christmas! This new Pauline Books & Media volume is a translation of an original French book. I had my 8 year old read it aloud to me, and she loved the illustrations that bring together the human and the supernatural very well. She loved the sweet, cute angels and all of the animals at the familiar stable! Biblical details are all present here: the story follows Mary and Joseph from before the Annunciation, their wedding and the trip to Bethlehem through the Magi at Herod's court, the slaughter of the innocents and the Holy Family's tenure in Egypt. Mary is shown round and pregnant in the beginning, and breastfeeding our Savior baby in Egypt, all in a very natural, warm and cute way.

I have always loved sticker books-- especially when the drawings are cute as in the case of this booklet. Sticker "scenes" are 2 page- spreads following the story of the birth of Our Lord, and the last page had a suggested scheme of each scene.

Bethlehem Books has just released the first in a set of three new board books on the Blessed Trinity. This first one is about God the Son and it's gorgeous! Each page has a lovely painting by early Renaissance artist Fra Angelico, illustrating a scene from the Life of Christ. The paintings are accompanied by short, rich text that speaks of who Jesus is. It's a very quick read, just a few lines per page, but thoughtfully put together and one that can be reflected on over and over again.

The series description has some interesting things to say about the intentions of the publisher for this series:

This summer I had the supreme pleasure of reading Nancy Nicholson’s Bigger Stories for Little Folks to my two youngest girls, ages 5 & 7. After flipping through the first, more well-known volume of Devotional Stories for Little Folks, I was hesitant, thinking that perhaps the stories would seem a bit involved and preachy to my two precocious gals. I am happy to say that my fears were unfounded.

This short animated film (32 minutes) tells the story of Saint Perpetua and her companions, who were martyred in Carthage, in North Africa, in the year 203. The animation is good, the best of any Catholic animated films I've seen, though not reaching the quality of The Prince of Egypt. The storyline, however, is quite rich and historically detailed and skillfully brings to life the sorrows and fears, hopes and joys, present in the life and struggles of these martyrs, and the early Church in general. In particular, the concept that those awaiting martyrdom might fear pain, but do not fear death, is very helpful and hopeful!

I am very impressed with this new publication by the Institute for Excellence in Writing. It is a user-friendly, comprehensive and resourceful American Literature Course, recommended for 11th grade English. I'd say it is a real possibility I will be using that in our homeschool co-op next year, and it could definitely be doubled as English and Lit. Visit to their website for info and sample pages.

This is a brief, engaging and heavily illustrated biography of the world's first historian. Herodotus lived in the Greek city of Halicarnassus in the Persian empire during the 5th century BC. His situation and personality put him an ideal place to tell the fascinating stories of the Persian Wars (think Marathon, Thermopylae and Salamis) and to travel extensively and collect stories from all over. His original writings are a fascinating read for upper high school or college.

This is unique in that it shares the basic history of his own life, told in first person narrative. It gives a fascinating glimpse into the world he lived in as well as touching upon major events and characters that he wrote about.

My first impression when I opened Advent in the Home was, “Wow, it’s all here.” Normally in October I start filling my calendar with meaningful Advent activities; jotting down ideas on scraps of paper which I promptly lose and printing out coloring sheets until I run out of ink. This seems to be fairly common in homeschooling families. Aspiring to create a more spiritual tone to what has become an oppressively secular time of year can be quite overwhelming. There are just so many ideas spread out in books, periodicals, and on the Iinternet. Gathering them all and putting them to use in the home can actually create frustration and distract well-meaning parents from focusing on Christ.

"Spring's Gift of Hope" is the first book by Moniqe Niemaszyk I read. I understand it is the second of a series and I look forward to the upcoming ones. Although you may want your child to read the first one ("Birthday Snow") of the series first, this volume read very independently.

A New England Catholic family of five children deals with the care and death of an older aunt, and protagonist 18 yr old Gina gets ready for college and a possible romantic relationship. Lessons are learned, hearts are touched, and an example of healthy family and prayer life is gently portrayed.

The writing is good and simply done, the story flows nicely, and the overall product is professional and pleasant. This book will make a great gift for a teenager girl!

This small booklet can make a nice resource for a child during Stations of the Cross devotions.

Each set of double pages depicts a full page illustration in a simplified iconic format and a page of text. Under the title of each station, in bold, is the traditional prayer of the Church: We adore you, o Christ and we praise you, because by your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world.