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The author and illustrator pair have done many children's picture books together, including the nice "Picture Book of..." American history series.

Many books cover large periods of history, but I've yet to see one that includes so many personal experiences and fascinating stories in such a stunning, sweeping manner as does The Chronicle of Pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Most of us will never set foot in the Holy Land. Traveling there is a lot easier than it used to be, but, for me and most of the families I know, living our vocation takes up every spare minute—and most of our money. Nevertheless, we each have a strong and devotional attraction to the Holy Land. The Chronicle is an excellent means to feed that natural devotion we already have for the places where Jesus lived, worked and died.

This is an impressive, complete, scripted, Montessori-based Math program. Though it's not 100% purist Montessori (for example, some of the manipulatives will provide changes in color and shape at the same time, where Montessori was very fussy about only working with one attribute at a time), I think it does a really nice job of incorporating her most critical ideas. I think it's a perfect fit for those who want to start with something really well-organized (such as those who appreciate Saxon's completeness), but wish to aim for a more holistic approach or are working with a child that might be struggling with learning challenges or unconventional learning styles.

This readable volume is a great resource on issues of creation and evolution in light of Church teaching. I really appreciated the depth that Mrs. Daly brings to this topic in viewing it from many angles, all the while using our God-given reason in the light of His revealed Truth as evidenced in scripture, the Catechism, and other Church documents. She manages to avoid both of the usual extremes of biblical literalism and scientific absolutism (evolutionism).

This quote from the book explains its value very well:

In Sophia's dream, all the animals had their coats blown off and so she has to make new ones for them, adding her own special touches. This is the story of "Fur and Feathers" which introduces young children to animal classification.

The story has a good variety of common animals with different coats. A few parts are a bit contrived, like the frog finding the slime, but otherwise the story is engaging. The "For Creative Minds" section at the end of the book contains activities based on animal classification.

Most of each two-page spread is dedicated to the lovely artwork of animals in Sophia's bedroom. You can see a preview document or video at http://www.sylvandellpublishing.com/bookpage.php?id=FurFeathers

The Core is a practical guide to those who are new to the idea of classical education and are looking for an outline of what to teach in different subject areas. Leigh Bortins has written this book for all parents and teachers--those in a regular school setting as well as those who are homeschooling--but her methods would work particularly well within a home education environment. Bortins uses the ideas laid out in Dorothy Sayers’ oft quoted 1947 essay, The Lost Tools of Learning, as a guide upon which to build her lists of necessary skills for students of the trivium.

Passing along to others the concept of such an incredibly personal and delicate matter as the value of suffering can be extremely difficult. It's so easy to come across as heavy-handed, trite or condescending - and many materials do! Here is it presented a loving and very gentle way by means of Our Lady. Mary brought Christ to the world through her faith, love and humility and we are called to do the same. Here are a few quotes to give you the flavor of it:

Pope Benedict XVI has given us a gift of a second volume illuminating the events of the life of Christ. The first volume,Jesus of Nazareth: From the Baptism in the Jordan to the Transfiguration was reviewed here. Like the first volume, it is a book written for adults, but may be appropriate for group study among teenagers, provided that expectations regarding understanding are kept reasonable. On the whole I found it to be easier to understand than the first volume because more time is spent on each event and a certain amount of healthy repetition aids in clarity of understanding.

Nancy Brown and Hillside Education have teamed up for a second volume of kid-friendly mysteries adapted from G.K. Chesterton's Fr. Brown mysteries. It's a little difficult to say what age these are appropriate for since, unlike the first volume, these are all based on murder-mystery stories, and sensitivities vary from child-to-child. My rough-and-tumble seven year old son loved them as a read-aloud, but the general subject matter is off-putting for my very sensitive thirteen year old daughter.

There are four stories in this volume:

"The Invisible Man" is about a murderer who took advantage of the fact that many people are taken for granted because we see them all of the time.

This is a beautifully-performed, profesionally produced complete dramatization of the New Testament in the reknowned Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (sometimes referred to as the Ignatius Bible). John Rhys-Davies (who plays Gimli in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings films) as narrator leads a great cast that includes Neal McDonough (Minority Report, Band of Brothers) as Jesus, Julia Ormond (Sabrina, First Knight) as Mary, Sean Astin (Sam in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings) as Matthew and Michael York (Jesus of Nazareth, Murder on the Orient Express) as Luke.