Biographies

Celtic Heritage Saints

Book cover: 'Celtic Heritage Saints'
Author(s): 
Marian Keaney
This book offers short, readable biographies of sixteen of Ireland (and Scotland's) greatest saints (covering the years from St. Patrick through 1142). The writing style and illustrations are reminiscent of Once Upon a Time Saints by Ethel Pochocki (Bethlehem Books). Despite the simplicity of the book (approximately a 4th grade reading level) it covers an important and oft-forgotten part of Catholic history.

The Young Life of Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Book cover: 'The Young Life of Mother Teresa of Calcutta'
Author(s): 
Claire Jordan Mohan
This is an interesting and unique short chapter book telling the story of Mother Teresa of Calcutta - a great lady who changed the world by following God's will and being a true messenger of peace and love. Similar to Pope John Paul II, Mother Teresa's childhood was filled with both joy and tragedy. Her early inclinations to be a missionary led her to teach at a wealthy girls school in India. One day she realized that she was called, not to teach the wealthy children, but go out and help and teach the poor, sick and homeless out on the streets of Calcutta.

Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, Missionary of Charity

Book cover: 'Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, Missionary of Charity'
Author(s): 
Mary Kathleen Glavich, S.N.D.
Blessed Teresa of Calcutta is the story of her life simply told for children. Although it is a children's book, it covers enough material for even an adult to have a greater appreciation of her life. Written as a short chapter book with a few illustrations sprinkled throughout the book, it begins with her childhood in Albania and follows her decision to become a missionary and join the Loreto sisters, and continues after her dramatic step to serve the poorest of the poor without any financial backer. This is a true lesson in trusting in God's Divine Providence.

Blessed Miguel Pro

Book cover: 'Blessed Miguel Pro: 20th Century Martyr'
Author(s): 
Ann Ball
Miguel Pro (1891-1927) was a young priest in Mexico during the persecution of the Church in the 1920s. He used interesting disguises to slip past authorities in order to celebrate Mass in secret and otherwise minister to his people. He fearlessly continued such dangerous missions despite health problems and eventually was arrested and martyred for his faith.The reader will learn a lot about the politics, culture and religion of his time.

Saint John Bosco and Saint Dominic Savio

Book cover: 'Saint John Bosco and Saint Dominic Savio'
Author(s): 
Catherine Beebe
This was the book that got our family "hooked" on the Vision Series. I happened to find it at a Used Book store (Ignatius Press books are fairly easy to spot because of the contrasting color around the author's name on the spine of the book). I didn't expect my children to be interested in full-length books at such a young age (my oldest had just turned five). Somehow we got started and they loved it. This is a particularly good Saint story to start with because St. John Bosco is a special patron of children and especially boys.

Saint Margaret Mary, Apostle of the Sacred Heart

Author(s): 
Ruth Fox Home
This is such a beautiful story of a simple, humble nun who was chosen by Jesus to spread devotion to his most Sacred Heart. I especially like how the author presents God's plan and how He had specially prepared Sr. Alocoque and Father de la Columbiere for this important mission. As Ignatius Press is reprinting many books from the Vision series, I hope this will be back in print sometime soon.

St. Thomas Aquinas

Book cover: 'St. Thomas Aquinas: The Dumb Ox'
Author(s): 
G.K. Chesterton
This little book is interesting. It is NOT the definitive work on St. Thomas. It is NOT a primer on his philosophy. It is an interesting mix of: a story of his life (or rather stories from his life), a little taste of his genius, another taste of what his ideas mean to the world (including how relevant they are today) and ideas about why he was the way he was.

It does not seem adequate to compare it to a TV show but it reminds me of one of those really good PBS documentaries that gets you totally involved in something you didn't ever think was that big a deal.

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