This book is not a "must read", but it is an enlightening read (best for high school and up). I have not read any other compilation of letters like this, so even the concept was new to me. There isn't a format, a thesis or an argument to unify the book. Rather, it is the life, work and times of Tolkien which generate the letters. He writes to his wife, his children, fans of his work, his publishers and various friends. The book is a subset of his letters (edited with the help of his son Christopher). Much of what is represented is in response to questions about his works – Middle Earth, elves, hobbits etc. – and so it is much more interesting to read if one is familiar with his works. One missive in particular was written to his son about love and marriage (MOST interesting). Others relate events of his life. The letters to his publishers reveal how difficult it was for him to write.

In explaining these things, much is revealed about his understanding of the world (both philosophically and theologically). Reading the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings, he, in one letter, describes as a "keyhole" view of his subcreation, Middle Earth. This in itself is revealing. It seems to have been very time consuming and difficult for Tolkien to produce his works. Through the letters, you begin to see that this is partly due to the fact that he was a perfectionist. He would let you see something through the keyhole (eg. a fairly brief mention of the story Luthien Tinuviel looked upon as an historical event) but wasn't really satisfied until he tackled the complete story of Luthien as well. He must have had an enormous amount of material in his study and in his head! He indicates that there are only two things in the Lord of the Rings that he does NOT know about – one being "the cats of Queen Beruthiel". ... the point being that he DOES know about the rest in great detail. He has firm ideas about the creation and descent of the elves, the work and character of the Valar/Angels, the history of the landscape, the fables associated with the morning star, Earindel. And nothing gets more attention than the languages used. He made them up for fun – it was a true love of his. He knows where they started, how they mingled with others down through Middle Earth's history, their forms, changes and pronunciations.

But I lost my thread. His philosophy and theology are very evident in his works of fiction – they make the world of Middle Earth seem real BECAUSE they are so well grounded. They blossom in these letters. He can stand back from the events and tell an inquisitor WHY something in Middle Earth happened – and that is very edifying. His perfectionism has driven him to understand our own world well enough to figure out what is really possible in Middle Earth. He makes the critical distinction between what is accidental and what is essential so that Middle Earth may diverge from our own place in space and time yet still appear REAL.

As an example, he responds to a priest who challenges Tolkien's ideas about elves – elves are undying in Middle Earth. Tolkien explains the notion that this is not an essential problem with God's creative abilities – even if it seems impossible that we would see it ourselves. You have to read his explanation – the whole point being that he DID think about it and had reasons for it even before he put it in the books.

It is gratifying, as a Catholic, to learn that Tolkien's good philosophy and theology are heartily Catholic in nature. And to learn that his greatest inspiration, comfort and love was the Eucharist!

It is interesting to read that one letter of fatherly advice to his son about love and marraige. This is one area where he makes so much sense you want to cheer. It is not mushy sentimentalism and it is not clinical psychology. It is the very human assesment of the how fallen-nature and super-nature manifest themselves in finding and keeping a spouse. And as such it is darned good advice for anyone!

You will also learn a lot about Tolkien in this book. And even though he is not perfect – there is so much to learn. There are areas in which you want to emulate him. And areas in which you may find him shy of the mark. You can do your own philosophizing about where to draw that line – and his manner and style – so humble – INVITES you to reflect like this. This book is like a life experience. His life is, after all, another life. It is good and not so good and filled with the decisions that help make us who we are.

This is the story of three orphan immigrants – Maria, an Italian in her early teens, Molly, a little Irish girl with a way of getting into trouble, and Ming, a very shy Chinese girl. Maria, Molly and Ming, survive for a time by sticking together and living in a dark boiler room until their lives are changed by meeting Mother Cabrini. The author, who is a Catholic homeschooling mother, has included questions and other study helps in the areas of history, geography, vocabulary and religion. The author has also produced a sewing kit for making a Mother Cabrini habit (complete with cross and rosary) for "American Girl"-type dolls and related craft and activity books which are available from the publisher.

This is a fascinating tale on many levels – spiritual, historical, adventure, humor. Fr. Goldmann was a young seminarian in Germany when he was drafted into Hitler's dreaded SS. Despite amazing obstacles and in spite of his loud mouth and rather hot temper with regard to his disagreements with the Nazi's, Goldmann works his way through World War II as a medic for the German army and is finally ordained as a chaplain to his comrades in the French prison camps in North Africa.

The story is quite simply related and details about the horrors that surrounded Fr. Goldmann on a daily basis are handled delicately enough to make the story appropriate for most high schoolers. Without being the least bit preachy, the story demonstrates in a powerful way the mysterious ways of God's will and the power of prayer and suffering. It's a very, very beautiful and worthwhile book. As an added bonus, Americans who are accustomed to seeing the story through the eyes of the "Allies" will find the German perspective (despite the author's clear anti-Nazi position) quite enlightening. This may help provide a much fuller sense of what the war was about.

Note: The story is also available on Audio Cassette, produced by St. Joseph Communications.

Back in print! It was May 1941 and the British were struggling to hold back the Germans (this is of course before the United States had entered World War II). Since the summer of 1940 the Germans had access to the harbors and airfields of western Europe from Norway to southern France. Their submarines, warships and bombers were wreaking havoc on Britain's supply convoys crossing the Atlantic which was seriously threatening Britain's survival. It was at this time that the British admiralty learned of the imminent release of the new German battleship Bismarck, the most powerful warship afloat in the world. This is the story of the week-long chase by the British who were hoping to prevent further losses to their precious convoys by destroying the battleship. This very accurate account is more exciting and suspenseful than fiction partially because we realize how much is at stake. It is such a game of nerves and logic, but the interesting tales of "luck" and unbelievable human error might make the reader wonder (okay, it made me wonder) whether Divine Providence had a direct hand in the final outcome. Most appropriate for mid-gradeschool through high school (and plenty interesting for adults too!). It's suspenseful, but not too scary or graphic to be read aloud in front of younger siblings.