This month’s selections are the inspiring stories of saints! Saintly Rhymes for Modern Times is a rhyming book for children whose inclusion here as fiction is a stretch, but I love this book so much, I couldn’t resist! (And Saint Clare and Her Cat is more of a picture book.) Susan Peek is over-represented below, and yet I’ve not even included all of her books. So, if you’re looking for more saint stories for children and teens, visit Susan’s website.
Relevant Fiction Reviews: Novelizations of the lives of saints for children, teens & adults. #RelevantFictionReviews Click To Tweet
Saintly Rhymes for Modern Times by Meghan Bausch
I’m a sucker for rhyming books for children, and this one drew me right in! These simple, easy-on-the-ears stanzas about modern saints are such fun to read. And yet they capture the essence of each’s saint’s life and charisms. The matching illustrations are beautifully done and convey as much as the written words, making this a true treasure that has a place in every Catholic child’s library!
Saint Clare and Her Cat by Dessi JacksonSaint Clare and Her Cat is a great introduction to the Franciscan saint. Told as a story within a story, it’s appealing to children with friendly illustrations and a pretty kitty too. The book would make a great gift for a child any time of the year.
Saint José: Boy Cristero Martyr by Fr. Kevin McKenzieFather McKenzie has created an exciting, engaging, and realistic portrait of the Mexican teen Jose Sanchez del Rio’s piety and courage. The story follows Jose and his family as he leaves home with his friend Trino to join the Cristeros and ultimately to give his life in defense of his faith.
Nothing about his martyrdom is whitewashed, yet the story is retold in a manner that is appropriate for young readers, its focus being on Saint Jose’s bravery rather than his captors’ brutality. An excellent introduction into Mexican history, Church history, and sainthood.
Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque and the Sacred Heart of Jesus by Emily Beata Marsh
Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque and the Sacred Heart of Jesus is a chapter book biography of the French nun to whom Jesus entrusted devotion to His sacred heart. The story is simply told for children with short chapters and several illustrations. It’s a good basic biography with a glossary and prayers as well. The in-text pronunciation guide to French names is helpful for children (and adults).
I only wished the story established the time period better from the beginning. I think page 64 was the first time the year was noted.
Treachery and Truth by Katy Huth Jones
I won a copy of Treachery and Truth through a Facebook party and immediately handed it to my 13-year-old son, who has long roamed the house singing the “Good King Wenceslas” carol, no matter the time of year. Once he finished the book, I got a hold of it.
While it is written for teens, I enjoyed it immensely! I knew next to nothing about King Wenceslas/Vaclav nor Bohemian history. As seen through the eyes of his servant Poidevin, the reader glimpses the bravery, fortitude, humility, and generosity of Vaclav as well as the history of his life, political alliances, marriage, and death. His story also delivers beautiful messages about the meaning of suffering, fidelity to Christ, and loving our enemies.
I’m happy to pass this well-written story along to my other children when they grow older.
The King’s Prey: Saint Dymphna of Ireland by Susan Peek
Martyrdom is brutal and doesn’t necessarily lends itself to a lighthearted treatment. Then again, this is the Church that made St. Lawrence, roasted to death over a slow fire, the patron saint of cooks.
Susan Peek, wisely I think, intertwines St. Dymphna’s difficult story with that of two Irish orphan brothers, Turlough and Brioc. Both will come to her defense, seeking to save her from her insane widowed father’s attempt to force her into marriage to him.
While Dymphna’s father, the king, is largely an unsympathetic character, for obvious reasons, Brioc’s character allows the reader to delve into the mind of someone struggling with mental illness – not a murderous, villainous person, but a good and kindhearted person who has suffered numerous losses and traumas.
Interspersed with mortal peril, swashbuckling, and glimpses of mental illness are lighter moments, many of which come via the overgrown wolfhound, Sam, loved by Brioc and, begrudgingly, Turlough. The novel also delves into the fractured relationship between Brioc and Turlough, the seemingly insurmountable distance between Brioc and his pregnant wife Lynnie, and several minor characters.
In the end, you’ll be left with a fuller sense of the horror of St. Dymphna’s struggle, the beauty of loving sacrifice, and the power of those sacrifices when offered to God for the sake of another. Ultimately, as with every Christian story, there is a message of hope.
As in all of Susan Peek’s books, the pace is quick, the stakes high, and action nearly nonstop, making it a smooth read.
A Soldier Surrenders: The Conversion of Saint Camillus de Lellis by Susan PeekI love how Susan Peek brings obscure saints to life. Rather than relegated to dusty tomes, Saint Camillus springs from the page – masculine, lively, and deeply flawed – but never out of God’s reach.
Deeply affected by the bedside vigil at his father’s deathbed, even when he’s strayed from the practice of his faith or lapsed into habitual sins, Camillus is drawn to the sick and dying. Whatever his sins, he recognizes the dignity of the ill and injured and is rankled by the callous injustices they endure.
The story is well-written and fast-paced and appropriate for teens and older. The battle scenes include enough detail to intrigue without becoming gory. The relationships among the men depict authentic friendship and fraternal affection contrasted with selfish acquaintance. I think the story would be especially appealing to boys and young men.
Saint Magnus The Last Viking by Susan PeekSay goodbye to dry and dusty lives-of-the-saints tomes better suited as flower presses or door stops. Saint Magnus, The Last Viking is lively, engaging, humorous, and as you might guess since Magnus was martyred, bloody.
Instead of boring the reader with an inhumanly pious saint story or bogging down the tale with details of centuries-old Norse life, Susan Peek has written an inspiring tale showcasing both the depth of human depravity and the glory of heroic love. All in a way that is appealing to the modern reader.
Throughout the novel, it’s clear that saints are mere human beings with weaknesses, flaws, desires, and ambitions. What sets them apart is their reliance upon God and the saints and their aim to become more Christ-like in spite of temptations.
Beautifully-written scenes of brotherly sacrificial love and a meditation on Christ’s suffering for our sins are worth reading and re-reading.
Saint Magnus, The Last Viking deftly portrays the power of forgiveness in the face of evil. Its powerful ending resonates in the heart long after the book has ended.
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I’ve read and enjoyed many of these books and all the ones by Susan Peek. I’ll have to check out the others on the list. These are our heroes! Thanks for posting this!
I’ve enjoyed all of them – and my kids have read many of them too!