Part Scripture study, part science textbook, part prayer journal, Dive Deep is a beautiful and engaging book for young people to spend time with Scripture, learn more about the natural world, reflect, and pray. This book is suited to the family or the classroom. I plan on having my 12-year-old son work through the book this summer.
Continue readingLike many Catholics of my generation, I have a great love for Pope St. John Paul II, who, along with St. Teresa of Calcutta, was the worldwide face of Catholicism in the 1980s and ’90s. How blessed we were to hear and see these living saints in real time as they ministered to the world with their love and wisdom.
As nearly two decades have passed since JPII’s death in 2005, I have grown to love and appreciate him even more. He is one of my favorite saints and one whose intercession I seek daily. I’ve long wanted a copy of A Boy Who Became Pope: The Story of Saint John Paul II. Despite the fact that my children have pretty much grown out of picture books, I treasure the anniversary edition copy sent to me by Pauline Books and Media.
The hardcover picture book is beautifully and lovingly written and illustrated by Fabiola Garza, a character artist at Disney Creative Group. It follows Karol Wojtyla from birth through his papacy and death, enumerating the deaths in his immediate family and demonstrating his persistent desire to discern God’s call.
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Little Jellybean, nicknamed by her family, experiences an exciting world of sound and sensations inside her mother’s womb, encountering the voices and personalities of her loving family. Just when she has nearly outgrown her mother’s belly, a surprising visitor guides her to a new home. There, Jellybean is given a mission to help her family find meaning in their loss and ultimately join her in the presence of God. A beautiful story to help families heal after the loss of a baby.
More information and resources at Holy Heroes.
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I had the pleasure of reading a lot of new(ish) Catholic children’s picture books lately. Here are my top dozen that I think children will enjoy most. Great for gifts, learning about the faith, studying the pictures, and reading again and again and again.
Continue readingFor those who are unfamiliar, what inspired the Armor of God, your fantasy-adventure chapter book series for children?
This series was inspired by the scriptural amor of God as described in Ephesians 6:13-17.
The belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the boots of peace . . . I just love the connection in that Bible passage between individual pieces of armor and specific virtues. They paint a picture in my mind and a story in my heart. I just had to write the stories that brought those elements to life!
Children recognize the spiritual battle at a very young age . . . when they are tempted to lie or to take something that isn’t theirs, or when they can’t get their way or they’re feeling selfish. So I wanted these stories to have characters that shared those struggles, those spiritual battles, and then armed themselves to fight.
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This sturdy board book with bright, simple illustrations is an ideal introduction for very young children. It accompanies Mary, Mother of Jesus and Jesus, Savior of the World, so that toddlers can meet each member of the Holy Family.
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An attack by bandits in the middle of the night leaves a young boy with no memory of who he is or where he is from. Nursed back to health by the devoted monks in a Benedictine abbey, he takes the name Alexander, or Xan for short. Aided by the kindly Brother Andrew, Xan commits himself to finding out who he really is.
Does he have a family? Are they still alive? And who—or what—is the shadowy figure creeping around the abbey in the dead of night?
Embark on an adventure while reading Shadow in the Dark as young Alexander tries to recover his memory and, with his new friends, uncover the mystery of the shadowy figure in the dark.
Continue readingHow did you first conceive the idea for Sisters of the Last Straw?
It is so strange how God works. I had a Bible study with a number of women for about thirty years. We were great friends and one night at our meeting we started laughing about how we all should have been nuns. Looking around at the five women in the group who are all good women, I had to laugh. We each have our own foibles and personality quirks. I laughed and said that we would probably be kicked out of any order because of our bad habits. Another woman said that we would probably have to form our own order. After much laughter and silly plans for the order, one of the women said, “We better call it the Sisters of the Last Straw.” I wrote my first story about the nuns for those women. Then I decided to write a children’s book to teach children that while all people have faults, we can love God and each other. That is how the Sisters of the Last Straw were created.
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