This weeks giveaway at Catholic Book Blogger is sponsored by Ave Maria Press. They are offering a copy of the book Strange Gods : Umasking the Idols in Everyday Life by Elizabeth Scalia (otherwise known as the Anchoress in the blogosphere). See the complete details by visiting my blog here.
In my 17 years as a converted Catholic, I have used a number of Catholic Bibles. I can honestly say that the newly published Anselm Academic Study Bible has become my go to Bible for research and study. I have already used it often to look up scripture referenced in the books I review.
This Bible comes in at a hefty 2143 pages plus an additional 16 pages of study aids. The scripture itself is the New American Bible Revised Edition. Before even getting to the scripture itself you get 97 pages of essays/articles. The Formation of the Bible; Geography, Archaeology and the Scriptures; and Sacred Scripture in the Catholic Tradition are just a few of the titles you will find in this section.
Continue reading here.
Are you looking for a comprehensive resource for teaching the Catholic Faith to your children or students? Or a quick reference guide to help explain Catholic doctrine? Or have a tenet of the faith broken down to better understand yourself? Then this soft cover book titled Totally Catholic! a Catechism for Kids and Their Parents and Teachers by Sister Mary Kathleen Glavich is ideal! It parallels the Catechism yet does so in a kid friendly way. Each chapter starts with a question such as “What is Faith?” or “What is God like?” All the chapters are chock full of information that is broken down into sections so as not to overwhelm the reader or be a monotonous read. Kind of like a text book format yet interesting. This format is perfect for intermediate readers! Or for any lay person who would like additional information to why Catholics believe what they do and where the belief originated. My only critique would be the black and white illustrations they used throughout the book. They’re done well yet I wished they had some color illustrations too. Either it wasn’t well thought out or was purposely done due to budget constraints, either way, I think it lacks a bit of a visual impact. Especially for children who are visual learners.
Overall, I enjoyed it and will have it available for my son to use and also plan to use it when preparing my lesson plans. (In fact I already have with my lesson plans for the Ascension of Jesus and Pentecost.) My first graders are too young to be able to read it but the child friendly content will be helpful. It’s relevant to teach the faith and won’t be used just once and placed on your bookshelf. It will be perused over and over again when working with children. I would highly recommend it to any parent or teacher who is looking for a faith formation resource.
This review was written as part of the Catholic Company Book Reviewer Program. Visit the Catholic Company for more information on Totally Catholic! A Catechism for Kids and Their Parents and Teachers. The Catholic Company is the best resource for all your seasonal needs such as First Communion Gifts as well as ideas and gifts for the special papal Year of Faith. A complimentary copy of this book was given for my honest review.
Blessings,
Noreen
Prayer life getting a bit dry? Maybe you would like something new to read and get ideas to ponder about faith. I know that there have times when I’ve searched for a new resource to help me along a dry and just plain boring time in my prayer life.
When I received “Catholic Mom’s Cafe” I began my preliminary scan; the table of contents, acknowledgements, and I usually flip through the contents of the book to get the feel and guesstimate how long it should take me to read the book for my review. What I discovered at the first scan is that this book is one I will take with me during the day and read it during violin lessons and piano lessons, during a 15 minute break at work and possibly during a boring school meeting, shhhh!!
The book is a retreat book for the entire year with each month a concentration of one of the three theological virtues, Faith, Hope, and Love. Each day is divided up into four sections: Ponder is a scripture verse or a quote, Offer is Donna-Marie’s thoughts on the Ponder, then we Pray prayers that are provided in the front of the book, such as: Act of Faith, or Act of Love, and other prayers that she lists for easy reference and then a final thought to Savor throughout the day.
This book is a real treat and I know that I am going to enjoy taking a daily break and be inspired, pray, and ponder my motherhood and my life in light of Holy Scripture and our Holy Mother….and I know you will too!
Hey folks. I’m giving away a book and I want you guys to have a chance to win! Visit the link below for your chance to win a copy of The Catholic Children’s Bible. The publisher, Saint Mary’s Press, is sponsoring this contest that I am running via Rafflecopter at the Catholic Book Blogger. Find out more here
Cindy Montanaro is a Secular Carmelite and former homeschooler. She is also the mother of Tim, a boy she and her husband adopted as an infant. Tim had Tourette Syndrome, phobias, and other mental health issues. In 2005 he died tragically. Their story was published recently by Roman Catholic Books. Dairy of a Country Mother–so named by Tim when no one dreamed he was soon to pass away–is a gem to share with any mother this May.
“Five years ago today I picked up my pen and started a year-long journey of prayer, meditation, and writing. I envisioned an extended period of time in which to record, before memory failed me, all the little humorous and profound incidents that made up my son Tim’s short life. ” So begins this beautiful memoir of a boy who loved people. It is a story of the joy he brought to everyone he met. It is a record of his mother’s faith and acceptance. It is an exploration of the meaning of Tim’s life, which Cindy generously shares with us. She would probably say her generosity is one lesson she learned from Tim.
A tale of joy, not grief
Diary of a Country Mother: a Year Remembering Tim is not A Grief Observed. It is not a book about how Cindy and her husband and remaining sons struggled to accept Tim’s death. Instead, it is the celebration of his life.
Father Michael White and Tom Corcoran have written a book that at first glance would seem to be the answer to every parishes prayers. They have successfully taken their parish, the Church of Nativity in Timonium, MD and turned it from a struggling parish to a booming one. During that process and in this book are some good points and some bad points. In this review I will give some highlights of each.
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I recently finished reading and posted my review of Christopher West’s recent book Fill These Hearts. That review can be found here. This was the first book of Christopher’s I have read, but I have known about his work for some time now and was very excited when he agreed to an interview on the book and his ministry on the Theology of the Body. Thanks Christopher for taking time out of your certainly busy schedule and sharing some answers with my readers! Continue Reading
It has been a VERY busy and exciting two weeks for me. Immediately after the Mike Aquilina interview (read it here), site traffic went through the roof! That resulted in new publishers coming on board that I will be working with. These are all listed on the column to the right. Every one of the publishers on that list are fantastic and each offers great books for your spiritual enrichment. I encourage you to support as many of them as you can by visiting their websites, checking out their selections and making a purchase. Simply click on the publishers logo to be redirected there. I am currently reading Rebuilt by Fr. Michael White and Tom Corcoran. Continue Reading