Head’s up for those on the eastern seaboard who like to read good Catholic books: Registration is winding down for the joint conference between the Catholic Writers Guild and the CMN, which is the trade show for Catholic bookstores. You can read more about it and get links to registration at this post on the CWG blog. Short version: All the books you can stand, sold at deep discount. Your favorite Catholic authors. Book signings, giveaways, movie previews . .... Read more
If you have not heard of Fiorella de Maria before, let me introduce you to her: she’s an up-and-coming author who has my attention. Her last book, Poor Banished Children, was one I loved last summer. This summer, she has just released Do No Harm, about a British doctor who finds himself facing assault and battery charges after saving a patient’s life. It covers topics I am praying about and pretty sick-to-my-stomach about, topics I don’t really know how to handle and... Read more
Scott and Julie enjoy their new Punjabi nicknames almost as much as they enjoyed The Case of the Missing Servant by Tarquin Hall. Get it at A Good Story is Hard to Find podcast. Read more
How to Defend the Faith Without Raising Your Voice: Civil Responses to Catholic Hot-Button Issues by Austen Ivereigh My rating: 5 of 5 stars This is a book that every Catholic should read. The reason I say that becomes abundantly apparent in the subhead: Civil Responses to Catholic Hot-Button Issues. We know how it feels, finding yourself suddenly appointed the spokesman for the Catholic Church while you’re standing at a photocopier, swigging a drink at the bar, or when a... Read more
I was minding my own business, researching an article on Catholic Sex Ed, and next thing I knew, I was re-learning Evangelization 101. You know, the part where they drill into your head the ol’ maxim about “First Do No Harm”? Or, as we say in apologetics circles, “Try Not To Be Such a Jerk”? Because let’s be honest: A lot of us who are good at knowing the facts of the faith . . . aren’t so good at... Read more
I tend to be rules-based thinker. I am an accountant by training, the kind of person who can read an IRS form and say, “Oh, this makes perfect sense!” So when I think about chastity, simple, practical rules appeal to me. Don’t hold hands unless _______. No kiss until _________. Follow the method and it’ll all work out. Which would be a great system, if only chastity were an accounting method. How Far Can We Go? A Catholic Guide to... Read more
We have officially reached the point where my eight-year-old is impressed with the review materials I get in my post office box, and I have Pauline Books & Media to thank. Their new Gospel Time Trekkers series has caught her attention (and mine too, though I’ll have to wait to read them until she’s done). The series follows three siblings as they travel back to Gospel times to find Jesus. Their adventures include imaginative retellings of important Scriptural events, from... Read more
It’s so easy to think that there’s not time for prayer. There’s so! much! else! to do…whether laundry or bills or writing or a thousand other projects. It’s so easy to get overwhelmed by all the choices for prayer. Should I pray a rosary? Or maybe I should spend time with Scripture? Oh, wait, what about the Liturgy of the Hours? How am I supposed to get anything else done? Or is it just me? My hit-or-miss relationship with the Liturgy... Read more
Randy Hain is an award-winning author, yes, but he is first and foremost a devoted family man. You’ll read that on the back cover of his books, including his latest, Something More: The Professional’s Pursuit of a Meaningful Life (Liguori, 2013). I know it’s true, though, because over the years, Randy has become someone I’ve emailed, consulted for advice, and admired from near and far. He’s co-founder and managing editor of Integrated Catholic Life and did I mention he also has... Read more
About seven years ago, my husband took a philosophy course as part of his first year of undergraduate courses. It was great to listen to him talk about it and it got me really interested in the subject in a more scholarly way. Somehow I had avoided an actual philosophy course in my own college years. We kept the textbook, but though I’ve always meant to dive into it, I never have. Maybe the inspiration to actually do that has... Read more
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