Happy Catholic Bookshelf
Oliver Onions (yes, his real name) writes a ghost story that creeps up on us just when we’re getting comfortable. Part 1 of The Beckoning Fair One is ready for your listening pleasure at Forgotten Classics podcast. Read more
Oliver Onions (yes, his real name) writes a ghost story that creeps up on us just when we’re getting comfortable. Part 1 of The Beckoning Fair One is ready for your listening pleasure at Forgotten Classics podcast. Read more
Scott and I discuss a classic movie that goes against type for John Wayne and director John Ford … The Quiet Man at A Good Story is Hard to Find podcast. Read more
A beginner must think of herself as one setting out to make a garden in which her Beloved Lord is to take his delight … (St. Teresa of Avila) This book is a step-by-step approach to help guide you in creating a meaningful sacred space — a place you can step into, close at hand, matched to what brings you personally to inner quietness. … This book does not consider the need to landscape your whole yard, but only a... Read more
Since we’ve been talking about Jack McDevitt’s books lately, with Will giving a great overview yesterday of the Academy series, let me toss in this review of a book from early in one of McDevitt’s different series. Polaris by Jack McDevitt My rating: 4 of 5 stars Having really enjoyed McDevitt’s Engines of God and read Orson Scott Card’s review of the Alex Benedict/Chase Kolpath mystery/archeological-treasure-hunt series I turned to the library to see what was around. I was happy... Read more
Lots of people are talking about Forming Intentional Disciples, by Sherry Weddell, and with good reason; here’s my somewhat personal take on it. Forming Intentional Disciples is a book the Church desperately needs today. It is first of all a description of the Church (and of Christianity in general) as it currently is—not as it was fifty or even twenty years ago, but as it is now. Sherry has all of the statistics in hand. It is secondly a vision of what... Read more
Julie posted her review of The Engines of God a day or so ago; and as I’ve recently read that book and three of its sequels, I thought I’d chime in. Priscilla Hutchins—”Hutch” to her friends—is a starship pilot for the Academy of Science and Technology, circa 2200 AD. It seems that faster-than-light space travel (“superluminal” travel in the parlance of the book) has caused a revolution in the field of archaeology; intelligent races are scarce in the galaxy, but relics... Read more
Recently I reviewed Zane Grey’s Riders of the Purple Sage. In the interests of equal time, I recently got Louis L’Amour’s Silver Canyon, and read that. And I have to say, the two books are both westerns, by which I mean they both have guns and horses and cattle and strong men and beautiful women, but beyond that they have almost nothing in common. Riders of the Purple Sage reads like a well-researched historical novel. The plot and dialog are rather melodramatic, I... Read more
I saw The Name of the Wind: The Kingkiller Chronicle: Day One by Patrick Rothfuss referenced several times among my Goodreads friends with positive ratings. The reviews at Amazon were also overwhelmingly positive. The summary of the book seemed up my alley as Fantasy is one of my favorite genres. The riveting first-person narrative of a young man who grows to be the most notorious magician his world has ever seen. From his childhood in a troupe of traveling players, to... Read more
The Engines of God by Jack McDevitt My rating: 3 of 5 stars My review which ran at SFFaudio. Climate change has Earth on the brink of disaster. The only viable solution is terraforming other planets to ensure survival. For a small group of archaeologists, however, terraforming is the worst possible solution. The only suitable planet is also the one planet with the most promising artifacts of an unknown alien race. Known as the Monument Makers, the aliens’ buildings feature... Read more
Right now the wind may have gone out of your summer sails and family time together may be more about feudin’ and fightin’ than enjoying each others’ company. I’ve got the solution. How about trying: Unbirthday Party Mystery Food Night Backyard Circus Silly Story Hour Catholic Family Fun is a guide families can use for having a great time together, often using supplies from around the house or just plain imagination. Sarah Reinhard has a variety of ingenious ways to have... Read more
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