November is the Month of the Holy Souls, but it kicks off with All Saint’s Day: a time to celebrate the saints we know by name as well as those whose saintly virtue is less well-known, but no less important to God. This November, encourage your children to learn more about the saints of the Church! Pauline Kids, a division of Pauline Books & Media, has published several books about saints — including one book about how to be a saint!
Let’s begin with a peek at a book about the child visionaries (two of whom are now saints) of Fatima. Mary and the Little Shepherds of Fatima is a picture book just right for a bedtime story or classroom read-aloud. Written by Sister Marlyn Monge, FSP, and Jaymie Stuart Wolfe, this book recounts the experiences of Jacinta, Francisco and Lucia in 1916 and 1917, when they saw visions first of an angel and then of the Blessed Mother. This sensitive retelling of the Fatima miracles concludes with four pages about prayer, including instructions on praying the rosary, and a parents’ page explaining more about the Fatima visions. This sweetly-illustrated book is perfect for children in kindergarten through third grade.
Children in this age group will enjoy Mary Our Mother, a coloring and activity book about (you guessed it!) the Blessed Mother. Coloring pages depict the major events in Mary’s life, and are interspered with activities encouraging children to think about their own families and ways they can help others, as well as Bible-trivia activities. My favorite section included coloring pages of apparitions of Our Lady, including Fatima, Aparecida (Brazil), Guadalupe, and others. Prayers such as the Memorare and Magnificat are also featured. I wanted to get some crayons out and color some of these pages!
Older readers who are into graphic novels will be thrilled to find graphic novels about saints among Pauline Kids’ offerings. The subjects of the two newest ones are St. Christopher and St. Clare of Assisi. In The Legend of St. Christopher: Quest for a King, Offerus, a young giant known for his great strength, sets off on an adventure that includes an encounter with the devil. When he learns about Jesus, he decides he wants to serve him instead of earthly kings, and is baptized and given the name Christopher. As his life changes, he observes, “God has filled me with joy and peace because I’m serving him by helping others.” Learn about his amazing experience when he encounters a little child in need, and why the Church calls him the “patron of travelers.”
You might think that the graphic biography of St. Clare of Assisi doesn’t include dramatic battle scenes. But there’s no lack of suspense when Clare slips away from her childhood home through an ancient tunnel, on her way to follow Francis and embrace a life of poverty. Saint Clare of Assisi: Runaway Rich Girl doesn’t gloss over the episodes of Franciscan lore that include kissing lepers and receiving the stigmata; Clare is included in the scenes of both of these events. And there is a battle scene depicting the Eucharistic miracle where St. Clare, holding the monstrance, defends her holy place and her city from an attack by the Saracens.
I saved my favorite book for last: How to be a Hero. “This book is a training manual,” author Julia Harrell notes in the introduction. The book is organized by virtue, with 11 saints matched up with the four cardinal virtues, three theological virtues, and four “little” virtues. Most, but not all, of the saints featured in this book are more modern-day saints such as St. John Paul II, Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, Saint Charbel, and Blessed Chiara Badano, though St. Joan of Arc makes an appearance too. In the book’s conclusion, titled “You can be a hero,” the author notes that “there are as many ways to be holy as there are people” and encourages young readers to act virtuously. A Prayer for Virtue and Litany for the Virtues of the Saints round out the book, as does a discussion/journaling section titled “How can I train to be a hero of virtue?” Readers in fourth grade through middle school will enjoy this book.
Copyright 2017 Barbara Szyszkiewicz
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