Book Reviews

“The First Advent” contains stories and activities designed to prepare children’s hearts and minds for the arrival of Baby Jesus.

More than 300 letters written by a young tuberculosis patient to her parents during World War II gave historian Mary Krugerud a story had value “as a candid memoir and an educational human interest story.”

The book, titled “Il Giorno del Giudizio” (“Judgment Day”), was released Nov. 6 and reconstructs the events leading to Archbishop McCarrick’s rise in the hierarchy while countering claims made by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, former nuncio to the United States.

The newest entries in Liturgical Press’ People of God series, these books offer accessible, edifying biographies that are the hallmark of the excellent series. In engaging and incisive narratives they tell the personal and public stories of two contemporary martyrs who have been proposed for canonization.

Joanna Cannon’s new, second novel “Three Things About Elsie,” is an enjoyable read about friendship and life in a retirement home, with some mystery and suspense mixed in.

With “Renaissance Woman,” Ramie Targoff, a professor of English and co-chair of Italian studies at Brandeis University, offers readers not only an intimate portrayal of the life of Vittoria Colonna (1492-1547), but a wide-ranging and detailed background to her life.

The essays in this excellent book are written by scholars from the Americas and Europe, Catholics, Protestants, Jews and Muslims, reflecting on interreligious dialogue in our time and honor one of the great theologians of social ethics and pioneers of Catholic-Jewish relations.

“The Chicken Runs at Midnight” tells the wildly improbable story of the strong-willed coach, Rich Donnelly, and his equally strong-willed teenage daughter Amy as she was battling brain cancer while her dad’s team was making a playoff push.