115. Loyola Kids Book of Saints by Amy Welborn

Loyola Kids Book of Saints by Amy Welborn. Illustrated by Ansgar Holmberg, CSJ

Rating: (5/5)

(US) - (Canada) - (Kindle)

2001, Loyola Press, 304 pgs +index
Age: 8+

"Who are the saints, why are the lives of saints important for children, and what can children learn from the saints? In Loyola Kids Book of Saints, the first in the Loyola Kids series, best-selling author Amy Welborn answers these questions with exciting and inspiring stories, real-life applications, and important information about these heroes of the church. The more than 60 stories of saints for children in this book are divided thematically and cover saints throughout history from all over the world."

Purchased a copy from my local Catholic Bookstore.

Mini-biographies of more than sixty saints from across the ages, with both men and women equally represented and while the majority are from times long ago there is a steady collection of 19th and 20th century saints interwoven throughout.  We thoroughly enjoyed the well-written stories which are written to the child, asking them questions so they can relate to the person being discussed.  The saints' stories are age appropriate for all ages but the needed details have been presented so while we don't get the gory details of explicit martyrdom, the truth of what happened isn't avoided either.  Many types of saints are presented here.  In fact, the book is broken up into 15 Parts, with each part grouping 4-5 saints together under a theme: those who loved children, were creative, were teachers, helped the poor, traveled far, helped us to understand God, etc.  For each saint we are given their birth/death dates (if known) and feast day.  We are not told what the saints are known to be patron saints of though, and at first I found this annoying.  But after a while I was glad that focus was shifted from this often asked question about a saint to their actual life and accomplishments.  Following the biography is a very short discussion question that can be used for devotional, or family time.  We found some of these to be very thought provoking and stimulating.  A great book for this age group which includes all the famous saints you'd expect in such a book along with obscure, lesser known and multi-cultural ones.  Highly recommend for reading at home or use in the Catholic classroom.