Good Catholic books to read to help you grow in faith and learn more about the saints.
Good Catholic Books to Read: Reading about the Saints
Do the saints intrigue you? Do you want to learn more about how particular saints (souls in Heaven) became Saints (canonized by the Catholic Church)? In this post, you will find some Catholic books about the saints. From St. Augustine to St. Maria Goretti, to St. Therese of Lisieux, to St. Pope John Paul II, there are so many saints in our Church that we can learn from. We can read about their lives, read works penned by their hands, and learn from them how we, too, can grow closer to God and hopefully be saints ourselves.
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Learn more about how the saints became Saints.
Every soul in Heaven is a saint. Put simply, being declared a Saint by the Catholic church simply means that there is proof that the soul of a person is in Heaven. The canonization process is a long one, with specific criteria and certain steps that need to be fulfilled in order for a person to be declared a saint by the Catholic Church.
If you want to learn more about the canonization process-how a saint becomes a Saint-the check out the US Conference of Catholic Bishops’ webpage on saints.
Catholic Picture Books of Saints
When kids are young, their imagination is often first captured by what they see. As they get older, they want to read to dive into what interests them on a deeper level. Picture books of saints are great for both younger and older kids. Younger kids can look through the pictures and older kids can not only enjoy the pictures but read about the saints as well. Here are two picture books on saints for kids that your children may enjoy.
The Picture Book of the Saints by Rev. Lawrence G. Lovasik, S.V.D. contains over 100 brief biographies of saints. It is a great introduction for kids to learn more about the saints.
Bart Tesoriero authored Lives of the Saints an Illustrated History for Children. It contains a mini-biography of 60 different saints as well as a pray for each saint’s intercession. It also briefly answers the question “What is a Saint?” for kids.
Dictionary of Catholic Saints
Catholic Books about the lives of the Saints
Epic Saints by Shaun McAfee has an intriguing subtitle: Wild, Wonderful, and Weird Stories of God’s Heroes. Mr. McAfee and other writers recount stories of saints that may make you chuckle, groan, or simply shake your head. The saints were ordinary-and sometimes extraordinary-people. These stories will give you a look at a side of some saints you did not know about before.
The classic book Lives of the Saints by Fr. Alban Bulter is one of my favorites. Fr. Butler begins by talking about the liturgical season and major feast days. Then, he has a biography of the saint of the day for each day of the year. After each biography, he has a reflection to encourage us to continue to think about how we can allow what we have learned about the saint and his or her faith to have a positive effect on our lives.
Learning from the lives of the saints
The Book of Saints for Catholic Moms by Lisa Hendey covers 52 saints: a different saint each week. She covers a lot of information regarding each one, including a brief biography, personal lessons she had learned from the saint, popular devotions related to the saint, a quote from the saint, a scripture verse, an activity, a prayer, and a question to ponder. Her thorough look at each saint helps us to dive deeper into thinking about our own faith journey.
The saints are not listed chronologically by feast day, but there is an index in the back of the book if you want to look up a particular saint. Mrs. Hendey also includes an Index of Feast Days and Memorials and an Index of Patronages for easy refrence.
The Quotable Saint is one of my favorite books. I like it so much after I found it at the library that I bought my own copy. ? Rosemary Ellen Guiley compiled over 300 pages of quotes from saints. They are categorized by topic, including love, guilt, sin, perfection, discipline, sincerity, and mercy. At the end of the book and Appendix lists the saints quoted in alphabetical order with a short biography. The Index includes topics and the saints for easy reference.
Dr. Paul Thigpen compiled the work of A Year with the Saints as a guide to help others grow in faith. He covers a quote from a saint each day of the year. Each page also has a thought to consider and a prayer to go with it.
More saint books
I tried to keep this post focused and brief, but I cannot resist adding some more gems!
Voices of the Saints: A 365-Day Journey with Our Spiritual Companions by Bert Ghezzi, PhD
Mystics & Miracles: True Stories of Lives Touched by God by Bert Ghezzi, PhD
Angels and Saints: A Biblical Guide to Friendship with God’s Holy Ones by Dr. Scott Hahn If you have Audible or if you start a free Audible trial, the e-book version of Angles and Saints is free.
Catholic Books about the Saints can help us grow in faith.
Catholic books about the lives of the Saints can help us to grow in our faith and knowledge of God. They can teach us, inspire us, and challenge us to learn more about God and grow in holiness. May we learn from these, our brothers and sisters in faith, and ask them for their prayers.
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