Benedict Books

I thought the authors did a wonderful job of moving forward in a difficult story line and family line. A time table that I think catches so many Mrs. Mike followers off guard. The intention was not to do another Mrs. Mike or Mrs. Mike 2 episode. As they explained they did that already eons ago. For them it was to tell the next generations story and they did that with history intact. I thought wonderful and well written and I'm sad that so many people felt let down. I for one think the writing was good. While my husband would never read the type of story Mrs. Mike was he might read and enjoy the historic times brought out in this The Search for Joyful. I was a young teen when I read Mrs. Mike and not an assignment just a library check out. I fell in love with it didn't re-read it until my 50's. A lot of the romance and pain was no longer the same for me that it was as the teen. Yet I enjoyed the book and wanted to read it again before reading this next story. Hat's off to some wonderful writers who have given us two and possibly three great novels. For my next read is going to be their Kathy.....and so to you dear people thank you for finally getting round to the continuation of story. Thank you thank you thank you. At your ages many blessings to you for doing so makes it even more precious if not a bit precocious. An expression of behavior usually spent on the youth....and in your case young at heart. Such a delight you Freedman's have been!

Though many of Amazon's reviewers did not give this sequel favorable reviews, I think this book is far superior to the preceeding story. The two books have a very different flavor. The first book is like a romantic novel, while the second comes closer to being a respectable literary fare. The writing and plot of the second book offer at least as much depth and iterest as the first.
I think that if those who loved the first book are disappointed by its sequel, it has more to do with the fact that Mary Katherine and Mike Flannagan are minor characters in the second book. Be Joyful's daughter has at least as much moxie and depth as the her adoptive mother Mrs. Mike. Like her mother, she discovers who she is through much adversity, and is forced to answer many of life's enduring questions along the way. I think that Be Joyful's daughter is a more timeless and interesting person than her mother. I sincerely believe that the sequel is the superior of the two works. It is a more sophisticated story and perhaps therefore less accessible.

I read Mrs. Mike when I was 7 years old and remember asking my Mother for help with some of the words. Since my 4 daughters and 5 granddaughters are also readers of everything they can get their hands on, I told them about my first book and decided to find a copy (which I did thru Amazon and the Book Service). "The Search for Joyful" arrived before my new/old copy of Mrs. Mike and I read it first. I was amazed that I remembered the history of the characters so vividly.

The story continues for Mrs. Mike thru her children in the sequel. The author writes an easy to follow, light hearted but real story of this family. I am hoping "my girls" will treasure my new purchases as much I have - by memory - for such a long time. I am 67 years old. Thank you Amazon for finding the books for me. Sincerely, Carolyn E Ashbrook

Was this really written by the same authors of Mrs. Mike? I find it poorly put together and very hard to believe. I never "like" the character I am reading about. I don't understand her. I plodded through the book anyway, hoping that somewhere it would turn up good. But, unfortunately, that never happened. I have not read the third book in this saga yet, and am hesitant to do so. I may just stick with reading Mrs. Mike over and over.

If you are expecting a story as good as Mrs. Mike, you won't find it here. You would never know that the same authors penned this book. Mrs. Mike is one of my all-time favorite books and I would never part with my copy. The sequel is terrible--bad story, Mrs. Mike (referred to in this book as "Mama Kathy") has a very minor part in it, and I wondered why the main character was called "Kathy" when in Mrs. Mike, her adoptive parents decided to call her "Kate" because it would be too confusing to have two Kathys in the house. From what I can tell about the sequel to this book, the next one is even worse and I don't plan to waste my money.

Judith Flynn, proprietor of Hillside Manor Bed and Breakfast thinks that it's business as usual as her guests arrive for the weekend. It seems like a typical group with a single man, a newly-married couple, a mother and son, a pair of nursery school teachers, and a surly couple from Chicago. However, there is soon a dead body at the B & B and it becomes apparent that no one is who he says he is. As usual Judith claims to have instinctive powers of observation and deduction, but this case has even Judith stumped. A complicated web of interrelationships is eventually revealed, but this just makes it more difficult to solve the crime. Another feature of this addition to the series is the appearance of Judith's first grandson, Mike and Kristen's baby. Even this event is not an undiluted joy when Judith finds out the baby's name. If you're a "cozy" fan, you'll probably enjoy this one.

Does it matter who dun what to whom? A good cozy is a social comedy, where the plot devices move us into an engaging world. Judith Grover McMonigle Flynn's world encompasses a loving but often bemused husband, her reliable sidekick Cousin Renie, an assortment of weird and irascible relatives, and one of the meanest fluffballs to grace the name cat. Legs Benedict brings in a new assortment of odd personalities; bed and breakfast guests fun to watch as they ignore the mints and go for the blood and guts. Still, the bottom line is a tribute to families and friends--which sounds sentimental, though Daheim is rarely that. She is funny.

I have to be honest this book is horrible! I did somehow manage to finish it though. There are constantly new characters being introduced and they serve no real function to the story. The ending is horrible too!There is noway you could possibly solve this yourself because she introduces new evidence on the last few pages. Nothing really motivated me to turn the page and keep going. Takes forever to finish because it is so stupid! Don't waste your time or money unless you want to use it for a bonfire!

My brother told me that I could mow the lawn and have a more exciting adventure than this book. A mystery book is supposed to have some element of supense, this book lacked so much that when he had 6 pages left he was able to put the book off one day....what kind of book can't hook you when you have 6 pages left??????? Stephen Hunter - Dirty White Boys - now that's a book that will hook you

I can't say that this is the first book that I've read by this author, because I threw it out after the first 100 pages - there wasn't one single page that made any sense whatsoever. It jumped around, had trite and meaningless dialogue, and threw in unnecessary characters left and right. I still can't believe that there's an entire series of this author.

Kaiser correctly describes himself as a throwback to the 60's. He follows that latitudinarian ideology, but obviously not to its logical conclusion. This is because high school logic is too demanding for the fallen-away Jesuit. To call the views of the Curia 'dated' or backwards, is as the man with the plank in his eye pointing out another's eyelash--Kaiser only looks to the future through is own threadbare past. Some never grow up, and they end up looking like ridiculous old men.

Former Jesuit Robert Blair Kaiser has written an interesting book, but sadly has allowed his biases to undermine his premise that Benedict is the wrong pope. Perhaps he is, but one can hardly be expected to take Kaiser's arguments seriously when they are tainted by obviously prejudical and sometimes factually inaccurate statements. These include: "...Ratzinger, his (JPII's) minister of truth..." "...(JR) sent his whole life behind a desk..." "...a man who did not play Moazart for pleasure but for pain..." "...spent his early teens in Bavaria as a member of the Hitler Youth..." There is even a comment about the dark circles under Ratzinger's eyes and a reference to wolverines.

Kaiser seems to believe that Joseph Ratzinger controlled the outcome, not only of the recent Conclave, but of the US presidential election. Ratzinger is criticized for making positive statements about the possibility of an African pope, for bringing in translators for his colleagues, for encouraging those who did not speak up to do so, and for his moving and clearly deeply felt tribute to the dead pope.

There is much to criticize in the Catholic Church. It is easy to be appalled at the stances sometimes taken by Benedict and the male-dominated Vatican, but writers like John Allen - who is no fan of Benedict's - offer a much more balanced analysis of the situation.

Kaiser writes an interesting account of his experience of 'insider' Church politics. A very well-written work, Kaiser never leaves you bored. Although I can see that some readers may be turned off by the clear political camp that Kaiser speaks out of, the book is a value in that it presents a perspective that is often not shared in the Catholic Christian circle of writers.

The use of several well-known international prelates as a guide through the chapters is a nice feature that personalizes the stories and the opinions that are subsequently shared.

I particularly found the discussion about the Asian Bishops' Conference's desire to engage Rome in dialogue about the possibility of forming an Asian 'Rite' of sorts (like that of the Melkite, or other Eastern Catholic Churches) very interesting.

Regardless of one's personal ecclesiology and views on Church politics, this book is a must read for those interested in expanding their knowledge of current church happenings, especially in a post-conclave enviroment.

I would recommend this book.

According to author Robert Blair Kaiser, some popes believed the Church belonged to the people; some believed it belonged to God, and many more believed the Church belonged to them.

Today's Roman Catholic Church has changed considerably since the birth of what would be Christianity in the decades following the death of Jesus. Kaiser gives the reader a breezy but informative overview of some of the more defining changes that took place -in thought, dogma, civic and political involvement, and so forth- and how those changes shaped and defined the Church of today, at least as it is viewed by the Roman Curia, several popes, and non-Catholics. He also dwells some time on the influential personalities involved in Vatican II, and how those people envisioned not only themselves, their roles and their times, but also considered the future -not only the future of the Church but of Catholics everywhere and indeed, the world itself. And there is little doubt the participants at Vatican II have had a significant impact on the Church if not recent world history.

Whatever one thinks of Kaiser's observations and conclusions, it is fairly certain that this particular look at the Roman Catholic Church in the early 21st century is one not often afforded or encouraged among Catholic Christians, and depending on one's bias it is easy to see why: The author is a clear partisan, but refreshingly lucid, fluid and engaging in his prose and, perhaps best of all, filled with hope. He is watchful, yes, but also hopeful.

Through the varied lenses of six different Catholic prelates from America to Indonesia, readers are treated to surprisingly frank and intimate perceptions of the Church, the laity, ritual, tradition; the role of the Church in matters of social justice and politics; the role of women in the Church, and exactly what these issues mean to, and how they are interpreted by six influential men from Honduras, the United States, Indonesia, England, Nigeria -and Germany. The candor and insight and even what some may regard as sassiness from these cardinals is bubbling, bracing, provocative, and really quite generous: Inasmuch as Kaiser has given readers this book to consider, these men have generously shared with the author -and the reader- their thoughts and feelings about the most pressing issues on their hearts and minds, offering page-turning commentary about their respective communities and cultures; their relationship with people; their visions of local and global issues as well as with Rome and what, in their opinions, will help continue to grow, heal and further unite the Church during this century.

Robert Blair Kaiser, seen by some as a muckraker spoiling for a schism is, in this reader's opinion, simply offering points of view that are not generally considered or discussed in the open -at least not by Catholics- and whatever one's opinion or vision of the Roman Catholic Church or Pope Benedict XVI, this book is in itself a reason for hope, for celebration of what it means to -as Kaiser puts it- "be Church," truly Catholic, genuinely catholic, purely human and humane in sometimes troubling and remarkable world.

Kaiser's main assertion is that in order to remain whole in the years to come, the Church must conceive of itself and act not as a noun but as an illuminated verb.

After reading this book not only did I feel more hopeful and thoughtful than I had for some time, but I was also smiling.

Enjoyed reading Bob Kaiser's book very much. He knows his material and presents it well. Why not, he lived in Rome for years and studied for the Priesthood, before leaving to help make a better church. He was the Times correspondent in Rome for Vatican II.

having silenced every other possible candidate a quarter century earlier, there was none left to stand at the conclave.

Notice the white smoke at first refused to emerge. The Holy Spirit obviously wanted them to reconsider.

This book only begins an avalanche of adulatory volumes and repirnts of his oldest speeches. They are quickly disposable and of no lasting value. Already this book is going for a few quarters, which speaks more than any review about its value. More worthwhile reading would be, for beginners, Populorum Progressio and PACEM IN TERRIS by truly Catholic popes, writings which moved the earth and inspired all people to truth and justice and social action. Then try Fr. McBRien's CATHOLICISM, and anything by Sr. Joan Chittister, etc. etc. Far more interesting and of much greater and everlasting value than these self serving puff pieces.

READ ESPECIALLY the Reverend Father Charles Curran's FAithful Dissent for a truer view of the Papa Ratzi

In HOLY FATHER, author Greg Tobin offers a concise examination of the new Pope Benedict XVI.

The brief (140+ page) book provides a cursory history of the papacy, then shifts to a review of Benedict's life in a generally well-structured, readable prose.

The book was rushed into print fairly quickly after Cardinal Ratzinger's elevation to the papacy and suffers from several errors that could have been avoided by more judicious editing. One in particular is with respect to papal infallibility. There was no Ascension of the Blessed Mother, for example. Rather, the proper term is the "Assumption" of the Blessed Mother.

Despite this, the book will provide a decent introduction to the new Pope, a gifted theologian who will guide the church most likely for a few years at least.

Overall, the thrust of the work is excellent. Religious scholars
may take exception to several errors in the chronology and fact
checking with regard to some of the earlier Papacies. The work
correctly cites the election of Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger to the
Papacy. He was elevated from being Dean of the College of Cardinals and the Prefect of the Congregation of the Faith. Pope Benedict the XVI has written over 100 books by the roster on Amazon.com.

The author points out that iterative change is the cornerstone of the Papacy-particularly in the early years. The volume cites Popes Leo I and Gregory I as having great spiritual power. Pope Innocent III was elected at the young age of 38.
He was a brilliant canon lawyer at the time. Pope Leo XIII
served through two centuries. Saint Malachy provided an historic vision of Popes until the time preceding the greatest tribulations and Gloria Olivae could be associated with the
elevation of Pope Benedict XVI. Previous German Papacies were
cited; namely, Clement 2, Damasus 2, St. Leo 9 and Victor 2.

Benedict XVI was born on April 16, 1927 in Marktl am Inn.
He grew up in Bavaria. Later on, he founded the Communio- a
Catholic journal. He studied St. Augustine and St. Bonaventure
avidly. In addition, he spent much time trying to divine the
interconnection between salvation history and revelation.
Pope Benedict XVI is considered one of the three most important
Catholic theologians in recent history. He was elevated to the
Papacy because of his unique knowledge as a theologian and
expert on Church teachings. As Pope, Benedict XVI will be faced
with a triparte reconciliation or amenable coexistence between Catholicism, Judaism and the tenets of Islam.

The American Theological Experience will be another important frontier for the new Pope. On matters of Church teaching, the new Pope will speak with considerable authority firmly grounded in prior Church teachings. It remains to be seen whether or not Pope Benedict XVI will be facilitative with regard to the challenges posed by the American Theological Experience in this century. The current work is a good primer on what to expect from now onward.

As one of the raft of quickie biographies of Pope Benedict XVI starting to float ashore, Greg Tobin's book is decidedly middling. It's more journalistic and well-informed on Vatican inside-baseball than Stephen Mansfield's "Pope Benedict XVI: His Life and Mission," but still well below the standard set by John L. Allen's "The Rise of Benedict XVI."

This book, like Gaul, is divided into three parts. The first is a capsule history of the papacy that Tobin may well have written in advance, intending to insert into his book on the new pope whoever he turned out to be. The last section is a list of all previous popes, with a quick description of them and the events of their reign. This leaves only about 70 pages for Joseph Ratzinger -- and really even less than that. That's because the final chapter, "Urbi et Orbi: The State of the Church in the World" is a recitation of the challenges facing the Roman Catholic Church as Tobin sees them, and how he expects the new pope to deal with them. In this chapter too, it felt a little like Tobin left a space reading "[fill in new pope's name here]" so he could polish it off as soon after the election as possible.

I would have loved to have seen Tobin's reaction to that election. That's because in his 2003 book "Selecting the Pope: Uncovering the Mysteries of Papal Elections," Tobin memorably wrote, "A curial cardinal is, almost by definition, not *papabile.* Although Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith -- which used to be the Holy Office, and before that the Inquisition -- is a highly regarded theologian and intellectual, he is one of the least likely to be elected pope." Oddly, Tobin chooses not to address his error in this new book.

If you're looking for a quick introduction to the new pope, this book isn't a bad place to start, as long as you keep in mind the errors and misstatements other reviewers have pointed out. But if you are willing to invest a bit more time in the project, I would still encourage you instead to find a copy of Allen's "Rise of Benedict XVI" (but don't confuse that book with his other one titled "Pope Benedict XVI," which is really his older Ratzinger biography reissued with a new title; Allen has quite properly backed away from some of what he wrote in that earlier book).

There is at the present time a mad rush to publish new material about the new Holy Father, and the rush is bound to lead to mistakes and sloppy research and editing. That is unfortunately the case with this book by Greg Tobin. There are several historical mistakes to be found in this book along with some typographical errors and even one questionable doctrinal statement. It would have helped this book a great deal if the publisher had taken a little more time with it and had allowed the editors to do a better job.

This is not to say that this is a truly bad book however. There are several good things about this book, not the least of which is it's readability and length which allows the casual reader to gain at least some knowledge concerning our current Holy Father. I say some knowledge because while this book appears at first glance to be a biography, only about half of the text deals with the life of Benedict XVI. The first fifty or so pages deal with the history of the Papacy and do so in a very abbreviated manner. Still, it is a pretty good history that will give the reader a general overview of the Church's past. The next section of about seventy pages deals with the life of the Pontiff up until his election and does so in a credible although brief manner. Included is a very frank look at the activities of the Ratzinger family during WWII. The final section of the book deals with the problems that the Church and it's new leader will have to face over the next few years.

Although short, this book does touch on some important points and gives a clear analysis of what to expect from Benedict XVI. Tobin, much to his credit, points out that while the media in America has focused on the negative reaction of liberal American Catholics to this Pope's election, there are a sizable number of Catholics in the United Sates who are quite pleased with the new Pope. The author also makes some good observations concerning Cardinal Ratzinger's remarks just before the Conclave and the remarks of Pope Benedict just after his election.

I am quite sure that there will be better biographies of the Holy Father on the market in the near future, but I am also pretty sure there will also be some that are worse. If you are looking for a basic and short overview of Pope Benedict's life so far, this book would not be a bad choice. If, on the other hand you are looking for an in depth and error free biography, my advice is for you to wait just a little while longer. After all, Rome wasn't built in a day and neither is a good biography written in a month.

This was one of the most interesting books on Italy i have ever read. Very enjoyable indeed! I would recommend it to alot of people interesting in Italy.

Books published at the author's own expense really should contain a warning on the seller's site. If no reputable publisher will touch it, it's likely to be pretty bad. And this one is. I was unlucky enough to buy the book before it was reviewed on site. How I wish I'd waited! It truly is appalling. I didn't know enough about the subject to recognise the historical errors, but the bad grammar, patronising style and nauseating 'folksy' wisdom made reading it a very unpleasant experience.

LiPira is a renaissance man, according to the cover blurb he is a retired dentist who plays golf. Unfortunately he's not much of a historian. You wouldn't want a historian to drill your teeth, and as "Garibaldi" demonstrates, it's probably not a good idea to have a dentist write your biographies. I was suckered by the two previous reviews, but after a dozen pages I realized that the author's mother and sister wrote them, because no discerning reader could call this book excellent. Among its many flaws:

Research: the bibliography lists eight works, none less than twenty years old, none apparently in Italian, and none primary sources. Its seems LiPira read a handful of biographies and decided to try his hand at it.

Tone: It reads like some misbegotten 1940s communist propaganda. Garibaldi is a "noble leader" who "must fulfill his destiny". Alternately the "true messiah", "megahero", "demigod" and, laughably, a "guru of libertarianism, so to speak". We read that a "swell of adoration built to a tidal wave of idolatry" and "The Neapolitans were awed by his invincibility". He is a great lover whose "wiry constitution enamored him to all in the boudoir". His troops were "feverish in their passion to begin this momentous invasion" and "follow their glorified hero to higher levels of achievement". Pretty steamy stuff.

Bad guys are "imperialists" and "royalists". Interesting since Garibaldi renounced republicanism in 1851 and spent his career fighting for a king and for a time was dictator of Sicily. LiPira resorts to marxy prose to demonstrate Garibaldi's appeal to "the masses", even criticizing merchants who disliked Garibaldi because he "impounds" their goods to feed his troops. Garibaldi was a brilliant general, but it's not necessary to disguise the fact that he was also an ambitious mercenary. One annoying riff is LiPira's strange failure to grasp the relationship between military and political power. He mewls about "political interference" and how "politics once again nullified the noble sacrifice of so many gallant men", without considering the political ends for which they were sacrificed. When Garibaldi once persisted in fighting after a war had ended, LiPira acts as though he was abandoned by conniving politicos. Perhaps the fact that Garibaldi disguised his lust for adventure with contradictory ideologies explains his pathological distrust for politicians. The book fails to engage in any real political analysis.

And it is often inaccurate: "Millions [in Marseilles] were dying each year" of cholera; "Guerrilla warfare was born in the nineteenth century"; characterizing ancient Rome as a society of "liberated people, ennobled men, and guardians of human rights". Italy "failed in its first attempt to join the League of Nations" in 1866. Once LiPira has Garibaldi retreating so as not to "pit Italians against Italians and lead to a civil war", while for fifteen years he has been fomenting civil war by leading his Italian troops against other Italians. The French had "forty cannons, forty-eight artillery pieces, and various howitzers" (howitzers are a type of cannon, and cannon a type of artillery - an odd error in a military biography). San Marino is "a small old republic", without comprehending that its tactical value to Garibaldi and the very reason that this small republic got to be an old republic is that it sits atop a mountain without good road access.

Grammar: apparently English syntax and usage aren't a part of the dental school curriculum. LiPira can't seem to get the hang of matching subject to verb: "weakness and fragility was evident". Readers will enjoy the inventive usages: "abstract poverty" (vice abject), "offshore" (vice onshore), "reactionaries" (vice revolutionaries), and "lie" as the past tense of "lie", as in "Garibaldi lie in a stupor".

Some phrases are nearly incomprehensible: "ethereal personification", "obvious casualties", "It took until June for the sailing of the Neapolitan army to depart", "his talented saber in hand", "Garibaldi presented the taking of Venice via Dalmatia and the Balkans but with governmental ties." in a battle, his "ammunition dwindled to an embarrassing minimum", "He was adamant in his belief that life is not for the privileged", "each town they passed was more friendly than the next". The death of Garibaldi's beloved wife's is described as "unwelcome". For good measure there are ethnic slurs: "subtle" Sicilians and "warlike Prussians".

Readers will get a kick out of the redundancies: "freedom and liberty", "violent battle", "due to his recuperative powers, he recovered.", his biography included an "episode from his life", "more incessant", "a ditch that served as a trench", "long two month voyage", "both fear-inspiring and terrifying", "aggressively attacked", those killed are "lost forever", "raves and adulation", "the royalist king", "disarray and disorder", and "prior history". LiPira is compelled to state the obvious: "Little did he know what the future had in store", an attack was "designed to disable the enemy and bring victory", he patiently explains that computers did not exist in 1807, and later that the Statue of Liberty (not yet built) "had not gained [its] place in history, as yet".

e.e. cummings once teased Warren Harding for writing a sentence with seven grammatical errors. LiPira has created the biographical equivalent, cramming all this into a mere 120 pages. So, while it reads like a vanity book published by a hobbyist writing in his den, at least it doesn't take very long. Oh, the worst, the very worst thing about this book is that Garibaldi's name is misspelled on the spine.

This is not just another biography on Garibaldi. The author covers the life and times of Garibaldi and the formation of Italy in a way that is interesting and informative. Dr. Lipari fills in the gaps left behind other noted writings on this subject. Material flows well. Tough to put down.

Awful, absolutely awful. Don't have words in my vocabulary to describe how awful this book is. It is written in the strange style of a disciple writing about his beloved master. It doesn't seem to contain any research. It's mostly a comic book account of Garibaldi, without the pictures (except the cover sketch, done by the author himself).

This book has many useful facts and anecdotes to present to the reader yet there is something about the author's use of language that casts a negative pall over the stories of the popes. For example, when the author recounts the stories of martyrdom for the very early popes instead of stating that there is no available corroborating accounts of the martyr stories and that the earliest corroborated accounts start to occur in the later second and third centuries the author phrases it in words like this "There is no evidence to support the legend that XXXXX died a martyr".

Nevertheless the author does the Church and the world a service in presenting in short readable form accounts of the lives of the popes through the centuries. So I commend the book to the reading public on the basis of the factual information presented in it but not for its tone when describing doubtful stories about the popes.

The books is a paperback that opens flat, it is not too thick so the binding will probably last fairly well if it is handled carefully. The paper is slightly yellowish, the print is black. There is no bleed through on the pages so reading is pleasurable. The font used is about 10 point so if you have poor eyesight you'll need your glasses. On the whole it is well produced.

This review applies to ISBN 139780060878078

This is a fantastic book. McBrien does an excellent job in describing every Pontiff, from Peter the Apostle to Benedict XVI. This is really a fantastic read for anyone interested in learning about the Popes.

Fr.Mcbrien is a celebrated academic. His Theology is more than suspect however. Thus a history of the successors of St. Peter ends up becoming a college course on why the Catholic Church only began with Vatican 2. This book was therefore disappointing and worse promotes contempt on Great Popes such as the Saintly Pius X. Catholics and others searching for a history of Popes would be better served elswhere.

Very well-written and easy to read. The author writes from his more "liberal" point-of-view. So, more "conservative" Catholics will not like his opinions. However, those who accept the Church as she defined herself via Vatican II will enjoy this book. One does not have to read straight through. One can flip around and read about individual popes. One can read the author's top ten lists. His top outstanding pope for the modern era is Pope John XXIII. If you disagree with that, then you probably should not read this book.

I would give this book no stars if possible. It was utter crap. It was essentially a who's-who among the Popes of liberal Catholicism. From calling Pius X an intemperate, mean-spirited tyrant that set the Church back "for half a century" to calling John XXIII the most beloved Pope in history, and his pontificate of the greatest importance since that of St. Peter himself. I have to question the scholarship of any "Catholic" author impugning the only canonized Holy Father of the last century while glorifying the one that called the only unnecessary Council in history and almost single-handedly tried to tear the Latin Church down brick by brick, but I suppose I should expect nothing less from the Theology Department of Notre Dame.

St. Pius X, ora pro nobis

Questionable research and even more questionable conclusions. Singling out a single demographic group and making these kinds of generalizations is sickening. What about cops and crimes against women? Construction workers and crimes against women? Shameless and pathetic!

I was very poorly impressed by the apparent sheer misandry that shines through in this work. Negative stereotypes about males in general and athletes in specific are the foundation of this work, which I did not find to be particularly well researched. It was not helpful in the slightest to me. I was terribly disappointed.

I was writing a report for one of my college writing classes about the recent off the field problems that athletes are having today. I had bought Pros and Cons and found it to be interesting and full of facts and stories. However, when I read this book, I was impressed even more. Benedict does a great job of painting the picture of how violent these knucklehead athletes can be. When the victims descibe their beatings, it sends chills up your spine. If anyone who is looking for a behind the glitter and glamour look of today's professional athlete, than they must buy this book.

There is a difference between drawing conclusions from data and the kind of misandry which the NC reader refers to. This book takes a long look at both at both numbers (types of crimes, numbers of felons) and case-study data (individual accounts from the subjects) to support a conclusion that is obvious to all thinking people: violent group behavior is connected to violent individual behavior, especially when groups of men are involved. It is not misandric to develop a hypothesis and then examine whether the data support it or nor; it is, however, irresponsible to make sloppy, defensive, ad hominem attacks on books which scare the hell out of you. This book acts as a mirror to reflect some uncomplimentary facets of male society (and male sports). Readers may not like what they see, but this book (and others by Benedict) prove that you can't just throw names at social problems like these to make them go away. As I am all too well aware, living in the heart of Buckeye country, women pay a terrible price to pay when men's sports (especialy amateur sports) are glorified, and I am thankful when books like Benedict's emerge and help define the extent of such violence nationwide.

After reading through all these stories I was then amazed to find a book where ten women describe why they are joining Convents today. So if you feel a little sad after reading all this try 'New Habits' and available here. It is a joyful breath of fresh air with ten warm and intimate first person testimonies.

When I read this book, I was really interested in why these women entered religious life and, even more, why they left. Afterall, the subtitle is "Reflections on Leaving Convent Life". Having talked with a number of women who have left religious communities, I know it is never easy, and the reasons are often quite complex.

A more accurate name for the book should more likely be "What we've done since we left". That is what most of the stories centered on. However, on the positive side, they mostly centered on how they continued to live out their Benedictine charism outside of the convent. That part of the stories was beautiful, to see how these women took their many years of religious life, and somehow maintained their religious identity even though they were, technically, no longer religious.

So, I give it 3 stars. What they gave us, they gave well. They just didn't give us what the title implied. A nice, simple read, but if you are looking for insight into why women leave religious life, you won't find it here.

I was not sure if I would enjoy this book or not since I knew that it was about women who had left convent life. I found some of the stories to be very moving, but some of them made me feel rather sad. And some of the stories really made me wonder about where the individual writers were coming from because those stories seemed a bit off the wall. The book did show me that there certainly is a wide variety of personalities both in and out of the convent!

I didn't find most of the stories inspiring, unfortunately, but this book is worth reading for Jo Goodman's Baby Dream. It starts with a mystery, the heroine was very likeable, and it ended with a twist. More attention could have been placed on the actual development of the romance but it's an anthology so I suppose there just wasn't space.
Benedict's Where Dreams come True is OK, but the others.. were just unbelievable. Take Conn's story, set in 1763. The heroine and her parents-in-law meet during the wedding, where the hero assures her that everything will be ok - even if she's a travelling actress with an illegitimate child.

The stories for this books were okay. Mostly, they were just too short, with too much other stuff going on in the story to make me really feel the hero and heroine fell in love. The first story by Jo Goodman was okay, the one by Hannah Howell was probably the best one. The one by Carol Finch I could not like the hero because he seduces the heroine, who is a virgin, then he feels that she is trying to "trap" him into marriage by sleeping with him. I just can't like a hero from this time period who has no problem "ruining" a young girl. He knew she could never find a husband once he took her virginity but he still did it and was acting like she was trying to scheme to get him to marry her when he was the one who shouldn't have seduced an innocent virgin if he wasn't going to marry her. The fourth story was called "A daughter for John" and was way too short to make me believe this Lord in that time period would so easily accept and be willing to marry a woman who had born an illegitimate child. The fifth and sixth stories also moved too quickly to love to be believable.

I to have used the book for an online course,(perhaps the same one?) and found the book easy to follow and understand. The guidance provided this book is useful, but it is important to state the obvious that this book is from the Catholic perspective. As a non Catholic Christian I found the point of view very useful. I read the book prior to the class and then again with the class and found more in it each time I read it.

I used this book for an online Ethics course; I think it should be used only in a classroom setting. I did not care for the questions or the case study at the end of the chapter. Many times, both were to be answered by opinion only. I think the questions should relate more to information within the text that can be answered. Again, this book should be used in a classroom setting, not for an online course. However, I would not recommend this book for either setting.