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momwise
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Hi all! I hope you're having a happy summer so far. I searched on this topic and found the wonderful thread for activities and resources for the Year of the Priest.
I thought that it would be helpful also to have a book thread to refer back to. I would like one on children's books too eventually but don't have time to start it up right now.
My first suggestion is A Priest Forever by Fr. Benedict Groeschel. I have to get a new copy since I read it many many years ago and my older boys are now old enough to read it.
Fr. was ordained by special permission of Cardinal O'Connor before he finished his seminary studies because he was dying of cancer. Totally riveting!
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Gwen...wife for 30 years, mom of 7, grandma of 3.....
"If you want equal justice for all and true freedom and lasting peace, then America, defend life." JPII
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joann10
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I am reading The Shadow of His Wings right now, and what an awesome book it is.
It is my sons, Pat-22 and Dan-16, favorite book. I had not read it, even though we have had it a couple years and I am sorry I hadn't read it sooner.
Dan also just read The Grunt Padre . He enjoyed it very much--I have yet to read it.
(Dan is hoping to enter the seminary next year--so I really appreciate his book reviews.) 
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Maddie
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Excellent book, we have it on audio and my older ones listen to it at least once a year.
I wanted to recommend The Making of a Priest I've never seen it in paperback as they have for sale on Amazon; I have the old HB, but the story follows a young man through the seminary to the priesthood, lots of B&W pics. One of the last pics always brings tears to my eyes as it is the young man, now a priest, right after his ordination blessing his mother as she kneels before him.
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~Maddie~
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SuzanneG
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There are a couple suggestions in this thread:
Living Books about Religious Life
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Suzanne in ID
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Chari
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Great thread idea, Gwen! (ps-I miss you!)
Joann, my kids (18, 20) LOVE that book........and we have had it for years also.....and I have yet to read it. I will put it on my list.
The priest has my maiden name..........so we were able to talk my non-Catholic father into reading it. He really liked the book......but, he has not converted yet.  (aw, shucks)
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Dh Marty 27yrs...3 lovely maidens: Anne 24, Sarah 20 & Maddelyn 17 and 3 chivalrous sons: Matthew 22, Garrett 16 & Malachy 11
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Leonie
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I am reading Grandmother and the Priests by Taylor Caldwell..a fascinating read, about the spiritual life of priests...anecdotes..definitely for adults and teens, though.
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Leonie in Sydney
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KackyK
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Ladies these look like great books.
I don't know when I'll get to them to preread them...but I know they are something my dd age 14 would see and want to read.
Are they high school appropriate? older high school? college?
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KackyK
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Beginning With the Assumption
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Maddie
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The Making of A Priest is good for maybe 12 and up to read on their own. The pics make it nice to just look through and talk about with younger ones.
I was also going to recommend Chaplains in Action from the Vision series. It's a wonderful collection of stories about priests on the front line.
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MaryM
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I really enjoyed Parish Priest: Father Michael McGivney and American Catholicism . In addition to being a very interesting story on his life, it is a history of immigrants and the Catholic Church in America.
I have not read these, but they are listed on a Year of the Priest booklist at Aquinas and More Books and look good.
From Slave to Priest
The Diary of a Country Priest (which I know has been mentioned on the board in the past)
And the Fulton Sheen books on the priesthood:
Those Mysterious Priests
The Priest is Not His Own
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Mary M. in Denver
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KauaiCatholic
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can anyone help with priestly books for the younger set? I have several Vision/Windeatt books on order that I plan to read to my dc, but am looking for more on their level.
I browsed around Amazon for a while and came up with "Joseph's Hands" by Kety Sabatini and "What Does a Priest Do? What Does a Nun Do?" by Susan Heyboer O'Keefe, but I'm just going off the Amazon reviews. anybody here have any advice?
I really like this idea, btw. just trying to make it elementary-age friendly, and many of the books mentioned so far seem a little beyond that ...
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 Viviane
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We can do no great things; only small things with great love. -- Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
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MaryM
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Viviane, the threads in this Book Club forum are the mommy or adult books, that's why you aren't seeing children's book suggestions (except ones that would be good for mom also). There is currently another thread which is in the Domestic Church forum specifically on the "Year of the Priest" and has resources for children. I posted your question there as well. And there is an old thread on priest books for children which Suzanne linked to in her post above (4th one down).
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Mary M. in Denver
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KauaiCatholic
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thank you, Mary! I guess I got scattered throughout these threads ... thanks for keeping me on track! 
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Viviane
Grateful mama of Jonah Augustine ('01), Sophia Marie ('05) and Luke Dominic ('10)
We can do no great things; only small things with great love. -- Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
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stellamaris
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I really enjoyed St. Edmund Campion by Evelyn Waugh (a man, btw!). Definitely a high school read, but it could be assigned as literature, since Mr. Waugh is a noted English author. It also would fit into a study on the Elizabethean era.
Also, I think I posted in another thread, the bookThe Far Side of the Sea which is the story of Fr. Eusebio Kino, who basically evangelized a large portion of Northern Mexico and southern Arizona. This book is also high school level; it has a somewhat intricate mystery plot involving shifting time periods and three "main" characters, as well as a brief but gruesome description of Apache tortures. However, it is a fascinating and totally Catholic story of this dedicated and holy priest and the impact of the Catholic influence in the SW region of the United States. It could supplement a study of the early settlement of the SW.
I also second (or third!) the book on the Cure of Ars by Trucho. It is the definitive biography of this great saint.
Another thought is With God in Russia, the story of Fr. Walter Ciszek who spent 23 years following WWII in various prison camps and as a "hidden" priest in the USSR. Fr. Ciszek wrote this book himself, and it has a very understated feel, but one can read between the lines the faithful, humble, and courageous service this priest offered up. This one would fit into a high school study of the 20th century.
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Caroline
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stellamaris
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Just remembered this wonderful book as well. It is entitled The Blessed Friend of Youth: St. John Bosco and although it is OOP, it is available at a reasonable price at Alibris. This is a wonderful book for moms, as it gives several anecdotes describing St. John Bosco's mother's teaching and her impact on his life and vocation. It is also a very nice family read-aloud, since many of the stories it recounts are interesting to children and told in an entertaining style.
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Caroline
Wife to dh 30+ yrs,ds's 83,85,89,dd's 91,95,ds's 01,01,02,grammy to 4
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Maddie
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My daughter (16) just finished The Autobiography of a Hunted Priest. What a great book! It's the autobiography of a priest in England during the persecution of King Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth. It kept her reading late into the night.
I just finished The World, the Flesh, and Father Smith. Good story about a faithful priest in Scotland during the first part of the 20th century.The World, the Flesh, and Father Smith
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DominaCaeli
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Come Rack! Come Rope! is another excellent book about a priest in Elizabethan England. It shows a young man's discernment process and then his future life as a covert priest. And St. Edmund Campion makes an appearance too.
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Celeste
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momwise
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I thought of one today that features a priest, 2 protestant chaplains and a Rabbi:
No Greater Glory, the story of the sinking of the Dorchester in WWII. Great for Independence day (I know it's a little late notice  ).
I noticed this also on Amazon: Battlefield Chaplains which is about Catholic priests serving in WWII. Probably similar to Chaplains in Action featured above??
Also, Patriot in Purple: the Story of Archbishop John Carroll. You'll have to buy that used if you can't borrow it; I would be surprised to find it a library!
Have a happy, safe and blessed 4th of July...I'll be praying for all of you and especially for the USA.
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Gwen...wife for 30 years, mom of 7, grandma of 3.....
"If you want equal justice for all and true freedom and lasting peace, then America, defend life." JPII
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Maddie
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A Chaplain in Gray Story about a Civil War Chaplain. My teens enjoyed it. From the American Background books (old Catholic publisher)
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Maddie
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Forgive me for posting yet again, but my teens and I read the Don Camillo stories aloud to each other recently and laughed hysterically. The stories take place in a Communist Italian village where the good priest frequently takes on the Communist mayor and the local Communist party. There are several in the series.
Here's an excerpt:
The Baptism
ONE DAY Don Camillo, perched high on a ladder, was busily polishing St. Joseph's halo. Unexpectedly a man and two women, one of whom was Peppone's wife, came into the church. Don Camillo turned around to ask what they wanted.
"There is something here to be baptized," replied the man, and one of the women held up a bundle containing a baby.
"Whose is it?" inquired Don Camillo, coming down from his ladder.
"Mine," replied Peppone's wife.
"And your husband's?" persisted Don Camillo.
"Well, naturally! Who else would be the father? You, maybe?" retorted Peppone's wife indignantly.
"No need to be offended," observed Don Camillo on his way to the sacristy. "I've been told often enough that your party approves of free love."
As he passed before the high altar Don Camillo knelt down and gave a discreet wink in the direction of Christ "Did you hear that one?" he murmured with a happy grin. "One in the eye for the Godless ones!"
"Don't talk rubbish, Don Camillo," replied Christ irritably. "If they had no God why should they come here to get their child baptized? If Peppone's wife had boxed your ears it would have served you right."
"If Peppone's wife had boxed my ears I should have taken the three of them by the scruff of their necks and . . ."
"And what?" Christ asked severely.
"Oh, nothing; just a figure of speech," Don Camillo hastened to assure Him, rising to his feet.
"Don Camillo, watch your step," Christ said sternly.
Duly vested, Don Camillo approached the baptismal font. "What do you wish to name this child?" he asked Peppone's wife.
"Lenin, Libero, Antonio," she replied.
"Then go and get him baptized in Russia," said Don Camillo calmly, replacing the cover on the font.
The priest's hands were as big as shovels and the three left the church without protest. But as Don Camillo tried to slip into the sacristy he was stopped by the voice of Christ. "Don Camillo, you have done a very wicked thing. Go at once and bring those people back and baptize their child."
"But, Lord," protested Don Camillo, "You really must bear in mind that baptism is a very sacred matter. Baptism is . . ."
"Don Camillo," Christ interrupted him, "are you trying to teach me the nature of baptism? Didn't I invent it? I tell you that you have been guilty of gross presumption, because if that child were to die at this moment it would be your fault if it failed to attain Paradise!"
"Lord, let us not be melodramatic! Why in the name of Heaven should it die? It's as pink and white as a rose!"
"That doesn't mean a thing!" Christ pointed out. "What if a tile should fall on its head or it suddenly had convulsions? It was your duty to baptize it."
Don Camillo raised his hands in protest. "But, Lord, think it over. If it were certain that the child would go to Hell, then we might stretch a point. But since he might easily manage to slip into Heaven, in spite of his father, how can You ask me to risk anyone getting in there with a name like Lenin? I'm thinking of the reputation of Heaven."
"The reputation of Heaven is my business," shouted Christ angrily. "What matters to me is that a man should be a decent fellow, and I care less than nothing whether his name be Lenin or Button. At the very most, you should have pointed out to those people that saddling children with fantastic names may be a nuisance to them when they grow up."
"Very well," replied Don Camillo. "I am always wrong. I'll see what I can do."
Just then someone came into the church. It was Peppone, alone, with the baby in his arms. He closed the church door behind him and bolted it. "I'm not leaving this church," he said, "until my son has been baptized with the name that I have chosen."
"Look at that," whispered Don Camillo, smiling as he turned to Christ. "Now do You see what these people are? One is filled with the holiest intentions, and this is how they treat you."
"Put yourself in his place," Christ replied. "One may not approve of his attitude but one can understand it."
Don Camillo shook his head.
"I have already said that I do not leave this place unless you baptize my son!" repeated Peppone. After laying the bundle containing the baby upon a bench he took off his coat, rolled up his sleeves, and came toward the priest threateningly.
"Lord," implored Don Camillo. "I ask You! If You think one of Your priests should give way to the threats of a layman, then I must obey. But if I do and tomorrow they bring me a calf and compel me to baptize it, You must not complain. You know very well how dangerous it is to create precedents."
"All right, but in this case you must try to make him understand ..."
"And if he hits me?"
"Then you must accept it. You must endure and suffer as I did."
Don Camillo turned to his visitor. "Very well, Peppone," he said. "The baby will leave the church baptized, but not with that accursed name."
"Don Camillo," stuttered Peppone, "don't forget that my stomach has never recovered from that bullet I stopped in the mountains. If you hit low I go after you with a bench."
"Don't worry, Peppone; I can deal with you entirely in the upper stories," Don Camillo assured him, landing a quick one above his ear.
They were both burly men and their blows whistled through the air.
After twenty minutes of speechless and furious combat, Don Camillo distinctly heard a voice behind him.
"Now, Don Camillo! A left to the jaw!" It came from Christ above the altar. Don Camillo struck hard and Peppone crashed to the ground.
He remained there for about ten minutes; then he sat up, got to his feet, rubbed his jaw, shook himself, put on his jacket and re-knotted his red handkerchief. Then he picked up the baby. Fully vested, Don Camillo was waiting, steady as a rock, beside the font. Peppone approached him slowly.
"What are we going to name him?" asked Don Camillo.
"Camillo, Libero, Antonio," muttered Peppone.
Don Camillo shook his head. "No; we will name him Libero, Camillo, Lenin," he said. "After all, the Camillo will cancel out Lenin any day."
"Amen," muttered Peppone, still massaging his jaw.
When all was done and Don Camillo passed before the altar, Christ smiled and remarked: "Don Camillo, I have to admit that in politics you are my master."
"And in boxing," replied Don Camillo with perfect gravity, carelessly fingering a large lump on his forehead.
This is my standing Christmas gift to priests. They absolutely love them!
The Little World of Don Camillo
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~Maddie~
Wife to my dh and Momma of 9 dear ones
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SuzanneG
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I came here tonight looking for a book for dh to read and got LOST at Aquinas and More website in their Year of the Priest Section. I had no idea there were SO MANY BOOKS about priests!  I like how they have everything catagorized:
Priest Biographies
Literature and Fiction
Religious Orders books
Priestly Ministry
Apologetics
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Suzanne in ID
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4Real Forums : Book Club
Topic: Priest books
