Thursday 17 October 2024

In Search of St. Piran - E.W.F. Tomlin

In Search of St. Piran
E.W.F. Tomlin
Lodenek Press
ISBN 9780902899995

In search of St. Piran - E.W.F. Tomlin

Someone on twitter mentioned Saint Piran, and a pilgrimage to sites related to him. I do not recall having ever heard the name before and asked for some recommendations for reading. This was the first I could lay my hands on. And it is a fascinating read. The subtitle of this volume is: ‘an account of his monastic foundation at Perranzabluoe, Cornwall, and its place in the Western or Celtic Church and society.’. The volume has almost as many pages of images and plate prints as it does text. 

The contents of this volume are:

Preface 
I The Origin and History of St. Piran’s Oratory and the 
   Monastic Community associated with it
I The Fate of the Oratory-Chapel since 1895 
III The Old Parish Church 
IV The Latest Developments 
V The Western or Celtic Church and Cornwall, and the 
    Nature of Early Monastic Communities
Notes 
Appendix I Maps 
Appendix II: Chronology 

The list of Illustrations and maps it contains is:

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Frontispiece The Oratory Chapel as excavated 
        (before the building of the concrete shell)
St. Piran’s Cross
The oratory-chapel, 1910
The stone head, said to represent St. Piran
Three stone figureheads
Artist’s impression of St. Piran’s altar stone
Ground plan of the oratory-chapel, by Michell
Letter to the West Briton, by Michell, 1835
The oratory-chapel from the south (Haslam)
The oratory-chapel, exterior (Haslam)
South door of oratory-chapel (Haslam)
Haslam’s altar slab
Interior of oratory-chapel (Dexter)
Oratory-chapel with bulkhead (Dexter)
North and East walls, oratory-chapel, 1910
The restored altar, oratory-chapel, 1910
Interior of oratory-chapel before 1910
The oratory-chapel under concrete cover
Site of the oratory-chapel, 1981, marked by commemoration stone
The Old Parish church with cottage (Haslam)
Exterior of North wall of chancel, Old Parish church (Dexter)
The excavated chancel, Old Parish church (Dexter)
Sketch of Chancel, Old Parish church (Dexter)
Present Parish church, Lambourne
The Hoskyn tablet, present Parish church (removed from the old
Parish church)
Perran Round: the adapted iron-age fort
Hypothetical plan of monastic site. 

Maps
The Saints, Route from Ireland to Brittany 
The Pilgrims, Way 
The Manor of Tywarnhayle 

I highlighted a few passages while working through this volume and some of them are:

“This is not a guide to the Oratory of St. Piran. It is rather an attempt to provide the visitor or the general reader with a brief account of its long history, its vicissitudes, and its place in the Western or Celtic Church and Society. For in view of what has happened in the past, and what is taking place in the present, there attaches to it, in Nikolaus Pevsner’s words, ‘‘something of great historical poignancy’’.”

“Until recently, St. Piran’s Oratory (sometimes called ‘The Lost Church’) was held to be “the oldest place of Christian worship in England (sic) with parts of its four walls still standing’’. If this description were correct, the present oratory, or the ruin now hidden from the public, would date from the 6th or the early 7th century; and it might reasonably be supposed to have been built by St. Piran himself and his companions. Strictly speaking, the word “oratory” is a misnomer.” 

“Recent archaeological opinion suggests that very few chapels in the country, and probably none in Comwall, antedate the 8th century. What remains of St. Piran’s oratory-chapel must therefore be assigned to a later and perhaps to more than one century, and the oldest part may be either 9th or 10th century, though a date not far from 800 is not impossible. On the other hand, the present building, such as it is, almost certainly stands on the site of the original chapel of St. Piran, which was probably erected in the 6th century, and it may preserve its original form.”

“So much we can say with confidence, because there is every reason to suppose that St. Piran was an historical figure. And if, as we may assume, he founded the monastic community associated with his name, the entire site remains of considerable interest.”

“Who was St. Piran? He was probably born in the first half of the 6th century, and he may have lived into the 7th century. As a means of taking our historical bearings, it is worth recalling that when he set up his mission on the north Cornish coast, none of the great cathedrals of Europe existed, but that between 532 and 537 the Byzantine Emperor at Constantinople, Justinian, was building the magnificent church of the Holy Wisdom (Santa Sophia), which antedates by many centuries St. Peter’s Rome, and that about 530 he was building — or rather rebuilding — the Church of the Nativity at Bethlehem.”

“Although the region in which he settled may have been wild and desolate, it did not lack some form of local organisation. In fact, St. Piran was born a subject of the kingdom of Dumnonia, a loosely organised British realm covering approximately the Cornish peninsula, present-day Devonshire, and perhaps Somerset up to the river Parrett.”

“A century later, Bede (c. 673—735), who relied on Gildas to some extent, and who might be regarded as having a better claim to be called the Father of British History, was remarkably well informed about events both in his own country and in Europe — where he himself enjoyed a high reputation — and even in a land as remote as Palestine.”

I believe those few quotes will give you a feel for the volume. The information on the back of the book states:

“E.W.F. TOMLIN is the author of a number of books on philosophical, literary and historical subjects. He has known Cornwall since his childhood and is a student of Celtic history and culture. He has held professorships in the United States and in France. For his earlier career in the public service he was awarded the OBE in 1959 and the CBE in 1965. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

This study of St. Piran is addressed to the general reader and to those who wish to pursue the subject. It concludes with an essay on the Celtic Church which places the monastery of St. Piran in its historical context and lends the work an added dimension of interest.”

And though this volume was a fascinating read to be honest it left me wanting more. I want to know more about the man, his ministry, his mission. As much as this volume provided some answers it left even more unanswered. If the name of the saint picked your interest this could be a good starting point. I myself am off to look at some volume on Welsh saints looking for more about this saint.

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2024 Catholic Reading Plan


Wednesday 16 October 2024

Hearing Christ’s Voice A New Lectionary for the Church - Bishop Hugh Gilbert, OSB

Hearing Christ’s Voice: A New Lectionary for the Church 
Bishop Hugh Gilbert, OSB
Catholic Truth Society
ISBN 
9781784698065
CTS Booklet LT13

Hearing Christ’s Voice A New Lectionary for the Church - Bishop Hugh Gilbert, OSB

Over the last several years I have read over 400 volumes from the CTS. I have read books from many series, and many authors. A few authors so captured my attention I tried to track down all the books by them. This however was the third book I have read by Bishop Hugh Gilbert. This is the first of the volumes about the new Lectionary being introduced in England and Wales that I have read. Even though I am across the pond, I am greatly interested in reading about this new Lectionary and the supplemental materials around it. Unfortunately, as of the writing of this review there is no eBook edition available for this volume even though the physical edition has been available for over a month. I finally caved and ordered the physical copy, and this is the review of it.

The description of this volume is:

“Bishop Hugh Gilbert, OSB, provides further explanation of the Bishops’ desire to provide the Catholic faithful access to a reliable and contemporary version of Scripture through which to hear the Word of God proclaimed in the Mass, offering answers to the questions that have arisen.

This is the publication we recommend for parishes wanting to help the faithful understand the changes to the Lectionary.

The new Lectionary for England & Wales and Scotland is a sign of the Bishops’ desire to provide the Catholic faithful access to a reliable and contemporary version of Scripture, to enable their ongoing liturgical encounter with the Word of God and thus help us all become “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, that [we] may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called [us] out of darkness into his marvellous light” (1 Pt 2:9).

This book, by Bishop Hugh Gilbert, OSB, provides some further explanation of this decision and answer the questions that have arisen.

• Why a new Lectionary?
• What is a Lectionary?
• What is the Liturgy of the Word?
• Why this version of Scripture? And why this new version of the Psalms?
• What is done in other parts of the Catholic world?
• What will it ask of us and what will it bring us?”

And the chapters are:

Introduction: Unrolling the Scroll 
Why a New Lectionary? 
What is a Lectionary? 
What is the Liturgy of the Word? 
Why this Version of the Bible?
What is the English Standard Version?
What Happens Elsewhere? 
What Will the New Lectionary Ask of Us and What Will It Bring Us? 
Conclusion: Extinguishing the Lamps 

I only highlighted a few passages while reading this volume, some of them are:

“On the first Sunday of Advent 2024, throughout England, Wales and Scotland, a new Lectionary comes into force. Countless readers at ambos in churches throughout the country will open newly published books and proclaim the word of the Lord. TI1is will be a continuation and an echo of what the Lord did in Nazareth and does in heaven. It is the same event of the unfolding of the mystery, the plan, of God. It is Christ the Lector, Christ the Word in action.”

“A new Lectionary is a fresh chance to hear Christ speaking to us with the ears of faith; to take a fresh look at the Liturgy of the Word; to sense the "living and active" quality of God's word (Heb 4:12); to let it bring us together with others; and to incorporate it more into our lives.”

“This booklet seeks to address some of the questions that naturally arise with the advent of a new liturgical book, and such a major one:
     • Why a new Lectionary?
     • What is a Lectionary?
     • What is the Liturgy of the Word?
     • Why this version of Scripture? And why this new version of the Psalms?
     • What is done in other parts of the Catholic world?
     • What will it ask of us and what will it bring us?”

“The Lectionary is unique among the liturgical books of the Roman Rite: in others, the original Latin text is rendered directly into the contemporary languages concerned: a Lal in Collect or Preface, for example, lll'1 '"111'S English or Swedish or Swahili, or whatever. With the Lectionary, however, the translations of the Scripture readings it contains are made from the original biblical languages of Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, not from the Latin version of the Bible. In practice, this normally means adopting a version of the Bible already existing in the vernacular language concerned.”

“So, on the first Sunday of Advent, we will bid farewell to the version of the Lectionary familiar to us for over fifty years, based on the Jerusalem Bible and the Grail Psalms, and we will begin use of a version based on the English Standard Version Catholic Edition and the Revised Grail Psalms (also known as The Abbey Psalms and Canticles).”

“A Lectionary is the liturgical book of the Roman Rite which contains the biblical readings used at Mass and on certain other occasions (such as baptisms, weddings and funerals) . It is one of the three liturgical books which enable the celebration of Mass: the Lectionary for the readings, the Missal for the rites and prayers of the Mass as a whole and the (generally overlooked) Gradual which contains the chant or musical settings of some of the Mass texts - the hymn-book of the Roman Church.”

“Behind our current Lectionary lies, first of all, the long tradition of ordered biblical readings at the liturgy, a tradition with roots in the Old Testament and the Synagogue services of the Jewish people, and which is evidenced in Christian circles from at least the second century of the Chris tian era. Arrangements of readings are found, with variations, in all the major liturgical families of the Church.
     A second influence on the Lectionary is closer to our own time: the desire of the Second Vatican Council to bring the faithful into fuller contact with the written
Word of God, Holy Scripture.”

“A Lectionary is only an instrument. It is an instrument at the service of the Liturgy of the Word. A new Lectionary provides a golden opportunity for a fresh appreciation of what is happening in the Liturgy of the Word.”

“In the Liturgy of the Eucharist, we are close to the Mother of Jesus as she stood by the cross of her son. In the Liturgy of the Word, we can share her open ear and pondering heart.”

I hope those samples give you a feel for this volume. This volume was an excellent book to work through. As mentioned this lectionary is not used where I attend mass in Canada, but this booklet provides a lot of great information and history on the lectionary and why the Bishops of England and Wales decided to use this translation and some of the changes involved in creating the lectionary from it.

It is an excellent little book that honestly any Catholic could benefit from reading. I can easily recommend it but especially for those in England and Wales.

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2024 Catholic Reading Plan! For other reviews of books from the Catholic Truth Society click here.

Books by Bishop Hugh Gilbert:
Living the Mystery
Unfolding the Mystery
Words for Feast and Saint Days
Words for the Advent and Christmas Season
Words for the Lent and Easter Season

Tuesday 15 October 2024

The Handy Little Guide to Fasting - Deacon Greg Kandra

The Handy Little Guide Fasting
ISBN 9781639661732
eISBN 978639661749
ASIN B0D42K1LDQ

The Handy Little Guide to Fasting - Deacon Greg Kandra

This is the third of the ‘Handy Little Guide’ books from Our Sunday Visitor that I have read, it is available in eBook format and I believe it is one of 4 available digitally from the 9 in the series. This is a pity. I want to state that this is a wonderful little book or booklet. It is a great little read, and one that could read repeatedly, and with new benefits each time. Second, I really wish this that others in the ‘Handy Little’ series were available as eBooks. After having read three in the series I want to read the others but almost never pick up physical books anymore. Mainly due to my dyslexia. 

The chapters and sections in this booklet are:

Introduction:
     What This Book Is and Isn’t
     A Prayer Before Beginning a Fast

A Brief (or Fast) History of Fasting
     Reflect
     A Prayer of Humility

How Fast Is Too Fast? Some Practical Pointers
     1. Ease into it.
     2. Drink lots of water.
     3. Slow down.
     4. If you take medications, take care.
     5. Just as you eased into a fast, you need to ease out 
         of it, too.
     Reflect
     A Prayer for Patience

Not So Fast: Hold On! Do I Really Have to Do This?
     Reflect
     A Prayer for Those Who Must Do Without

Getting Started: It’s Been an Hour; Give Me a Cookie!
     Fasting Pro Tip
     Prayer at the Beginning of a Fast
     Reflect
     A Prayer in Time of Temptation

The Hunger Games
     1. Make your fast a prayer.
     2. Don’t think so much about what you’re missing, 
         but about what you’re gaining.
     3. Take the time you would normally spend having lunch 
         (or even dinner) and spend it with some holy reading.
     4. Got the time? Go to confession.
     5. As the day winds on, never fail to give thanks. Often.
     Reflect
     A Prayer of Thanksgiving During a Fast

Food for Thought: Fasting from Other Temptations
     Fast from Social Media
     Fast from Television
     Fast from Gossip
     Fast from Despair
     Reflect
     Prayer for Fasting in the Twenty-first Century

Fast Friends: Fasting as a Group
     1. Identify a cause.
     2. Form a group of like-minded people.
     3. Determine the specifics of your fast.
     4. Form a prayer circle for the fast.
     5. Conclude your fast with another liturgy — 
         and a modest meal!
     Reflect
     Prayer for a Group Fast

One Last Bite: Some Final Thoughts
     Prayer of Thanksgiving after a Fast

The description of this volume is:

“Many Catholics view fasting as hard, burdensome, weird, or only for Lent. This little book demonstrates that fasting can be so much more than that! It's an opportunity for prayer, reflection, and solidarity with the suffering of the world.

The Handy Little Guide to Fasting is your easy-to-read, down-to-earth introduction to this ancient practice. Author, speaker, and award-winning journalist Deacon Greg Kandra presents a way to blend faith and fortitude to make fasting more spiritually fulfilling. You'll learn:

Some practical pointers when fasting
The difference between fasting and abstinence
What the Church teaches about fasting
The various options for fasting (hint: It's not just about food!)

Each brief chapter concludes with reflection questions and a prayer for your fasting journey.”

I only highlighted a few sections while reading this volume, they are:

“If we’re honest, most of us struggle to eat well, eat sensibly, and eat healthy. For Catholics, the struggle can take on another dimension when we try to give up eating altogether and undertake one of the most venerable religious traditions in the world: a fast. Fasting can be mysterious and intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. This little book, I hope, will help make this practice understandable and doable. Fasting isn’t just for the extremely pious or for ascetics who subsist on water and air while living in a cave. Anyone can do it.”

“This book offers an approach to see fasting not as a chore or a duty—or a painful discipline that looms over us during Lent—but rather to see this age-old practice as an opportunity to give something up and, in the process, just give.”

“Jewish educator Aliza Bulow writes, “The purpose of fasting is to bring one to repent, and true repentance brings about a change in actions.””

“A fast can be a powerful and unifying force in a local community. What causes or concerns would a group of people want to pray about in a corporate fast?”

I hope those quotes give you a feel for the wisdom contained within this small volume. When I was in university, I was involved with Campus Crusade for Christ, there was a series of booklets by the founder Bill Bright, called Transferable Concepts, and by reading them many times you could almost memorize them and the message so that you could share it. This volume and series remind me a lot of those books.

This book and series would be excellent for High School Students, College or University Students and older adults. It is easy to engage with. Can be read in a brief time. Can be worked through chapter by chapter ahead of time or during a planned fast. Deacon Greg writes in an engaging manner and offers a lot of personal examples and includes a good serving of humour. An excellent little volume. 

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2021 Catholic Reading Plan

Books in the Handy Little Series from OSV:
The Handy Little Guide to Adoration - Michelle Jones Schroeder
The Handy Little Guide to Confession - Michelle Jones Schroeder
The Handy Little Guide to the Holy Spirit - Michelle Schroeder
The Handy Little Guide to the Lent - Michelle Schroeder
The Handy Little Guide to Novenas - Allison Gingras
The Handy Little Guide to the Liturgy of the Hours - Barb Szyszkiewicz

Books by Deacon Greg Kandra:
The Busy Person's Guide to Prayer
A Deacon Prays: Prayers and Devotions for Liturgy and Life
Befriending St. Joseph: Finding Faith, Hope, and Courage in the Seven Sorrows Devotion
The Busy Person's Guide to an Extraordinary Life
The Handy Little Guide to Fasting
…\

Handy Little Guides - Our Sunday Visitor

Monday 14 October 2024

Ordinary Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders

Ordinary Saints Around the World
Lindsey Sanders (illustrator)
ISBN 9781645853770

Ordinary Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders

I recently received the 6 volumes in this set to review. This is the second I read. The volumes are:

Adventurous 
Ordinary 
Royal and Warrior
Talented 
Unshakable 
Young Saints 

These 6 volumes are geared for younger readers. And are a very high quality picture book. The six books are available individually or as a set. There is a volume that was released in 2021 by the same author and illustrator called Saints Around the World, that could be read to the same audience as this volume but it is much more in-depth and has significantly more information on each of the 100 saints covered in the volume. The description of this volume states:

““When they saw [their] boldness . . . and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they marveled and took note that these men had been with Jesus.” Acts 4:13

These fifteen men and women prove that no life is too ordinary for extraordinary holiness.

This hardcover book includes sturdy laminate pages suitable for young hands. Ordinary Saints Around the World features the stories of:

Saint Agatha Kim A-gi
Saint André Bessette
Saint Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin
Saint Faustina Kowalska
Saint Nina of Georgia
Blessed Stanley Rother
Saint Lorenzo Ruiz
Saint Alphonsa Muttathupadathu
Blessed Laurentia Herasymiv
Blessed Ceferino Giménez Malla
Saint Martha Wang Luo Mande
Blessed Cyprian Michael Iwene Tansi
Blessed Rani Maria Vattalil
Blessed John Sullivan
Peter Wu Guosheng

Recommended for ages 4-8.”

About the author we are informed:

“Meg Hunter-Kilmer is a speaker, a writer, and a missionary who has lived out of her car since 2012. Meg loves telling stories, learning about Saints, reading the Bible, and watching the Olympics. She is a proud godmother of ten and aunt of an ever-increasing crew of incredible nieces and nephews.”

About the illustrator  we are informed:

“Lindsey Sanders is the creator of AlmondRod Toys, an online shop that sells Catholic toys designed by Lindsey herself. She has seven kids who she homeschools in Grand Rapids, Michigan.”

There is no table of contents nor even pages numbers which are the only draw backs I see to this book and the 6 in the series. If you wanted to find a specific saint you would need to flip through looking for them. That being said this is an excellent volume and series. We already plan to give a set of them to our Catholic School Library. The physical books are well made, and designed to last a long time and heavy use. Beautiful hardcovers with solid stitching. I bent the book flat to scan a couple sample pages and there is no indication I did so. I believe the artwork is either watercolours or water colour pencils. The artwork is stunning. I would love prints of a couple of the images to be able to hang in my den.

Each 2 page spread includes:

Name of the Saint or Blessed
Pronunciation Guide to the name
Brief introduction to them
A key point to learn from them
Then the country, dates and feast day.
A world map with a star marker for where they were from.

There is also available a Saints Around the World Map & Sticker Set that contains stickers for all the saints in the series. The inside cover of each volume shows where the saints for that volume come from. It would be an excellent supplement for home or classroom use. 

There were a few of my favourite saints in this volume, and a number I had never encountered before. I look forward to tracking down more information about some of those new friends in heaven. Some of my favourites included were: Saint André Bessette, Saint Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin, Blessed Stanley Rother, and Blessed John Sullivan. And some of the new encounters were Saint Nina of Georgia, Blessed Laurentia Herasymiv, and Blessed Rani Maria Vattalil.

I have had the longer version of this book for a few years now, as well as Meg’s volume Pray for Us: 75 Saints Who Sinned, Suffered, and Struggled on Their Way to Holiness but after reading just one of these they have jumped way up in my ‘to be read’ pile. I look forward to reading the other 5 volumes in this set as well as Meg’s other works. I can easily recommend this book and series for home, school, and church library. They are excellent for introducing children and even us older folks to a wide range of friends in heaven. A great book and series sure to become a family favourite!

Ordinary Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders  Sample 1

Ordinary Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders  Sample 2

Ordinary Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders  Sample 3

Ordinary Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders  Map

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2024 Catholic Reading Plan

Books by Meg Hunter-Kilmer:
Pray for Us: 75 Saints Who Sinned, Suffered, and Struggled on Their Way to Holiness
A Year in the Word Catholic Bible Journal

Saints Around the World Books:
Saints Around the World
Saints Around the World Map & Sticker Set
Saints Around the World For Younger Readers:
Adventurous Saints Around the World
Royal and Warrior Saints Around the World
Talented Saints Around the World
Unshakable Saints Around the World

Contributed to:
Living the Word Catholic Women's Bible
The Ave Catholic Notetaking

Pray for Us: 75 Saints Who Sinned, Suffered, and Struggled on Their Way to Holiness - Meg Hunter-Kilmer

Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders

Adventurous Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders

Ordinary Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders

Royal and Warrior Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders

Talented Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders

Unshakable Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders

Young Saints Around the World - Meg Hunter-Kilmer and Lindsey Sanders

Sunday 13 October 2024

Prayer of the Day Prayer in Honour of Saint Scholastica

Prayer in Honor of Saint Scholastica
Prayer of the Day  

St. Scholastica by Gwyneth Thompson-Briggs from  The Catholic Home Art Gallery - John Herreid - 18 Works of Art by Contemporary Catholic Artists

O God, to show us where innocence leads, you made the soul of your virgin Saint Scholastica soar to heaven like a dove in flight. Grant through her merits and her prayers that we may so live in innocence as to attain to joys everlasting. This we ask through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One God, forever and ever. Amen. 

John Herreid (Editor)
ISBN 9781621645498


I went in search of a prayer to Saint Scholastica after seeing her icon and reading her story in the above book. The icon was by Gwyneth Thompson-Briggs really captured my attention. I framed it and put it over my wife's desk with the Saint Benedict one so that they would be behind me on teams calls for work. I have been praying this prayer for about a year now. This is one of two prayer to Saint Scholastica I have been praying, the other being a Saint Scholastica Prayer


Saturday 12 October 2024

Holy Flying Pumpkins! - A LegendFiction Anthology

Holy Flying Pumpkins! 
A LegendFiction Anthology
eISBN 9798330448630
ASIN B0DJCGW3WB


This volume is much less serious but maybe no less fun than the other two anthologies currently available from LegendFiction. I picked it up because of the contribution of Karina Fabian, but now am looking to see what I can find from the other contributors. I devoured this volume in a single sitting and over 2 very large mugs of tea. It was a really fun read and great read for early in October.

The description of this volume states:

“Are you looking for a serious work of literary genius? Then, I'm sorry you've picked up the wrong book. Holy Flying Pumpkins is an anthology of Halloween short stories that contain, among other things, killer fast food, pumpkin flinging, and serial killers with extremely poor judgment.

Does any of that sound like literature to you? Absolutely not! It is, however, a rollicking good time.

These ten humorous Halloween short stories have been brought to you with love by the nerds at LegendFiction.”

The contributors in the collection are:

Corinne Oncena

The introduction is by Katy Campbell at the end of which she states:

“Which brings me to this anthology. I wanted to help break Christian authors out of their “Great Christian Literature Bind” by challenging them to do something fun and crazy. To turn off that internal editor and write some cheesy Halloween stories–the cornier, the better. Use cliches, cringey one-liners, dad jokes, whatever you like! Just have fun and keep the content appropriate for teens and up. 

It was amazing how many funny creative stories came into being once the pressure to be great was removed. There were many submissions and it was hard to decide what would make the actual anthology. 

I hope you enjoy this selection as much as I did!”

Maybe if we are lucky they will release another volume with some of those surplus stories, for the 10 in this volume were excellent. The stories in this offering are:

House Pets - Citlalin Ossio
Night of the Pumpkin Slingers - Grace Woods
The Last Drive Thru - Joe Campbell
The Ghost of Leah LaCrosse - Mark Phelps
Thanks for the Mummy-ries – Karian Fabian
Specter’s Mid-Death Crisis - Katy Campbell
Halloween Knight - Corinne Oncena
The Fairy Tale Food Chain - Katharine Campbell
Oh Deer - Grace Woods
Troll Bacon - Dominic de Souza

To start with I had just finished the 9th DragonEye PI novel (according to current numbering) and have read a number of other stories in the Vernverse. So I was really excited to read this offering and it did not let down. The visit with Vern in Thanks for the Mummy-ries was great fun. Specter’s Mid-Death Crisis by Katharine Campbell had me laughing out loud. I could so easily picture this being my youngest daughter who is currently 14. Grace Woods's Night of the Pumpkin Slingers was an excellent story and leaves you wanting more. And I could not help but greatly enjoy The Last Drive Thru by Joe Campbell and that ending, scarf that burrito down. House Pets by Citlalin Ossio was a very heart-warming tail er I mean tale.  My 16 year old son will love Halloween Knight by Corinne Oncena, I just hope he doesn’t start digging up the back yard. I laughed so hard at the ending of The Fairy Tale Food Chain by Katharine Campbell. I found the story by Mark Phelps The Ghost of Leah LaCrosse deeply moving, It is one I think even my 18 or evn 29 year olds would enjoy. Oh Deer by Grace Woods was a hoot, who knew catnip would be essential on a holiday quest! And we cannot forget the offering from the founder of LegendFiction Mr Dominic de Souza, his offering and the finale in the collection Troll Bacon, was wonderful. My dad raised me to try anything twice, the first time you don’t like it could just be how it is prepared. And I got to admit after this story I am now wondering what Troll Bacon smells like and other ways to prepare it. 

At the end of the volume is a section About the Authors, which has a paragraph or two for each of the contributors. All but one has a link to a site or social media, though one of them is currently expired. I went looking for other volumes from the contributors and had picked up one by Katharine Campbell 2 years ago, it just bumped to the top of my ‘to be read list’. And I added the other two anthologies from LegendFiction to my wishlist

This collection was an absolute hoot. There was not a weak story in the collection. I have already shared it with my two youngest kids and they are both excited about giving it a read. This was such a fun read I can easily recommend it. And so hope we soon have more offerings from many of the authors who contributed to it.

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2024 Catholic Reading Plan

For reviews of other Anthologies click here.
For Reviews of other books by Karina Fabian click here.

P.S. LegendFiction the fiction writing community for Christian nerds (Catholic & Orthodox authors).  

Anthologies from LegandFiction:
Dawn of LegendFiction
There Be Dragons
Holy Flying Pumpkins!

Dawn of Legend Fiction - A LegendFiction Anthology

There Be Dragons - A LegendFiction Anthology

Friday 11 October 2024

Stargazer - Cedar Sanderson

Stargazer
StonyCroft Publishing
ASIN B0079O9W1S

Stargazer - Cedar Sanderson

This is the twenty-fourth volume from the masterful pen of Sanderson that I have read. This one was originally published or has a copyright date of 2012, long before I heard about her and her works. 

The description of this volume states:

“A short story of a woman who looks to the stars as she tries to protect her children and offer them a future. In a world with no escape for those who cannot undergo a genescan, a fugitive mother has vanishingly few options left to her. Ultimately, only her sacrifice can change the world… but what becomes of the children?””

About Cedar at the front of this volume we are informed:

“Cedar Sanderson, mother of four and aspiring author, grew up without television in the Alaskan bush. This and learning to read at age four have skewed her world toward books. A house full of books and a part-time librarian job keep that going to this very day. She writes what she wants to read herself, and hopes someday her children will like her books. Until then, they all live together on a farm in New Hampshire and read late into the night. She writes because she can't help it, gets a story stuck in her head and has to write it out or it bothers her. Which has led to enjoying the crafting of stories over the years, but she didn't seek to become published for a long time - she was content just to write. Now, she'd like to share some of her work. She has been published in the ezine Something Wicked.”

Unlike some of her other short works she does not give us any information on the origin of this story. Which is a great pity as there is so much I would like to know about this story and how it came to be. I am also curios about the events after this story. If there was scanning at the spaceport did someone ever come after them? Did the world change and it what ways. And did our good Doctor keep his promises and what lengths did he need to go to do so. I finished this 5 days ago and am still often thinking about it.

This was a very powerful little story. From the get go we know there is not going to be a happy ending for all. But the events that transpire over these few pages leave a lasting imprint. 

I first encountered the works of Cedar several years back in Cracked: An Anthology of Eggsellent Chicken Stories, and after reading her piece there knew I had to track down and read more from her pen. I was asked recently why I keep mentioning this anthology in my reviews of Cedar’s books, in part it was just an excellent anthology, in part there are several contributors whom I am trying to read all their books now, and in part because I am so thankful to have stumbled upon Cedar’s works in it! 

Another excellent read from the pen of Sanderson. I have been terribly impressed with all of Sanderson’s writing that I have read including those published under the name of Lilania Begley. I can easily recommend this story if you like it a story told in a classic science fiction manner. In some ways in reminds me of some of the Alfred Bester I have read. An excellent story I can easily recommend.

Books by Cedar Sanderson:
Warp Resonance
The Dwarf's Dryad
One-Eyed Dragon
Plant Life
Snow Angel
Inktail & Friends: A Coloring Book
Voyageur's Cap
Fairy Little Sister
Milkweed
Mindflow
Crow Moon
Zombie Maggots
Poor Gregory

The Groundskeeper Series:

Pixie for Hire Series:
Dragon Noir
Pixie for Hire: Omnibus Edition

Children of Myth Series:
Vulcan's Kittens 
The God’s Wolfling

The Tanager Series:
Jade Star
Tanager's Fledglings 

Witchward Series:
Possum Creek Massacre
… 

Illustrated by Cedar:
Something Wicked #15
Jormungandr's Venom (Fenris Unchained Book 3)
Hunted Behavior
A Time To Die
Legion

Contributed to:
The Hearts' Enchantment
Calexit- The Anthology
Supernatural Streets
Something Wicked Anthology, Vol One
Something Wicked #15
Mythic Delirium Magazine Issue 0.4
The Haunted Library Anthology: Volume 1 
But Not Broken - Hope and Healing Book 2
Postcards From Mars - Postcard Stories Book 1
Space Cowboys - Raconteur Press Anthologies Book 4
Space Cowboys 2: Electric Rodeo - Raconteur Press Anthologies Book 5
Twisted Tropes
Steam-Powered Postcards - Postcard Stories Book 2
Space Marines - Raconteur Press Anthologies Book 6
Fanta-Fly Postcards: A Micro-Fiction Collection
Postcards from Foolz: A Micro-Fiction Collection
Falcons of Malta
Space Marines 2 - Raconteur Press Anthologies Book 9
Single Servings of Liberty - Postcard Stories Book 5
Tales From The Occupation: A Fae Wars Book 4

Books as Lilania Begley:
Slice of Pie
...

Sumire Series:

Bluehills Series:

Contributed to as Lilania Begley:
He Was Dead When I got There
...