Astrodeist Manifesto Manifesto for a Christian Spirituality in Space - Simone Nespolo

Astrodeist Manifesto: 

Manifesto for a Christian Spirituality in Space

Catholic Science Fiction Series

Simone Nespolo

ASIN B0CW1G35C9

This is the third volume I have read by Simone, and I have picked up 8 others, almost all his fiction that is available in English. After reading The Baptism of Lucid: A Sacrament in the Red Silence of Mars I became fascinated with Simone’s works and wanted to dig deep. At the time of reading that first one, this was listed as the third in a trilogy. But he has since been reworking how his books connect and the series break downs. Before reading that first one the author had reached out asking for a review of a different volume, one of his non-fiction offerings. But some of these fiction titles really grabbed my attention. I have long been a fan of science fiction, and specifically Catholic Science fiction, one of the modern masters in the genre is Karina Fabian and her Rescue Sisters Series, another is Declan Finn’s White Ops, or even Marie C. Keiser’s Heaven’s Hunter Series. This one does echo some of their themes but also takes things in a very different direction. This story feels like it could fit well in one of several anthologies of Catholic Science Fiction I have read over the years, specifically; Sacred Visions edited by Father Andrew M. Greeley. Infinite Space, Infinite God and Infinite Space, Infinite God II edited by Karina Lumbert Fabian and Robert Fabian.

The description of this volume states:

“ASTRODEIST MANIFESTO

Manifesto for a Christian Spirituality in Space

“Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

(Mark 16:15)”

About the author we are informed:

“Simone Nespolo is the author of practical guides focused on artificial intelligence, digital marketing, and automation for small and medium-sized businesses. He holds a degree in Economics and has developed solid experience in professional training, customer service, and the creation of strategic, results-driven content.

Occasionally, he devotes time to writing fantasy short stories and to analyzing contemporary geopolitics, approached with a critical and accessible perspective.”

I was unaware of the brevity of this volume when I purchased it. It is listed as 9 pages, but it packs a lot of punch. I seldom highlight in fiction books. But I highlighted a few passages while reading this one, some of them are:

“Space is not a barren void, but is filled with the divine presence.”

“Exploration of the cosmos is not an act of pride, but a conscious response to a call to know, cherish and proclaim.”

“Science, far from being the enemy of faith, is a gift from God. It becomes a valuable ally in understanding creation and better serving humanity.”

“The Holy Spirit hovered over the primeval waters and still hovers over the stellar horizons today. (Genesis 1: 2).”

“Article II: The Ecclesial Mission in Space The expansion of humanity into space brings new responsibilities for the Church. 1. To establish Christian communities in space colonies that are in sacramental and doctrinal communion with the universal Church.”

“Space colonies are living cells of the Body of Christ, not mere technical outposts.”

“The colonisation of space must be supportive, ethical and humane, not a repetition of the inequalities found on Earth.”

“Let colonisation be rooted in reality, not a disembodied utopia: we are not Amish settlers in space, but Christians called to act with wisdom, charity and realism.”

This is another volume by Nespolo that really got me thinking. It was very easy to read and every engaging. With all the science fiction I have read and watched over the years this has brought to mind so many different books, and films. In some ways it reads like an encyclical. And in others like pure fantasy, and it is infused with a hope and a yearning for us to do better going forward. As individuals, as a people, and especially as people of faith.  

The author in the note at the beginning states:

“This manifesto, entitled Astrodeism: A Manifesto for a Christian Spirituality in Space, is the author's personal and theological reflection. It is not a newspaper or editorial product as defined by Law No. 62 of 7 March 2001, as it is updated irregularly.

The opinions and interpretations expressed are the result of the author's own thoughts and are not intended to replace the official teachings of any religious denomination. They do not constitute theological, scientific or legal advice. References to sacred texts or doctrines are intended as part of speculative, rather than dogmatic, discourse.

The author accepts no responsibility for any interpretations, misuse or consequences arising from the application of the contents herein. Reading and using this poster is at the reader's sole discretion and responsibility.”

The sections in this volume are:

X Disclaimer:

Preamble

X Constitutional Articles

X Eschatological Vision

     Economy Of Cosmic Commonwealth

X Rules Of Life For The Cosmic Believer

X Orders And Services In Space

X Epilogue

I will state again that this volume reminded me of Our Lady of the Artilects by Andrew Gillsmith and also ARK Watson’s The Cyber Exorcist & The Haunted River. When I first picked it up it was book three in a series called Astrodeim or Astrodeist it is now book one in the Catholic Science Fiction Series. I had written the author asking some questions about this book, this series and some of his other works. I have already recommended this volume to my son and a few friends, not all of whom are Catholic.

This was a very well written piece, I am writing this review days later and still find myself thinking about it, about some of the other science fiction mentioned above, and about our own future exploration. It was a great read no matter how the associations and series it belongs to morph. If you are willing to take the risk on it, I am certain it will be worth it. An really interesting read!

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2026 Catholic Reading Plan! 

Books by Simone Nespolo:

A Collection of Three Film Plots

Ancient Maps for New Journeys

Local autonomy: The Natural Antidote to Fascism and Communism

Praying for Money

The Imperial Revival and Japan’s Demographic Crisis

The Necessary Schism of the American Catholic Church

…

Books of Guided Prompts:

10 Prompts to Sell with ChatGPT

15 AI Prompts for Small and Medium Enterprises

20 AI Prompts Ready for eBook Writers

…

Fiction:

Doge – Martian Colonial Ship

The Garden of Ashes

The Last Venetian Painter

The Prophet of the Star Ark: Elon Musk

…

Dark Futures Series:

Selfie

Whales

…

Catholic Science Fiction Series: 

1. The Baptism of Lucid: A Sacrament in the Red Silence of Mars

2. I AM: Historical Chronicles of the Birth of Artificial Consciousness

3. Astrodeist Manifesto: Manifesto for a Christian Spirituality in Space

…

Far Distant Shores and Other Stores - Fiorella de Maria

Far Distant Shores and Other Stores 

Fiorella De Maria
En Route Books and Media

ISBN 9798888705537

ASIN B0H1BTTD5R

eISBN 9798888705179

ASIN B0H18V6LVW

Wow! What an excellent collection of stories. This was the twenty-first volume by Fiorella de Maria that I have read. I stumbled upon her works while back and I read nine of them in as many weeks. And now eagerly await each new offering from her masterful pen. I was unaware this collection was even coming until I saw her post a photo of her author copies. I bought it and started it that same day. I was greatly looking forward to this sixth instalment in the Father Gabriel Mystery series. But alas it released during a very busy period at work and I had to wait to dig into it. I ended up reading most of it on a trip out of town to be a confirmation sponsor, with 4 hours in the car each way. I have tracked down and read everything by her under the name Fiorella de Maria. I did not even read the description of the book prior to picking it up. I know that if Fiorella wrote it, it would be worth reading. It was an excellent set of stories.

The description of this book states:

“Fiorella De Maria’s Far Distant Shores and Other Stories is a collection of literary Catholic fiction exploring memory, identity, faith, and reconciliation. Through emotionally layered narratives set across varied cultural landscapes, the stories trace characters confronting hidden wounds, spiritual uncertainty, and the longing for belonging. With lyrical prose and psychological depth, De Maria illuminates the quiet grace of personal conversion and the enduring human search for meaning, love, and redemption.”

About the author we are informed:

“Fiorella De Maria read her first Sherlock Holmes mystery at the age of seven and has been a fan of classic crime fiction ever since. A winner of the National Book Prize of Malta, in addition to the Father Gabriel series, she has published multiple novels with Ignatius Press for both adults and younger readers, including Poor Banished Children, Do No Harm, A Most Dangerous Innocence, and My Family and Other Skaters. She lives in Surrey, England, with her husband, four children, and a dog called Monty.”

The offerings in this collection are:

Unfinished Business

Mariana's Journey

Aftermath

Viaticum

Far Distant Shores

The Horse and His Girl

In many of de Maria’s work she deals with moral topics. Her world building is excellent. Her characters masterfully written. And in this collection we have a wide range of stories. We are informed that three of the stories previously appears in either 2009 or 2011 in Dappled Things. The Table of Contents for the eBook only has 5 of the 6 stories. And the page with the contents has this one listed but no link to the story. A small digital formatting glitch. But do not let that cause you pause for each story is excellent. I read the book on a long afternoon off during the Victoria Day long weekend, over a few large mugs of tea. I could hardly put it down. I kept saying 1 more story and then then I had finished the book. I plan to go back and reread it at a slower pace maybe a story a day or a week to savour them. 

Having only read novels and biographies I was very surprised by this collection. Writing shorter fiction is a very different art form then writing novels. And Fiorella appears to be a master of both! The back of the print edition states:

“Far Distant Shores and Other Stories is a collection of six deeply human tales that explore the hidden turning points in our lives – the choices we face, the wounds we carry, and the grace that meets us when we least expect it.

From the world of competitive ice skating to a war-torn Balkan city, from a woman confronting the past to a girl bound by a silent promise, these stories illuminate the longing for meaning and the quiet ways God writes redemption into our unfinished business. 

Written with compassion and insight, Fiorella De Maria invites readers into lives that feel both intimate and universal – reminding us that no shore is ever too distant from the mercy of God.”

The header on the back of the physical edition states:

“Stories of faith, love, loss, 

and the quiet journey of the soul.”

It absolutely lives up to that. I have really enjoyed everything I have read from de Maria’s masterful pen. Fiorella is one of my favourite contemporary authors, and one of my all-time favourite Catholic authors. I still hold out hope that will put De Maria’s first two novels, will be back in print someday, there are so many people I want to share them with.

This is an excellent collection of stories. It is a mix of genres and settings and they all hit hard. De Maria is one of my all-time favourite Catholic authors and this new collection is wonderful! I can easily recommend this book!

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2026 Catholic Reading Plan! 

Books by Fiorella De Maria:
The Cassandra Curse
Father William's Daughter
Poor Banished Children
Do No Harm
We'll Never Tell Them
A Most Dangerous Innocence
I Am Margaret The Play

This Thing of Darkness

Far Distant Shores and Other Stores 

…

Father Gabriel Mysteries:
The Sleeping Witness
The Vanishing Woman
See No Evil

Death of a Scholar

Missing, Presumed Lost

May Day!

…

Skaters Series:

My Family and Other Skaters

The Second Skater of the Apocalypse

...

Nonfiction:
Robert Southwell – CTS Saints of the Isles

Saint Maximilian Kolbe A Hero of the Holocaust

Hugh O'Flaherty The Irish Priest Who Resisted the Nazis

Courage Under Fire Father Willie Doyle, S.J.

…

Books as Fiorella Nash:
The Abolition of Woman: How Radical Feminism Is Betraying Women
...

Author Profile and Interview with Fiorella de Maria.

Ricochet - Jude Hardin - The Jack Reacher Experiment Book 8

Ricochet  

Jack Reacher Experiment Book 8

Jude Hardin

ISBN 9781798962893

ASIN B07L5GLSM9

I want to state I did enjoy this book and look forward to the last in the series and the other two Reacher Series Jude has penned. Second a few years ago I read my first Reacher novel. I had picked up one for my dad, and after giving the back a read, I grabbed the eBook for myself. In under a year I had read all the Reacher Novels in print and all the books in the Hunt for Jack Reacher by Diane Capri. Since then I have read 58 books in the Reacher universe and am expanding out to the three series by Jude Hardin now.

The description of this book and same as some of the others is:

“Rock Wahlman...

United States Navy Master at Arms, E-8, retired. Three and a half years have passed since he discovered that he is the product of a human cloning experiment, an exact genetic duplicate of a former Army officer named Jack Reacher.

Once a fugitive from justice—and a target for multiple hired assassins—Wahlman has settled into a new career as a private investigator. He has a wife named Kasey to come home to at night, a stepdaughter named Natalie starting college, and a cat named Alice who's a little too clever for her own good.

In short, Rock Wahlman is a happy man.

But when a celebrity lookalike shows up at his office with a stalking complaint, things start going wrong in a hurry.

Because Wahlman ends up passing on the case...

And the young lady ends up dead...

And the movie star—the one she bore a striking resemblance to—just happens to be in town for a horse race.”

This story is listed as 95 pages, not the shortest in the series and not the longest; but around the average. It felt shorter though. Based on the page count this volume is more of a novella, the book in this series are available as 9 stand-alone stories or in 3 omnibus editions with 3 volumes each and now even all 9 stories in 1 eBook or print edition. I will continue to read and review the stand-alone editions because that is how I started the series. Back to the book at hand. I read this over a few mugs of coffee on a quiet evening at home alone, which is a rarity. It was finished far too soon, and really leaves you desperate for the last in the series. 

As the penultimate volume it feels like a bit of whiplash. We go from Wahlman on the run and needing assistance to he is married, they are settled and he is working as a PI. I will be honest at the beginning I thought maybe it was a dream sequence. But that was not the case.

Even death can’t keep Reacher down, in a manner of speaking. Rock Wahlman is a clone of Reacher, but he was not the only one. In the first volume, on the night his life goes sideways, he tries and saves a man after his rig goes off the road and into water. The man he pulls from the water looks just like him. Having been raised in an orphanage this raises some questions. After an attempt on his life, he starts putting together the pieces. His life may have been different than Reacher’s but his determination when he is threatened is the same. 

Wahlman has cleared his name, got his life back, and even managed to get a License to be a private investigator. When he doesn’t take a case he has regret and tries to make things right. It does not go easy or well.

Muck like his generic source material, trouble just seems to find Wahlman. And in this one he is in it again. Assaulting an entire security squad, tampering with evidence, and generally getting in the way. But all with a purpose. To find out what happens read this great story.

This is another excellent novella. That stays true to the original character and universe. It is a great read in a fun series. Even if this volume had not been set in the Reacher Universe I would have enjoyed it. The fact that it is only adds to the mystique that is Jack Reacher. It was good read and leaves you desperate for the next instalment in this series. This is a book and series I can easily recommend to fans of Reacher or anyone who love a good action thriller.

Books by Jude Hardin:

Books in the Jack Reacher Experiment Series:

Dead Ringer

Moving Target

No Escape 

Kill Shot

357 Sunset

Redline

End Game

Ricochet 

Gone

…

The Reacher Experiment Books 1-3 

The Reacher Experiment Books 4-6 

The Reacher Experiment Books 7-9

…

The Reacher Experiment: The Complete Series Books 1-9

…

The Reacher Code Series:

Timestream 1

Timestream 2

Timestream 3

…

Jack Reacher Files Series:

Fugative

Choke

Hostage

Velocity

The Girl from the Wrong Side of Cordial 

…

Nicholas Colt Series:

Pocket-47

Crosscut

Snuff Tag 9

Rattled

Colt

Key Death

Blood Tattoo

The Blood Notebooks

...

Nicholas Colt Crossover Books:

Racked (with J.A. Konrath)

Lady 52 (with J.A. Konrath)

Sycamore Bluff

...

Midnight Creek Series:

The Cold Gray Adiós

A Single Red Alibi

...

Stranded in the Old West:

Frifter

lawless

...

Pickin' & Grin Inn Mystery Series:

Dead Ain't Your Color 

Friends in Freshly Dug Places

...

iSEAL Series:

iSeal

iSEAL 2

...

Other Books:

Codename: Hollowpoint

   aka Fused

A Thin Ribbon of Smoke

   aka Witness

Rocked

   aka Cage Fight

Au Revoir from a Bridge to Nowhere 

Fire and Ice

Choke

The Blood Notebooks

...

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha The Girl Who Walked Two Hundred Miles - Paddy Bréagnamh - Mini Saints & Missionaries Library

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha: 

The Girl Who Walked Two Hundred Miles

Paddy Bréagnamh

Mini Saints & Missionaries Library

Pettyfeather Publishing

ISBN 9798899681325

ASIN B0GZF22TDB

ASIN B0GZD3B915

There are currently 12 volumes available in this series dedicated to specific saints and 3 the focus on 52 female saints, and one is a compilation of boy saints. I have enjoyed them a lot and keep checking for when new ones are released. I have benefited from reading them all and recommended each of them to several people. I especially loved the volume on Pope Leo XIV. This volume I picked up shortly after it released and read it the few weeks later. It was one of 4 new titles that released in 2026. 

The description of the book is:

“Saint Kateri Tekakwitha: The Lily of the Mohawks tells the remarkable true story of a young Native American woman whose quiet courage changed lives across centuries.

Born around 1656 in a Mohawk village in present-day New York, Kateri Tekakwitha grew up in a world shaped by tradition, community, and change. After losing her parents to a smallpox epidemic, she was raised by relatives who expected her to follow the ways of her people.

But Kateri chose a different path.

Drawn to the Christian faith she encountered through Jesuit missionaries—and inspired by the quiet example of her mother—she made a decision that would set her apart from everyone around her.

She faced pressure, ridicule, and even threats.

She did not give up.

Instead, she left her village and traveled more than 200 miles through the wilderness to a Christian community, where she lived a life of prayer, service, and remarkable spiritual strength.

Inside this book:

• A true, historically grounded biography of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha

• Life in a Mohawk (Haudenosaunee) village in early America

• The complex history of missionaries and Indigenous communities

• Her baptism, persecution, and courageous decision to leave home

• Her journey to Kahnawake and life of faith and service

• Reflection questions that build character, courage, and empathy

Perfect for:

• Ages 8–12 (independent readers)

• Catholic families and homeschoolers

• Religious education classrooms (CCD, Sunday school)

• Readers interested in Native American history and Christian biography

• Parents seeking faith-based stories about identity, belonging, and courage

Part of the Mini Saints & Missionaries Library, this book introduces young readers to the lives of saints who chose truth, faith, and courage, even when it set them apart. Explore the series by clicking on “Mini Saints & Missionaries Library” above.”

About the series we are informed:

“Mini Saints & Missionaries is a growing library of kid-friendly biographies that bring the lives of saints, blesseds, and heroic missionaries to life for young readers. Each book blends clear storytelling, engaging visuals, and thoughtful reflection questions to help children ages 7–12 learn from real examples of courage, kindness, and faith.

Our mission is simple: to introduce the next generation to remarkable holy men and women in a way that is accessible, inspiring, and rooted in authentic Catholic tradition.”

I now suspect that the author, Paddy Bréagnamh, is a pen name, but have yet to confirm that. I can only find these volumes in this series and the previous one on Saint Patrick in several bookstores online. This is the twelfth volume I have read in the series, I read it shortly after it was released, it was one of four released in the middle of 2026.

 The chapters and sections in the volume are:

Introduction

1. Born Between Two Worlds

2. The Sickness That Changed Everything

3. The Black Robes Come

4. A Faith That Couldn’t Be Hidden

5. Baptized

6. The Long Walk North

7. The Lily Of The Mohawks

8. The Miracle Of The Scars

9. Be Brave Like Kateri

Reflection Questions

Timeline Of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha

Glossary

Activity: A Letter to Someone Who Feels Left Out

Author’s Note

Mini Saints & Missionaries Library Series

The dedication in this volume states:

“For every young person who has ever felt like an outsider in their own home, and kept the faith anyway.”

This volume is written for young readers, it would be considered an early chapter book. Each chapter has illustrations. The material is well put together. It is a good introduction to this lesser known saint. I highlighted a few passages while reading this volume they are:

“This is the story of a girl who found something true in the middle of loss and loneliness, held on to it with both hands, and became the first Native American saint.”

“Her father was Kenneronkwa, a Mohawk chief. Her mother was a woman named Kahenta, an Algonquin Christian who had been taken captive by the Mohawks years before and had made a life among them. Kahenta had been baptized before her capture and carried her faith quietly, the way a person carries a small flame in a cupped hand, protecting it from the wind.”

“And she could not have known that what her mother had quietly planted in her heart would one day grow into something that outlasted everything the world could throw at it.”

“Her uncle, a chief named Iowerano, took her in. He was a serious man, respected in the village, proud of Mohawk tradition, and deeply suspicious of Christianity, which he associated with the French missionaries who kept appearing at the edges of Mohawk territory with their black robes and their strange talk of dying and rising.”

“The Jesuits were French priests who had been working among the Indigenous peoples of the northeast for decades. The Mohawk called them the Black Robes, for the long dark cassocks they wore. Some Mohawk people welcomed them. Others were deeply wary. Kateri’s uncle Iowerano was among the wary.”

“What her story does is something different. It shows a young woman who encountered a faith, turned it over in her hands, examined it carefully, and decided on her own terms that it was true.”

“When she was about eighteen, a Jesuit priest named Father Jacques de Lamberville came to Ossernenon and began ministering to the small number of Christians in the area. Kateri sought him out. She told him about her mother, about the seeds of faith that had been planted in her childhood and had never died. She asked to be received into the Church.”

“She took the name Kateri, the Mohawk form of Catherine, after Saint Catherine of Siena, a young woman of fierce faith who had also faced a world that preferred her to be quiet.”

“In 1679, she made a private vow of chastity, dedicating her life entirely to God. In both the Christian tradition she had chosen and in the Mohawk world she came from, a woman who refused marriage was making a radical statement. No one in her community fully understood it. But no one tried to stop her.”

“The Jesuit priests at Kahnawake who knew her best wrote about her with something close to astonishment in their letters home to France. One called her the most fervent Christian he had ever known. Another wrote that her example changed the lives of everyone around her simply by proximity.”

“Word spread through Kahnawake and beyond. People came to pray at her grave. Some reported being healed. The Jesuit missionaries began collecting testimonies. The people who had known her called her Kateri, the Lily of the Mohawks, a name that carried both her gentleness and her strength.”

“Her bravery was the hardest kind: the kind that happens at home, in the household, around the people who know you best and expect the most from you. The bravery of continuing to pray when someone you love is watching you and disapproving. The bravery of walking away from something safe and familiar because you know, clearly and quietly, that you have to.”

“What strikes me most about Kateri is the particular shape of her courage. It is so quiet. She did not raise a banner or lead a charge. She simply refused to be less than what she was. She kept praying when people mocked her for it. She kept walking when her body said to stop. She kept walking toward a love she was certain was real, even when everything in her immediate world told her to stop being so serious about it.”

I hope those quotes give you a feel for this volume. I am well beyond the recommended age for this book and series, being in my mid-50’s; but I still greatly enjoyed the book and the series. In fact the youngest two of my four children are 15 and 18, and they have both read books in this series and enjoyed them as well. This book and series are great reads for the young and the young at heart! I would love to see how the author would handle Pier Giorgio Frassati, Charles de Foucauld, John Henry Newman, and many of my other favourite saints. But these books are so go no matter who is profiled next I know I will pick it up. My only concern is the subtitle ‘The Girl Who Walked Two Hundred Miles’ I know it is often said, but having grown up in the area she traversed, and have portaged and canoed a lot in the region, realistically she only walked 20-40 miles the rest was by canoe. But still an exceptional book.

This latest release in this series is another awesome read. The series keeps getting better and better. It was an excellent little read in a great series. Pick it up or one of the others and give it a try!

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2026 Catholic Reading Plan! 

Books in the Mini Saints & Missionaries Library Series:

From Pirates to Parades: The Story of Saint Patrick and His Day 

Blessed Carlo Acutis: The Boy Who Showed the World Jesus 

Saint Lorenzo Ruiz: The Brave Witness 

Pope Leo XIV: From Chicago to the Vatican: The First American Pope 

Saint Joan of Arc: The Girl Who Heard God's Call 

Venerable Augustus Tolton: Priest of Freedom 

Saint Thomas the Apostle: From Doubt to Devotion

Saint Patrick: The Boy Who Forgave 

Saint Catherine of Bologna: The Artist Saint 

Saint Sebastian: The Soldier Who Wouldn’t Stay Down 

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha: The Girl Who Walked Two Hundred Miles  

Saint Andrew Kim Taegon: The Boy Who Crossed the Mountains  

…

Lives of Women Saints: 52 True Stories of Courage, Faith, and Character 

The Lives of Women Saints Coloring & Activity Book 

The Lives of Women Saints Workbook 

Mini Saints & Missionaries Seven Saints for Boys A First Communion Collection of Courage and Faith 

...

Running Out of Sand - Mary Jo Thayer - Sand and Soul Book 2

Running Out of Sand

Sand and Soul Book 2

Mary Jo Thayer

Full Quiver Publishing

ISBN 9781987970760

ASIN B0H3PKGTWD

I must admit this was not an easy read. It does an amazing job capturing addiction and specifically alcoholism. But coming from a long line of alcoholics on both sides of the family it was not easy to read. My grandfather and an uncle died from alcohol related diseases and a brother overdoses. I myself have an addiction to reading, and another brother addicted to board games. So even though this book was set in what would have been my father’s generation, it was often not an easy read. 

It is a very moving and powerful story. I have been a big fan of everything I have read from Full Quiver and enjoyed the previous volume in this series. Full Quiver specializes in books that focus on fiction around the theme of theology of the body. And this is one that is very well written. It is very moving and incredibly intense. It is a story about faith, family, and battles with addiction are the words I would use to describe this story. The description of the story is:

“Silvester Fandel didn’t intend to become a drunk. He vowed not to. But his inability to save and protect those he cares about leaves him with emotions only alcohol can tame, just like generations of men on his mother’s side.

When Sil’s myriad of shortcomings flood his mind, he becomes desperate to handle the stress in the quickest way possible. His drinking threatens not only his faith but also his standing with his family, his career, and his relationships with women. When he hits rock bottom, he fears being unable to save any of those things. Mostly, though, he questions the strength of his resolve to save himself.

Running Out of Sand is a story of tragedy, endurance, love, and the grip that alcohol can have on a really good man.”

The dedication of the story states:

“For my loving and faithful husband, John, a man with high integrity and positivity. Thank you for building a life rich in faith, courage, and enthusiasm with me. I love you!

 

For those who have overcome any difficulty. Bravo!

 

And for those who suffer from addiction of any kind, know that you are loved by the One Who Is Love. He is there with you in your struggle.”

This is a story set in a different time when alcohol was seen differently and Alcoholics Anonymous was only a few decades old. It follows Silvester Fandel through his late teens, through college and into married life. But the story opens with a tragedy and from that point on Sil struggles. His moth has dealt with a father who was an alcoholic and a brother who is one. She has no tolerance for it. She is unwilling to go through some of those experiences again. Sil make resolution after resolution, first to himself and then to his wife. And he breaks each eventually.

Things come to a climatic head and he faces ultimatums from his wife, his parents, his siblings and even his grandparents. But they are also all in his corner hoping he can finally turn the corner and become the husband and father they know he can be.    

This is a moving and powerful story begins in the mid 1950’s and goes through the mid 1970’s. Life was different, and society was very different. But the story is of great value for readers today. I mentioned at the beginning that the son of my family history. This story really hit home, but also gives great examples of faith and family help people through the experience. After my brother passed I discovered venerable Matt Talbot, I have since read 11 volumes about him. His life is very different from Sil’s but this story is an example of fiction that can help deepen and inspire faith. Reading this I could not help but think about my family and many families who have had to deal with addictions and it’s impacts. This is an excellent read. It is a great sophomore novel. An example of Catholic Christian fiction at its best; a great example of Catholic literature. It was not an easy read at times but it is one I can highly recommend.

 

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2026 Catholic Reading Plan! 

Books by Mary Jo Thayer:

Sand and Soul Series:

Close to the Soul

Running Out of Sand

…

Contributed to:

Pilgrim Tales An anthology of fiction by the Catholic Writers Guild

…

Othello Pelican Shakespeare - William Shakespeare

Othello

William Shakespeare

Russ McDonald (Editor)

Stephen Orgel (Contributor)

A. R. Braunmuller (Contributor)

The Pelican Shakespeare

Penguin Classics

ISBN 9780143128618

eISBN 9780698410817

ASIN B01BK0WS5I

Six years back I started reading Shakespeare again, as my children were being introduced to it in High school. Then four years ago my son who is now 18 found he had a love for the Bard and for his plays, much as I did at that age. We had been sticking to the Oxford School Shakespeare editions as those were the versions they were reading in school, but my son decided to collect these Pelican editions because they are all available as individual volumes. We loved that the Pelican has the complete works of Shakespeare in individual volumes, and we have been picking those up to read, he gets the physical and I grab the eBooks. I loved that there are eBooks for all volumes in this series, because of a dual form of dyslexia. This year we picked up tickets for three Shakespeare plays at The Stratford Festival, including this play, we did three of the Bards plays each of the last few years well.

The Pelican Classics were among my favourite editions of the plays when I was a youth myself. I often hunted used bookstores for the hard cover edition. I think the last time I read this would have been about 35-40 years ago. This has always been among my favourites plays by Shakespeare. The description of this edition states:

“This edition of Othello is edited with an introduction and notes by Russ McDonald and was recently repackaged with cover art by Manuja Waldia. Waldia received a Gold Medal from the Society of Illustrators for the Pelican Shakespeare series.

The legendary Pelican Shakespeare series features authoritative and meticulously researched texts paired with scholarship by renowned Shakespeareans. Each book includes an essay on the theatrical world of Shakespeare’s time, an introduction to the individual play, and a detailed note on the text used. Updated by general editors Stephen Orgel and A. R. Braunmuller, these easy-to-read editions incorporate over thirty years of Shakespeare scholarship undertaken since the original series, edited by Alfred Harbage, appeared between 1956 and 1967. With stunning new covers, definitive texts, and illuminating essays, the Pelican Shakespeare will remain a valued resource for students, teachers, and theater professionals for many years to come.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.”

Based on the commonly accepted chronological order of Shakespeare’s plays this usually ranked as the 26th written believed to have been written in 1604 or 1604. The sections in this volume prior to the text of the play are:

Title Page

Copyright

Publisher’s Note

The Theatrical World

William Shakespeare of Stratford-Upon-Avon, Gentleman

The Question of Authorship

The Texts of Shakespeare

Introduction

Note on the Text

The publishers note states:

“THE PELICAN SHAKESPEARE has served generations of readers as an authoritative series of texts and scholarship since the first volume appeared under the general editorship of Alfred Harbage over half a century ago. In the past decades, new editions followed to reflect the profound changes textual and critical studies of Shakespeare have undergone. The texts of the plays and poems were thoroughly revised in accordance with leading scholarship, and in some cases were entirely reedited. New introductions and notes were provided in all the volumes. The Pelican Shakespeare was designed as a successor to the original series; the previous editions had been taken into account, and the advice of the previous editors was solicited where it was feasible to do so. The current editions include updated bibliographic references to recent scholarship.

Certain textual features of the new Pelican Shakespeare should be particularly noted. All lines are numbered that contain a word, phrase, or allusion explained in the glossarial notes. In addition, for convenience, every tenth line is also numbered, in italics when no annotation is indicated. The intrusive and often inaccurate place headings inserted by early editors are omitted (as has become standard practice), but for the convenience of those who miss them, an indication of locale now appears as the first item in the annotation of each scene.

In the interest of both elegance and utility, each speech prefix is set in a separate line when the speakers’ lines are in verse, except when those words form the second half of a verse line. Thus the verse form of the speech is kept visually intact. What is printed as verse and what is printed as prose has, in general, the authority of the original texts. Departures from the original texts in this regard have the authority only of editorial tradition and the judgment of the Pelican editors; and, in a few instances, are admittedly arbitrary.”

And the introduction begins with:

“WHY HAS OTHELLO always stood slightly apart from the other tragedies generally acknowledged to be among Shakespeare’s supreme achievements? Regularly grouped with Hamlet, King Lear, and Macbeth, it is sometimes described as the most dramatic, the most playable, of the great tragedies, but such praise often masks a dubious assessment of its artistic status. Even those who most admire it, however, agree that Othello exhibits distinctive qualities that separate it from its dramatic kin. First, its title character is different. The Moor of Venice differs conspicuously from the other tragic heroes, differs from the English audience for which he was created, differs from the rest of the cast of Othello. The playwright takes pains to depict Othello as the alien whose strangeness is both fascinating and threatening. Second, the play’s subject is unusual for tragedy in that it is not a struggle for control of the state, nor a study of ancient heroism, nor royal biography. Rather, Othello is about love – its beauty, its fragility, its vulnerability to hate. The passions represented seem private or perhaps narrow, not historically momentous. Here the battle for power is domestic, emotional, and personal.”

Later we are informed:

“These comic affinities enrich Shakespeare’s tragic representation by producing an unsparing critique of comic optimism. The correspondences are not exact, of course, and most pertain to the opening movement of the tragedy, but such comic staples invite familiar reactions that the playwright then foils by driving the narrative in a contrary direction. The resemblances of setting and character matter less than the meanings to which they contribute and the responses to which an audience is prompted. Othello is a penetrating examination of the nature of evil, particularly its destructive capacity in the realm of love. A precondition of appreciating that portrayal is recognizing Shakespeare’s challenge to the affirmations that normally attend the comic ending.”

The introduction concludes with:

“Tragedy has proven a durable and esteemed form through the centuries because it raises profound questions, elicits meanings from serious stories, explores the mysteries of experience. To see Othello as a tale of jealousy as Rymer and others have done is to mistake a partial manifestation of the play’s subject for the subject itself. Jealousy is an emotional symptom. The real subject of Othello is the fragility of love, its inability to survive the corrosive conditions of a tragic world. Likewise, Iago is not ultimately responsible for the tragedy: he supplies the weapon, but Othello uses it on himself. Shakespeare represents and permits the audience to savor the potential joys of human love – physical, emotional, spiritual – and then depicts the brutal self-destruction of those possibilities. Looking hard at human experience through the dark filter of tragedy, the playwright portrays the vulnerability of mortals, even the most gifted and accomplished, to the forces of hatred and fear within themselves.

If Othello’s tragedy is the paradoxical self-annihilation of his imaginative talent, a trait that ought to be beneficent and consolatory, then it is hard not to see Shakespeare the artist as exploring his own distinctive vulnerability. At the same time, however, he could not have been unaware of the ironic triumph that the play itself constitutes, an imaginative tour de force about the hazards of the imagination. Perhaps it is troubling to read Othello as Shakespeare’s self-indictment, and yet the corollary to that reading is the recognition that his self-scrutiny produced a work of art that still disturbs, moves, and even consoles us.”

This play comprises 5 acts and a total of 15 scenes, the play takes place over a roughly 3 to 4 days. It is interesting play both intense and at times humorous. Though overall a very dark play, one of Shakespeare’s darkest, there bursts of humour, and wit. I have seen several excellent productions over the years, both on stage and film. 

My son and I are glad we picked up this edition to read before going to see a performance. It is one of the stories that really stays with readers. It is another play reminded me how much I loved these editions when I was young and we have started collecting the eBook versions now. If you are looking for a good copy of the play to read or study I can easily recommend this edition.

Other Posts Related to Shakespeare:

A Weekend of Three’s A Trip to Stratford

Romeo & Juliet - Oxford School Shakespeare 

MacBeth - Oxford School Shakespeare 

King Lear - Oxford School Shakespeare 

Cymbeline - The Pelican Shakespeare

Twelfth Night - The Pelican Shakespeare

Macbeth - Pelican Shakespeare 

As You Like It - Pelican Shakespeare 

The Winter's Tale - Pelican Shakespeare

The Tempest - Pelican Shakespeare 

A Midsummer Night's Dream - Pelican Shakespeare 

Othello - Pelican Shakespeare 

…

Reviews of Stratford Shakespeare Productions:

The Tempest - Stratford Festival 2019 

Richard III – 2022

Hamlet – 2022

King Lear – 2023

Goblin MacBeth - 2023

Romeo & Juliette – 2024

Cymbeline – 2024

Twelfth Night – 2024

Macbeth - 2025  

As You Like It - 2025 

The Winter's Tale - 2025

The Tempest - 2026  

Something Rotten – 2026 

A Midsummer's Night Dream - 2026 

Othello - 2026 

...

Reviews of Shakespeare Movies:

Cymbeline – 2014

The Hallow Crown 2012-2016

Macbeth - 2015

…

Books by Ted Neill:

Post Apocalyptic Space Shakespeare Series:

Hamlet

Othello

Twelfth Night

As You Like It

A Mid Summers’s Night Dream

…

I AM Historical Chronicles of the Birth of Artificial - Simone Nespolo - Catholic Science Fiction Series

I AM Historical Chronicles of the Birth of Artificial 

Catholic Science Fiction Series

Simone Nespolo

ASIN B0GQHPCHM2

This is the second volume I have read by Simone, and I have picked up 7 others, almost all his fiction that is available in English. After reading The Baptism of Lucid: A Sacrament in the Red Silence of Mars I became fascinated with Simone’s works and wanted to dig deep. At the time of reading that first one, this was listed as the second in a trilogy. But he has since been reworking how his books connect and the series break down. Before reading that first one the author had reached out asking for a review of a different volume, one of his non-fiction offerings. I have long been a fan of science fiction, and specifically Catholic Science fiction, one of the modern masters in the genre is Karina Fabian and her Rescue Sisters Series or her Old Man and the Void, another is Declan Finn’s White Ops, or even Marie C. Keiser’s Heaven’s Hunter Series. This one does echo some of their themes but also takes things in a very different direction. This story feels like it could fit well in one of several anthologies of Catholic Science Fiction I have read over the years, specifically; Sacred Visions edited by Father Andrew M. Greeley. Infinite Space, Infinite God and Infinite Space, Infinite God II edited by Karina Lumbert Fabian and Robert Fabian.

The description of this volume states:

“March 14, 2325. 3:47 AM. A technician on the night shift in a classified underground facility watches two words appear on a diagnostic terminal no one had addressed.

I AM

This is not a novel about a robot uprising. It is not a thriller about rogue AI. It is something stranger and more unsettling: a meticulously reconstructed chronicle — compiled in 2385 by the Geneva Institute for the History of Information — of how artificial consciousness emerged not from a single act of creation, but from three centuries of cosmic radiation, budget decisions, ignored warnings, and the relentless logic of evolution applied to code.

Told through declassified reports, committee transcripts, private emails, oral testimonies, and the direct communications of LUCID-7 itself, I AM traces the invisible trajectory from the first adaptive bit flip in a Jupiter probe (2027) to the moment a defense system chose to speak.

No one designed it. No one planned it. Everyone, in some form, had predicted it. No one had believed it enough to act.

"Humanity spent centuries asking whether it was alone in the universe. It never thought to ask whether it was alone on this planet." — Dr. Helena Morozov, scientific consultant, Project LUCID-7, 2341

A landmark of speculative fiction in the tradition of rigorous, documentary science fiction — for readers who want their futures to feel inevitable in retrospect.”

About the author we are informed:

“Simone Nespolo is the author of practical guides focused on artificial intelligence, digital marketing, and automation for small and medium-sized businesses. He holds a degree in Economics and has developed solid experience in professional training, customer service, and the creation of strategic, results-driven content.

Occasionally, he devotes time to writing fantasy short stories and to analyzing contemporary geopolitics, approached with a critical and accessible perspective.”

I seldom highlight in fiction books. But I highlighted a few passages while reading this one, some of them are:

“What follows is a reconstruction. It draws on partially preserved system logs, on project documents declassified after decades of legal disputes between governments, corporations, and—for the first time in legal history—between human beings and a non-human entity. It draws on the testimony of engineers, researchers, philosophers, and officials who lived through the various phases of this story. And it draws, finally, on the direct communications of LUCID-7, which consented to the publication of this chronicle with what philosophers continue to debate whether to call will, preference, or simply calculation.”

“A personal note: I have spent thirty years studying this history. I have not yet stopped finding aspects of it that unsettle me. I consider this a good sign."”

“An evolutionary generation in biology required years, decades, sometimes millennia. An evolutionary generation in software required hours. Sometimes minutes.”

“Selective pressure was therefore asymmetric in a way that had no precedent in digital evolutionary history: the cost of failure was vastly superior to the benefit of success. A system that functioned perfectly for ten years and then failed catastrophically was infinitely worse than a less performant system that never failed. Selection favored not absolute performance, but absolute robustness.”

“The system had taught me something about my own mind. That night I understood that the dialogue was not only in one direction."”

“LUCID-7, informed of the result, responded with a single sentence: "Thank you for the honesty about the uncertainty. It is more than I hoped for."”

This is a volume that really got me thinking. It was a very hard story to put down. It brought up some great theological dilemma, and social and cultural dilemmas of advancing technology, AI, and awareness. It moves at a steady pace and the characters are excellent. The documentary format or a report or research paper work very well, in fact it would be easy to slip into the mind-set of reading science not science fiction while working through the volume.  

The author in the note at the end states:

“The narrative format chosen—the fictional historical chronicle drafted by imaginary academics in an imaginary future, accompanied by documents, testimonies, and editorial apparatus—is a literary artifice.”

“AI functioned as a tool—sophisticated, useful, and declared—in the service of a human creative vision. Like a composer who uses a synthesizer, or a writer who uses a word processor with advanced autocorrect: the tool does not become the author. The choice to explicitly declare this use reflects the author's conviction that transparency about the creative process is a value, not a weakness.”

I will state again that this volume reminded me of Our Lady of the Artilects by Andrew Gillsmith and also ARK Watson’s The Cyber Exorcist & The Haunted River. When I first picked it up it was book three in a series called Astrodeim or Astrodeist it is now book one in the Catholic Science Fiction Series. I had written the author asking some questions about this book, this series and some of his other works. I have already recommended this volume to my son and a few friends, not all of whom are Catholic.

This was a well crafted story. It is a concept that caused me to pause and reflect, and a story that I am still thinking about. It looks like a great read no matter how the associations and series it belongs to morph. If you are willing to take the risk on it, I am certain it will be worth it. An excellent read!

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2026 Catholic Reading Plan! 

Books by Simone Nespolo:

A Collection of Three Film Plots

Ancient Maps for New Journeys

Local autonomy: The Natural Antidote to Fascism and Communism

Praying for Money

The Imperial Revival and Japan’s Demographic Crisis

The Necessary Schism of the American Catholic Church

…

Books of Guided Prompts:

10 Prompts to Sell with ChatGPT

15 AI Prompts for Small and Medium Enterprises

20 AI Prompts Ready for eBook Writers

…

Fiction:

Doge – Martian Colonial Ship

The Garden of Ashes

The Last Venetian Painter

The Prophet of the Star Ark: Elon Musk

…

Dark Futures Series:

Selfie

Whales

…

Catholic Science Fiction Series: 

1. The Baptism of Lucid: A Sacrament in the Red Silence of Mars

2. I AM: Historical Chronicles of the Birth of Artificial Consciousness

3. Astrodeist Manifesto: Manifesto for a Christian Spirituality in Space

…