Book Reviews and More: Saint Pio of Pietrelcina Rich in Love - Eileen Dunn Bertanzetti and Karen Ritz

Saint Pio of Pietrelcina:

Rich in Love

Encounter the Saints Series Book 13

Eileen Dunn Bertanzetti

Karen Ritz (Illustrator)

Pauline Books and Media
ISBN 9780819870674

eISBN 9780819871572

ASIN B005F1Q7R4

I have now read all of the books in this series. This is a excellent book in an wonderful series! As a family we have read over 30 books in this series so far. I started reading them myself reading books on Saint Damien of Molokai and Saint Edith Stein Blessed by the Cross. Then started reading them with my three youngest children. My children and I love this series. We have read many of the books more than once. I have read about Saint Padre Pio previously and really enjoyed this biography And his faith and life as it is presented in this book.

This is an excellent series is! With my three children and I we have now read all of the books in this series. I have read them either by myself, or with one or more child. My youngest 2 children current ages 14, 11, still both love these books. And they have read or reread them frequently. My son wants to have the complete set in his room, so he keeps asking to buy his own copies, he loves these books so much. We have picked up several volumes to donate to the school library. I would love to have the whole set in the school library as a resource when the students are picking confirmation saints. With each reading of a book in this series we appreciate this series more. And though only one book has been released since we started reading them a few years ago, we hope there will be more books released in the series in the future. I would love to see how this series handles Saint Josemaria Escriva, Blessed Carlo Actus, … and many more. We would also like to eventually see eBooks of all of the volumes in the series. With my dyslexia and my son’s eye tracking issues we both prefer eBooks where we can change page color, font size and font spacing. This book has an eBook listed but it is another that I cannot find it, as it is listed at currently unavailable.

Now back to this specific book on Saint Pio of Pietrelcina.

The description of this volume is:

“This is the amazing life story of a Franciscan priest who bore the wounds of the crucified Jesus and used the special gifts he received from God--the ability to read souls and bilocation--to relieve the sufferings of others who crowded the Church to attend his masses and speak to him during confession. His advice to "Pray. Hope. And don't worry" continues to give encouragement to countless people around the world.”

And the description of the series is:

“The Encounter the Saints series offers intermediate readers relatable portrayals of the saints. Each story, in a handy format, vividly recreates the saint's place of origin, family life, and corresponding historical events.”

The chapters in this volume are:

1. To Live or Die

2. A Hard Life

3. Tend Sheep?

4. Money Problems

5. Disappointment

6. Lies

7. Leaving Home

8. The Friary

9. Grumblings

10. Strange Marks

11. God’s Plan

12. Arrows of Light

13. Strength in Weakness

14. Compassion

15. Forgiveness and Peace

16. Vanished!

17. In Two Places at Once

18. Visitors and More Visitors

19. Tears of Love

20. The Hospital

21. Going Home

22. Poor but Rich

Prayer

Glossary

The prayer in this volume is:

“Saint Pio, thank you for showing me, through your own suffering, that God has a purpose for mine. If I offer my suffering to Jesus, God will use it, in some mysterious way, to help not only me, but other people too.

I want to always follow your advice: “Pray, hope, and don’t worry.” When I pray, help me to do as you said, “Hope in God and expect everything that is good from him.”

Remind me, Saint Pio, that my guardian angel is always at my side, waiting for me to ask for his help, love, and guidance. Remind me that Jesus’Mother Mary wants to shelter me with her love and to lead me to her Son. I look forward to meeting you in heaven someday. Together we will be happy and love God forever.

Please pray for me, Saint Pio.

Amen.”

The prayer in this volume is not the same to the one as in the companion volume, The Saints Pray for Us, which has prays for the first 30 saints and blessed covered in the series. Each volume follows the same format, the chapters about the Saints life, a prayer and a glossary. My children always look to compare the prayer with the one in The Saints Pray for Us. They also love looking at the pictures. Each volume has 5 illustrations. This is one of two volumes illustrated by Karen Ritz, and they are wonderful pencil drawings. My son has read Saint Maximilian Kolbe Mary's Knight and recognised the Ritz’s style. Those sketches really add to this story. The kids enjoy these books so much they always read through the whole Glossary.

This book is a excellent read. Learning about Saint Pio of Pietrelcina will bless any reader. With having now read all of the books in the Encounter the Saints Series from Pauline Books and Media we are still enthralled by these volumes. This book and all in the series are great read and would be wonderful additions to a home, school, or church library. Each book has been worth the read. Another excellent read in a wonderful series!

Please Note: I discovered recently that most of the eBook editions are no long available for this series. In fact I could only find a handful of the over 20 volumes that had been available electronically. I do not know why this is the case but I consider it a great loss. A loss for people with reading issues like my son and I, for others with learning disabilities, and for those in different geographic regions.

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

Books about the North American Saints and Martyrs:

North American Martyrs Kids Activity Book - Bonnie Way

Saints of North America - Jean Olwen Maynard

…

Encounter the Saints Series from Pauline Books and Media: