Book Reviews and More: Saint Patrick Ireland's - Jeannie Meekins

Sunday 17 March 2024

Saint Patrick Ireland's - Jeannie Meekins - Beloved Saint 15-Minute Books 624

Saint Patrick Ireland's Beloved Saint

15-Minute Books 624

Jeannie Meekins

Learning Island

eISBN 9781311183217

ASIN B00IC6GU08

Saint Patrick Ireland Beloved Saint - Jeannie Meekins

I picked this up to read after reading Mary MacKillop: Australia's First Saint, from the same author in the same series. I enjoyed that first one so muchI picked up the eight volumes in the series about saints. As much as I loved that first one I found this one a bit of a disappointment. I had this and two other volumes about Saint Patrick that I had picked up that I had not read yet. Prior to reading this I have read a number of biographies and other books about Patrick, as well as a couple translations of his own Confessions and Letter to Coroticus. With that being said this volume was a bit of a let-down.

Jeannie Meekins according to amazon has over 120 unique titles geared for young readers. Many are biographies, some are in a Fun Facts Series, and other appear to be short fiction. This one I picked up because I loved another by the author in the series. This is part of a series tagged as 15-Minute Books, which are geared to get children reading for 15 minutes a day.

The website is now defunct, but Learning Island when I checked the internet archive machine appears to have been a site with contributors from around the world. The oldest archived versions show books available for download in PDF format and exercises to go with the books. Later iterations of the site show link to purchase cheap eBook and later even print editions of the works. There are some numbered even into the1000’s. With the most recent being from early 2013 and numbered at 1014. But I only find 163 when I search Kindle. The description of this volume is:

“St Patrick, Apostle of Ireland, is one of the best known saints of the Western World. Legends claim he converted the country of Ireland to Christianity and drove all the snakes into the sea.

Most of what we know about Patrick comes from his own writings.

Patrick wrote about his thoughts, dreams and visions. He wrote about his life as part of his teachings. He wrote how much he prayed and what he prayed for. He wrote about his sins and how his lack of education hindered his work. But he didn’t write about his personal life, or the miracles he is said to have performed.

Find out more about this man who started out a slave and became the beloved saint of Ireland, and of Irish people everywhere.

Ages 8 and up.”

The description of the Series is:

“LearningIsland.com believes in the value of children practicing reading for 15 minutes every day. Our 15-Minute Books give children lots of fun, exciting choices to read, from classic stories, to mysteries, to books of knowledge. Many books are appropriate for hi-lo readers. Open the world of reading to a child by having them read for 15 minutes a day.”

The sections in this booklet are:

Irelan’d Beloved Saint

Early Life

Escape

Patrick’s Returns to Ireland

Patrick and Laoghaire

Patrick’s Travels

Patrick and the Snakes

Patrick’s Death

After Death

St Patrick’s Cross

Blessings and Images

I highlighted a few passages while reading this volume. They are:

“Most of what we know about Patrick comes from his own writings.”

“Patrick wrote about his thoughts, dreams and visions. He wrote about his life as part of his teachings. He wrote how much he prayed and what he prayed for. He wrote about his sins and how his lack of education hindered his work. But he didn’t write about his personal life, or the miracles he is said to have performed.”

“Patrick turned to Christianity. He saw his enslavement as a test from God. He prayed constantly; day and night.”

“At some point Patrick did return home and was reunited with his family.”

“Patrick traveled around Ireland preaching, teaching and performing miracles. Some of his miracles include healing the sick, restoring sight to the blind and raising nine people from the dead.”

“The Cathedral Church of Armagh was founded in 444. It became the centre of education and administration. Patrick raised the standards of schooling and encouraged the teaching of Latin. He worked to bring Ireland closer to the Western Church.”

This biography was a little confusing; events are not presented in a logical order. And there are events that I have never encountered in any of the other works on Patrick I have read. It felt like a few key facts were researched and then the biography just thrown together. The events are not always in logical order. And the meaning given to some events are strange extrapolations.

I really enjoyed the first book I read in this series. This one was a let-down. Having picked up a number in the series I will see how the next few go. There are many great biographies of Patrick. I would recommend any of those over this one.

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

Books in the 15-Minute Books Series about Saints:

Saint Nicholas The Man Who Became the Patron Saint of Children - Melissa Cleeman

...

Books by Jeannie Meekins:

Saint Patrick Ireland Beloved Saint

Saint George: Dragon Slayer

Saint Valentine: The Man Who Became the Patron Saint of Love

Saint Francis of Assisi: The Patron Saint of Animals

Joan of Arc: The Girl Who Fought For France

Mary MacKillop: Australia's First Saint

The Lives of Seven Saints