More books finished!

#19: Women of Grace Bible study (Michaelann Martin).
We (a few women from my parish) started a mothers Bible study. I found this to be a decent study to "start things off" -- the author covers a variety of topics of interest to mothers, such as finances, being open to life, etc. I had two main problems with this study: (1)It would have been nice to see more information on being a Mom, and passing the Faith on to our children and (2)at times the Scripture references/discussion questions went way overboard. I appreciate a "sword drill" as much as the next person, but at times I found it excessive. On the whole, however, I thought the author did a good job and I appreciate her taking the time to write this, and to provide a study that is faithful to the Magisterium!! I would give it 3.5 stars (out of 5).

#20: Awake My Soul (Fr. James Martin).
I must admit, I was a bit disappointed in this book. I am a "personal story" sort of person, and I felt that the personal aspect was lacking. I appreciate that this book was a compilation of essays from AMERICA magazine, and as such they were well-written, but they felt... dry to me. I wanted more in-depth stories of how people are finding the older, traditional devotions meaningful in their lives. Still, as an introduction to various devotions -- the reasons behind them, and an explanation of their relevance today -- it was a good little book.

#21: Catholicism for Dummies (Fr.John Trigilio). I highly recommend this book! I wrote about it earlier, so I will just say again that it is a fantastic reference for all -- cradle Catholics and converts alike.