More Saints: Lives & Illuminations

by Ruth Sanderson

In the follow-up to Saints: Lives and Illuminations, detailed portraits and biographical sketches of thirty-six remarkable men and women of the second millennium are accompanied by an introduction detailing the process of becoming a saint, a listing of additional resources, and a glossary.

Genres: Picture Books, Religion, Christian, Childrens

39 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Melody Schwarting · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pursuing a whim at my local library, I discovered a cache of children's books about saints. More Saints drew me in with its Morris-esque borders and gentle portrait of St Francis. Each saint's portrait is gently and invitingly drawn. The dates and feast days are given, along with the saint's patronage.

The read-aloud level is probably good for lower elementary. Non-Catholics will want to familiarize themselves with the glossary in the back, in which words are defined at an adult level.

I had an issue with the portrait of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, who was disfigured by smallpox and nearly blind. The portrait shows her with clear skin and looking upwards with clear eyes. While witnesses described her scars disappearing after she died, in life Kateri was known for covering her scars so she would not attract attention. I'd have appreciated a depiction of her covering, a hint toward her ocular impairment, or her scarred skin. Since she is pictured in the region where she lived, there's no indication that this portrait is of her glorified body in heaven. Portraying a saint in life without her scars is troublesome.

Overall, this gentle little book is a wonderful way to introduce young ones to saints of the Christian faith. I'll have to see if my library has the preceding book.

[Kristine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully illustrated children's book about saints of the second millennium, some well known and some not so well-known, Published in 2007, the book tells the story of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha and Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, both who have now been canonized as saints.
Perfect for children second grade and higher. These concise biographical sketches of saints show a portrait, give important dates and patron saint information.
Given to my son years ago as a First Communion present.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not Catholic, but I am a Ruth Sanderson fan. These short biographies are beautifully illustrated, most of them with decorative borders.

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love reading about saints' lives--they're so inspiring! I read Ruth Sanderson's first book of saints some years ago and loved it. This second book is just as good. Accompanied by her beautiful illustrations (how does she know what some of these people looked like?), each page has a brief biography of the saint or blessed person (not quite a saint), including what they are patron or patroness of. Some of these people I'd never heard of before, so it was fun to learn about them. St. Margaret of Scotland interested me especially because she was never part of a religious order--she was a princess. And yet, because she did such good works, she was considered and given sainthood. Who would have thought that there is a patron saint of television (St. Clare)? I was pleased to see the Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha included, the Mohawk woman, as her shrine is an hour or so's drive east of me and she was just declared a saint this year. Mother Teresa is also included. She's one of the "blessed" ones, but I'll bet she'll be canonized on of these years.

What I found interesting also was how many of these men and women set out to become martyrs, or had hopes of becoming one. I can't say it's a life ambition that too many people ever have. Some of these saints also predicted the exact dates of their deaths. I really must read more about all of them. I hope Sanderson writes another book of saints. Highly recommended!

[Eden Silverfox · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book with nice illustrations and information about quite a few different Saints. Would recommend it to those interested in learning about some of the Saints.

[Cynthia Egbert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am glad I purchased this book and I will purchase the other one as well. The artwork is really gorgeous and I love getting to know these people.

[Just a Girl Fighting Censorship · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am not a Catholic, so that undoubtedly tainted my opinion of this book which I picked up mostly because it was illustrated by Ruth Sanderson. Of course her illustrations are lovely.

As for the content, it was a bit bland, boring, and repetitive. I can't imagine this holding the interest of any child. This is really more of a Saint encyclopedia than a storybook.

However it did peak my interest to learn more about a few people that seemed historically noteworthy and uniquely fascinating. For example, Native American Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha (a Blessed not a Saint, a distinction which means absolutely nothing to me), Saint Maximilian Kolbe who was executed in Auschwitz, and Saint Catherine Drexel who founded the only Black Catholic university in the United States.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The only introduction to saints I could remember was Foxes' Book of Martyrs. I discovered this book in the children's section of the library after a visit to a Greek Orthodox Church. The one page biographies are appropriate for a wide age range, but interesting enough for an adult with no background knowledge. The illustrations are beautiful, and I wonder if they could be a launching point for an art study?

[Crystal M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ruth Sanderson’s talent and the book’s content are well-matched. This is a good starting point to learn more about influential figures in Catholicism. Due to its brevity, important aspects and events are left out, and has a strong pro-Catholicism bias. Appreciate the book’s beauty and also extend your research.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Includes a one page bio. For St. Anthony of Padua. Good to use to reinforce info about the said they for our 1st CCD class.

[Caitlyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a treat! Beautiful illustrations and short, sweet introductions to saints.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Concise bios of a number of great saints and very nice illustrations.

[Set · Rating 5 out of 5]

If Joan of Arc teaches us anything is to not tell our dreams at the breakfast tale.
Just to think that the Saint that created the order of the nuns is also the patron Saint of television, if she could watch television now.
I feel that the Catholics outside of Mexico do not approve of Guadalupe because it's almost like the Mexicans have taken a universal image and changed it to their liking and made it their own. If Saint Juan Diego supposedly saw the Virgin Mary dressed like an Aztec princess atop a mountain in Mexico, why is Guadalupe dressed differently in her portrait that miraculously appeared on his cloak? I say that Mexico disregards that painting and reinvents her to look like how Juan Diego saw her. And why is it that this Virgin Mary is the only one to give a vision to anyone just to have her name changed into something completely opposite from her actual biblical name? I never understood Mary's transformation into Guadalupe.
With that being said, a LOT, nearly all the saints, have had visions with the Virgin Mary and not Jesus Christ.
I picked up this book because of the beautiful illustrations and I wasn't disappointed. I thought that Saint Charles Borromeo from Italy looks like Ciciro from the series Rome and Saint John Baptist de La Salle from France looks like Frollo from Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

[Catherine Woodman]

This book is the size and type that you would see for the 0-5 year old, but it is really aimed more at the 7-11 year old crowd. And me :-) I am not all that big on saints, and this book is arranged in chronological order (oldest saint in time up to Blessed Mother Theresa, and Saint Katherine, Saint Maximillian). The ones that I know: Saint Francis of Assisi (I did not know two things--his day is October 4th, Tucker's birthday, and he mentored a woman who had a parallel order of Franciscans that were women--I really loved his writings the last time I read them, which was almost a lifetime away, and should return to them--because they are probably available on the Kindle for little or no money), Joan of Arc (nothing new to report on her), Saint Thomas Aquinas. The stories on each saint are short and there is a summary at the bottom of each description (almost like the key words
function) that allows you get the take home message.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not quite what I was looking for, thought the artwork was lovely.

[Mckinley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Follow up with additional lives of saints explained.; illustrations just as lovely.