Super Girls and Halos: My Companions on the Quest for Truth, Justice, and Heroic Virtue

by Maria Morera Johnson

Winner of a 2018 Catholic Press Association Gender Issues. (Second Place).


Award-winning author Maria Morera Johnson follows up her bestselling book, My Badass Book of Saints , with a unique and daring exploration of the cardinal virtues through the saints and heroines of science fiction, fantasy, and comic books. Johnson will reignite your passion for your faith as she demonstrates the heroic in the sometimes mundane quest for good and reminds us that Catholicism is filled with adventure.

What do Wonder Woman and St. Katharine Drexel have in common? How about St. Clare of Assisi and Rey, the ingénue from Star Wars : The Force Awakens ? All four women sought justice for the abused.

With the same zest for her faith and cheeky wit that readers found so compelling in My Badass Book of Saints and a love for the heroic journey that highlights her career, Johnson now focuses on heroines—improbable pairings of saints and characters from sci-fi, comics, and fantasy—who have influenced her life and deepened her understanding of the Church’s cardinal prudence, temperance, fortitude, and justice.

Johnson tells her own story alongside the unlikely pairs to show how the cardinal virtues are at play in our lives as
With Johnson's enthusiasm as a guide, you’ll be inspired to embrace the virtues anew and find your faith in your favorite stories.

Discussion questions focusing on the cardinal virtues, making it a great resource for personal or group study.

Genres: Catholic, Religion, Christianity

192 pages, Paperback

Published September 8, 2017

Reviews

[Barb · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fabulous book! This book combines my love of the Saints with our current culture. Taking a movie, TV show and book character and examining their virtues and how a Saint lives these virtues fully with the graces from God. Ms. Johnson is an excellent writer and backs up each chapter with a note section with all her sources. She is a retired English teacher! She must have taught using the MLA format. This is not a stuffy book. Ms. Johnson's Catholic faith lives and breathes throughout this book and you feel as if you are reading and chatting about this book with an old friend.

[Steven R. McEvoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a father of daughters this book immediately caught my attention. And even though the reading level is above where they are currently at. I cannot wait to read it again with them when they are a little older. And yet there was a lot I could take from this book and apply to my life. Lessons I can live by, in how I treat my wife and daughters. How I interact with women at work. And How fiction can be icons for mirroring the saints, virtues and for right living.

This book ties together Maria's own story and journey with heroines and with saints. The heroines are drawn from the Marvel universe, DC, and many other movies and books. In part this is a who's who of contemporary fiction, Black Widow, Rey, Katniss, Wonder Woman, and more. And uses them as a means of unpacking the cardinal virtues. But each of these characters from fiction is also paired with a Catholic Saint.

The sections in this book are:
Introduction:
Heroines, Heroic Virtue, and the Quest for Good
Part I: Seeking Justice
1. Crusaders of Justice and Learning: Wonder Woman and St. Katharine Drexel
2. Beacons of Strength and Light: Rey and St. Clare of Assisi
Part II: Seeking Prudence
3. Imparters of Mercy and Service: Black Widow and St. Mary Magdalene
4. Paragons of Wisdom and Truth: Scully and St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross
Part III: Seeking Fortitude
5. Guardians of Dignity and Culture: Storm and St. Cunegunde
6. Defenders of Fairness and Honor: Granger and St. Marguerite d'Youville
Part IV: Seeking Temperance
7. Champions of Caring and Compassion: Katniss Everdeen and St. Mary MacKillop
8. Explorers of Peace and Faith: Lt. Nyota Uhura and St. Kateri Tekakwitha
Conclusion:
The Quest for Good Leads to God: The Blessed Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe

This book is great as a standalone read. But it would be even better in a group study. This book is full of a vibrant faith. It is practical. It is a modern wisdom book. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and give it two thumbs up.

Read the review on my blog Book Reviews and More.

[Michelle Kidwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super Girls and Halos

My Companions on the Quest for Truth, Justice, and Heroic Virtue



by Maria Morera Johnson

Ave Maria Press

Christian , Religion & Spirituality

Pub Date 08 Sep 2017

I am reviewing a copy of Super Girls and Halos through Ava Maria Press and Netgalley:

In this book the author starts out by talking about some fictional heroines and then goes on to talk about how at the age of six her Father sat her down to watch real life hero Neil Armstrong walk on the moon. She goes on to talk about how her love for space drew her into science-fiction stories.

The author goes on to remind us that we need heros and heroines. In this book the author compares Wonder Woman to St. Katharine Drexel. Katharine Drexel entered the Convent of the Sisters of Mercy in Pittsburg Pennsylvania in 1889.

The second chapters compares Star Wars Rey to St Francis of Assisi. St Clare of Assisi was born to a wealthy father and a pious Mother in 1193, a time of turmoil throughout Italy. Clare committed herself to St. Francis vow of poverty. St Clare was canonized in 1255 just two years after her death.

This book goes on to talk about Mary Magdalene as well as St. Theresa of Benedicta, as well as St. Cunegunde who was born in 975 and died around 1040.

I give Super Girls and Halo's five out of five stars!

Happy Reading

[Nikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

What do you get when you cross Wonder Woman & Hermoine Granger with St Katherine Drexel & St Claire of Assisi? An incredible book that provides practical, everyday examples of the cardinal virtues along with saintly ones.
Broken into four parts aka the Cardinal Virtues:- Seeking Justice, Seeking Prudence, Seeking Fortitude and Seeking Temperance. There are a total of 8 chapters and a conclusion. Each chapter throws together a secular, fictional character with a saint who exemplify the virtue in question. I loved this. I now find myself looking for the "Faith Whispers" in a few of my favourite characters. Not all the characters are familiar to me and they may not be familiar to other readers but the perspective, and anecdotes shared by the author draws you in that you can't help but feel like you know them all. I am also able to transfer and seek characters more familiar to me that allow me to see the virtue in action as well. Well written while allowing for the imperfections of being human.
The introduction begins by giving practical advice from Edna Mode of The Incredibles, who I love. How could this book not be awesome?
I received this book free for my honest opinion from NetGalley and Ave Maria Press.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm really not the audience for this book--I don't read comic books, I only see comic book movies when my friends want to, and was too young to watch X-Files when it was out the first time (and I missed it when it was on Netflix). So those parts of the book, though written well, didn't engage me because I didn't know anything about the characters. There are some parts about Harry Potter and the Hunger Games, as well as Star Wars and Star Trek, that were more relatable to me (even if I disagree wit the author about Katniss, in the end). If you're into comic books and super heroes, this is a good book for you. If you're not, then it might not be as edifying as the author hopes. However, the sections on the saints were great. I liked how Johnson chose some well-known and newer saints, and the section comparing Black Widow to Mary Magdalene was probably my favorite!

[Rudy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book and I highly recommend it to anyone exploring the lives of the saints and/or trying to develop an understanding of the virtuous life. Johnson's use of fictional superheroes in comparison to the lives of saints is brilliant! We need to explore this theme even more! Through characters like Hermione Granger, Wonder Woman, Rey (The Force Awakens), Black Widow (Natasha Romanoff), Dana Scully, Storm (X-Men), Katniss Everdeen, and Lt. Nyota Uhura, we come to see a practical application of virtue that brings the lives of the saints to life in a SUPER way! I encourage everyone to read this book! - Deacon Rudy Villarreal

[Barb · Rating 5 out of 5]

 I love that Maria Morera Johnson began her book with a quote from the only superhero movie I ever liked: The Incredibles. Mrs. Incredible is probably the first “supergirl” I could relate to. She’s a mom. She worries about her family. She’s the most real superhero I’ve encountered. Maria found a way to show the human side of superheros and saints without diluting their extraordinary virtues. Read my interview with the author.

[Pamela Fernandes · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book talks about the cardinal virtues, prudence, fortitude, justice, and temperance. It's focused on women, where the author talks about these virtues on superheroes and then highlights a real example in women like Edith Stein, St. Clare of Assisi, St. Mary and many others. She also adds a plan at the end as to how you can put them into action in your own life. Great for women who love science fiction and are interested in their faith. The book draws form the CCC so as to explain certain Catholic fundamentals.

[Kim Padan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A light read, but with lots of highlights.

I actually purchased this book over the summer and started skimming it for an online book club (WINE.) Stuff happened, so it sat untouched for months. I knew it would be a good book to read in this week between Christmas & New Year's.

Admittedly, I am not into the super hero culture, but I do love learning more about the Saints. I appreciated the author's zeal for both! And I found her analyses of fictional characters and their virtues very interesting. I think this book would be great for young readers, as well.

[Holly Hebebrand · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible book! Former literature professor explores the cardinal virtues by examining real and fictional female heroines. Each chapter includes the stories of comic book heroines and current fiction, in comparison to the lives of the saints. I could not put this book down! There is so much great humor and perspective in this book.

[Manuela Colantonio-alonzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the way Johnson's use of fictional characters (those that teens are able to relate to) and how she relates them to saints is done. I am intrigued on how she even came up with the concept. Well done! What a way to empower girls!!!!

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author’s comparisons were hard to see sometimes, but overall an interesting read. I look forward to talking about it with my niece. I think it’s a great Confirmation present.

[Sarah Landry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the concept of this book - linking fictional super heroes with saints! A unique take on the impact of entertainment and real life examples on our quest for heroic virtue. This was a fun read!

[Ann · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 1/2

[Nicky Uerling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent reflection on super heroes and the saints.

[Carla Mahn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book and how it was written. I love the way Johnson continues to make learning about our faith and saints relevant and current. It inspired me to learn more.

[Ziyal McArthur · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had one of the worst, possibly the worst, take I have ever seen on Katniss Everdeen from Hunger Games and there was no redeeming the book after I read that chapter.

(I also had an issue with how in some of the chapters Johnson seemed to barely talk about the saint she was supposed to be talking to).

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saints and Superheroes, what's not to love? I little to surface level on the lives of the saints but the connections between these heroic women and their corresponding sister saint was SO Cool! Highly recommend for all geeky, comic book, sci-fi loving, Catholic girls out there!