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Saints Alive! New Stories of Old Saints Andrew Seddon 9781936453191 Books

Download As PDF : Saints Alive! New Stories of Old Saints Andrew Seddon 9781936453191 Books

Saints Alive! New Stories of Old Saints Andrew Seddon 9781936453191 Books

Good as a straight fiction writer, the author also possesses an obvious flair for the semi-nonfictional too as he displays in his new book Saints Alive! Readable, and dare I say it? a page turner at times. Readers will discover new things about an old subject in a different, entertaining context. I bought this book for my niece for Christmas and she devoured it! A perfect gift for young people. I hope Seddon makes it a series and that the next volume is even now nearing completion....


Tags : Saints Alive! New Stories of Old Saints [Andrew Seddon] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Currently entered into the 2014 Catholic Press Awards for best book by a small publisher, Saints Alive! New Stories of Old Saints is a popular reading choice for all ages! Dr. Seddon deftly weaves stories around the lives of saints in such a way that each story brings to life the saint and the saint's life lesson. Excellent for parochial or homeschool curriculums,Andrew Seddon,Saints Alive! New Stories of Old Saints,Bezalel Books,1936453193,Christianity - Catholic,Christianity - Saints & Sainthood,RELIGION Christianity Catholic,Religion - Catholicism,Religion : Christianity - Saints & Sainthood,ReligionChristianity - Saints & Sainthood,Roman Catholicism, Roman Catholic Church

Saints Alive! New Stories of Old Saints Andrew Seddon 9781936453191 Books Reviews

Andrew M. Seddon and I have been Internet pen pals for about a decade, and he's one of my favorite authors. I had the privilege of beta reading these stories before they were published, and the honor of providing an endorsement for the back cover of the printed collection (though Andrew's well-deserved stature as a writer is quite a bit greater than mine!).

The British-born author is an adult convert to Roman Catholicism (from Anglicanism), a devout Christian and a serious student of Roman history, which furnishes the setting for his novel Imperial Legions, and for his unpublished story cycle about a time-traveling historian. Here, he combines those interests in a collection of twelve stories set in late Roman antiquity, in different parts of the Empire, all having as their central figures various historical saints -that is to say, ordinary Christian believers, both men and women, living by --and sometimes dying for-- their faith in a culture which, for all of its differences, has some significant similarities to our own. (One of those similarities is the prevalence of an ugly strand of murderous anti-Christian bigotry, as the current New Atheist slogan "Bring Back the Lions!" reminds us; stories like "Wheat of Lions" shows us events that aren't currently part of our experience in the U.S. --but easily could be in the future, and in the lifetimes of some of us.)

As with all historical fiction that uses actual people as subjects, the author employs imaginative reconstruction, invented dialogue, and some fictional characters and events. But he's faithful to the basic facts (sometimes scanty) as we can learn them from history and legend, weaving them into realistic vignettes as they might have happened. His introductory "About the Stories" note explains the principals underlying his craftsmanship, and the known facts and sources behind each story are set out in the notes at the end.

As always, Andrew's story-telling skills are impeccable. There's no sex or bad language in any of the stories, but some stories, like "Wheat of Lions" and "The End of he Games," reflect the sometimes grisly brutality of Roman society. But the violence is never gratuitous. As it usually is in real life will find much to entertain here, too, as well as food ffor thoughDifferent readers will pick different stories as their favorites; "The Penitent Pigeon" is one of mine. There aren't any that aren't well-written, though! The collection will probably appeal mainly to Christian readers who want to learn more about early Christian history through the painless medium of fiction. But open-minded non-Christians will find both entertainment and food for thought here as well; this is serious, plotted, positive fiction of the kind that could easily have been published and widely read in the general circulation magazines of the last century, when some of the greatest short-fiction writers in the history of the format were writing!
I was recently asked about writing a few words about a forthcoming book, that book happened to be Saints Alive Volume II - Celtic Paths. After reading the first story in the new volume I went back and purchased the first volume and alternately read chapters in each book. But now let us focus on Saints of Empire, Saints Alive Volume I. This wonderful little volume with take you many places and give 12 examples of faith. The stories are written around legends of saints, to quote the introduction "Edification was their reason for existence. The hagiographers were concerned that the lives, deeds, words, and examples of the saints would endure, encouraging and inspiring later generations of Christians." The saints who's stories we evaluate in this volume are

1. Wheat of Lions (St. Ignatius of Antioch) Rome, c.107
2. Ariadne's Angels (St. Ariadne) Phrygia, c.117-161
3. The Informer (St. Cecilia) Rome, c. 177-250
4. The Governor's Eyes (St. Sabinus) Etruria, c.303
5. A Vision of Theodota (St. Anastasia) Illyricum, c.304
6. The Sword of Dioscorus (St. Barbara) Heliopolis in Syria, c. 304
7. Relics (St. Boniface of Tarsus) Rome, c. 306
8. The Fortieth Martyr (The Forty Martyrs of Sebastea) Armenia, 320
9. The Lure of Terenuthis (St. John the Dwarf) Egypt, c.390
10. The End of the Games (St. Telemachus) Rome, c. 404
11. Bishop Martin's Cloak (St. Martin of Tours) Gaul, c.407
12. The Penitent Pigeon (St. Pelagia & St. Nonnus) Antioch, Late 400s.

Some of the Saints will be familiar but few of the stories. Seddon has chosen to present lesser known stories for some saints and some lesser known saints. Each story entertains, and yet also challenges. And is that not what the Saints are supposed to do. Seddon also states "These stories are not strict retelling of the lives of the saints involved and should not be read as such. They are, rather, literary creations, tales based upon an incident in the life of a saint. They do, however, contain as much factual detail as could reasonably be accommodated." This book was an amazing read and left me wanting to read more. Thankfully Seddon provides extensive notes and list of resources at the end of the book. I loved this book and have already read it twice and know I will read it again. I cannot give it a higher recommendation.
Dr. Seddon takes the old stories and makes them new and applicable to today's culture. Very compelling and interesting reading. Who would think the lives of the saints were so interesting?
Good as a straight fiction writer, the author also possesses an obvious flair for the semi-nonfictional too as he displays in his new book Saints Alive! Readable, and dare I say it? a page turner at times. Readers will discover new things about an old subject in a different, entertaining context. I bought this book for my niece for Christmas and she devoured it! A perfect gift for young people. I hope Seddon makes it a series and that the next volume is even now nearing completion....