Looking for good catholic fiction!

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riabia

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Hi!

I love fiction novels, both action/ mystery and romance. But I have a hard time finding anything with a catholic flavor. I have read and enjoyed Bud Mcfarlan’s (spelling?) novels from St. Jude media, but that is about it. All of the Christian Romance that I find is of the Evangelical nature. I especially love Lori Wick, but her books are filled with bad theology.

Any recommendations?
 
This is a little different than what you asked for, and I’ve posted it a few times in the last few weeks so I hope everyone will cut me some slack, but I just finished “The Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc”, by Mark Twain. It’s historical fiction. It took him 10 years of research and two years to write.

There is, however, one glaring question about the book that I would like to discuss with anyone who has read it.

Bill
 
Michael O’Brien! His books are wonderful, though not romance really, more of suspense and excitement. My favorites are Eclipse of the Sun, Father Elijah, Plague Journal. Cry of Stone and Strangers and Sojourners were good but not quite as exciting as the first three I mentioned. Also check out the Father Browning mysteries by GK Chesterton. If you go to www.ignatius.com they have a pretty good selection of fiction books. Not all are expressly Catholic, but are thoroughly wholesome.
 
If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times, but anything by Tolkien is great. To understand all of the symbolism, you have to have a pretty good grasp on theology, though.
 
I love Michael O’Brien. His books are just awsome. “Father Elijah” was my favorite and I just got “A Cry of Stone” (Autographed!) I hope to start it soon. I also just got another book by Marc Sebanc a good friend of Michael O’Brien’s which I also hope to read soon as well. (Can’t remember the name of it off the top of my head but it seems very Lord of the Ringsesque).
There’s another one I have been on the look out for, I think it’s called “Holy Innocents” by Bill Kassels?? or something like that.
 
I would also hasten to add that C.S. Lewis has also contributed to the body of fiction aligned with Church teachings in his Chronicles of Narnia. Incidentally, our local Daughters of St. Paul (Pauline Media) book store has a fair sized shelf of fiction titles that are in-line with Church teaching. Here is a link FYI: daughtersofstpaul.com/bookcenters/index.html

Peace -
 
A good mainstream author is Mary Higgins Clark. Available at your library.
 
Have you read anything by Louis de Wohl? Granted, it’s historical fiction, but they really do read like fiction. I don’t typically enjoy biographies but I’ve learned a lot about some of our saints from reading his VERY well written books.

I’m currently reading The Red Horse by Eugenio Corti. It’s carried by Ignatius, as well, and it, too, is a very well written read.
 
Louis de Wohl… 👍 Quo Vadis is an excellent book as well. 🙂 How Firm a Foundation is a novel about a pastor who converts to Catholicism. Bud Macfarlane, Jr’s Pierced by a Sword series is excellent as well…God bless your day!
 
Sorry…I didn’t mean to mention Bud Macfarlane again. Another excellent author would be Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson; I’m sorry that I can’t remember specific titles, but some included the persecution of Catholics during the reign of Henry VIII; I think the title was Come Rack, Come Rope. Enjoy. 🙂
 
Look for books by Flannery O’Connor or Evelyn Waugh. They were Catholic and wrote books that were good literature first and Catholic second which is vastly preferable to the alternative.
 
I would recommend “How Firm a Foundation” by Marcus Grodi, a page turner about a Congregtionalist Minister who slowly comes home to Rome, wonderful read, trust me, please.
 
Graham Greene was catholic. His best books have profound catholic themes and are among the best English novels, especially “The Power and the Glory”, “The Heart of the Matter”, and “The End of the Affair”.
 
Andrew Larkoski:
If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times, but anything by Tolkien is great. To understand all of the symbolism, you have to have a pretty good grasp on theology, though.
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Here, Here! I’d like to second this. The Lord of the rings trilogy while not overtly Catholic is Catholic to it’s core and Tolkien’s devout Catholicism shines out from it if you know to look. Unfortunately, most people don’t even realize Tolkien was a devout Catholic. He once commented regarding the books that the Trilogy ‘…Is a religious and Catholic work. Subconciously at first, but conciously as it was reworked.’

I also second the recommendations for both Michael O’Brien and C.S. Lewis. Besides the Chronicles of Narnia (which while enjoyable for adults were originally written for children), he has some grown up ficiton as well. Including a trilogy of his own which includes three books named Out of The Silent Planet, Perelandra and That Hideous Strength. He also has several other very good fiction works including* The Great Divorce* (one of my all time favorite books), and* Til we have faces*.

Finally, the greatest Catholic Romance/Historical Novel is an AWESOME book called Quo Vadis? byHenryk K. Sienkiewicz.

Here are Amazon links to all of the above:
Tolkien–>
amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0395489326/qid=1086361087/sr=1-10/ref=sr_1_10/103-4276808-8228623?v=glance&s=books
(these are fairly decent hard-covers. You can find paperback very cheap)

Lewis →
amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/103-4276808-8228623

Sienkiewicz–>
amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0781805503/qid=1086360841/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_1/103-4276808-8228623

Hope that’s enough to get you started. 😃

Steve
 
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Joane:
Louis de Wohl… 👍 Quo Vadis is an excellent book as well. 🙂 How Firm a Foundation is a novel about a pastor who converts to Catholicism. Bud Macfarlane, Jr’s Pierced by a Sword series is excellent as well…God bless your day!
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Just a correction. Quo Vadis? is by Henryk K. Sienkiewicz
 
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RosaryArmy:
Have you read anything by Louis de Wohl? Granted, it’s historical fiction, but they really do read like fiction. I don’t typically enjoy biographies but I’ve learned a lot about some of our saints from reading his VERY well written books.
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I read “The Spear” by him last summer and it was great. 👍 It follows the guy who pierced Jesus when he was on the cross. I also bought his book on St Thomas Aquinas which is on my reading list at some point. The one I had were published by Ignatius Press.
 
**Wow! thanks for some great suggestions.😃 **

**I have actually read the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and enjoyed it very much.👍 **
 
riabia said:
**Wow! thanks for some great suggestions.😃 **

**I have actually read the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and enjoyed it very much.👍 **
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If you enjoyed the trilogy, you might enjoy a book called, ahem…The Silmarillion :yup:

Its a book of mythic tales by Tolkien that is Middle Earth’s Pre-Lord of the rings day. His Catholicism is even more clearly manifest here. The first part of the book has a retelling of the creation/fall story that is extremely beautiful.
 
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