I love reading. Or I actually like the idea of reading and wish I could engage in it more then I do. Regardless of how much or how little I read there is always something new to read
In the 21st century there is always someone hard at work thinking, comprehending, and constructing words into a computer document hoping the typed words will print out either on material obtained from trees or else something that you can read on a computer screen. I have gathered some of these newer titles from amongst the 1000 or so possible choices and put them together for you.
Before you being gazing the list with several few selections here is an FAQ about the list.
Scroll down to begin reading the list and skip this part or read it if you want to know somethings about it.
It begins with “The 2023 Book List (So Far)”.
Q: Why do you need a FAQ for a book list?
A: I just want to explain my list more deeply.
Q: Did you read all the books on the list?
A: Heck No.
Q: Will you read all the books on this list?
A: Probably not.
Q Why did you make this list?
A: Even if I don’t read certain books, I still like to know about them. I like to know what’s out there in the publishing world or authors. This is a wish list of books and not an actual reading plan. You also don’t have to read books in order to talk about them and I love to talk about them.
“There is more than one way not to read, the most radical of which is not to open a book at all. For any given reader, however dedicated he might be, such total abstention necessarily holds true for virtually everything that has been published, and thus in fact this constitutes our primary way of relating to books. We must not forget that even a prodigious reader never has access to more than an infinitesimal fraction of the books that exist.”
― Pierre Bayard, How to Talk About Books You Haven’t Read
Q: Why don’t you read them?
A: Lack of an attention span to stick to one book and an unquenchable desire to always see what is new. Indecisiveness in picking a book to read. Plus, I’m not going to spend money on more books when I haven’t read the ones I bought. Some books are at the library but are checked out by other patrons.
Q: Why did you choose the books on this list that you did?
A: I either choose authors I’m familiar with or sound interesting. Certain books sound interesting by the blurb on the back and so I added it to the list.
Q: What type of books did you include in this list?
A: Read it and find out….
Ok. That was a bit checky. I have included Catholic books because after all this is a Catholic blog. I have included fiction because everyone likes a good story well told. And I have included non-fiction because life is pretty big and covers a lot of territory.
Q: Why didn’t you include my favorite author?
A: I either didn’t know they published something or I found their book idea uninteresting. You can’t include everything. There are more books not included on this list then are included.
Q: I have a book suggestion; will you add it?
A: It depends if it sounds interesting or not.
Q: What about a book talking about how masons infiltrated the church, installed Bergoglio as the head and how the Novus Ordo Mass is destroying the church?
A: I don’t recommend books that are ultra critical of the Second Vatican Council, Pope Francis, or the New Mass. All of these things I love. I won’t promote other things that go along with it that are promoted by rad trads.
Q: What about that book you put on by that modernist here…
A: It is possible I might not know what every author thinks about possible topic. I might disagree with them on some topic or other. I will avoid those who promote rad progressive Catholic ideas as well, but am open to some dialogue about some ideas on either side if they present them with respect to the current magisterium’s teaching on the subject. I also will avoid prejudiced people wanting to spread their hatred.
Q: I thought this was a book list of current books coming out in 2023, so why is their books published in other years?
A: With the sheer volume of books being published since the invention of the printing press and Kindle, you make new discoveries you don’t want to miss out on.
Q: Is that all?
A: And Now I think I covered all my reigning thoughts.
Except that the blurbs of the books are taken from either the book, Wikipedia or the Amazon book description.
And this list is subject to revisions and updates.
So now here is the…
The 2023 Book List (So Far)
Catholic Books
My Son Carlo: Carlo Acutis Through the Eyes of His Mother (2023) by Antonia Salzano Acutis with Paolo Rodari
Antonia Salzano Acutis shares for the first time the intimate, private moments of her son’s life, including his final days in vivid detail before he died from leukemia at the age of 15.
The Word Set in Stone: How Archaeology, Science, and History Back Up the Bible (2023) by Dave Armstrong
Veteran apologist Dave Armstrong uses secular historiography and proven scientific disciplines such as archaeology, meteorology, and even zoology and hydrology, to show that not only are some of the most fantastic-seeming episodes of the Bible possible, they are probable—even quite likely
Beautiful Holiness: A Spiritual Journey with Blessed Conchita to the Heart of Jesus (2023) by Kathleen Beckman
Author Kathleen Beckman shows how Blessed Conchita — who founded a religious community for women and one for men and published forty-six books and sixty-six diary volumes — modeled the heroic fortitude you need to live out your vocation. Her heroic life experience and mystical writings show how to dispose yourself for deep conversion and transformation in Christ.
Love Basics for Catholics: Illustrating God’s Love for Us throughout the Bible (2023) by John Bergsma
Walk with popular scripture scholar John Bergsma from the creation of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden to the wedding between the Lamb and the New Jerusalem in the Book of Revelation to learn how marriage in the Bible represents the love between God and his people.
The New Relativism (2023) by Karlo Broussard
Total relativism is the most radical form of relativism. It states that there is no truth whatsoever. Whether we’re talking about science, history, morality, religion, etc., it doesn’t matter. There is no truth, period! On this view, no beliefs or opinions correspond to reality and the notion of truth is a mere fiction.
Confession of a Catholic Worker: Our Moment of Christian Witness by Larry Chapp
For Larry Chapp, crisis is always the norm of Christian existence. In a cold, dying world choked by greed, the Gospel calls for radical love and radical living according to the Sermon on the Mount. Using the theology of Hans Urs von Balthasar, Peter Maurin, and Dorothy Day, Chapp argues that the real remedy to the disease of sin is not niceness, not political liberation, not fancy liturgical dress, not technical rigor, but a free decision to live totally and joyfully in Jesus Christ, without compromise.
Our Faithful Departed: Where They Are and Why It Matters (Engaging Catholicism) (2022)
Part of: Engaging Catholicism (5 books) | by Leonard J. DeLorenzo , McGrath Institute for Church Life, et al.
This book is not just for those who grieve their beloved dead. This book is for all the living, because none of us who live now will ever be fulfilled without sharing communion with all the dead in Christ. That communion is what we hope for as Christians, but it is also what we are commanded to practice. We do not truly live if we do not remember and love the dead.
The Road to Hope: Responding to the Crisis of Addiction (2023) by Keaton Douglas
Those struggling with addiction, or their loved ones, should be able to visit any Catholic parish and find someone to accompany them, through spiritual consolation and recovery resources. This book provides a comprehensive pastoral approach, demonstrating that we as a Church can’t ignore the crisis of addiction — in fact, we have a solution for it.
Adam and Eve after the Pill, Revisited (2023) by Mary Eberstadt and Cardinal George Pell
Adam and Eve after the Pill examined what might be called the microscopic effects of the [sexual] revolution: its fallout on individual men, women, and children, including the transformed moral ecosphere. Adam and Eve after the Pill, Revisited widens the aperture to assess the revolution’s macroscopic fallout: its extensive and compounding effects on society, politics, and Christianity itself.
The Sexual Revolution: History, Ideology, Power (2023) by Bishop Peter J. Elliott
The author traces the history of the sexual revolution, from the early days of the Enlightenment through Marxist movements to our own times, and the failure of governments and even churches to defend sound principles for sexual behavior. He records the constant teaching of popes and Church councils and highlights their focus on the integration of sexual morality and personality within the contexts of human nature, marriage, and the welfare of children.
Holy Grit: A Saintly Guide to Becoming a Man of Virtue (2023) by Paul George
Catholic Neighborhood Evangelization (2023) by Austin Habash (Author), Maria Servold (Editor)
Sent Evangelization provides the steps for conducting neighborhood-wide evangelization, which is based on baptismal identity and focused on charity.
When Protestants Argue Like Atheists- 12 Weird Ways That Anti-Catholics Mimic Secular Skeptics (2023) by Trent Horn
Catholic apologist Trent Horn looks at twelve areas where anti-Catholic scholars and polemicists mimic the methods they otherwise decry in anti-theists.
Holy Habits from the Sacred Heart: Ten Ways to Build Stronger, More Loving Relationships (2023) by Emily Jaminet
In Holy Habits from the Sacred Heart, Emily Jaminet—executive director of the Sacred Heart Enthronement Network—identifies ten habits and virtues that come from the Sacred Heart. She also shows how you can intentionally practice these virtues in order to get closer to Jesus and strengthen the relationships that are most important to you.
Life to the Full: True Stories That Reveal the Dignity of Every Human Life (2023) by Abby Johnson and Tyler Rowely
Abby Johnson and Tyler Rowley have collected twenty-three harrowing personal accounts that demonstrate the evil of abortion and, more crucially, the power of life.
Church Chaos (2023) by Michael Lofton of Reason & Theology
The Catholic Church is supposed to be the witness to Christ’s teaching. Yet, it seems like many in the Church are more concerned with what the world thinks of them.
This undermines the trust of many faithful Catholics, who expect the Church to be a beacon of truth, goodness and beauty in these tumultuous times.
Some Catholics are tempted to leave the Church. Others have already left. If you fall into either of these categories (or know someone who is), then you’ll want to check out this FREE eBook “Church Chaos: Biblical Insights for Confused Catholics.”
A Concise Guide to Canon Law: A Practical Handbook for Pastoral Ministers (2023)by Kevin E. McKenna and Aldean B. Hendrickson
For more than twenty years, A Concise Guide to Canon Law has provided priests, deacons, and lay pastoral ministers with essential information about Church laws that regularly impact the lives of everyday Catholics.
Let Beauty Speak: The Art of Being Human in a Culture of Noise (2023) by Jimmy Mitchell
From embracing childlike wonder to integrating prayer, work, and leisure into your everyday life, this is your how-to guide for evangelizing others by first living your humanity well. If not you, then who? If not now, then when? Turn these principles into a way of life, and you’ll join the long line of saints whose holiness was the remedy for the isolation, confusion, and meaninglessness of their times.
The Singing-Masters: Church Fathers from Greek East and Latin West (2023) by Aidan Nichols
The Singing-Masters, written by the author of Rome and the Eastern Churches, is a passionate, personalized account of the theological achievement of eighteen of the Church Fathers. Ten come from the Greek East: Irenaeus, Origen, Athanasius, Gregory of Nyssa, Gregory of Nazianzus, Basil the Great, Cyril of Alexandria, Denys the Areopagite, Maximus the Confessor, and John Damascene. Eight come from the Latin West: Tertullian, Cyprian, Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, Leo the Great, Gregory the Great, and Bede the Venerable.
Dining with the Saints: The Sinner’s Guide to a Righteous Feast (2023) by Leo Patalinghug (Author), Michael P. Foley (Author)
Dining with the Saints brings the Catholic liturgical year to life, pairing over two hundred saints’ stories with an irresistible smorgasbord of international recipes.
Behind the Tapestry: My Discovery of God’s Grace Amidst Chronic Pain and Loss (2021) by M Rose Peluso
Behind the Tapestry is the compelling true story told from behind (Catholic) convent walls, of one woman’s struggles to “make peace” with a mysterious chronic illness and the loss of her religious vocation.
How the Saints Shaped History (2023) by Randall Petrides
How the Saints Shaped History focuses on the essential role of the saints, as vessels of God’s grace, in moving the Church (and the world!) through her two-thousand-year history. Written especially for everyday Catholics hungry to learn more about the Faith, this book is both comprehensive and accessible. It tells the story of how more than 180 saints, from Saint Mary Magdalene to Pope Saint John Paul II, led the Church through many crises and back to her spiritual roots.
Sinner: The Catholic Guy’s Funny, Feeble Attempts to Be a Faithful Catholic (2011/2023) by Lino Rulli
What Catholic guy made money as an organ-grinder’s assistant, spent one-on-one time with John Paul II, met a very nice Thai prostitute, and confessed his sins on a beanbag chair? Lino Rulli, of course!
Saint: Why I Should Be Canonized Right Away (2013/2023) by Lino Rulli
If you’ve been waiting for a saint that cries like a schoolgirl, was once an aspiring rapper, is a really good kisser, and rode an elephant in the circus…then your prayers have been answered!
Lino Rulli is hilarious, brutally honest, and ready for his canonization. Saint picks up where Sinner left off. Lino’s stories of triumph and failure suggest that you might not be as big a sinner as you think. And that, with God’s grace, you might just become a saint.
The Notre Dame Book of Prayer (2023) by Office of Campus Ministry, Heidi Schlumpf, et al.
The Notre Dame Book of Prayer is the collection of prayers and reflections for alumni, parents, and friends of the university. First published in 2010 and now updated with dozens of new prayers, this book shares the vibrant Catholic spiritual life of the University of Notre Dame.
The Handy Little Guide to the Liturgy of the Hours (2023) by Barb Szyszkiewicz
The Handy Little Guide to the Liturgy of the Hours is your easy-to-read, down-to-earth introduction to the daily prayer of the Church. In this brief booklet, author, wife, mom, and Secular Franciscan Barb Szyszkiewicz helps you understand and practice this beautiful devotion.
Wake Up With Purpose!: What I’ve Learned in My First Hundred Years (2023) by Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt
Part life story, part philosophy text, and part spiritual guide, Sister Jean’s wit, wisdom, and common sense has broad appeal and application that transcends religious creed, belief, and even feelings on Loyola’s basketball team. As you learn about Sister Jean’s century-long life, you’ll feel just like the Loyola students do when they knock on her office door, plop down in a chair, and ask if she would have time to chat, an activity that she still does daily.
Heart of the Gospel : How the Beatitudes Show Us God’s Plan for Happiness (2023) by Sebastian Walshe O. Praem
Fr. Walshe demonstrates compellingly how these eight declarations from the Sermon on the Mount known as the Beatitudes make up the foundation, essence, and final goal of Jesus’ teachings. They are as central to the gospel as the Ten Commandments were to the old Law: a roadmap for navigating the New Covenant.
Saint Joseph: The Man Closest to Christ (2023) by Fr. Sebastian Walshe
While the Litany of Saint Joseph is filled with many rich titles describing Joseph’s virtues and duties—such as most just, most chaste, patron of the dying, terror of demons, and protector of the Holy Church—there is one title that stands out which is quietly absent from his litany: the man closest to Christ.
Everyday Miracles of Lourdes: Twenty Extraordinary Experiences along the Way to the Grotto (2023) by Marlene Watkins
Marlene Watkins recounts twenty astounding true stories of miracles at Lourdes, including her own watershed healing, which inspired her to establish Our Lady of Lourdes Hospitality North American Volunteers and become its first volunteer.
Pray. Think. Act.: Make Better Decisions with the Desert Fathers (2023) by J. Augustine Wetta
Father Augustine Wetta reaches back into monastic history to answer one of the most critical questions facing young people today: “How do I make up my mind?” With his characteristic wit and novel approach to classical art, Father Augustine looks to the wisdom of the Desert Fathers to unearth an ancient and highly efficient method for resolving life’s most pressing dilemmas—even in the midst of distractions, temptations, and disruptions.
When Your Days Are Dark, God Is Still Good: Biblical Advice to Help You Trust in Difficult Times (2023) by Gary Zimak
Gary Zimak—author of the bestselling and award-winning Give Up Worry for Lent!—shares personal stories and scripture narratives to show you that God is not only present in your pain but also uses your pain to transform you into a holier, more compassionate person.
Fiction Books
Antimatter Blues (Mickey7, #2) (2023) by Edward Ashton
Edward Ashton’s Antimatter Blues is the thrilling follow up to Mickey7 in which an expendable heads out to explore new terrain for human habitation.
Avellina Balestri
Avellina Balestri is a Catholic author and editor based in the historic borderlands of Maryland and Pennsylvania. Her stories, poems, and essays have been featured in over thirty print and online publications. She has published two books: “Saplings of Sherwood”, the first book in a Robin Hood retelling series, and “Pendragon’s Shield”, a collection of poetry. She is the Editor-in-Chief of Fellowship & Fairydust, a magazine inspiring faith & creativity and exploring the arts through a spiritual lens. Under its auspices, she hosted a literary conference at Lady Margaret Hall in Oxford, England, commemorating the legacy of J.R.R. Tolkien. She also has the honor of representing the state of Maryland at The Sons of the American Revolution National Orations Contest. Avellina believes that the Trinitarian divine dance and Incarnational indwelling mystery are reflected in all things good, true, and beautiful, and that the image of God is wondrously woven into every human heart. These themes are at the forefront of the stories she chooses to tell.
The Good Shepherd: Jesus Christ in Islam (2021)
The Telling of the Beads Book I: Saplings of Sherwood (2022)
Fellowship & Fairydust-Tales of Chivalry: A Medieval Anthology (2022)
Pendragon’s Shield: A Poetry Collection (2023)
The Gaze of Jesus: A Novel (2022) by Riccardo Bacchelli and Anthony Esolen
Eight-time Nobel Prize nominee Riccardo Bacchelli imagines the life of the Gerasene demoniac after his exorcism: his inner battles, his return to the family and the first-century Jewish community, his quest for love and meaning. The healer’s gaze has been branded into his mind, but he cannot grasp who this man really is. As he gathers secondhand news of the Galilean miracle worker, he is determined to piece together the puzzle.
Flux (2023) by Jinwoo Chong
A blazingly original and stylish debut novel about a young man whose reality unravels when he suspects his mysterious employers have inadvertently discovered time travel—and are using it to cover up a string of violent crimes . . .
The Last Thing He Told Me (2021) by Laura Dave
All the Light We Cannot See 2014) by Anthony Doerr
“The Curse of Purgatory Cove” (2019)by Pete A O’Donnell
There are ghosts waiting in the water and Tom has made a bargain with a crazy old man who claims to be a 300-year-old pirate. Captain Swift wants Tom to find the magic island where he hid his treasure.But the paperboy has his own plan, to sail to his dad in Florida, before he’s sent off to boarding school. So he’ll put up with Captain Swift’s stories, and his ill-tempered dog, while they fix the little boat that’ll take him there. But what if Tom starts to believe Swift, who knows more about his family than he should? Tom saw the ghosts and now nothing will ever be the same. History and magic collide as Swift tells his tale about the golden age of piracy and how he came to be cursed on the shores of Purgatory Cove.
The Grace of Wild Things by Heather Fawcett (2023)
When Grace smelled baking bread, she knew she was nearing the witch’s cottage. It was her favorite kind of bread, she was certain. The kind she never had in the orphanage, where the bread was meant to be so filling that the children might as well eat rocks, for it wasn’t as if they’d notice the difference in taste. No, the aroma drifting through the dark trees was from bread gone chocolaty brown on the outside and soft as a pillow within, full of gooey raisins that burst on your tongue. Most children would have turned around when they smelled something like that, for it meant the witch was near. The witch lived somewhere deep in the woods—she lured children in and ate them, and wasn’t even a woman at all, for she could change shape into an enormous beast made of shadows. Those were the stories the children told, anyway.
But the witch didn’t need to lure Grace. Grace was looking for her.
Contact: Angeles (2023) by Caroline Furlong
While removing a prototype sensor from the prow of her new Alliance battleship, the Ausa, Captain Elizabeth Goodwin and her crew encounter a setback when one of the engineers sent to remove and stow the device is injured in an accident. Before the other engineer can help the man, the two are surrounded by amoeboid creatures which seem immune to the effects of vacuum.
Thought to be hallucinations experienced by early spacers who had been alone in deep space too long, these creatures – known as “angel fish” – startle the crew by their sudden appearance. Despite her misgivings, Goodwin allows three of the aliens to be taken aboard for study. But less than an hour after the aliens have been brought on the ship, one of Goodwin’s men is killed and another is seriously wounded.
Her search for both the murderer and the escaped “angels” soon leads to a disturbing revelation. Eventually, Goodwin must decide which threat is greater: an old enemy of the Alliance, or the fabled “angels” encountered by the first explorers from Terra.
The House at the End of the World (2023) by Dean Koontz
In retreat from a devastating loss and crushing injustice, Katie lives alone in a fortresslike stone house on Jacob’s Ladder island. Once a rising star in the art world, she finds refuge in her painting.
The neighboring island of Ringrock houses a secret: a government research facility. And now two agents have arrived on Jacob’s Ladder in search of someone—or something—they refuse to identify. Although an air of menace hangs over these men, an infinitely greater threat has arrived, one so strange even the island animals are in a state of high alarm.
Katie soon finds herself in an epic and terrifying battle with a mysterious enemy. But Katie’s not alone after all: a brave young girl appears out of the violent squall. As Katie and her companion struggle across a dark and eerie landscape, against them is an omnipresent terror that could bring about the end of the world.
‘To Kill a Mocking Bird‘ (1960) by Harper Lee
Voted America’s Best-Loved Novel in PBS’s The Great American Read
Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning masterwork of honor and injustice in the deep South—and the heroism of one man in the face of blind and violent hatred
The Way of the Wilderness Warrior (2023) by Fr. Dwight Longenecker
Riveting and accessible, this novelized account of the spiritual life is a hero’s journey for our times. It tells the story of the conversion of a young man named Austin through the ministrations of a tough inner-city priest, Fr. Lawrence, who challenges nine college students to take a leap of faith on the path to holiness.
Anne of Green Gables (1908) by Lucy Maud Montgomery
Written for all ages, it has been considered a classic children’s novel since the mid-20th century. Set in the late 19th century, the novel recounts the adventures of 11 year old orphan girl Anne Shirley sent by mistake to two middle-aged siblings, Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert, who had originally intended to adopt a boy to help them on their farm in the fictional town of Avonlea in Prince Edward Island, Canada. The novel recounts how Anne makes her way through life with the Cuthberts, in school, and within the town. Since its publication, Anne of Green Gables has been translated into at least 36 languages and has sold more than 50 million copies, making it one of the best-selling books worldwide.
Iceberg (2023) by Jennifer A. Nielsen
The thrilling story of a young girl who stows away onboard the Titanic and as she explores, attempting to find answers to her many questions about the ship, suddenly finds herself caught up in the desperate struggle to survive after it strikes an iceberg.
A.G. Riddle
Lost in Time (2022)
In the future, murderers aren’t sent to prison.
Thanks to a machine Sam helped invent, the world’s worst criminals are now sent to the past – approximately 200 million years into the past, to the dawn of the time of the dinosaurs – where they must live out their lives alone, in exile from the human race.
Sam accepts his fate.
But his daughter doesn’t.
This story stretches across the past, present, and future – and leads to a revelation that will change everything.
Quantum Radio (2023) At CERN, a scientist has just made an incredible discovery – a breakthrough that may answer the deepest questions about human existence. But what he’s found is far more dangerous than he ever imagined.
Brandon Sanderson
Secret Projects
I started writing this in secret, as a novel just for my wife. She urged me to share it with the world—and alongside three other secret novels, with the support of readers worldwide it grew into the biggest Kickstarter campaign of all time. I’m excited to present this first book to you at last: a different type of Brandon Sanderson story, one I wrote when there were no time constraints, no expectations, and no limits on my imagination. Come be part of the magic.
1. Tress of the Emerald Sea (2023)
2. The Frugal Wizard’s Handbook for Surviving Medieval England (2023)
3. Yumi and the Nightmare Painter (2023)
4. The Sunlit Man (2023)
The Marvellous Land of Snergs (1927) by Edward Wyke Smith.
A book that inspired J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-Earth.
Midnight Strikes (2023) by Zeba Shahnaz
In this explosive fantasy debut, a provincial girl must work with an infuriatingly handsome prince to escape a nightmarish curse that forces them to relive the same night over and over.
“The time-loop fantasy you never knew you needed, where the fairytale ball is bloody and Cinderella is the Final Girl.”—Gina Chen, New York Times bestselling author of Violet Made of Thorns
Of Mice and Men‘ (1937) by John Steinbeck
The book narrates the experiences of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced migrant ranch workers, who move from place to place in California in search of new job opportunities during the Great Depression in the United States.
Steinbeck based the novella on his own experiences working alongside migrant farm workers as a teenager in the 1910s, before the arrival of the Okies that he would describe in his novel The Grapes of Wrath. The title is taken from Robert Burns’ Scots language poem “To a Mouse”: “The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft agley”. (English “The best laid plans of mice and men / Often go awry.”)
While it is a book taught in many schools, Of Mice and Men has been a frequent target of censors for vulgarity, and what some consider offensive and racist language; consequently, it appears on the American Library Association’s list of the Most Challenged Books of the 21st Century.
The Covenant of Water (Oprah’s Book Club) (2023) by Abraham Verghese
Spanning the years 1900 to 1977, The Covenant of Water is set in Kerala, on South India’s Malabar Coast, and follows three generations of a family that suffers a peculiar affliction: in every generation, at least one person dies by drowning—and in Kerala, water is everywhere.
Non-Fiction
The Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History (The Henry Roe Cloud Series on American Indians and Modernity) Part of: The Henry Roe Cloud Series on American Indians and Modernity (12 books) (2023) by Ned Blackhawk
A sweeping and overdue retelling of U.S. history that recognizes that Native Americans are essential to understanding the evolution of modern America
A Mystery of Mysteries: The Death and Life of Edgar Allan Poe (2023) by Mark Dawidziak
A Mystery of Mysteries is a brilliant biography of Edgar Allan Poe that examines the renowned author’s life through the prism of his mysterious death and its many possible causes.
Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma(2023) by Claire Dederer
Claire Dederer asks: Can we love the work of Hemingway, Polanski, Naipaul, Miles Davis, or Picasso? Should we love it? Does genius deserve special dispensation? Monsters is certain to incite a conversation about whether and how we can separate artists from their art.
A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan’s Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them (20230 by Timothy Egan
A historical thriller by the Pulitzer and National Book Award-winning author that tells the riveting story of the Klan’s rise to power in the 1920s, the cunning con man who drove that rise, and the woman who stopped them.
The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder (2023) by David Grann
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of Killers of the Flower Moon, a page-turning story of shipwreck, survival, and savagery, culminating in a court martial that reveals a shocking truth. The powerful narrative reveals the deeper meaning of the events on The Wager, showing that it was not only the captain and crew who ended up on trial, but the very idea of empire.
Cobalt Red: How the Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives (2023) by Siddharth Kara
An unflinching investigation reveals the human rights abuses behind the Congo’s cobalt mining operation—and the moral implications that affect us all.
The Ugly History of Beautiful Things: Essays on Desire and Consumption (2023) by Katy Kelleher
Paris Review contributor Katy Kelleher explores our obsession with gorgeous things, unveiling the fraught histories of makeup, flowers, perfume, silk, and other beautiful objects.
Forgive: Why Should I and How Can I? (2022) by Timothy Keller
Pastor and New York Times bestselling author Timothy Keller outlines the reasons why forgiveness has to be a central part of everyone’s lives.
STFU: The Power of Keeping Your Mouth Shut in an Endlessly Noisy World (2023) by Dan Lyons
Our noisy world has trained us to think that those who get in the last word win, when in fact it’s those who know how to stay silent who really hold the power. STFU is a book that unlocks this power and will change your life, freeing you to focus on what matters. Lyons combines leading behavioral science with actionable advice on how to communicate with intent, think critically, and open your mind and ears to the world around you.
Under Alien Skies: A Sightseer’s Guide to the Universe (2023) by Philip Plait
A rip-roaring tour of the cosmos with the Bad Astronomer, bringing you up close and personal with the universe like never before.
Unraveling: What I Learned About Life While Shearing Sheep, Dyeing Wool, and Making the World’s Ugliest Sweater (2023) by Peggy Orenstein
In this lively, funny memoir, Peggy Orenstein sets out to make a sweater from scratch—shearing, spinning, dyeing wool—and in the process discovers how we find our deepest selves through craft. Orenstein spins a yarn that will appeal to everyone.
On the House: The Bizarre Killing of Michael Malloy (2020) by Simon Read
Here’s the singularly outrageous and true story of Michael Malloy—a drunk stumbling through life in a whiskey haze—who survived multiple outrageous attempts on his life by a group of low-rent thugs and unknowingly became a cult hero in the process. Jimmy Akin’s Mysterious World – YouTube
Oscar Wars: A History of Hollywood in Gold, Sweat, and Tears (2023) by Michael Schulman
The author of the New York Times bestseller Her Again: Becoming Meryl Streep returns with a lively history of the Academy Awards, focusing on the brutal battles, the starry rivalries, and the colorful behind-the-scenes drama.
All Hands on Deck: A Modern-Day High Seas Adventure to the Far Side of the World (2023) by Will Sofrin
A maritime adventure memoir that follows a crew of misfits hired to sail an 18th-century warship 5,000 miles to Hollywood
The Other Renaissance: From Copernicus to Shakespeare: How the Renaissance in Northern Europe Transformed the World (2023) by Paul Strathern
An original, illuminating history of the northern European Renaissance in art, science, and philosophy, which often rivaled its Italian counterpart.
British Columbiana: A Millennial in a Gold Rush Town(2023) by Josie Teed
A young woman leaves the city for a remote mountain town to work in an immersive gold rush heritage site where she becomes embroiled in local culture while navigating her own place in the rapidly evolving twenty-first-century world.
Knowing What We Know: The Transmission of Knowledge: From Ancient Wisdom to Modern Magic (2023) by Simon Winchester
From the creation of the first encyclopedia to Wikipedia, from ancient museums to modern kindergarten classes—this is award winning writer Simon Winchester’s brilliant and all-encompassing look at how humans acquire, retain, and pass on information and data, and how technology continues to change our lives and our minds.
Travel
Castles, Follies & Four-Leaf Clovers: Adventures Along Ireland’s St Declan’s Way (2012) by
The fascinating and funny story of one woman’s delightful ramble along St. Declan’s Way the Camino de Santiago of Ireland.
Round Ireland with a Fridge: (2001) by Tony Hawks
Have you ever made a drunken bet? Worse, still, have you eveer tried to win one? In attempting to hitchhike round Ireland wich a fridge, Tony Hawks did both, and his foolhardiness led him to one of the best experiences of his life. Joined by his trusty traveling companion-cum-domestic appliance, he made his way from Dublin to Donegal, from Sligo through Mayo, Galway, Clare, Kerry, Cork, Wexford, Wicklow–and back again to Dublin.
Last of the Donkey Pilgrims: A Man’s Journey Through Ireland (2005) by
Nowhere for Very Long: The Unexpected Road to an Unconventional Life (2022) by Brianna Madia
In this beautifully written, vividly detailed memoir, a young woman chronicles her adventures traveling across the deserts of the American West in an orange van named Bertha and reflects on an unconventional approach to life.
Poems And Pictures
Above Ground (2023) by Clint Smith
Clint Smith’s vibrant and compelling new collection traverses the vast emotional terrain of fatherhood, and explores how becoming a parent has recalibrated his sense of the world.
To the Front!: Clara Barton Braves the Battle of Antietam (2022) by Claudia Friddell (Author), Christopher Cyr (Illustrator)
This powerful tribute to Civil War nurse Clara Barton and her heroic efforts during the Battle of Antietam reveals how she earned the name “The Angel of the Battlefield,” and shows the beginnings of her journey as one of our country’s greatest humanitarians and the founder of the American Red Cross.
Road Trip!: Camping with the Four Vagabonds: Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, and John Burroughs (2023) by Claudia Friddell (Author), Jeremy Holmes (Illustrator)
Join Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, and John Burroughs on their pioneering camping trips during the early 1900s in this energetic and entertaining nonfiction picture-book adventure.
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening (1923/2022) by Robert Frost (Author), P.J. Lynch (Illustrator) by Robert Frost (Author), P.J. Lynch (Illustrator)
Whether memorized by schoolchildren or used to eulogize a president, “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,” written in 1922 and published in 1923, has found a place as one of the best-loved and best-known American poems of the last hundred years. Now, six decades after the passing of its author, Robert Frost, celebrated artist P.J. Lynch brings this classic to new life with exquisitely detailed illustrations, evoking its iconic moments and wintry setting on the outskirts of a small village.
Links to articles about writing, websites and other booklists.
Surfing the Catholic Web | Mark Wilson (patheos.com)
The Way I Don’t Write Book and Movie Reviews
Whatever Biblical Principle
The Catholic Bard 2020/21/22 Reading List
Catholic Bard’s Guide to Public Domain Literature
2019/2020 Catholic Book List
The Rites of Write(ing) A book list of Catholic Authors
books Archives – Catholic Bard (patheos.com)
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Hi Mr. Wilson, my name is Maryanne R. Peluso (Author/Pen Name: M. Rose Peluso) and I’m the self-published author of, “Behind the Tapestry: My Discovery of God’s Grace Amidst Chronic Pain and Loss.” Thank you SO VERY much for including my memoir in this book list. It is greatly appreciated. Would you be interested in reading a complimentary PDF version of the book – in exchange for an honest review of it and a short blurb about it on your blog? This would be so appreciated. (If so, I’d be honored to send a PDF version of the book via e-mail?) Please let me know. Either way – I’m most grateful to have my memoir included here and to be included amongst some really talented and wonderful writers. Thank you and God Bless!