Book Review: The Saints Chronicles Collection 4 by Various Artists

The Saints Chronicles Collection 4 by various artists

A collection of graphic-novel style biographies of saints! Here's a saint-by-saint rundown...

Saint Willibrord is called the Apostle of the Frisians. Frisia is now Norway and Northwest Germany. Willibrord was born in England in AD 658. His parents sent him to the monastery in Ripon, England, where he studied hard. After becoming a priest, he went to the continent as a missionary. Northern Frisia was ruled by an inhospitable king, so Willibrord started his mission in southern Frisia (he received permission from King Pepin). The pope blessed Willibrord's mission and made him bishop of Frisia. He continued to preach throughout the area and died at the age of 81.

Saint Margaret of Scotland was born a princess in Hungary. She traveled to England to learn the royal ways in the court of Edward the Confessor. Then 1066 happened and she fled with her family to Hungary. The ship was driven off course and wrecked in Scotland. Her family went to the royal castle where she met King Malcolm, who eventually convinced her to marry him even though she had planned to become a nun. They worked together to provide charity in their kingdom to all their subjects.

Saint Stanislaus lived at the same time as Saint Margaret but he became a bishop in his native land of Poland. His tempestuous relationship with the king (who constantly relapsed into evil ways after confessing) led to his martyrdom. Stanislaus excommunicated the king; the king demanded the bishop change his decision. Stanislaus remained true and was killed by the king. The people rose up and drove off the king, who eventually repented in a Hungarian monastery.

Saint Rose of Lima lived in Peru in the 1600s. She was a very beautiful child of a well-to-do family, though she was more enamored of the Lord than of her beauty. She grew up wanting to serve the Lord. Her parents wanted her to marry. She refused and became a Third Order Dominican, serving the poor and needy in Lima. She died young (at 31) and was the first saint canonized from the Americas.

Saint Dominic worked tirelessly to fight the Albigensian heresy in the early 1200s. The pope called for a crusade against these heretics but Dominic sought to vanquish them by preaching and by example of a holy, modest life. He founded the Dominican Order which focuses on poverty and preaching. 

This book is aimed at kids, mostly middle-school age. The art is very good and the stories are inspiring. The intent isn't just to inform about the lives of these saints. The authors ask the readers (sometimes quite directly) if they can imitate the values and actions of these Catholic heroes from the past. As an adult, I want to read something a little more in depth, but this is a good jumping off point for finding out more about these saints.

Recommended.