Praying the Rosary with St. John Paul II by Gretchen R. Crowe will remind anyone familiar with the late pope just how much he loved Mary. It also serves as an introduction to St. John Paul for a younger generation. Most significantly, however, it illuminates the rosary and guides readers through a refreshing and prayerful experience of this devotion. 

Each of the mysteries of the rosary is introduced with a spiritual fruit one might ask for in meditation, a brief reflection on an aspect of John Paul II ‘s life through his teaching and preaching, and a Scripture passage. 

Recommended both for seasoned prayers of the rosary and for those who may not have seen the appeal of the rosary before now but are open to the invitation to encounter Christ through its mysteries.

Rescued by Father John Riccardo is an impressive account of the kerygma, “the story” of exactly why Jesus entered physically into this world. Father Riccardo offers a fresh telling of God’s audacious rescue plan for a humanity that had been separated from him by sin. 

Through personal reflections and quotes from saints, scholars, and Church fathers, Father Riccardo relates the truth of the Good News and what that should mean for every one of us. Each section of the book serves as a corrective to a jaded or confused picture we may have formed of the God whose “reckless” love caused him to send his Son Jesus to bring us back into a relationship with him.

Recommended for all those who seek a clear picture of faith in God, and for those who want to share the heart of the Gospel with others.

He Leadeth Me by Father Walter Ciszek SJ, with Daniel L. Flaherty, SJ

In 1929, a young seminarian from Shenandoah, Pennsylvania, felt God calling him to become a missionary to Russia. After his ordination, posing as a Polish refugee, Father Ciszek would be hired to work as a laborer in the Ural Mountains. There, he hoped to offer his priestly ministry to all who needed it. 

His ministry was cut short when the authorities arrested him as a “Vatican spy.” He was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor, first in solitary confinement in the notorious Lubyanka Prison and latterly in the work camps of the Soviet gulag. 

Father Ciszek would now grapple with the question: Is this really God’s will? This book is an account of God’s powerful answer.

Highly recommended for all those struggling with disappointment in God, in the face of personal suffering.