Saturday, 17 January 2026

Jack Rabbit - Diane Capri - Hunt for Reacher Book 24

Jack Rabbit
Hunt For Reacher Book 20 (24)
Diane Capri
August Books
ISBN 9781962769938
eISBN 9781962769914
ASIN B0DMVHZKJN

Jack Rabbit - Diane Capri - Hunt for Reacher Book 24

This book is another great read in the Hunt for Jack Reacher Series. A few years ago I have read all of the Jack Reacher stories and all of the Hunt for Jack Reacher stories as well that were available at the time. Since then I have been reading them as they release. The Child brothers are releasing 1 book a year and Capri is releasing two. I am also now reading one of the other approved spin off series, the Reacher Experiment. This will be the 63rd Reacher story I have read. It is a good read. A couple of volumes ago felt like more of a stretch. This one really hit the mark.. The next in this series have already been announced. 

First, I read the 29 Jack Reacher Novels and short stories by Lee Child, and now Lee and Andrew Child. And then I read all the books in this series. This is the eighteenth novel in the Hunt for Reacher Series, and the twenty-first story featuring Otto. The story starts with her chasing down an old lead in Key West, but soon finds some clues and sources that might have a lot more information, but will it be worth the risk. 

Otto has Gaspar in the wings helping out as much as he can. He does not trust Finlay or Cooper but is helping Otto. The source book for this volume was Lee Child’s Night School. The description of this volume is:

“Trust no one. Find Reacher. Stay alive.

Blood sprays across an Arizona dive bar as FBI Special Agent Kim Otto's only lead is shot and killed before her eyes.

Kim’s mission to find Jack Reacher dropped her into a lethal conspiracy run by ex-soldiers, war profiteers, and government ghosts.

Following the trail of her murdered informant, Kim runs straight into the kill zone. The Lone Wolf team strikes hard, fast, and silent.

Operatives execute anyone who gets too close. Desert sand runs red as the mercenaries hunt across borders.

Disgraced NSA Deputy Director Marian Sinclair goes rogue with billions in black money. Now Kim is the target. Lone Wolf mercenaries, government assassins, and the legendary Frances Neagley are closing in.

Reacher's dangerously capable former sergeant doesn’t take orders from anyone.

Kim’s FBI badge is worthless against enemies willing to ignite nuclear Armageddon. Her only hope may be Reacher himself, a vengeful force of nature already moving through the shadows with his own deadly agenda.

The clock is ticking. The bodies are mounting. She’s out of time. She’s out of allies. And she’s not done yet.”

The cast of characters in this story is:

Carlos Gaspar
Reggie Smithers
Frances Neagley
Marian Sinclair 
Larry Knox
Brad Hooper
Paul Bennett
Charles Cooper
Lamont Finlay
Jack Reacher

This story surprised me on a few occasions. It is a great story with an interesting plot, excellent characters. This story is slower than some others and has a significantly lower body count, but that is because of what is happening. There are numerous subplots in this volume. A former spy, Neagley, Otto, and an old case that seems to have loose ends, and Reacher hates loose ends and unfinished business. Reacher is working his way towards a bigger target and in this volume a lot of pieces fall into place. Both for us the reader and for Otto. This story is much more spy thriller and with the layered plots and subplots it really has a feel of the John Grisham novels.

It is another great story in an excellent series. It is longer than many of the offerings. These books always leave you desperate for the next instalment in the series. Capri has again done a wonderful job in leading us on the hunt for Jack Reacher. And with each offering we get to know Otto better. This story was very well done. I can easily recommend this book and series.

Note: there are two numbering systems for this series. Good Reads numbers the novels continuously with the shorter stories earlier in the series being x.5. Diane Just numbers them 1-??. So this book is number 24 for total stories and number 20 for novels.

Books by Diane Capri:
Hunt for Reacher Series:
1.0 Don’t Know Jack
1.1 Jack in a Box
1.2 Jack and Kill
2.0 Get Back Jack
2.5 Jack in the Green
3.0 Jack and Joe
4.0 Deep Cover Jack
5.0 Jack the Reaper
6.0 Black Jack
7.0 Ten Two Jack
8.0 Jack of Spades
9.0 Prepper Jack
10.0 Full Metal Jack
21.0 Shadow Jack
…

Justice Series:
1.0 Due Justice
2.0 Twisted Justice
3.0 Secret Justice
4.0 Wasted Justice
5.0 Raw Justice
5.5 Mistaken Justice
6.0 Cold Justice
6.1 False Justice
6.2 Fair Justice
6.3 True Justice
7.0 Hunt for Justice
8.0 Night Justice
…

Jess Kimball Series:
0.5 Fatal Enemy
1.0 Fatal Distraction
2.0 Fatal Demand
3.0 Fatal Error
4.0 Fatal Fall
4.5 Fatal Edge
5.0 Fatal Game
6.0 Fatal Bond
6.5 Fatal Past
7.0 Fatal Dawn
…

Heir Hunter Series:
1.0 Blood Trials
2.0 Trace Evidence
…

Jordan Fox Mysteries:
False Truth Part One
False Truth Part Two
False Truth Part Three
False Truth Part Four
False Truth Part Five
False Truth Part Six
False Truth Part Seven
False Truth Part Eight
False Truth Part Nine
False Truth Part Ten
False Truth Part Eleven
…

The Park Hotel Mysteries Series:
1.0 Reservation with Death
2.0 Early Check Out
3.0 Room with a Clue
4.0 Late Arrival
…

Other Books:
Angel of Music
…





















Jack On A Wire - Diane Capri - Hunt For Reacher Book 21

Tracking Jack - Diane Capri - Hunt for Reacher Book 23

Jack Rabbit - Diane Capri - Hunt for Reacher Book 24





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Friday, 16 January 2026

The Lord's Prayer - T.J. Burdick - OSV Companion in Faith

The Lord's Prayer 
Companion in Faith
ISBN 9781681923925

The Lord's Prayer - T.J. Burdick - OSV Companion in Faith

I stumbled upon the Our Sunday Visitor ‘Companion in Faith’ Series while doing research for the series ‘OSV Pocket Guides’, and ‘OSV Handy Little Guides’. I was able to track down the 5 volumes in this series and this was the second I read. I had previously read one other volume by T.J., Catholic Discipline: 8 Daily Habits Towards Living a Holier Life, and looked forward to this volume. 

This is the one of the ‘Companion in Faith’ books from Our Sunday Visitor I believe there are 5 volumes in the series; but only one every had an eBook edition released. This is a pity. I want to state that this is a wonderful little book or booklet. It was a great little read, and reminder, it is one that could read repeatedly, and with new benefits each time. Second, I really wish this that others in the ‘Companion in Faith’ books were available as eBooks. After having read some in the series I want to read the others but almost never pick up physical books anymore, or if I do I scan them to make digital copies if I am very desperate to read them. Mainly due to my dyslexia. 

The chapters and sections in this booklet are:

Introduction
Priority 1 Honoring God and Neighbor
Priority 2 Advancing God's Kingdom
Priority 3 Submitting To God's Will
Priority 4 Balancing Your Life
Priority 5 Forgiveness
Priority 6 Discipline
Priority 7 Fight
Conclusion

The description of this volume is:

“It's one of the most important prayers in our Christian faith; after all, it was Christ himself who taught us how to pray it. Yet most of us find ourselves distracted and preoccupied when we say the familiar words of the Lord's Prayer. How can we enter more deeply into this prayer? We need to start with our priorities. Through this guided meditation, you will see that the Lord's Prayer teaches us to align our priorities with those of God Part of the Companion in Faith series.”

Another and the back of the book states:

“It's one of the most important prayers in our Christian faith; after all, it was Christ himself who taught us how to pray it. Yet most of us find ourselves distracted and preoccupied when we say the familiar words of the Lord's Prayer. How can we enter more deeply into this prayer? We need to start with our priorities.

Through this guided meditation, you will see that the Lord's Prayer teaches us to align our priorities with those of God by:

  • Honoring God and neighbor
  • Advancing God's kingdom
  • Submitting to God's will
  • Balancing our life
  • Forgiving others
  • Developing discipline
  • Fighting sin and evil

Part of the Companion in Faith series.”


About the author we are informed:

“T. J. BURDICK is the author of several books and articles on the Catholic faith. He writes and speaks on how to grow in holiness amongst the distractions and difficulties of the current age. He resides in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with his wife and four children. When he is not spending time with his family or writing books, you can find him teaching courses on the Catholic faith through the Dominican Institute (dominicaninstitute.com), an online learning platform that serves students of every age and ability.”

The volume has both:

Nihil Obstat
Msgr. Michael Heintz, Ph.D.
Censor Librorum

Imprimatur
Kevin C. Rhoades
Bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend
June 20, 2018

I highlighted numerous  sections while reading this volume, they are:

“Does this sound familiar? I know it does for me. Praying the Lord's Prayer, also known as the Our Father, can be difficult. It's one of the most important prayers in our Christian tradition (the prayer Jesus himself taught us), yet somehow thoughts, distractions, and preoccupations always seem to find their way to the forefront of our brains when we attempt to pray it.”

“We all struggle with an imbalance in our priorities. This is part of our fallen human nature: we place things that really don't matter on top of our priority lists while the most important aspects of our lives get knocked down to the bottom. We watch TV instead of exercising. We check our social media instead of conversing with real-life friends. We work overtime instead of spending time with our families. In short, we sometimes (okay, most times) value what we shouldn't and undervalue what will make us truly happy.”

“In other words, when we pray the Our Father, we are actually asking God to put our priorities in their proper order, beginning with the most important things. On top of that, the recitation of these righteous words gradually teaches us the right way to ask for everything we really need to become healthy, happy, and holy.”

“The Lord's Prayer has transformative power in much the same way. Granted, it is to a lesser degree than receiving the Eucharist, but we must not underestimate its potential to change us and to make us holy if we are open to God's work in us. The honest recitation of these words has the power to transform our lives. That is why, in the Mass, we pray the Lord's Prayer just before we receive Holy Communion. Both work hand in hand to guide us deeper into the mystery of God's unfathomable love for us.”

“When we say "Our Father," we are at once recognizing the proper title by which we must refer to God and acknowledging that we belong to the one body of his holy Church.”

“We often forget to hallow - to honor as holy - God's name, because we are too busy hallowing things of less importance. Some hallow career, others security, and still others entertainment. Whenever we hallow something that isn't God, we make idols of God's creation, and ultimately of ourselves. We flip our priorities on their head.”

“PRIORITY CHALLENGE
Carve out five or ten minutes each morning and give them to God in prayer. Read Scripture, meditate on the Lord's Prayer, or simply sit with him in silence and ask him to help you keep love of God and neighbor at the top of your priority list.”

“When we pray for God's kingdom to come, we become missionaries. With these words of the Lord's Prayer, we take our first step on the road to building up the kingdom of God.”

“PRIORTTY CHALLENGE
How can you put your time, talent, and treasure at God's service every day? It doesn't have to be something big - it can be as small as giving twenty minutes to a friend or loved one who needs to talk, or figuring out one talent you can use in service to your parish once a month. Whatever it is, don't just think about: go do it. Remember, only you can accomplish the mission God has given you.”

“The saints also surround us in the Mystical Body of Christ, the Church. They pray for us, encourage us, support us, and urge us on to heaven.”

“When we submit ourselves to God's will, we take on the spiritual vision that allows us to journey in peace and safety to heaven, our final destination.”

“We don't have to wait until death to enter heaven. Paradise begins when we submit the powers of our soul to God. Then, and only then, can we experience the true potential of our life. When we allow our own will to be guided and transformed by God's perfect will, we receive supernatural abilities to manifest his love on earth as it is in heaven.”

“PRIORITY CHALLENGE
Pause throughout the day and remind yourself of the spiritual realities that surround you. Pray to your guardian angel throughout the day. Pray to your patron saints and ask for their help and intercession even in the smallest details of your life and the lives of those around you.”

“God has given us our work to manifest Christ's redemptive mission. We are no longer closed off from paradise like Adam and Eve, but we are united to God through our "daily grind."”

“We don't work only for food, drink, shelter, and security, but also for peace of mind, clarity in thought, spiritual fervor, and balance. In order to earn these graces, we must do our part by putting in the work.”

“We do this properly by giving some time to our hobbies. This might be playing board games with loved ones, reading a book, playing a sport, cooking, dancing, or painting. Regardless of what you choose to do with your free time, do it with God by your side.”

“We must have patience with others in the same way God has patience with us.”

“SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINE
For Saint Paul, there was a great parallel between the physical discipline of sports and the spiritual discipline we need to grow in the virtue we need to reach heaven.”

“We choose discipline in our physical and spiritual lives for a much higher cause. How much more, then, can we gain by training our souls to reject the temptations that lead us away from God, who gives us life?”

“Moreover, we are all connected in this spiritual war. Every act we perform, every thought we consciously harbor, has eternal impact on the state of our own souls and on those around us.”

“We also each have our personal crosses to bear on the battlefield for souls. We must suffer. We must battle. We must win this war. For if we do not succeed, not only will we be lost, but the effects of our sins will have consequences for the souls of others, both those we love and many we will never meet.”

“We are those victors. We are the ones who heed Saint Paul's advice and resist the evil that surrounds us. We are God's children, and although we must suffer in this valley of tears, we are destined to win this spiritual war.”

“It is fitting that we make this petition at the end of the Lord's Prayer, for it reminds us that we were not made for this life. This final petition encourages us to look beyond this life to the moment when, at the end of our lives, the war will be over, and we will be able to meet God face to face in the beatific vision.”

“Fighting evil, then, is not our first priority; rather, we must first seek to love God and our neighbor, and all the rest will come with it. This includes our mission, submission to God's will, balancing our lives, having patience with others, exercising spiritual discipline, and arming ourselves for battle so that we can achieve the final victory over evil.”

I hope those quotes give you a feel for this volume. This volume has a lot of practical suggestions and recommendations. It offers enough that everyone is sure to find some things that help and work. But most of all it reminds us of the value of spending time living out our faith, and especially as related to the Lord’s Prayer.

When I was in university, I was involved with Campus Crusade for Christ, there was a series of booklets by the founder Bill Bright, called Transferable Concepts, and by reading them many times you could almost memorize them and the message so that you could share it. This volume and series remind me a lot of those books.

This book and series would be excellent for High School Students, College or University Students and us older adults. It is easy to engage with. TJ writes in an engaging manner and offers some personal. An excellent little volume, one any Catholic, or any Christian would benefit from reading!  

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2026 Catholic Reading Plan! 

Books in the OSV Companion in Faith Series:
For Those Who Grieve - Jeannie Ewing
Living in Peace - Father Jeffrey Kirby
The Beatitudes - Kathleen M Basi
The Lord's Prayer - T.J. Burdick
The Power of Forgiveness - Patrice Fagnant-Macarthur
…

Books in the Handy Little Series from OSV:
The Handy Little Guide to Confession - Michelle Jones Schroeder
The Handy Little Guide to the Holy Spirit - Michelle Schroeder

Handy Little Guides - Our Sunday Visitor

Companion in Faith Series Our Sunday Visitor


Books by T.J. Burdick:
30 Minutes: Less Cell Phone. More Beauty
99 Ways to Teach Like the Master
Detached: Put Your Phone in Its Pace
Mariology Beginnings
One Body, Many Blogs: A Guide for Christian Bloggers
Rosary Consecration
The Children’s Little Advent Book
The Gospel in Kid Speak
The Guardians of Mythireal
The Rosary in Kid Speak
…
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Thursday, 15 January 2026

Wind From the South - John Irvine

Wind From the South
John Irvine (1903-1965)
WM. Mullan & Son
Belfast
1936

Wind From the South - John Irvine

I sort of stumbled upon this author. I was reading one of the Vision Books for young readers, Irish Saints by Robert T. Reilly, and there was an excerpt of a poem from A Treasury of Irish Saints A Book of Poems. It was really intriguing and after reading that first volume I made it a mission to try and track down everything Irvine published. At first my dyslexia had me thinking it was John Irving, and I have read a few of his fiction books. But some quick searching put that idea to rest.  This author John Irvine lived from 1903-1965. This volume was originally published in1936. It is the fourth collection from Irvine I have read.

About the author on a site with information about Irish authors states:

“John Irvine was born in Belfast and published several collections of poems: A Voice in the Dark, 1932; Willow Leaves: Lyrics in the Manner of the Early Chinese Poets,1941; Lost Sanctuary and other poems among others. He edited The Flowering Branch: An Anthology of Irish Poetry Past and Present.”

Another online description of the author states:

“Irvine, born in Belfast, published about six collections of lyrics between 1932 and 1954, mostly from small presses in Belfast and Dublin.  He also edited an anthology of Irish poetry, The Flowering Branch.”

This book begins with a dedication to Elizabthe and then a quote:

". . . I would not find
For when I find, I know
I shall have claspt the wandering wind
And built a house of snow."
     FIONA MACLEOD

The poems in this volume are:

Wind From The South 
Sorrow In Spring 
Heartsease 
To The Unfaithful Beloved 
Captive 
Canticle Of Spring 
Nocturne 
Waves 
Snow 
Dusk 
October Winds 
Moon Magic 
Exile  
Song 
Seagulls 
Evensong
The Prisoner 
Spring 1936 
Lea Vetaking 
Transience  
In The Mournes  
Night Piece 
The Last Spring Together 
Enchantment 
Nightfall 
The Quiet Night
Unending Quest

I very much enjoyed this fourth collection of poems that I have read from the pen of Irvine. It is another volume I could easily see myself returning to. The one bio above mentions 6 collections of poems but I have found 9 listed below, 3 other works, also 6 volumes Irvine edited of other poems. And a note further down indicates another previously unaccounted for volume. A few sample poems from this volume are:

     SORROW IN SPRING

     EARTH wraps him round ;
     He cannot see
     The flower on
     The chestnut tree.

     He cannot hear
     The blackbird sing,
     Or walk the woods,
     Remembering.

     Nor feel the wind,
     And sun and rain,
     That makes the warm earth
     Sweet again.

     His is the dusk
     When day is done,
     And I am weary
     Of the sun.

NOCTURNE

NIGHT spreads
Across the hills
Her splendid silences ;
And breathes a benediction on
The fields.

     SNOW

     ALONG
     The quiet fields
     The evening cold has brought
     The young snow flying, on the wings
     Of wind.

I hope those three poems give you a feel for the collection. This was the hardest volume to pick just three poems to share. I had 5 selected and narrowed it to these three. The poems vary from one stanza to several, but all poems are contained on single pages. They were well worth reading. I read a few of them a couple of times before moving on. It is an excellent collection to work through on a cold winter evening, over a large mug of tea. Again in this collection there are numerous poems focused around nature and yet again specifically birds.

I was able to track down a copy of this thanks to the National Library of Ireland. The NLI has all volumes I have found written by Irvine and 4 of the 7 edited by him. I am now trying to hunt them all down. These poems were very enjoyable, and I am certain they would be to you as well, if you give them a chance. At the front of this volume it lists other volumes from the author including ‘A Christmas Garland’, which I have not been able to find any other information about, until I read ‘Nocturne’ which indicated Irvine Edited it. We are also informed 2 of the poems in this volume are reprinted with permission.
If you can track down a copy to read it is well worth it! Another great collection of poems I can easily recommend it.

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2026 Catholic Reading Plan! 

Books by John Irvine:
A Voice in the Dusk Lyrics  
By Winding Roads 
Fountain Of Hellas: Poems From The Greek Anthology 
Green Altars: Poems 
Lost Sanctuary and Other Poems 
Nocturne: Poems 
Sic Transit Gloria Mundi 
The Quiet Stream 
Two Poems 
Voces Intimae 
Willow Leaves: Lyrics in the Manner of the Early Chinese Poets 
…

Edited by John Irvine:
A Christmas Garland - as J. Pennington Irvine
The Flowering Branch: An Anthology of Irish Poetry Past and Present 
The Poems of Robert Burns 
The Poems of Robert Louis Stevenson 
The Poems of Tennyson 
The Poems of Thomas Moore  
…  
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Wednesday, 14 January 2026

Exit Strategy - Lee Child and Andrew Child - Jack Reacher Book 30

Exit Strategy
Jack Reacher Book 30
Lee Child
Andrew Child (Andrew Grant)
Bantam Books
Penguin Random House Canada
ISBN 9780593725849
eISBN 9780593725856
ASIN B0DTWYFBHC

Exit Strategy - Lee Child and Andrew Child - Jack Reacher Book 30 UK Cover

A few years back I fell in love with the Reacher stories. I picked book 24 up for my dad for Christmas, read the back and got myself the eBook. I ended up reading one a week until I had read all the novels and published short stories. I have read some of the related series by other authors, and love the TV show. This one took me a while to get to, work and family life were both very busy and I knew if I started I would not want to put it down. I was correct in that assumption. But I am getting ahead of myself. 

This is the sicth novel in the series that is a collaborative effort from Lee and Andrew Child. A few years ago I read the first 24 Jack Reacher novels, and also the Jack Reacher short stories, novellas and crossovers. In fact, I had to make sure I read other books in between. After I read the first two that they co-wrote I read the 9 previously written by Andrew. And now I eagerly await the fall release of a new novel written by the two of them to continue the saga of Jack Reacher. Like the Epic of Gilgamesh, the story of Reacher is an epic tale that now spans decades. And Reacher has more adventure in most of the stories than some people have in a lifetime. And this sicth offering by the brothers has some interesting twists. Let us get back to this specific story.

The description of this offering in the Reacher series states:

“Jack Reacher will make three stops today. Not all of them were planned for.

First—a Baltimore coffee shop. A seat in the corner, facing the door. Black coffee, two refills, no messing around. A minor interruption from two of the customers, but nothing he can’t deal with swiftly. As he leaves, a young guy brushes against him in the doorway. Instinctively Reacher checks the pocket holding his cash and passport. There’s no problem. Nothing is missing.

Second—a store to buy a coat. Nothing fancy. Something he can ditch when he heads to warmer climates. Large enough to fit a man the size of a bank vault. As he pulls out his cash, he finds something new in his pocket. A handwritten note. A desperate plea for help.

Third—wherever this bend in the road takes him. Impressed by the guy’s technique and intrigued by the message, Reacher makes it his mission to find out more …”

Reacher’s plans that day were to replenish the coffee in his system, pick up a coat, catch a concert then a bus out of town. That is not the way things happened. And two very different plots both end up with Reacher as a key factor. Who knew Baltimore could play backdrop to such a mystery. This story is a little more mystery and far less head on action than some of the other stories. Reacher upsets a local crime boss and gets caught up in case of some people wanting to do the right thing but using the wrong methods. Reacher’s lizard brain is sparking and he can’t just walk away. It’s not his nature. Once something has Reacher’s attention he sees it through to the end. 

This story is book 30 and I believe it would fall in that order chronologically, based on the injury. I still prefer the UK covers to the North American ones.

This is a good story from the Child brothers. But it just feels like something was kind of missing. If it had been an action story about almost any other character I would have loved it, I just expect more from Reacher and the Child brothers. It is not my least favourite in the series, not even close. If you are a fan of Reacher either from the books or TV show give it a read. It was a good read for just after New Years. This is a good book in an entertaining series!              

Books by Lee Child:
Jack Reacher Books Publishing Order:
Killing Floor
Die Trying
Tripwire
The Visitor /Running Blind
Echo Burning
Without Fail
Persuader
The Enemy
One Shot
The Hard Way
Bad Luck and Trouble
Nothing to Lose
Gone Tomorrow
61 Hours
Worth Dying For
The Affair
A Wanted Man
Never Go Back
Personal
Make Me
Night School
The Midnight Line
Past Tense
Blue Moon
The Sentinel

Books by Andrew Grant:
…

David Trevellyan Series:
…

Detective Cooper Devereaux Series:
…

Paul McGrath Series:
…

Books Andrew Grant Contributed To:
In the Company of Sherlock Holmes
Murder and Mayhem in Muskego







The Secret - Lee Child and Andrew Child - Jack Reacher Book 28 US Edition

The Secret - Lee Child and Andrew Child - Jack Reacher Book 28 UK Edition

In Too Deep - Lee Child and Andrew Child - Jack Reacher Book 29 - US Edition

In Too Deep - Lee Child and Andrew Child - Jack Reacher Book 29 - UK Edition

Exit Strategy - Lee Child and Andrew Child - Jack Reacher Book 30 UK Cover

Exit Strategy - Lee Child and Andrew Child - Jack Reacher Book 30 US Cover
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Tuesday, 13 January 2026

Art and Prayer - Mary Charles-Murray - Deeper Christianity Series

Art and Prayer
Sr Mary Charles-Murray
Catholic Truth Society
ISBN 9781860826405
ISBN 1860826407
CTS Booklet SP29

Art and Prayer - Mary Charles-Murray - Deeper Christianity Series

This is the first volume from Mary Charles-Murray that I have read, I belive it is one of only 2 she has published. I greatly enjoyed this book. I have been focusing on this series and CTS books by Pope Benedict XVI lately, I have been tracking down as many of each as I can find, and I believe I now have all from this series. 

This is another great read in a wonderful series. Over the last several years, I have read many books from the Catholic Truth Society, in fact over 460 of them as of the reading of this volume; many read more than once; this all since the spring of 2018. Most were good reads; some were great reads; and a few are exceptional. This was one of over 20 in the Deeper Christianity Series that I have read; many of them have been read twice. This booklet was originally published 2010 and it is one that does not have an eBook. The description of this volume is:

“The Catholic Church, with its particular understanding of how art should relate to faith and spirituality, has commissioned and inspired some of the most beautiful works of art the world has ever seen. This booklet goes to the root of what good devotional art is, how it should work, and the feelings it should inspire. It also explores the effect that different styles of Christian devotional art have had on modern and contemporary art, and why the estrangement of the Church from the artistic world has left both sides much the poorer.”

About the series we are informed:

“The Deeper Christianity Series delves into the mysteries of Christianity, opening up the spiritual treasures of the Church.”

About the author we are informed:

“Sr Mary Charles-Murray is a Sister of Notre Dame and a member of the Theology Faculty of Oxford University, specializing in historical theology. Her writings on the visual aspects of theology have been published widely.” 

The chapters in the book are:

Introduction 
Accessibility to the Spirit 
Looking at the Author of the Faith 
Conclusion 


I highlighted a few passages while reading this volume, some of them are:

“We have here then two kinds of imitation, artistic imitation and personal imitation, intimately linked together, and the engraving encapsulates wonderfully the theme of this booklet: the relationship of art and prayer; or, to put it another way, art and personal spirituality. Union with Christ in prayer comes from close, personal observation of him.”

“To place art in relation to prayer and spirituality in this manner is a distinctly Catholic way of understanding Christian wisdom, and of understanding the true Wisdom who is the Author of the faith. Being a Catholic means to have certain ways of talking and thinking about Christianity which are characteristic, and one of these ways is talking and thinking through images.”

“The question of art and its relationship to prayer presents us with a case study in Catholic identity as it relates to the imagination.”

“The Pope's views were formalized at the Second Vatican Council in the document on the liturgy, Sacrosanctun Cncilium (nn.122-130). As far as the Church is concerned therefore the central place of art in the living of the Christian life has been unequivocally reaffirmed. According to papal and conciliar teaching, art by its nature gives access to the life of prayer.”

“Historically, it was the early Church that set up a Christian artistic sensibility, based on the Bible, by promulgating the idea that there is a continuity of physical and spiritual things, and it is the image which forms the bridge between them. But, although both the Eastern and the Western Church agree in finding in the image the natural bridge to prayer, they different regard to its nature. Unlike the Eastern Church, with its liturgical and spiritualized conception of the icon, the controlling influence on the understanding of art and prayer for the West was not the liturgy but the Bible. The western tradition of art is essentially Gospel orientated in its thinking and in subject matter. Stylistically”

“Durer was a man of deep religious perceptions much affected by the conflicts of the Reformation, and his works reflect a strong and very personal adherence to Christ.”

“A life laden with action is transformed in the withdrawal of prayer. The image is not me rely an aid to prayer but is a very powerful commentary on its nature.”

“God's action is always the same; He acts on all in prayer in an equally intensified and personal way, but in differing degrees, and in a manner adapted to our own circumstances.”

“Bill Viola's work is also closely connected to the contemporary search for spirituality. And in this way it is concerned to challenge that element, found in much in modern art, which privileges the idea of concept. It has been noted that this is high art for ordinary, contemporary people; and seeing in this way represents a return to an older, narrative rather than a modern, critical viewpoint.”

“If we look at him we shall experience what it means to be a true human being. By careful self-observation allied to careful observation of Christ we shall perceive God's care for us and his wisdom in our regard. And art has always proved to be one of the best aids in this double task of observation.”

“The God of the Bible is the authoritative, positive Spirit who works through our current situation. Prayer is shown here as the struggle to achieve an integrated wisdom based on knowledge of two things: knowledge of Christ and knowledge of life.”

“These creations offer to our imagination an understanding of this pattern, and a means of discernment of it in our own lives. One of the fruits of the imagination is that it enables us to have the wisdom to reconcile the central values of the Gospel with those of our own unique personality.”

“From the earlier centuries, when almost all European art was Christian art, we have inherited images of such astonishing quality and power, executed by artists of such extraordinary talent and imagination, that they have in turn shaped the imaginations of generations of their viewers. And it is for this reason that, despite the fact that we have no description visual or verbal of Christ's appearance, and we know Him only from the presentation in the Gospels, we have no difficulty in picturing Him.”

“Medieval imagery achieves the combination of uniting the historic and realistic narration of the passion with at the same time an emphasis on its personal application.”

“Christian theology has always regarded beauty as a final and primary value; and - except for isolated periods of iconoclasm - in its concern to describe the nature and attraction of God as divine love, has always adopted the language of aesthetics, and par excellence, the language of art.”

“In this study we have tried to offer a critical and reflective approach to the traditional practice of expressing ideas concerning God and his relationship to ourselves and the world by means of artistic expression.”

“In the first place Pope Paul VI himself located the largest framework, in that he showed that both art and prayer must take place within the tradition of the Church; and further that within the tradition art must retain its autonomy. in this he was echoing St Gregory the Great who wrote in one of his letters that we do nothing wrong in wishing to show the invisible by means of the visible.”

“This is true also of prayer, and what we have seen at work in these images is first of all freedom; a freedom which echoes and feeds the freedom before God of the person at prayer.”

“Fourthly and allied to this, is the discovery that not all images are suitable for prayer. It is the faith of the Church and the need of the person praying which provides the criterion and interrogates the usefulness of the image in this context. This leads on to a matter which we have seen to be of crucial significance to our issue, the central importance of aesthetic considerations. The framework of the aesthetic cannot be overestimated in matters of art and prayer.”

“Significant art conveys more than what has transpired at a given time; from that given time it carries us into an illumination of humanity in our own time. It lays bare meaningful aspects of our own life which might otherwise we might have missed, and so becomes for us a source of the transformation which we hope to achieve through prayer.”

“But the Christian life as we experience it is not finished; it is constantly a work in progress, constantly corrected or moved forward and finally accomplished by our prayer. The work of art happens when there is an adequate correspondence between form and content, so the quality of the work will depend on the quality of our prayer.”

“As Christians, when day by day we study in our prayer the Author of the Faith and attempt to reproduce in our lives the model he offers, we begin to see the emergence of our true self-portrait, the image of the creator God himself, the Supreme Artist.”

I hope those quotes give you a feel for the volume. This volume is a fairly easy read, but it was much more technical than many in the series. Anyone with a secondary education could easily work through it. I studied a lot of art history in school, and was originally accepted to 2 universities for fine art, this could would have been an excellent resource for school or for papers in high school art history class. I really enjoyed this book. 

This book is an excellent read in a wonderful series. The CTS Deeper Christianity Series of books are written in such a way that they can easily be read in any order. Pick and choose the ones that interest you, read them in order, or jump around. I have been blessed by the entire series that I have read and can highly recommend this book and the series.

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews:  2026 Catholic Reading Plan! For other reviews of books from the Catholic Truth Society click here.


Books in the Deeper Christianity Series:
7 Gifts of the Holy Spirit 
8 Deadly Sins Learning to Defend the Life of Grace 
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