inspirational

With gentle wit and solid scholarship, Bert Ghezzi presents 365 of his favorite "friends" whose lives and teachings are still relevant to us today. The two-page-per-saint format offers enough information to give us a personal glimpse into the lives of these holy men and women. And the author offers several ways to read the book -- straight through, chronologically (according to when the saint lived), or according to feast days. Keys at the bottom of the page indicate where readers should turn next. Worth every penny of the cover price!

I am immensely impressed with Voices of the Saints, which I began reading on January 1 of this year. I have been reading the lives of the Saints by various authors and publishers, including Butler, every day for the past two decades of my life, but I can wholeheartedly proclaim that this book is by far the best, bar none. Most of the renditions I have read paint the Saints with hard to reach (and even harder to obtain) halos, like Blessed Fra Angelico paintings set to words. Bert Ghezzi's account brings the Saints to life--to ordinary human life, with all of its foibles, struggles, and in the end for them...victory. The truly human element in each of these literary portraits, which is brought home by the well-chosen quotations, makes each Saint a true inspiration to the "bumbling their way through" masses like me. His comments on each Saint are insightful and inspired, the writing and research are scholarly yet approachable, and the organization of the book (which allows one to read it by any one of three logical methods) makes this an immensely satisfying book to read. My wife and I look forward to delving into it each day, as Bert Ghezzi invites us to share the lot of the Saints in Light!

Every time I open this book I learn about someone new. If I may quote Saint Valerian. "If you desire to see God," he said, "seek out the beggar, receive the pilgrim, visit the sick, hasten to the prison." This is just one of the many great quotes in the book. I have recommended this book to my friends. It is hands down one of the best books I've ever read. Thank You Mr. Ghezzi for this wonderful book.