Desde Mi Cielo

Book Description

From her vantage point in heaven, Susie Salmon describes how she was confronted by a murderer one December afternoon on her way home from school. Lured into an underground hiding place, she was raped and killed. But what the reader knows, her family does not. Anxiously,we keep vigil with Susie, aching for her grieving family, desperate for the killer to be found and punished. Sebold creates a heaven that's calm and comforting, a place whose residents can have whatever they enjoyed when they were alive – and then some.
But Susie isn't ready to release her hold on life just yet, and she intensely watches her family and friends as they struggle to cope with a reality in which she is no longer a part.

Customer Reviews:

Hermosa historia.......2005-05-19

Les confieso que la compre porque me intrigo el resumen que lei pero cuando la recibi y comence a leerla como se dice en ingles "I fell in love with it". La historia es muy conmovedora pero vale la pena leerla siempre y cuando tengas una caja de tissue al lado o te aguantes las ganas de llorar con la historia de esta nina. Ojala no haya un cielo para que asi los muertos no sufran mas viendo lo que hacemos aqui en la tierra los que quedamos.

Horror compensado.(Desde mi cielo )(Resena de libro): An article from: Epoca

Average customer rating:

Horror compensado.(Desde mi cielo )(Resena de libro): An article from: Epoca
Javier Cercas Rueda
Manufacturer: Difusora de Informacion Periodica, S.A. (DINPESA)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B0008DTRCQ
Release Date: 2005-06-01

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Epoca, published by Difusora de Informacion Periodica, S.A. (DINPESA) on June 27, 2003. The length of the article is 317 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Horror compensado.(Desde mi cielo )(Resena de libro)
Author: Javier Cercas Rueda
Publication: Epoca (Magazine/Journal)
Date: June 27, 2003
Publisher: Difusora de Informacion Periodica, S.A. (DINPESA)
Issue: 958 Page: 71(1)

Article Type: Resena de libro

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Average customer rating:

Desde Mi Cielo/from My Sky
Alice Sebold
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Average customer rating:

Desde mi cielo
Unknown
Manufacturer: UNKNOWN
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 8439720424

Average customer rating:

Desde mi cielo
Alice Sebold
Manufacturer: Debolsillo
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OT2EI8

Average customer rating:

If you like a novel about people sitting around talking about action, then this is for you.

The Return of Aisling

Very weakly written

Andre Norton?

a disappointment
The Duke's Ballad (Witch World Chronicles)
Andre Norton , and Lyn McConchie
Manufacturer: Tor Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Dark Fantasy | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Norton, Andre | ( N ) | Authors, A-Z | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Epic | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Silver May Tarnish (Witch World Chronicles)

Three Hands for Scorpio

Ciara's Song: A Chronicle of the Witch World

Lost Lands of Witch World (Witch World Chronicles)

Songsmith: A Witch World Novel (Tor Fantasy)

ASIN: 0765306360
Release Date: 2004-12-23

Book Description

The Duke's Ballad is the tale of Aisling, a young witch from a family gifted with a magical power that she must protect from her brother, Kirion, who wields magic unlike the rest of the family's. He gains power only by a terrible means: by killing others who wield magic. Years ago, Aisling fled her native Kars when Kirion, working for the Duke of Kars, tried to kill her. Since Aisling's departure, Kirion has tightened his insidious hold on Duke Shastro. The malevolent sorcerer's dark influence works through Shastro to cast a deadly pall over all of Kars. A fatal chain of events is triggered when Kirion pitches the people of Kars into a war with a neighboring clan.Aisling recruits her younger brother Keelan and returns in disguise, determined to undermine Kirion's power and unseat his evil pawn from the throne. Accompanied also by a catlike telepathic beast, Aisling becomes part of Shastro's court. But even as she begins to learn the ways of court power, a brutally cold winter besieges the land, testing the endurance of the people of Kars, who have little cheer in that darkest season. As Kars and its people contend with Kirion's depredations, the warring clan's raids, and the devastating winter, Aisling and Keelan must somehow, through guile, persistence and ingenuity, find a way to avoid the attention of their dangerous older brother, and save the people from his murderous sorcery. Only if they can survive Kirion's terrible power can they deliver the dukedom into the peace and prosperity it once knew.

Customer Reviews:

If you like a novel about people sitting around talking about action, then this is for you........2007-09-10

I love Andre Norton, and have read several of her books. This book can not possibly have been written by her. It is a dissapointing failure. The characters did not inspire any feeling from me. About 80% of the book is about the three main characters, Keelen, Hadrann, and Aisling, sitting around talking about what they needed to do and what they had done. The action was skipped over. The other 20% contained three action sequences. Two of them had nothing to do with the plot and could have been left out alltogether. The third was the ending which took up 10 pages of a 318 page novel. The action scenes were interesting and well written. If only the whole novel had been written that way.

I hate having to leave a bad review for an Andre Norton novel. But, truely, this is horrible. I didn't read the first novel in the series, Ciara's Song, maybe the two novels should have been combined into one. If you are an Andre Norton fan, you may want to skip this one and read another... any other.

The Return of Aisling.......2006-08-02

The Duke's Ballad (2005) is a Fantasy novel in the Witch World Chronicles series, following Ciara's Song. In the previous volume, Aisling escaped Lord Ruart with the help of Temon and fled across the mountains to Escore. On the way, she was wounded by a walking boulder and needs the healing mud of the Green Valley.

In this novel, Aisling has visionary dreams of returning to Karsten to protect the duchy from her brother Kirion. She has learned as much as she can from the adept Hilarion and is ready to return. Even Wind Dancer is homesick for his mother Shosho.

Hilarion declares that she has a geas to remove the magical influence of the blood-sorcerer Kirion. He sends word to his agents in Karsten to bring horses for her journey. Aisling packs and departs the Green Valley with Hilarion and other escorts. On the way to Karsten, they purge a new outbreak of the Dark Powers and then ride for the border.

After leaving her escorts, Aisling walks onward until she finds two men waiting for her. When they give the wrong countersign, she attacks them and binds them securely. Then she searches for the true agents.

When she finds the thoroughly bound Hadrann in a half-cave, she tries the password again and gets the correct response. He tells her that the other two had ambushed him and his companion. Hit with a slung stone, he had lost consciousness. When he regained his senses, his enemies were torturing his companion, who told almost all except the correct countersign.

Aisling interrogates the two enemy agents and learns that they are working for Kirion. Since they know too much, Rann slits their throats and digs a grave. Placing them into the grave, Aisling and Rann cover them in bedding and pile rocks and soil over them. While Wind Dancer had detected a "here I am" spell on one of them, Kirion will see only darkness through his eyes.

Aisling and Rann travel cautiously to Aiskeep, disguising their horses and themselves. Even Wind Dancer looks like a common cat. As they approach the keep from the backside, Aisling is seized by a man and held fiercely. Rann prepares for battle as he moves toward them, but is dissuaded by Aisling's declaration that this is her brother Keelan.

This novel tells of Aisling's efforts to undermine the influence of her brother Kirion and his puppet Duke. Disguised as Hadrann's cousin Murna, Aisling moves into the Duke's palace and becomes a member of his court. Although plain looking and a better rider that the Duke, he comes to like her for the common sense manner that she displays in thought and speech.

Meanwhile, Kirion is having troubles of various sorts. For one thing, he is running out of people with magical talents to drain for his own use. Another problem is the activities of the coastal clans; they are upset with the magical conversion of their women into Duke Shastro's ardent lovers as well as the deadly coincidences that are killing off their leaders.

Highly recommended for Norton fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of magic, intrigue and loyalty.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Very weakly written.......2006-06-14

I picked up this book before I realized that it was part of a series. Although the books stands okay alone, I feel that others rated it highly because they were already attached to the characters. I was not, and while reading, did not become attached to any of the characters. The romantic (if you could call it that) relationships were contrived and without a spark of passion. Aisling could have been a great character, but she was underdeveloped. Kirion was also too flat, and his actions were unbelievable. To think that he did not get suspicious of "Murna" and Rann hanging around Keelan all the time? Or their influence upon the duke? or his missing sister? if he was a great and powerful sorcerer couldn't he also feel the geas? This book felt like it was written in a rush. There were places in the story that i believe were only inserted into the story to make it full length (the ratsi scene, the particulars about the cottage that was rented). Perhaps what was most irritating were the blatant errors that occured through the book. In one seen, "Keelan" was referred to as "Kirion" - a pretty dramatic mess up since one character is good and the other evil. "Wind Dancer" was also referred to as "Mind Dancer." Regardless, the cat was not a compelling character either in my eyes. All in all this "epic" fantasy was only epic in proportions of boredom and confusion. There was real potential, however, this attempt fell quite short of a good read.

Andre Norton?.......2005-07-22

This was a good book, not great but worth the money. It has gotten obvious over the last few books that Ms. Norton is not the primary writer, This is unfortunate, but at least it keeps the books coming.

a disappointment.......2005-06-05

The writing was not what I expect of Andre Norton. Too many gaps and information that is disjointed. Whether this is a consequence of collaboration I don't know. I felt this should have had a strong editor to point out where things should be tightened. For example - at the start we know Kirion has sent people to capture his sister. The book covers over 2 years, but you hardly hear of this again. I cannot imagine the sorcerer would just have let it drop.
I am a long-time fan and retired children's librarian. Sic Fi & fantasy is my favorite genre, but this one I had to push to finish. Unsatisfying.

Average customer rating:

The Ballad of Duke Dookums
Craig, Alan Hart
Manufacturer: Sweatshoppe Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0615139779

Book Description

The Wild West will never be the same with Duke Dookums, Frontier Hero on the job. Outlaws, villains, and other unpleasant characters know and fear him. Trouble seems to follow Duke as he rides through the lawless expanse of the frontier, but our intrepid hero is more than up to the task. Join Duke as he takes on the nastiest bad guys the West has to offer. Although this title is targeted for young people ages 10 and up, kids of all ages will enjoy this silly, light-hearted romp through the Wild, Wild West.

Average customer rating:

The Ballad of the Duke's Mercy.
Stephen Vincent. Benét
Manufacturer: House of Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000UHFPRG

Average customer rating:

Dukes Ballad
Andre Norton
Manufacturer: TOM DOHERTY ASSOCIATES
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000UCVH0A

Average customer rating:

Dukes Ballad
Andre Norton
Manufacturer: TOR BOOKS ST MARTINS MASS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000Q1JQWG

Average customer rating:

Fresh Plot but Distracting Writing
Winner of the WordWeaving Award for Excellence

The Runaway Duke (Zebra Ballad Romance)
Grace Susan
Manufacturer: Zebra
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Romance | Subjects | Books

General | Historical | Romance | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0821773739

Customer Reviews:

Fresh Plot but Distracting Writing.......2002-12-11

The eighth Duke of Chatham, Jonathan Carlisle's sister, is trying to get him married off. The problem is that his mother was their father's second wife and she was a servant before they married. Carlisle doesn't want to marry a Pampered Princess of the Ton, but he also does not want to marry someone who is not of the same class as he, because his mom was treated poorly by society.
To get away from his matchmaking sister, Carlisle takes an 'urgent business trip' and while is set upon by paid killers. Dr. Edger Pickering and his daughter Melanie, who are hiding in the country, save the Duke's life and care for him while he recovers and during his recovery he discovers that Melanie and her son need his help.

This is the first book that I have read by Susan Grace and as much as I enjoyed the plotting the writing was distracting. I'm not sure how exactly to describe it - it's not that the prose is horrible, it's just that it was written at like a sixth grade reading level. The plot is fresh the characters are likeable, but the writing is distracting in its simplicity and the characters hold views and conversations that don't fit into the era that it is written in.

Winner of the WordWeaving Award for Excellence.......2002-09-21

Lady Catherine intends to see her younger brother, the eighth Duke of Chatham, Jonathan Carlisle married. Nine mistresses in ten years have kept Jonathan satisfied, and he has no intention of falling in with his sister's matchmaking. So he ducks her introductions to yet more eligible women by escaping with friend Bertram Lewis on a "very urgent business trip." When Bertram cancels at the last minute, Jonathan sets out alone, only to be threatened at gunpoint by kidnappers. Then a flash of lightening startles his horse and he is thrown from his horse over a cliff.

Sighted clinging to a log, Jonathan is rescued from the waters and cared for by Dr. Edger Pickering and his daughter Melanie. Recognizing that his damaged fine clothes indicate wealth, the doctor and Melanie carefully conceal their identity. Melanie's eight-year-old son does not speak, so does not represent a threat to their anonymity. When he awakens from his coma, Jonathan immediately realizes that Melanie is keeping secrets. Fearful she might be part of the kidnapping plot, he claims amnesia. Soon they find themselves fighting their mutual attraction and the truths they both conceal.

In the most endearing installment yet of the infamous Lady Cat's family, THE RUNAWAY DUKE combines mystery and romance in a marvelously entertaining read. Melanie's determination to protect her son lends her character startling strength given the years of abuse she endured at her deceased husband's hands. Jonathan's certainty that she is the woman for him despite the impediments between them will warm reader's hearts as he determinedly seeks the answers to Melanie's problems. Further, the exciting conclusion provides a powerful climax to this carefully plotted tale. An absolutely memorable read, THE RUNAWAY DUKE earns the WordWeaving Award for Excellence.

Average customer rating:
The Ballad of The Duke's Mercy.
Stephen V. BENET
Manufacturer: see notes for publisher info
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000MXQ9AK

Average customer rating:
The Duke's wedding: A new ballad, in suitable dogrel verse
William Hone
Manufacturer: Sold by W. Hone
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Political | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
Satire, General | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0008BZ2QS

Average customer rating:
English verse between Chaucer and Surrey,: Being examples of conventional secular poetry, exclusive of romance, ballad, lyric, and drama, in the period ... the Eighth, (Duke University publications)
Eleanor Prescott Hammond
Manufacturer: Duke University Press; [etc., etc.]
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Poetry | British | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B00086A1A0

Average customer rating:
Poems and songs relating to George Villiers, duke of Buckingham and his assassination by John Felton, August 23, 1628 (Early English poetry, ballads, and popular literature of the Middle ages)
F. W Fairholt
Manufacturer: Printed for the Percy society by Richards
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00088349I

Average customer rating:
The Time and Space of Uncle Albert
Russell Stannard
Manufacturer: Faber and Faber
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Similar Items:

Uncle Albert and the Quantum Quest

Black Holes and Uncle Albert

Dr Dyer's Academy

Space, Time, Rhythm and Rhyme

The Curious History of God

ASIN: 0571226159

Average customer rating:

Relativity made clear

The Time and Space of Uncle Albert
Russell Stannard
Manufacturer: Henry Holth & Co (J)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Teens | Subjects | Books
General | Baby-3 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Uncle Albert and the Quantum Quest

Black Holes and Uncle Albert

Dr Dyer's Academy

ASIN: 0805013091

Customer Reviews:

Relativity made clear.......2000-01-19

This is the best introductory exposition of relativity theory ever written. As a book, it occupies that strange middle ground between fiction and non-fiction, much like the Magic Schoolbus books (where should the librarian put them?), but it is for a somewhat older age group. By somewhat older, I mean only that it has fewer pictures: I'd put it in with all the Milton Bradley/Parker Brothers games, and say it's for ages 8 to 80. For ANYONE who is interested in relativity, no matter what their age, this book is a perfect place to start. Check your library, and if you can't find it try to place an "out of print" order. This book is a gem.

Average customer rating:

The Time and Space of Uncle Albert
Russell Stannard
Manufacturer: Faber and Faber
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

ASIN: 0571151302

Average customer rating:

Space & Time Uncle Albert Pb
STANNARD R
Manufacturer: Methuen Publishing Company (Dump list)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

The Time & Space of Uncle Albert (Chivers Children's Audio Books)

Average customer rating:

The Time & Space of Uncle Albert (Chivers Children's Audio Books)
Russell Stannard
Manufacturer: Chivers Audio Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette

General | Books on Cassette | Audiobooks | Formats | Books

Average customer rating:

The inspirational story reveling the truth behind the myth of "Hitler's Pope"

A must read for all

Right into the thick of it

RIGHT MAN, RIGHT TIME

Benedict XVI: The Man Who Was Ratzinger
Michael S. Rose
Manufacturer: Spence Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Religious | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Popes | Catholicism | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Catholic | Church History | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Jesus of Nazareth

Priest: Portraits of Ten Good Men Serving the Church Today

God's Choice : Pope Benedict XVI and the Future of the Catholic Church

Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church

Pope Benedict XVI: The Conscience of Our Age

ASIN: 1890626635

Book Description

Though the election to the papacy of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger stunned the world, very few expressed doubt about the direction in which the allegedly authoritarian pope would lead the Catholic Church. Yet Benedict XVI is likely to surprise those expecting uncritical adherence to the policies of John Paul II, according to a new biography by Michael Rose, author of the bestselling Goodbye, Good Men. The first biographer seriously to probe Benedict's vast intellectual record, Rose sheds penetrating new light on the man who was Ratzinger.

Perhaps the most imposing intellectual ever to assume the papacy, Ratzinger has been recognized as a world-class theologian since the time of Vatican II. In two decades as the chief guardian of Catholic doctrine, he addressed every controversy facing the Church: clerical sex abuse, feminism, religious pluralism, sexual revolution and the culture of death, secularism, and militant Islam. This uncommonly rich record, Rose argues, promises a new Counterreformation, purifying and reorienting the Catholic Church.

Rose reveals that Cardinal Ratzinger, unquestionably John Paul II's closest collaborator, was privately critical of certain ecumenical, liturgical, and administrative policies of the late pope. While Benedict will undoubtedly follow John Paul's fundamental path, Rose predicts some critical departures that could enable this supposedly "polarizing" figure to become a powerful unifying force, reviving the Church and reawakening the West's Christian identity in its moment of crisis.

In a valuable appendix to Benedict XVI, Rose provides an annotated list of all Ratzinger's works available in English and a catalogue of the directives of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith during his prefecture.

Customer Reviews:

The inspirational story reveling the truth behind the myth of "Hitler's Pope".......2006-03-15

Benedict XVI: The Man Who Was Ratzinger by Michael S. Rose is the inspirational story reveling the truth behind the myth of "Hitler's Pope" and what actualities grant Pope Pius XII the prestigious role he has taken on as the pope guiding millions of Catholics. As Benedict XVI introduces the realities of the new pope's history, it reveals an untold and heroic story of his struggle in earlier years for the relief of Jews in the midst of their own struggle with the Nazi reign. A highly recommended read for all non-specialist general readers, as well as seminary students of Catholic history, Benedict XVI is to be given high praise for its outstanding information and willingness to reveal it.

A must read for all .......2006-02-25

One of the best books I have seen written on the issues facing Pope Benedict XVI and how he may adress them.

Right into the thick of it.......2006-02-23

Many of the books that have shown up since the election of Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger as supreme pontiff have followed a predictable formula: recount the last weeks of John Paul II's life; provide a quick biography of the late pope; describe the process for electing a new pope, followed by the actual events of the funeral and conclave; provide a quick biography of the *new* pope; and then finish up with a summary of "the challenges facing the new leader of the world's largest church." I think I've read at least a half-dozen books that follow precisely that formula.

Fortunately, Michael S. Rose has skipped all that introductory material and has dived right into the controversy. I admit to not having read his other work, but I have checked out The New Oxford Review, the website of which he edits, from time to time, and have always come away thinking I needed to spend more time in those pages. Here, he's done an excellent job as a partisan for Pope Benedict XVI and the Church's traditional teachings on doctrinal matters. And "partisan" it clearly is. The Pope's many American critics are not going to find a warm, loving embrace within these pages. But readers sympathetic to him and what he is trying to achieve will certainly appreciate Rose's energetic defense of the man.

The best way to summarize Benedict's approach to the many controversies he has to deal with might be to quote these lines from a 1999 "notification" reproduced on page 102: "[T]he promotion of errors and ambiguities is not consistent with a Christian attitude of true respect and compassion: Persons who are struggling with homosexuality, no less than any others, have the right to receive the authentic teaching of the Church from those who minister to them." Rose does a very thorough job of showing how "the man who was Ratzinger" did as cardinal, and no doubt will as Pope, apply that standard on issues from homosexuality, to the remnants of "liberation theology," to inter-faith dialogue, and much more. With the theological and religious Left still hanging on to power and influence in the American church, I think Catholics (and outsiders) of a more traditional bent will not only enjoy, but learn and even draw strength from, Rose's uncompromising approach and vigorous style. This book won't be to every readers' taste, but some readers, I think, will find it exactly the bracing, inspiring read they're looking for.

RIGHT MAN, RIGHT TIME.......2005-11-19

One of the strangest public dramas of recent years was played out after the long-anticipated death of Pope John Paul II. Odd enough to watch as the MSM and the Left, which pretty much loathe everything he stood for and the institution he served, praised him unreservedly, but then we were treated to the bizarre spectacle of them assuring each other that the Church would now have to turn to a more "liberal" pope, who would free the Church of the moral baggage JPII had left behind. And, one thing for sure, no way could Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who's even more conservative, possibly be chosen to succeed him. Certainly the Church would have to seek to popularize its product by picking someone who would loosen doctrine enough to fit in with the postmodernist and relativist intellectual trends of secular Europe and Blue America, right? Well, we all know how that turned out. Perhaps folks who don't believe in Christianity in the first place ought not try to figure out how or why a man becomes Pope?

Michael S. Rose, on the other hand, is a devout Catholic, author of the devastating book, Goodbye, Good Men, about the damage the Church did itself by recruiting gay priests, and web editor of the feisty New Oxford Review. In this brief but immensely useful polemic he outlines the challenges facing the new Pope and explains why Joseph Ratzinger may well have been the ideal man to confront them at this moment in the Church's history. Contrary to the expectations of the punditocracy and liberal Catholics, he suggests that:

If any one point of reference can be taken as an augury of his papacy, it is Pope Benedict's clarion call to resist what he calls "the dictatorship of relativism." [...] He defines this prevailing philosophy as one that "recognizes nothing as definitive and leaves as the ultimate standard one's own personality and desires." In other words, according to the relativist philosophy, people who disagree on moral and social issues can be equally right.

And if the defense of morality does prove unpopular in those segments of the West where gay marriage, abortion, multiculturalism, political correctness and the like are all the rage? Well, this Pope has said that the time may have come for a "mustard seed Church":

The maximization of the number of faithful is not Pope Benedict's strategic objective. In 1995...Cardinal Ratzinger shocked the Catholic world by suggesting that it may need to disregard the notion of a "popular Church" that will be loved by everyone. He once wrote of the eighteenth-century Church, roiled by the Enlightenment, that it was "a Church reduced in size and diminished in social prestige, yet become fruitful from a new interior power, a power that released new formative forces for the individual and for society." Similarly, his governing metaphor for the short-term destiny of Catholicism is the mustard seed (Matthew 13:31-32), suggesting a much smaller presence but with a faith whose dimensions could move mountains.

Now, it seems at least possible that a Church that adheres to a strict moral vision will be more appealing than one that does not, but, regardless, it can hardly be the role of the Church fathers to trim their beliefs just to truckle to pop culture. That would be a betrayal of faith and of the Church.

In the chapters that follow, Mr. Rose treats topics like the threat from radical Islam, potential damage from a too compromising ecumenism, the culture of death (or the "anti-culture of death" as the new Pope has aptly named it), the crisis of pedophile and gay priests, and reform of Church doctrine, bureaucracy and trappings. By the time he's done it's apparent that the Pope has a pretty full plate in front of him, but there also seems reason to hope that the man who was Ratzinger is up to all these challenges.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books