Maximilian Kolbe: Saint of Auschwitz [Paperback]

Elaine Murray Stone (Author), Patrick Kelley (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

Based on first-hand information. Here is the first English biography for middle graders on Maximilian Kolbe, the Polish Franciscan who, at Auschwitz, offered himself in exchange for the life of a man with two children. The biography covers Kolbe's early life, his work as a journalist, and his founding of Niepokalanow, the world's largest friary. Kolbe's act of love and faith teaches young readers important lessons that Christianity means more than just going to church, that the Holocaust actually happened, and that saints can be as real and modern as the person standing next to you in line. For first-hand research, the author traveled to Poland to visit where Kolbe lived and to interview people who actually knew him, including his cousin, his secretary, and one of his students. In addition, the foreword is by Ted Wojtkowski, a fellow camp prisoner and now a well-known Polish American who was standing close to Kolbe when he made his offer of self-sacrifice. Kolbe! 's story is ideal for children of Polish descent, parochial schools, parish libraries, classes in cultural diversity, and classes on World War II or the Holocaust. And, while written simply enough for children, this book will move all readers showing just how much the human spirit can achieve.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Maximilian Kolbe was a Polish friar who founded the Militia of the Immaculate and two monasteries, and who wrote and published periodicals and newspapers. Kolbe became a political prisoner in Auschwitz in 1941. He offered his life in place of another man condemned to death, and in so doing became a martyr to the truth -- the truth about religion, and about the twin evils of those despicable political systems, Nazism and Communism. Maximilian Kolbe: Saint Of Auschwitz is the story of a most remarkable man, a life that teaches us all about sanctity, perseverance, self-sacrifice, and Christian love. This is an heroic story of a humble man. -- Midwest Book Review

About the Author

Dr. Elaine Murray Stone is the award-winning author of fourteen books for children and adults; her most recent titles include Carter G. Woodson; Father of Black History and Paulist Press's Elizabeth Bayley Seton. Dr. Stone has covered the space program for both print media and radio, produced a widely-viewed children’s television program, and hosted a television talk show. She lives in Melbourne, Florida.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Paulist Press (May 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0809166372
• ISBN-13: 978-0809166374
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #424,034 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #27 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Teens > History & Historical Fiction > Holocaust
  • #28 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Religion & Spirituality > Christianity > Catholicism > Roman Catholicism
  • #34 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > History & Historical Fiction > Holocaust

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Saint for our time of war and prayer in a book for all levels., February 5, 2007

By 

C. Scanlon "least helpful reviewer" (among us humans) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Maximilian Kolbe: Saint of Auschwitz (Paperback)

This book is a substantial biography which, while sold as a middle school book, is most accessible and available and comprehensible to every reader. Please do not be dismayed by its label as juvenile literature, as it truly and deeply covers every aspect of this great modern Saint's life, including his mission to Nagasaki, and is graced with excellent pencil illustrations drawn from the most famous photographs of the Saint, including the one I most dearly remember, his prison photo without glasses in Auschwitz, the one which stood above my desk in the monastic cell in France over ten years before his canonization.

This the tenth anniversary of the publication by the great Paulist Press of this excellent and comprehensive biography written by Dr. Elaine Murray Stone (author as well of Elizabeth Bayley Seton, An American Saint) is an excellent time to acquire this treasured volume for your spiritual and Hagiographic library.

An excellent and comprehensive and factual introduction to this Saint, augmented by a comprehensive bibliography and suggestions for further reading. Good at any age!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Embracing the Sacrifice of the Dual Crowns, August 5, 2009

By 

Gale Finlayson "PLUME45" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Maximilian Kolbe: Saint of Auschwitz (Paperback)

Specializing in the biographies of saints Elaine Murray Stone presents here a pious but readable study on the life and Christian dedication of a Polish priest during World War II: Father Maximilian Kolbe. Using simple syntax and headlines within chapters the author offers interested readers a clear timeline of the events and challenges experienced by this devout Franciscan in wartorn Poland. The Paulist Press chose artist Patrick Kelley to provide illustrations, in muted gray and charcoal tones, based on actual photographs taken during the future saint's ecclesiastical career. The cover, in limited colors, depicts a serious man holding a lighted candle (representing God's eternal truth and Jesus' promise of salvation) standing behind rows of barbed wire. Potential readers are immediately drawn to learn more about this model of piety and humility.

In boyhood Raymond Kolbe dedicated his life to the special service of Mary, the Mother of Our Lord; he willingly accepted--in a miraculous Vision--the double crowns of purity and martyrdom which she offered him. As Mary's lifelong ardent champion he created an order of Knights of the Immaculate, and eventually founded two monasteries: the City of Mary in eastern Poland and later one in Nagasaki, Japan. Facing every challenge with simple grace, he relied on divine intervention to prosper his self-assigned work in the name of the Blessed Mother.

His widely circulated THE KNIGHT Catholic newspaper (and later radio broadcasts) helped inspire thousands of Catholics in their faith and many to accept the Calling. Canonized in 1982 after his heroic but humble self sacrifice at Auschwitz, Father Kolbe is credited with many miracles of healing. His life exemplified quiet acceptance of his Nazi tormentors, and extreme compassion for his fellow sufferers--regardless of their religious beliefs. To the end he urged Christians to forgive their tormentors and to rejoice in the holiness of perfomring their duty to God.

5.0 out of 5 stars Maximilian Kolbe, June 23, 2011

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S.L. - See all my reviews

This review is from: Maximilian Kolbe: Saint of Auschwitz (Paperback)

Very inspiring.

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Sincerely yours,
Sibyl L Kupec