Customer Reviews

Olivia and the Little Way

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Olivia and the Little Way is a delightful children's novel about Olivia Thomas, a ten year old who moves with her family from Texas to Michigan. She is nervous about going to a new school so her grandmother gives her a St. Thérèse chaplet and tells her about `The Little Way,' that St. Thérèse believed that "you can show your love for God by doing little things for Him with great love."

As each day goes by, Olivia learns how to love others through the Little Way. Later in the story, however, she makes a poor choice and must deal with the consequences. Olivia is frustrated and admits that the Little Way is not always easy. Her grandmother tells her, "You cannot expect to follow the Little Way without some hardship along the way. It is a work in progress. Do not get discouraged...God does not expect perfection; He only wants you to try your best every day." This is wonderful advice, not only for Olivia, but for all of us.

St. Thérèse has been one of my favorite saints since I visited Lisieux as a teenager many years ago, so I especially enjoyed this book and the St. Thérèse quotes at the beginning of each chapter. In this well-written and engaging novel, author Nancy Carabio Belanger illustrates St. Thérèse's Little Way in a delightful and unique approach without being preachy or dogmatic. I highly recommend this wonderful book not only for children, but for anyone interested in following the Little Way.

Ellen Gable Hrkach

award-winning author

In Name Only

Olivia and the Little Way by Nancy Carabio Belanger is one of my favorite new books for a few reasons. First off, it is a wonderful, engaging story!

Secondly, without being dogmatic the author is able to lovingly teach the reader about many of the important precepts of St Therese of Lisieux, one of the most important saints and a Doctor of the Catholic Church. The life lessons shared in this book are wonderful for a middle school aged audience, but the story will capture the hearts of a much more broad audience (including the moms of the those middle schoolers!)

I'm hoping that this will be the first of many books to come from author Nancy Carabio Belanger and that you will enjoy this book as much as I did!

A truly unique and fresh way to share the details of the life of a saint (in this case St. Therese of Lisieux) by making her an important ally in the life of a young girl. A real-life application of the riches of the saints is something we can all benefit from. Please write more!

Olivia and the Little Way is a great book. I am 10 years old, and I loved it because it showed me how to be a better person. You can be in the same situation as Olivia, and this story will help you to be strong. It's a good story about making friends and dealing with peer pressure. You can learn how to make the right choices in life. There are a lot of stories about St. Therese in this book that help you to pray and know more about her. My mom read it, too, and she also liked it a lot.

Author, Nancy Belanger, knows that on some level, we ALL (preteens, teens, and even adults) struggle to fit in. We wonder what everyone expects from us, how to act in certain situations, and yes, often cave to satisfy the "popular norm" even though it may not be our personal choice.

These little occurrences happen daily and we feel the stress of being true to our self and to our faith. "OLIVIA AND THE LITTLE WAY" (and don't miss it's sequel, "OLIVIA'S GIFT") take us on that journey with a young girl tempted as we all are, by the many material things life has to offer. She learns that some things, and some people, aren't as she thought ... thought of as friends. How does she [we] find the right path and, more challenging, the strength to walk it!

"OLIVIA" books will empower you to choose that path and the books are a delight to read. Entertaining and exciting with a story that conveys such a powerful message in such a subtle "little way." Tweens won't be able to put it down as each adventure draws them to the next chapter and they feel and see so much of themselves in Olivia and so much parallel in the daily pressures of growing up. Teen and adult readers will also be reminded by this delightful novel to choose their path wisely.

Highly recommend this book and the sequel, "Olivia's Gift"

Give a gift that's entertaining, fun, exciting, and adventurous mixed with a dose of faith, morals, values, and strength of character. Build a better tomorrow, one reader at a time! Enjoy and thank you Nancy for these treasures.

Thank you for writing this book! Good, wholesome, and entertaining literature is hard to come by these days!! God bless you!!

I love to read but I have have never written a review before. However, I just finished reading this book with my eight year old daughter and felt absolutley compelled to write about it! BOTH of my daughters (I also have an 11-year old) and I LOVED IT! While being an interesting story about the challenges of life for a fifth grade girl at a new school, it is also a great look at how to incorporate St. Therese's "Liitle Way" into everyday life, especially for a school age girl. It very cleverly weaves in the stories of personal challenges told by St. Therese herself in her autobiography "Story of a Soul". I am so greateful to have found a book for my tween daughters that is interesting, innocent, sweet, and yet very real.

Absolutely wonderful book!!!!! I enjoyed it so much and realized that I liked to do some of the same things Olivia does and that I have some of the same flaws that she does. In this book, Olivia Thomas is just learning about her grandma's favorite saint; Saint Therese of Lisieux. She is learning how to practice the little way of Saint Therese and realizes how difficult it can be sometimes, especially since she is moving to a new state and a new school, where she has to make new friends. Soon she is being influenced by some bad companions and feels very regretful of her actions, especially when she gets punished. Soon she starts trying to follow the little way even more and prays to Saint Therese for guidance. Of course I won't tell you anymore of the story and spoil it for you, but you get the picture. Absolutely wonderful Catholic book! I hope there are many more in the series to come!

I had heard plenty of rave reviews about Olivia and the Little Way, by Nancy Carabio Belanger, a middle grade/intermediate novel that's been out a while, but it wasn't until I received a copy for some review work I do for the Catholic Writers Guild that I finally had a chance to read it.

Boy, I wish I hadn't waited!

This is a novel that, middle grade or not, is perfect for a wide range of readers. My mother-in-law saw me reading it and asked me about it. My raving convinced her that she would be borrowing it next. Her reading it has convinced my eight-year-old (non-Catholic) niece that she is next. I have an idea of about three other girls who will love it, if I ever get it back long enough to lend it to them.

What makes it so compelling? First, it's that although fifth grader Olivia seems too good to be true at first, we find out that she's as human as we are. She wonders where God is and why in the world she has to struggle the way she does. She tries hard, but thanks to her grandma, finds that through devotion to St. Therese, the Little Flower, that she's able to better grasp some of the more difficult aspects of living.

Throughout the book, we get glimpses of St. Therese's philosophy (which is worth reading all on its own, by the way) and of a real person's approach to it. For those of us who are not as used to this whole saint thing works, we find that it's neither inappropriate nor inaccessible.

Just as Anna Mei reminded me about the trials of this age, Olivia made me appreciate my adult status all the more. (Not gloat about it, mind you, but appreciate it.) It also made me understand, a little more clearly, some of the struggles that face today's youth.

Highly recommended, and sure to be a well-worn favorite in my house (though I may have to get a second copy!).

This beautiful, heartwarming story creates such a wonderful perspective for girls to understand how to deal with difficult situations without compromising their values. My 8 year old could not put the book down and through the process increased her use of the St. Therese chaplet mentioned in the story. What a wonderful way to gain a deeper understanding of putting ourselves aside.