In this amusing, delectable book, Phyllis McGinley succeeds in rescuing the saints from their pious niches to show to people of all faiths, or none, the personalities and deeds of these wondrous beings and how they are related to living today.
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More About the Author
Phyllis McGinley was born on March 21, 1905, in Ontario, Oregon. In 1908, the family relocated to Colorado; they moved to Ogden, Utah, after the death of McGinley's father. McGinley was educated at the University of Southern California and at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. After receiving her diploma in 1927, she taught for a year in Ogden and then at a junior high school in New Rochelle, New York. Once she had begun to establish a reputation for herself as a writer, McGinley gave up teaching and moved to New York City, where she held various jobs, including copywriter at an advertising agency and poetry editor for Town and Country. She married Charles Hayden in 1937, and the couple moved to Larchmont, New York. The suburban landscape and culture of her new home was to provide the subject matter of much of McGinley's work.
McGinley was elected to the National Academy of Arts and Letters in 1955. She was the first writer to win the Pulitzer for her light verse collection, Times Three: Selected Verse from Three Decades with Seventy New Poems (1960). McGinley's other books of poetry include Confessions of a Reluctant Optimist (Hallmark Editons, 1973); Love Letters (1954); Stones from a Glass House (1946); A Pocketful of Wry (1940); One More Manhattan (1937); and On the Contrary (1934). In addition to poetry, McGinley wrote essays and children's books, as well as the lyrics for the 1948 musical revue Small Wonder. She died February 22, 1978, in New York City.
(biography from poets.org)
McGinley was elected to the National Academy of Arts and Letters in 1955. She was the first writer to win the Pulitzer for her light verse collection, Times Three: Selected Verse from Three Decades with Seventy New Poems (1960). McGinley's other books of poetry include Confessions of a Reluctant Optimist (Hallmark Editons, 1973); Love Letters (1954); Stones from a Glass House (1946); A Pocketful of Wry (1940); One More Manhattan (1937); and On the Contrary (1934). In addition to poetry, McGinley wrote essays and children's books, as well as the lyrics for the 1948 musical revue Small Wonder. She died February 22, 1978, in New York City.
(biography from poets.org)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
a humor-filled, insightful and earthy book,
By A Customer
This review is from: Saint-Watching (Thomas More Book to Live) (Unbound)
I absolutely love Phyllis McGinley's "Saint-Watching." It is a book filled with humor, wit, and honesty. It is a treasure that should have a much larger reading audience. Even if this is not an area you have ever had an interest in, I recommend it most highly to you. The saints used to be a big deal. Time has changed all that. Still, what is the meaning of the word "saint" in the present day? While the saints surely still serve as guides to a few, they have taken on an air of incomprehensibility for many others. Even most Christians have a hard time with what the term "saint" means. All too often when we speak of saints in modern times, images of the self-hating joyless ascetic spring to mind. The only problem is that most of the people we call saints were the furthest thing from these images. What Phyllis McGinley restores to the image of the saints is their basic humanity. These women and men were no different from you or I. Some were shockingly earthy. Some did indeed live among the clouds. All loved their Savior with great fervor. The stories contained in "Saint-Watching" are insightful and very entertaining. I recommend them wholeheartedly to you. Find a copy of this book and see for yourself.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Little Book,
By Maureen M. "maura" (Evanston, IL USA) - See all my reviews
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Although this book is out of print, I would highly recommend checking library shelves for it. The author shares delightful stories of the saints, as she knocks off the plaster casts and tells of their humanity.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Joe in Florida,
By Joe in Florida (Florida) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Saint-Watching (Hardcover)
A wonderful new insight into the lives and accomplishments of many of the important (and not so important) saints.
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