Twenty Tales of Irish Saints [Paperback]

Alice Curtayne (Author), Theodore Schluenderfritz (Illustrator)

Book Description

By Alice Curtayne Saints have over the years inspired many tales that go beyond what we know about them. These pious fictions are delightful and can even be instructive. For the lovely legends of the saints that have come down to us reflect not only the holiness but also the gaiety of the saints. These Irish legends are in that tradition. Patrick, Brigid, Columcille — “the three brightest jewels in Ireland’s crown” — are here, and Canice, Finbarr, Cormac, Finnian, Brendan, Gall, and others. Here’s the moving story of what happened when Patrick baptized the daughters of the King of Connaught and the shocking tale of the spike that pierced Aengus, the courageous Prince of Munster, just as Patrick baptized him.You’ll read about the spilled jar of milk that led Adamnan to become the Abbot of Iona; how Colman’s alarm clocks (a mouse and a rooster) took turns waking him; and a dozen or so other charming tales. Alice Curtayne brings to these legends of Irish saints a rich grasp and a deep love of the Catholic faith of her native Ireland. She has unerringly chosen stories which will appeal to readers young and old and she tells them with the poetry and feeling that mark the work of every true Irish storyteller.

Product Details

• Paperback: 161 pages
• Publisher: Sophia Institute Press (February 15, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1928832385
• ISBN-13: 978-1928832386
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #973,298 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great for 3rd - 5th grade boys of Irish identity, October 7, 2005

By 

Miryam Shoresh (Adirondack Mountains, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Twenty Tales of Irish Saints (Paperback)

This book would be good for building up the pride of especially Irish American boys. While there is one 9 page chapter on St. Brigid out of this 20 chapter 178 page book, most are of Irish priests who went sailing elsewhere as missionaries or who dealt with scary situations. The writing is not particularly good, though it is not bad writing. The version I read was published in 1955. I have found that a number of books on saints written before Vatican II were not written as well as those written after Vatican II, though I do not know the reason for that. Maybe before Vatican II reading books on saints was more popular, so the writing did not have to have the same quality for selling as those written after that time. There are very few pictures in this book and the ones which are there are black and white, so the child would need to be of an age where pictures are not important.
This book includes stories on the following saints:
Adamnan.......Benignus.......Brendan.......Brigid.......Canice.......Ciaran.......Colman of Kilmacduagh.......Colman-Elo.......Columbanus.......Columcille.......Cormac.......Finbarr.......Finnian.......Flannan.......Gall.......Laurence O'Toole.......Modomnoc.......Patrick.......Thaddeus MacCarthy.......The monk who heard the bird sing for 150 years.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful and hard to put down!, December 19, 2010

By 

Matthew (Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Twenty Tales of Irish Saints (Paperback)

Twenty Tales of Irish Saints by Alice Curtayne is a delightful book for people of all ages. Fascinating, interesting, and edifying, you will not want to put this book down.

The author puts finishing polish on each story so that it's bedside-ready for telling to your children. You don't have to be a teacher or experienced storyteller to make the story understandable and accessible to young minds. She includes any explanations, context, or other necessary information before the story proper. Moreover, like any good storyteller, she piques the interest of the reader (or listener) before she tells the story.

The tales themselves are delightful. Most are edifying as well as enthralling. Again and again we meet with fervent Irish men wanting to serve God in the most complete manner by becoming a priest -- and pursuing that goal with typical Irish zeal. We see heroic examples of trust in God, obedience, the virtue of religion, and many other virtues. The book is a cross-section of the Golden Age of Ireland, when the Emerald Isle's main export was fervent Catholic priests.

Reading this book was a real pleasure. I would highly recommended it to Catholics who want to become acquainted with sanctity. Reading about these saints helps us to know how a real saint speaks and behaves, and we are edified by their behavior. Getting acquainted with these early Irish saints helps us develop a deeper love and appreciation for the Catholic Faith, which meant so much to these holy men and women that they were willing to give up everything for it. It would be even more special for those who have some Irish heritage.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun tales about Irish Saints, September 23, 2010

By 

Karen in Mommyland (NJ) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Twenty Tales of Irish Saints (Paperback)

I recently had the pleasure of reading Twenty Tales of Irish Saints by Alice Curtayne. This book is a lovely collection of legends about some of Irelands saints.

I found all of the tales to be well written and quite delightful. My nine year old daughter has been enjoying reading about Ireland's saints. She's used to reading books about saints that are a bit more dry, so she was surprised at the lighter tone of this book. Of course, just because this book is fun doesn't mean your child won't be learning about the saints. Children who read these stories will still learn what makes these twenty saints so special and how they chose to serve our Lord.

This book is best suited to an older child who will happily read a book that isn't illustrated. There are many little illustrations worked into the capital letters that are "illuminated" throughout the book, but there are no full page illustrations found in the book. The lack of illustrations does not detract from the book in my opinion, but I know such things are important to some people when they are looking for a book for their child.

I found the author's storytelling to be very engaging. A child who is interested in reading about saints and Ireland will be sure to delight in reading this book. I liked that my child was able to learn a bit about her Irish heritage while reading this book. I believe the original intended audience of this book was Irish children based on the fact that the author makes many references to regions of Ireland and local customs that she references the reader already knowing about. In those instances, a reader who is not native to the emerald isle may feel like they're out of the loop. I suppose when it comes to references to specific regions, it might not be a bad idea to have a map of Ireland so your child could plot out where in Ireland each saint lived.

Overall, it's a nice book that is sure to captivate and enthrall many young minds.

I was provided with a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher, Sophia Institute Press, in exchange for my honest review.