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Twelve Classic Books from the Saints Everyone Should Read
We need some timeless reads these days
As anyone who has been reading my ramblings for any length of time knows, I have an affinity for the saints that is second only to my love for Bruce Springsteen. Some would argue that this order is obviously backward, should be reversed immediately, and shows a clear defect in my character, spiritual and otherwise. To that I say ask me again once Bruce has shuffled off this mortal coil, had two miracles attributed to his intercession (most likely through the playing of “Born to Run”), been canonized, and had a statue erected under the high altar in St. Peter’s Basilica.
I also have a love of classic books, and today I want to combine those two favorite things: books and the saints, or more correctly books about the saints by the saints. I wrote an article last year about a few of the books that influenced the saints (besides the Bible, of course), but did not specifically recommend any. I want to correct that today, for several reasons.
The first is one you may have encountered yourself with regard to older books. Most of the twelve books I am recommending today have been in the public domain for centuries, which means they are fair game for “publishers” who have no qualms about cutting the text from the Project Gutenberg website, pasting it into a Word document, and publishing it through Amazon, all without ever even checking for spelling or formatting errors. There are so many of these out there that I have thus far been unable to find a reputable version of G.K. Chesterton’s biography of St. Francis of Assisi.
Fortunately, quality copies of the books listed here (and many more) have been published by Tan Books and can be ordered either directly from them or purchased on Amazon. The paperback versions have beautiful covers, as you can see from the image above, and they also offer five of the titles in leatherette hardcover editions.
A second reason I am recommending these today is because, frankly, they need to be read. All have far more than just theological value; they have historical value as well, both from a literary and straight history standpoint. For example, St. Bonaventure’s biography of St. Francis was written in 1263, less than forty years after…
