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Saint Training
'Dear Reverend Mother,
'My name is Mary Clare O'Brian and I am in sixth grade. I would like to join the convent right after eighth grade before I start liking boys too much. I'm already having problems with boys liking me. Gregory in my class throws spitballs at me and told my best friend he likes me. I haven't told him that I want to be God's bride yet. Do you think I shou
...moreHardcover, 239 pages
Published
August 24th 2010
by Zonderkidz
(first published July 27th 2010)
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Mary Clare is not the most likeable character. Maybe that is because I see too much of myself in her. She is sure that the route to sainthood is through keeping careful track of her sins and confessing them. Not content with becoming a nun, she plans to be the Mother Superior. She even begins a correspondence with the Superior of a convent by asking the requirements for her job. Mary Clare’s concern with sainthood is humorous, but how many of us focus on obeying the rules more than enjoying God’...more
This book is about a 12 year old girl who wants to be a nun when she grows up. More specifically, she wants to be the Mother Superior of the convent. She writes to a convent to tell them what she wants and ask questions.
That is the basic premise of the book, but in reality there is SO MUCH more going on. It is based in the late 60s, a time of a lot of change in the Catholic church. The main character is trying to do good while still trying to decide what is ok and what isn't.
The Vietnam war is...more
That is the basic premise of the book, but in reality there is SO MUCH more going on. It is based in the late 60s, a time of a lot of change in the Catholic church. The main character is trying to do good while still trying to decide what is ok and what isn't.
The Vietnam war is...more
Mary Clare O'Brian wants to be a nun. Well, REALLY, she wants to be Mother Superior. And if we're being completely honest, she wants to be a saint. This is historical fiction set in the late 1960s and she's full of bargains with God. She'll be the best person ever if things start getting better for her family. But they don't. Her mom starts acting weird and her brother gets drafted and then her mom scandalizes the neighborhood by wanting to get a job outside the home.
I loved this book. Faith is...more
I loved this book. Faith is...more
This book was recommended to me by a Catholic sister who is the librarian in our grade school. She loved the book but said it wasn't appropriate for a grade school library. To be honest, although this is written for kids, I think this is a book that will be most appreciated by the target audience's mothers or even grandmothers.
This is not to say I didn't like the book. I loved it! But most of the kids that I know have never seen a nun in full habit unless they've watched an old movie. They have...more
This is not to say I didn't like the book. I loved it! But most of the kids that I know have never seen a nun in full habit unless they've watched an old movie. They have...more
I thoroughly enjoyed this book mostly because I really liked Mary Clare's character- maybe because it reminds me of my life growing up the oldest of a large Catholic family.
Sixth-grader Mary Clare is the oldest girl in a large poor Catholic family. There are so many problems and issues happening in her life that she decides that if she is very good she can make bargains with God and help her family out. Her father is working away from home most of the time trying to pay the bills for the large...more
Sixth-grader Mary Clare is the oldest girl in a large poor Catholic family. There are so many problems and issues happening in her life that she decides that if she is very good she can make bargains with God and help her family out. Her father is working away from home most of the time trying to pay the bills for the large...more
Right off the bat, we need get straight that St. Teresa of Avila wrote Interior Castle and that Interior Castle is not her autobiography. St. Therese the Little Flower's autobiography is Story of a Soul. I cannot believe for one moment that a Mother Superior would make that kind of major mistake (approximately page 40 of the book) and I'm quite surprised neither the author nor the various people mentioned in the author's acknowledgement caught that mistake. For a story around the correspondence...more
This book was not what I expected at all. From reading the blurb, I expected it to be a light-hearted read. It was not. Instead it was a coming of age novel set in the midst of Vietnam, Civil Rights, Vatican II, the women's right movement, and set in a traditional, Catholic family.
The premise of the book is that Mary Clare O'Brian (a girl raised in a large Catholic family, going to Catholic school) wants to become a Mother Superior and a Saint and begins writing a Mother Superior to find out how...more
The premise of the book is that Mary Clare O'Brian (a girl raised in a large Catholic family, going to Catholic school) wants to become a Mother Superior and a Saint and begins writing a Mother Superior to find out how...more
This free download to my Kindle is a YA novel, featuring a 12-yo Catholic girl who wants to be a saint. Her preoccupation with sin, her standng as the oldest girl in her family of 9 chldren (translating to a lot of work and responsibilities at home), her friendships, her family's lack of money because of the size of the family, etc all conspire to turn her into a charming girl -- I liked her -- she is open and honest, curious, and delightful. I recommend this book to anyone who likes to read abo...more
I won this book as part of the Goodreads First Reads Program.
I'm not sure what I expected from this book, but it wasn't that. I think, given the description, cover, etc I expected it to be comical, a light, fun book. (Something I very much needed after some of the heavy things I've ready lately!) But it wasn't. It was just what it said, the story of a girl who wanted to be a nun. It was her struggle with the change of times in the 60's, her mother's new independence (school! a job!), a family of...more
I'm not sure what I expected from this book, but it wasn't that. I think, given the description, cover, etc I expected it to be comical, a light, fun book. (Something I very much needed after some of the heavy things I've ready lately!) But it wasn't. It was just what it said, the story of a girl who wanted to be a nun. It was her struggle with the change of times in the 60's, her mother's new independence (school! a job!), a family of...more
I received this book as a goodreads giveaway winner.
This is a sweet coming of age story set in 1968. Mary Claire is in 6th grade and struggling with her huge family with lots of money problems as well as social unrest in her state and dramatic changes in her church and faith. She makes a deal with God at the beginning of the book if he fixes her family's money woes she will become a saint and the best way to do that is to join a convent. She writes letters to the mother superior at a nearby con...more
This is a sweet coming of age story set in 1968. Mary Claire is in 6th grade and struggling with her huge family with lots of money problems as well as social unrest in her state and dramatic changes in her church and faith. She makes a deal with God at the beginning of the book if he fixes her family's money woes she will become a saint and the best way to do that is to join a convent. She writes letters to the mother superior at a nearby con...more
It's not that I didn't like reading this book - I did and it was actually much more than I expected of it in the first place. While it is the coming-of-age story of an eleven-year old girl in the 1960s, it touches on so many other issues: large families, financial difficulties, the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights Movement, the Feminist movement, the Catholic Church, faith in general - just to mention a few. I found the main protagonist's inner struggle, to figure out what is good and bad, what wou...more
A light yet thoughtful read that discusses issues of faith through a young Catholic girl's (Mary Clare) eyes in the 1960's. Her family life also plays a huge role in challenging her religious beliefs--a brother who is threatened with the draft, a mother who decides to work outside the home, and a father who seems traditional, but later shows his tolerance of others in supporting Civil Rights demonstrations.
Anyone who's considered spirituality or religious beliefs outside of what they've been tol...more
Anyone who's considered spirituality or religious beliefs outside of what they've been tol...more
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Mary Clare is 11 years old and the oldest girl of 9 children in a large Catholic family in 1967. She makes a deal with God that if He will provide their cash-strapped family with more money, she will become a saint...MC strikes up a correspondence with a Mother Superior of a convent in a nearby state and asks her all the tough questions...but in the end finds out that even Mother Superior doesn't have all the answers about God and His ways....and that everyone's beliefs and ways of seeing God ar...more
REVIEW: Saint Training
Fixmer, E. (2010). Saint Training. Grand Rapids, MI: Zonderkidz.
233 pages.
Appetizer: It's the spring of 1967 and sixth grader Mary Clare O'Brian has begun to write letters to the Mother Superior of a convent asking for advice. Mary Clare has the goal of becoming a saint. But with all the daily complications of having to look after her many brothers and sisters, her mother's fascination with reading The Feminine Mystique and a competition to write an essay on "What a religio...more
Fixmer, E. (2010). Saint Training. Grand Rapids, MI: Zonderkidz.
233 pages.
Appetizer: It's the spring of 1967 and sixth grader Mary Clare O'Brian has begun to write letters to the Mother Superior of a convent asking for advice. Mary Clare has the goal of becoming a saint. But with all the daily complications of having to look after her many brothers and sisters, her mother's fascination with reading The Feminine Mystique and a competition to write an essay on "What a religio...more
Mary Clare has purposed in her heart to commit her life to serving God and the Catholic church, becoming a mother superior in her quest for perfection. A topic this serious should not be laugh-out-loud funny, but it is. With Saint Training, Elizabeth Fixmer has written a delightful novel for the middle grades that is a funny read for children and adults alike.
Mary Clare is the oldest daughter in a very large family. She takes on the weight of too little money for the family’s needs, too much wor...more
Mary Clare is the oldest daughter in a very large family. She takes on the weight of too little money for the family’s needs, too much wor...more
This was a Goodreads First Reads Giveaway, and I thought it was absolutely wonderful. Mary Clare is an 11 year old girl in 1967 whose family is going through a really rough time. To combat the problems she sees tearing her family apart, she decides that she needs to become a saint. To do so, she elicits the help of a Mother Superior who runs a nunnery that places the babies of unwed mothers with good, Catholic parents. It's a coming of age story on a different scope of some, like Judy Blume, in...more
I thought this was a very enjoyable read. The heroine, a sixth grade girl named Mary Clare thinks that she will "bargain" with god and become a saint or a Mother Superior if god brings happiness and financial security to her parents..
It had me laughing from the get go. "I would like to join the convent right after eighth grade before I start liking boys too much. I'm already having problems with boys liking me. Gregory in my class, throws spitballs at me and told my best friend he likes me."
As...more
It had me laughing from the get go. "I would like to join the convent right after eighth grade before I start liking boys too much. I'm already having problems with boys liking me. Gregory in my class, throws spitballs at me and told my best friend he likes me."
As...more
Though I am not at all Catholic, I wanted to read this book about a young, conflicted Catholic girl because my husband is very much an adult, conflicted, Catholic male. The main character in "Saint Training" is a sixth grader who starts the book wanted to become a nun, goes to a Catholic school, and helps take care of her large family. It's a short book, filled with all the heartbreak any kid goes through. I read it in one sitting, and my heart aches for Mary Clare & what she goes through wi...more
This book was more serious -- and better -- than I expected it to be when I picked it up off the free book table at work because it was pink, and my lunchtime reading level of concentration was low. The writing and structure are still clumsy in parts, and I'm not sure I love how the letter-writing is conducted in the pages. But I do appreciate the main character's growth and I think the author does a good job of telegraphing that through the novel. Overall, it was worth the time.
Having been brought up catholic I found it a humorous look at a traditional catholic family from the late sixties. It touches on the civil rights movement, vatican II, and a youth's interpretation of her religion. One moment you are laughing and the next tearing up. I enjoyed the main characters correspondence with a mother superior and how they showed her maturing and grasping some serious concepts. It was a quick read yet insightful and entertaining. I would recommend it!!
I read this book as a "pre-read" for a younger teenager. It was cute but since the author states that it is semi - autobiographic, I was bothered by a few details. Most notably, the Mother Superior in the story does not seem to know the difference between St Teresa of Avila and St Therese of Liseaux (The Little Flower) and the books that were written by the saints. This is minor to the story but major to me and my children :-)
I enjoyed this book a lot. I was curious to see how she handled the Catholicism, but I thought it was handled in a way that respected any viewpoint, except perhaps the most hard line. I enjoyed the protagonist's journey and those of her family. I liked that her father struggled with the way the world and the church were changing and he wasn't just rejecting those changes out of hand, but wasn't won over easily either.
This is a GREAT book for someone who grew up in a small town in Wisconsin and attended Catholic school in the 1960's as I did. The main character is a wonderful, thought-filled 6th grade girl. However, the book is targeted to 9-12 year olds but I can't even begin to imagine this book would even make sense to this age group in general. Possibly kids in Catholic school in historical context...but beyond that, I don't think so.
Dec 13, 2010
Elaine
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
kindle,
free-kindle-finds
Mary Clare thinks she wants to be a nun. So begins her writing to Reverend Mother Monica. They form a friendship through the mail - a platform where Mary Clare, not only speaks of her concerns about God and Catholicism, but asks questions to the Reverend Mother as well.
Mary Clare thinks she needs to try to be good and that that will keep her from additional days spent in purgatory after she dies. Ah, but if that's the case, then she'll have to take the credit for her own salvation.
The Catholic...more
Mary Clare thinks she needs to try to be good and that that will keep her from additional days spent in purgatory after she dies. Ah, but if that's the case, then she'll have to take the credit for her own salvation.
The Catholic...more
Well, I read a blurb about this book after Sheila (who rarely reads fiction) recommended it highly. So I got it on my kindle and I am going to give it a go........the small details in this book about the catholic school life are amazingly accurate. It could have been California. I'm not sure what I expected in terms of plot or storyline, but it was a little underwhelming. Still not bad for a first time author of a YA novel.
There were moments when I loved Mary Claire, but other times it felt like the author was trying to cram too much in to her already crazy life. With so many siblings in their traditional Catholic family, she already had a lot to handle. But instead of the giant changes in culture being a backdrop for the story, each issue had to take center stage every few pages. Here is just a sample: Vietnam, draft dodging, pot smoking, the Feminine Mystique, Vatican II, birth control, miscarriage...
Very good book about a girl growing up in 1967. She experiences many changes over the summer of '67 within her family, in her religion, and in politics. The reader sees the women's liberation movement, the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, Vatican II, and the 60's in general through the eyes of a 6th-soon-to-be-7th grader. That might seem like a lot to pack into a book that's just a little over 200 pages, but the author does a really good job of not overwhelming the reader. All of these is...more
I would probably give this 3.5 stars if it was an option. This book is coming of age story of a young girl in a Catholic family going to a Catholic school in the 60s who wants to become a nun and a saint. Althought I grew-up later than Mary Clare,I am a Catholic school survivor and could relate to several themes in her story. It was a nice change of pace to read something from a child's perspective.
I won this book here on goodreads in the Goodreads First Reads Giveaway.
It seemed like a charming book and at first i was excited. It was first contest i had won. But I soon realized this wasnt really my kind of book. It was more of a coming of age novel. I recommend it more towards grades 6-8 or parents of younger children. over all it was a sweet novel but just not right for me.
It seemed like a charming book and at first i was excited. It was first contest i had won. But I soon realized this wasnt really my kind of book. It was more of a coming of age novel. I recommend it more towards grades 6-8 or parents of younger children. over all it was a sweet novel but just not right for me.
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Dec 06, 2012 08:37pm