The Jungle Book: The Mowgli Stories (NorthSouth Books)

Rudyard Kipling was born on December 30, 1865. That was a little over 150 years ago. To celebrate the birth of this amazing writer, NorthSouth Books has published a beautiful edition of The Jungle Book: The Mowgli Stories. Many of us know the bare minimum of The Jungle Book story thanks to Walt Disney's popular movie, but there is so much more to the story than Disney showed us. Allow me to tell you about it. The book is divided into sixteen chapters and contains the familiar characters, we've all come to know. There is Mowgli, Baloo the bear, Akela the wolf, Bagheera the panther, Hathi the elephant, Kaa the python, and Shere Khan tiger.

In the first chapter, we see are introduced to Mother Wolf and Father Wolf. They are part of Akela's pack and have just had a litter of pups. While they are tending to their young, a young boy (Mowgli) wandered to them. At first they didn't know what to make of him and were worried, but they decided to adopt him as their own. Shere Khan did not like this and wanted Mowgli for his own, so he could eat him. The wolves protected him and after Shere Khan fled, they took him to Akela. Listening to Mother and Father Wolf vouch for the young boy, Mowgli was accepted into the pack. His mentors became Akela, Baloo, and Bagheera. The stories in this book take us all through Mowgli's childhood. We see him abducted by monkeys, fight Shere Khan, and actually attempt to rejoin a human village. After each chapter, there is a poem that relates to the story we just heard. Thus, this book is both prose and poetry and a beautiful mix at that.

So why would you want to purchase a book that is in public domain? For starters, you are getting a fine hardcover, which to some might not sound like a lot, but to me is worth its weight in gold. With so many books, now being ebooks or paperbacks, it's getting harder and harder to find quality publishing. The other big selling point of this book is the illustrations. They are not on every page, but they are still abundant. The illustrator, Aljoscha Blau, shows a level of detail in them that draw you in and keep you coming back to look at them. They not only complement the stories, but elevate them to another level. NorthSouth Books is a publisher I don't have a great deal of familiarity with, but if these are the kind of books they produce, they have a new fan and supporter. Be sure to check out some of their other beautiful hardcovers, including Heidi and The Seven Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor.

This book was provided to me for free by NorthSouth Books in exchange for an honest review. If you found this review helpful, please click here and hit Yes!

Meditations on Mary (Sophia Institute Press)

If it feels like you went to Mass a lot these past two weeks, you're not alone. Christmas was on a Friday and then Sunday Mass. January 1 was a holy day of obligation (Mary, Mother of God), and then Sunday Mass again. Four times in two weeks may seem like a lot to non-daily Mass goers like myself, but it was a good way to end and start the new year. Ash Wednesday and Lent are a little over a month away, so what are you going to be reading until it gets here? Allow me to recommend to you Meditations on Mary.

Meditations on Mary is a 150 page book by Bishop Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet, author of Meditations for Advent and Meditations for Lent. The first meditation in this book is appropriately entitled "The True Eve." I say appropriately, because the Bible begins with Adam and Eve. In this opening meditation, Bossuet quotes several Church Fathers who compare Eve and Mary. "St. Irenaeus: 'Condemned to death by a virgin, the human race was saved by a Virgin.' Tertullian: ' What was led astray into perdition by this sex was restored to salvation by this sex.' And the incomparable Augustine: 'By a woman, death; by a woman, life. By Eve, ruin; By Mary, salvation.' " Bossuet is quick to point out that Mary's honor does not put her on equal ground with God, but instead she played an important role in salvation history.

In other meditations, we get different glimpses of Mary. For example, in one meditation we see that Jesus created Mary for Himself. Jesus is responsible for all of Creation, and He created other people to teach us and instruct us, but Mary was made for Him and she was made pure and innocent because of His love for her. In the meditation "Pierced by a Sword," we learn of Mary's deep sorrow she experienced at Jesus' death. Bossuet poetically explains that, "Only one Cross was required for both her beloved son and herself." This is not to diminish what Christ experienced on the Cross, but to explain the depth of love that a mother feels for her son, that Mary felt for Jesus. As a father, I know what it is to love a child, but I believe there is a special love between mothers and their children.

There are twenty-four meditations in all, each around five pages or less. This makes this book the perfect companion for that short span of Ordinary Time between Christmas and Lent. The meditations are poignant and beautiful and serve as a good introduction to the many facets of Mary's life. After reading through this work, you might want to read other great books on Mary, including Behold Your Mother, Little Book of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or Meet Mary. All are great books that will surely not disappoint!

This book was provided to me for free by Sophia Institute Press in exchange for an honest review. If you found this review helpful, please click here and hit Yes!

Prayer Ropes (OrthodoxCrafts.com)

It's a brand new year and a lot of us are going to make every effort to grow closer to God in this coming year. However, we cannot do this on our own and will need the help of both people and spiritual tools to do so. The people you will find in your family and parish. The spiritual tools can come from different sources. In addition to a good translation of the Bible and other spiritually edifying books, I have found a Rosary, a prayer rope, and icons to be of immense help as well. My wife makes rosaries, so I have that covered. However, she is not versed in the art of tying Orthodox prayer ropes, so my source for those is Theophania also known as OrthodoxCrafts.com.

OrthodoxCrafts.com makes high quality wool prayer ropes in 50, 100, 150, and 300 knot formats! They also make prayer rope bracelets in 33 knot formats (pictured above). I love my 100 knot prayer rope, but it has to stay home most days, because I haven't found a good way to carry it around without it getting lost in my key-filled pockets. That's why I love the bracelet. Some people have FitBits that they wear to track and remind them that they should be working out. I have my prayer rope bracelet, which every time I look at my wrist reminds me I should be praying at all times. The prayer that you pray on these prayer ropes is simple but powerful. You simply say slowly, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." There is not set number of times per day that you can or should say this prayer, but even going at a slow pace, you can say it 33 times (length of the bracelet) in no time at all.

In addition to making prayer ropes, they also make prayer bracelets from a seed called Panagia's Tears (pictured below). The tradition goes that the plant sprouted miraculously at the spot where Jesus' Mother Mary wept at the Crucifixion. The monks living in Skete were then tasked with using the seeds from this plant to make prayer ropes from. They are truly beautiful to be behold, and in addition to praying the prayer of the heart with them, you can also reflect on the sorrow that Mary went through and unite your suffering to hers. OrthodoxCrafts.com makes truly beautiful products because everything they make is handmade, not mass produced. If you would like to frequent their store, you can click on the link in this article or on the permanent on the right side of my blog. Make you all have a blessed and prayer-filled New Year.