The Cure D'Ars Today: St John Vianney

Rating:
Summary: Ok, but not as good as the author thinks it is!
Review: George Rutler is one of the shining stars of the Catholic right. He's had his own show on Mother Angelica's network, his videos are for sale in conservative Catholic bookstores, and he's written a few books that are highly touted among conservative Catholics. I haven't read all of them, only his book on St. John Vianney, the patron saint of parish priests. Frankly, I wasn't impressed with it. This book is a bad imitation of Chesterton, written exclusively for an audience of like minded persons as the author. His smug self-rightousness didn't leave me wanting to run out and buy his "complete works." You can almost hear him patting himself on the back after what he regards as a particularly clever statement. It's not a bad book if you agree with absolutely everything the author says. In fact, his world would be a pretty nice one to live in. The real world, however, the one most people live in from day to day, doesn't bear much of a resemblance to this guy's depiction of it.

Rating:
Summary: Ok, but not as good as the author thinks it is!
Review: It's an inspiring story, and Rutler writes a wonderful look at his life. It's a good read, but is very intellectual and philosophical - not your typical book about all the great God does thru the Saint but rather those great things in the context of life in St. John Vianney's time. Not for a lazy reader - it's too full of deep ideas.

Rating:
Summary: excellent thoughts on the life of St. John Vianney
Review: It's an inspiring story, and Rutler writes a wonderful look at his life. It's a good read, but is very intellectual and philosophical - not your typical book about all the great God does thru the Saint but rather those great things in the context of life in St. John Vianney's time. Not for a lazy reader - it's too full of deep ideas.