Gear Up for Summer Break

July/August 2008 Issue | Posted by Tim Drake in Entertainment

Little Ones (ages 0-7)

Friends in High Places

If your children like praise and worship music, I can’t recommend this CD highly enough. It’s the best Catholic kids worship album I’ve heard, and it includes both familiar and original songs. With inspiring vocals and rousing instrumentals by Christ Music Kids, it will energize your entire family. The album would make the perfect accompaniment to a Vacation Bible School program or praise and worship at church.
A companion songbook is sold separately.

I Am a Friend of God

($15), from

ChristMusicKids.com

Beginner Fingers

Puzzles, brain researchers say, stimulate brain development, so why not get started early? Peter Rabbit First Puzzle includes four easy, color-coded puzzles of four pieces each, featuring the lovable characters from Beatrix Potter, such as Jemima Puddle-duck, Peter Rabbit, and Flopsy, Mopsy, and, Cotton-tail. These simple puzzles are perfect for toddlers. All four puzzles are packaged in a colorful box with a handle.

Peter Rabbit First Puzzle

($10), from

MudPuppy.com

A Hoot

Little Hoot puts a clever twist on the universal parent dilemma of bedtime. Little Hoot wants to go to bed when everyone else does, but his parents say he has to stay up late to play. Children who have difficulty going to bed, and their parents, will love this book.

Little Hoot

(Chronicle Books) by Amy Krouse Rosenthal ($10.19), from Amazon.com

Vacation With Angels

This complete Vacation Bible School program, written by Catholics for Catholics, is a great introduction to the world of angels, Mary as Queen of Angels, and the friendship and protection offered
by our guardian angels. This thorough program provides everything one would need to carry out
a Catholic Vacation Bible School program except for the volunteers. The complete program includes music, artwork, skits, crafts, and storybooks. Online resources and a CD also provide downloadable components of the program.

Parachute With the Angels

and St. Catherine Labouré

($299), from GrowingWithTheSaints.com

or (864) 599-5697.

Play with Grover

This DVD and accompanying interactive CD-ROM will provide both entertainment and education for little ones. The wild and lovable Grover leads children in interactive games and play such as “Super Grover Says,” and introduces concepts like opposites and size. Grover is accompanied by his friends Ernie and Bert, Prairie Dawn, and other familiar “Sesame Street” characters. Grover’s silly antics had everyone in our family laughing.

Play With Me Sesame:

Playtime With Grover

($13.49), from Amazon.com

Tim Drake lives on a hobby farm in rural Minnesota with his wife, five children, and an assortment of cats.

Big Kids (ages 8-12)

Weissdom

What does it mean to be wise? Acclaimed storyteller, Jim Weiss, in A Treasury of Wisdom: True Stories of Hope and Inspiration, recounts the lives of several historical figures who show us how to be wise. The Greek philosopher, Diogenes, teaches listeners about the pitfalls of materialism; artists Michelangelo and Raphael share a story about treating people fairly (even those we don’t like); and other stories tell about Solomon, Jesus, Alexander the Great, Beatrix Potter, and more.

A Treasury of Wisdom:

True Stories of Hope and

Inspiration ($13.45), from

GreatHall.com or (800) 477-6234.

Ingenious Index

For the Love of Literature by Maureen Wittmann will please any lit-loving family. She has gone to a lot of work to compile a
list of 950 books — Catholic or Catholic-friendly — that parents and children can use to give kids a boost in core subjects: art, music, math, science, or history. Under each subject, there is a list of recommended books, a synopsis of each book, as well as an age level recommendation. Also included are library tips, how to create a literature unit study, and more. Wittmann makes this book an enjoyable read from cover to cover.

For the Love of Literature:

Teaching Core Subjects

With Literature

(Ecce Homo Press) by Maureen Wittmann

($12.95), from CatholicTreasury.com

Musical Fun

Awarding-winning Boomwhackers are colorful plastic tubes that resonate a specific musical note. Following the color wheel, the red tube represents the “C” note, the orange tube the “D” note, the yellow is an “E” note, and so on. The notes can be played using a mallet or by hitting a tube against a surface like a table, floor, or the body — preferably not your little brother’s head! My children enjoyed the tubes more when they weren’t in the tube holder; they could get a beat going, but were free to move around.

Boomophone XTS Whack Pack

($49.98); free floating hand-held sets ($16.98-$44.98), from Boomwhackers.com or (928) 282-3860.

Giant Virtues

Both boys and girls (ages 6-10) will enjoy Stephen Mitchell’s retelling of Iron Hans. Originally a Grimms’ fairy tale, the story is about an evil giant suffering un-der a curse and how a young prince’s friendship changes both of their lives for the better. The theme of humility is woven well into this adventure story — made more exciting by Matt Tavares’s excellent illustrations.

Iron Hans

(Candlewick)

retold by Stephen

Mitchell ($14.45), from SacredHeartBooksAndGifts.com

Bible People Flash Cards

Each of the 58 Breakthrough! The Bible for Young Catholics Bible Peo-ple Flash Cards highlights a biblical figure, providing facts about the person and Scripture references. For example, the Oba-diah card tells us, among other facts, that his book is the shortest book in the Old Testa-ment — just one chapter. The cards can be used as a game, for trading, or for study and prayer.

Breakthrough! The Bible

for Young Catholics Bible

People Flash Cards

($14.95), from SMP.org or (800) 533-8095.

Lori Hadacek Chaplin is a freelance writer, teacher, wife, and mother to Ella, Gemma, and new baby Trystan.

Teens

Bottom Line

Being Catholic: The Creed is a succinct video presentation of Catholic beliefs. Straightfor-ward explanation, inspiring imagery, and solid commentary come together for a dynamic production based on the four pillars of our faith. Being Catholic is suitable for teens and young adults seeking no-frills, jargon-free religious instruction. It is also an excellent review for those preparing to receive the sacraments, and a comprehensible overview for non-Catholics wishing
to learn about the faith.

Being Catholic: The Creed

($29.99), from

VideosWithValues.org

Root of the Faith

Radix, founded in 1992, is a Catholic apostolate whose name, which means “root” in Latin, reflects the group’s message that “we are all called to go to the root of our faith” by loving God with our whole being. Radix communicates its message through a combination of drama, witness, music, and humor, both in live stage presentations and on CDs and DVDs. Features of the Radix website include Catholic news reports, information on Radix’ “boot camp” for teen boys, a video log, worthwhile links, downloads, and merchandise, plus a booking form to invite Radix to your church’s next youth event. Be sure to check out “The War Room” archives and its excellent exposition on the sacrament of confirmation.

Radix

Check it out at

RadixGuys.com

Celeste Behe, mother of nine, lives, writes, and collects cookbooks in Pennsylvania.

Adults

Frontline Faith

A collection of essays, written by talented and hip young Catholics, describes a valiant struggle with trying to follow the Catholic Code. A woman dealing with long stretches of NFP abstinence, while grimly recalling her perky instructor saying how wonderful this would be for her marriage. Or a guy feeling dreadfully embarrassed, yet morally compelled, to admonish a friend who uses pornography. Or a lesbian, living chastely even though typical apologetics on homosexuality don’t make much sense to her. These frank and witty pieces have really opened my eyes to the variety in modern Catholic orthodoxy.

Faith at the Edge

edited by Angelo Matera ($15.95), AveMariaPress.com

People Power

Radio talk show host and Catholic convert Laura Ingraham delights listeners with her wit and wisdom on stations across the country. Her latest book deals with more than just politics. It’s about what we must do to rescue our country from those forces in the media, the education establishment, and the entertainment industry that want to de-emphasize religious faith and raise a post-religious society in its place. If you’re feeling helpless in the face of society’s ills, Power to the People will get you fired up!

Power to the People

(Regnery Publishing) by Laura Ingraham ($27.95),

from Ignatius.com or (800) 651-1531.

Reality Zoo

I’m both enthralled and amused by “Meerkat Manor.” Enthralled by the high-tech quality (cameras in the burrows, GPS locator collars on the animals) and amused by Sean Astin’s reality-show narration style. The writers go overboard ascribing human vir-tues to the instinctive actions of the meer-kats, but I think this makes for some great teachable moments.

Meerkat Manor

Season 1 ($19.99), complete

Season 2 (4 DVDs, $35.95),

from Amazon.com

Something to Pray About

Women of Grace is the website of EWTN’s Johnette Benkovic. It’s worth a look for several reasons. The new “Breaking News” section features stories of interest to Catholic women from all over the world. Click the “Prayer Time” heading to find lovely, brief meditations for each day. Too busy to visit websites? Me too. So I signed up for Gracelines, a daily e-meditation. Super short, but they al-ways give you something to pray about.

Women of Grace

Check it out at

WomenOfGrace.com

E.T. Finds Home

David Gordon (John Cusack) is a successful sci-fi writer but a lonely widower who decides to adopt an emotionally disturbed 6-year-old. Social workers warn him that little Dennis (Bobby Coleman) is delusional — he believes he is a Martian — but David is undeterred. Building on his own affinity for extraterrestrial topics, David attempts to form a bond with a damaged child who has long given up on trusting anyone. My kids enjoyed this one as much as my husband and I did. Based on a true story.

Martian Child

($19.99), from

Amazon.com

How Sweet the Sound

Amazing Grace is a compelling drama that faithfully tells the story
of William Wilberforce (played by Ioan Gruffudd) — the man who made it his life’s work to bring about the end of the slave trade in England. Watching the movie, I couldn’t help but think of those who have tirelessly spent their life fighting for the rights of the unborn. John Newton (played by Albert Finney), former slave trader, minister, and composer of the song upon which the movie
is titled, encourages Wilberforce
to do what must be done.

Amazing Grace

($19.99), from

Amazon.com

— Tim Drake

Daria Sockey, mother of seven, shares a 100-year-old Pennsylvania farmhouse with her husband and golden retriever.

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