Catholic Literary Giants: A Field Guide to the Catholic Literary Landscape Paperback – September 17, 2014

Great introduction to the Catholic literary masters of the 19th and 20th Century. Entertaining and insightful. I found myself reading some of the prose and literature in real time as titles were mentioned throughout the book; this made it an interactive project for me which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Joseph Pearce does an amazing job of putting the writers' works in context of their times and gives a tantalizing insight into their various literary genres. His inclusion of the adversaries' positions with which these writers dealt gives a balanced view of the battle for the hearts, minds, and souls of the readers for whom their literary efforts were intended - a battle which continues.

This book takes the reader into the journey of Catholic literature, and is imbued with Catholic insight and wisdom. Fantastic to read.

A remarkable tour-de-force that allows the reader to sample from an impressive array of literary figures. While due attention is paid to more recognizable greats like Greene, Tolkien and Waugh - not to mention Shakespeare and Dante! - Pearce includes others like Benson and Baring, whose shining lights have been clouded by our modern culture. Their relative obscurity today says much more about the degraded state of our literary environment than it does about their prodigious talents.This is an ideal book to keep bedside or alongside as one travels, since the pieces are shorter and are perfectly suited to brief reading opportunities.

This is an excellent book for lovers of good literature. Joseph Pearce knows his subject and links it with the Faith. It deserves at least five stars. Read the book!

The sub-title promises a field guide. A field guide is what I wanted, and this is not it. I looked to Joseph Pearce as one uniquely positioned within the world of Catholic letters to provide such a guide, but "Catholic Literary Giants" widely misses the mark, and what a shame that is. His prose and content is as erudite and compelling as always, so the book has its charm and power to inform, but it was a field guide I wanted. It looks as if the sub-title of the book was one of those ideas that sounded good at the time, but wasn't. However, if you want a fireside survey of the already super-famous, -- the "giants" -- this is for you.As a relatively new Catholic, and one interested in evangelizing through the arts, particularly through Catholic fiction, I not only wanted a field guide for myself, I wanted it for my shop. How do you find Catholic literature? I've scrounged a few on my own, but I was counting on a leader in the field to help me out. Some of my favorite authors don't make the cut, and I guess that stands to reason, as they are not "Catholic Literary Giants." I'm sorry that, from Pearce's book, other Catholics like myself will not find any clue to lesser mortals such as Henry Morton Robinson ("The Cardinal), Louis Hemon ("Maria Chapdelaine"), Rumer Godden ("In This House of Brede," and many others), A. J. Cronin ("The Keys of the Kingdom"), T. M. Doran ("Toward the Gleam"), and even the strong and fascinating contemporary writer, Michael D. O'Brien ("Father Elijah" and many others), all of whom I have read and found most worthwhile.Why is this hard? And why doesn't it occur to someone like Mr. Pearce to make himself useful (and not just famous) by creating a true field guide to Catholic literature? This is most frustrating for me, and a missed opportunity for him.

Outstanding writing and a wealth of knowledge about these wonderful writers who were Catholic. Highly recommended.

I was very impressed and delighted with this book,and was made aware of the accomplishments of these literary giants of the 20th century.They spoke the truth to a world in need of enlightenment, when it was sorely needed.I recomend this book for anyone interested in improving their knowledge of religious belief as it pertains to politics, and literature.

Good