I’m not Catholic, but then St. Patrick was never officially canonized as a saint either. I didn’t know much about St. Patrick, and what I did know was probably false. I appreciate that this book not only sheds light on a legendary figure’s true history, but does it in a way that kids can relate to, with simple, rhyming verse. I’ve never read anything by this author, nor have I seen his art before, but I did like the illustrations in the boo; they’re engaging and detailed. With a focus on Patrick first becoming a slave in Ireland and then later returning to preach the truth of the Gospel to them, it’s a great lesson on forgiveness. Specifically, Bustard explains clearly that true forgiveness, especially of one’s enemies, is only possible with Christ. I will never think of St. Patrick’s Day the same way again.

Thank you to Netgalley and InterVarsity Press for providing me a copy of this book to review. ( )

A terrific picture book about the life of Saint Patrick. The story is told in a simple rhyming verse that will appeal to readers of all ages. It covers Patrick's life from being a slave in Ireland to his return to Britain and entering the priesthood to his return to Ireland to bring Christianity to the island. The theme of forgiveness and how hard it can be to accomplish runs throughout the story.

There is a colorful illustration for each verse, and I loved the simplicity and beauty of each picture as it related to the verse. They also incorporated Celtic symbols within the images, adding an extra touch of Irish culture.

I highly recommend this as an introduction to the story behind St. Patrick's Day.

#netgalley ( )

The best part of this book was the lovely and colorful wood cut style drawings. The book is written in a rhyming format and tells the story of St. Patrick and his life in England and Ireland. The book is not intended to be a religious one, but instead relates the life of this man and the many legends associated with him. This book woud be a good one to be shared between parents or teachers and kids.

I received this book from the publisher and from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own. ( )

Summary: A re-telling of the story of Saint Patrick, who returned to the Irish who had enslaved him, having forgiven them and preaching forgiveness through the work of Christ.

For many, Saint Patrick’s Day is a day of wearing green, of shamrocks, and drinking green beer. Chicago even dies its river green. It’s a day of partying, and drunkenness. And in it, the story of Saint Patrick, missionary to Ireland is lost. Ned Bustard, author of Saint Nicholas the Giftgiver does for Patrick what he did earlier with Saint Nicholas. He retells the story of Patrick, with eight lines of verse on the right page accompanied by one of his woodcut illustrations on the left in a read aloud book that children and parents alike will enjoy.

We learn of a young boy in Britain, of wild heart though raised in the church, carried off to slavery in Ireland. Laboring as a shepherd, God’s Spirit gives grace and faith tp believe and eventually sends him a vision that a ship is ready to take him home, and after a two hundred mile walk, he finds it is so. He is joyfully reunited with his parents and would have remained so were it not for another vision of an Irish man carrying a letter saying, “Come walk again among us.” And so we come to the central crisis of Patrick’s life, his unforgiving heart for the people who had enslaved him. And then:

In grace God did remind me
that forgiveness is a gift.
The holy brothers taught me true
and my heart began to shift.
To the Irish I returned
with a Bible and a bell.
Because God had forgiven me
then I could forgive as well.

He recounts the favor he encountered as the High King’s son believes and gives him a barn to start a church. We learn how he used the shamrock to illustrate the Trinity. He also recounts the stories told of him driving snakes into the sea and baptizing the “naughty giant.” He summarizes his life as one of telling his Irish flock of Christ’s forgiveness, setting up schools and churches throughout the land, such that the old pagan ways have died out. The closing pages of the book, fittingly, are inspired by St. Patrick’s hymn, “Strength of Heaven.”

The simple rhyme scheme makes this an enjoyable read aloud book, enhanced by the richly detailed full color woodcuts. Printed on high quality paper and hardbound, I can see this becoming one of the books a family treasures sharing together. The story, centered around forgiveness, celebrates the real Saint Patrick, whose obedience from a transformed heart leads to a transformed country, and if How the Irish Saved Civilization is accurate, preserved learning and faith in Europe.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher. ( )

This originally appeared in Grandpappy's Corner at The Irresponsible Reader.
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WHAT'S SAINT PATRICK THE FORGIVER ABOUT?
Drawing on both legends about him and Patrick's Confessions, this book tells the life story of Patrick of Ireland for the youngest set.

It starts off with his childhood and touches briefly on his period of slavery before moving into his return home and the call to Ireland. It doesn't gloss over the hard parts of his life, but it doesn't dwell on them, either. The focus is on Patrick forgiving those who wronged him, spreading the gospel—and even teaching the Trinity via the shamrock.

The book even covers some of the myths that arose around Patrick—baptizing a giant, driving out the snakes, etc.—working that in seamlessly with the book and not distracting from the main point.

LET'S TALK ABOUT THE ART FOR A MINUTE
This art is great—it's friendly and cartoonish, with great colors and details. Bustard also weaves in traditional Celtic knots and Christian art (like elements seen in The Book of Kells, etc.). So we've got a pretty modern feel with a lot of Irish elements thrown in to ground it in Patrick's history.

Are kids going to get that? Nope. Will the adults reading it with/to the kids? Quite likely. And if not, I think they'll still appreciate it the art, even if they're not familiar with the influences Bustard is drawing from.

Click here for a two page sample (picture and text) on the Publisher's site. I'm not sure it's the image I'd have used, but it's representative.

HOW IS IT TO READ ALOUD?
It's pretty fun—the rhythm is easy and the rhymes are nice (and only one or two of them seemed like stretching things to make the rhyme).

The Grandcritter isn't around yet to listen to me read this, but I still read most of it aloud just to see how it went—I think it went pretty smoothly and I could have some fun with it.

SO, WHAT DID I THINK ABOUT SAINT PATRICK THE FORGIVER?
This was a great way to give an age-appropriate lesson in forgiveness while telling the story of one of the heroes of the faith. I was entertained, and even chuckled a couple of times.

It's a great combination of story, art, rhyme, and lesson. I can see this winning over little audiences as much as it did me. Hopefully, it'll lodge in their minds enough that they'll want to learn more about Patrick as they grow older and through him the Three-in-One that Patrick spent his life teaching about.

I strongly recommend this quick little read. ( )