The Liturgical Year by Joan Chittister

Having spent her entire life tracing and re-tracing the steps of the liturgical cycle, Ms. Chittister reaches out to her readers with a fresh, poignant exploration of the deep meaning this ancient rite embodies and the enormous impact it exerts on our lives when consciously observed.

Ms. Chittister begins with a discussion on the purpose of the liturgical year. After that, most of book is spent walking readers through the year's events in order. The author explains the origin and reason for each, discussing events' importance to both individuals and the Church as a whole.

I believe the full impact of this book's message will take multiple readings to really grasp. Ms. Chittister's vibrant passion for her subject is evident on every page, the truths she shares clearly accumulated over a lifetime of faith and seeking.

I appreciated the author's generous comprehension that not all readers will be familiar with her subject; her explanations are sufficient for readers new to the subject, but not so over-simplified as to insult readers familiar with it.

There were some distractingly awkward sentences in the first half of the book, but they cleared up by the second half and the prose evened out to a more comfortable pace.

I especially appreciated that the author neither ignored, shied away from, nor threw dismissive platitudes at potentially thorny questions. Her ability to address matters with grace and calm stood out as a perfect demonstration of the principles she writes about in the rest of the work.

[Please note that BookSneeze provided me a free copy of this book for the purpose of this review, but my opinion is my own and unbiased.]