"Wherever the foot chanced to fall it rested on ashes." ~ The Great Peshtigo Fire, Adele Brice, and The Woman in the Trees

Servant of God Adele Brice surrounded by the children Our Lady called her to teach.

The National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion (originally known as Our Lady of Good Help), is the only formally approved Marian apparition site in the United States. Considering the site is near Green Bay, Wisconsin, I had at one time, in my profound ignorance, assumed that it must have something to do with the Packers various Super Bowl victories. 

But no. The site has nothing to do with Vince Lombardi, Brett Farve, or Aaron Rogers. It is much more closely associated with Our Lady, Star of the Sea, than Bart Starr. 

My general lack of knowledge about this shrine has been remedied to a reasonable degree by reading the novel The Woman in the Trees by Theoni Bell. This relatively recent work arrived among a box of books from TAN slated for our parish bookrack. I snatched it up immediately, suspecting that it would make for good Lenten reading. I was not disappointed.

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The Woman in the Trees sets out to tell the origin story of the Shrine of Our Lady of Champion through the eyes of a fictional immigrant girl from Belgium, Slainie Lafont. The story of the Shrine is told from an oblique angle which adds an enticing touch of mystery to the factual elements of the tale. Servant of God Adele Brice, the recipient of our Lady's apparition in 1859, is not one of the central characters of the book. Instead she flits in and out of the story like a guardian angel, arriving when she is most needed. Her impact on the main characters however, particularly Slainie and her irascible and immovably stubborn mother, is profound.

As a visionary, Adele does not follow the archetype set by the simple radiant beauty of Saint Bernadette. Nor does she appear like one of the wide-eyed innocents who received the locutions of Our Lady of Fatima. On the contrary, Adele had suffered a particularly horrible facial injury as a child which left her scarred and missing an eye. Yet despite her potentially frightening appearance, Adele persevered in the mission given to her by Our Lady to "gather the children in this wild country and teach them what they should know for salvation."

This novel is of that type of historical fiction that I enjoy the most in that it creates memorable characters and weaves them in, around, and through the history without making them a Pollyanna or secret genius without whom the defining events could not have happened. The novel entertains and informs at the same time. Best of all, it brings the history to life and makes the reader want to learn more about that newly settled woodland region of Wisconsin in the mid-19th century in general, and the Shrine of Our Lady of Champion in particular. Among the historical events that impact the story are the immigration of Walloons from Belgium to Wisconsin, the American Civil War, and most especially, the Great Peshtigo Fire of 1871.

If you've never heard of the Peshtigo Fire, you're not alone. Strangely enough, it happened on the same day—October 8, 1871—as the better remembered Great Chicago Fire. But as horrible as the Chicago fire may have been, the great Peshtigo Fire was much worse. In the space of 24 hours, the firestorm scorched an area of about 1.2 million acres of forest and farmland in eastern Wisconsin. The burn zone included several towns, and the fire moved so quickly, that thousands of people were unable to flee in time. The death toll was never fully determined. It was estimated that somewhere around 2,000 people were killed.

In the middle of the burn zone was the small shrine of Our Lady of Good Help and a few surrounding buildings. The shrine chapel itself was a small wooden structure which had been set up by the family of Servant of God Adele Brice at the spot where Our Lady had appeared to Adele as a young girl twelve years before. During the intervening years, as Adele's apostolate flourished, a convent and school building were added nearby the chapel. 

19th century engraving from Harper's Weekly showing the devastation wrought by the fire.

As the firestorm approached on October 8, many people from the surrounding farms and villages fled to the chapel. Led by Sister Adele, they prayed the Rosary, sang hymns, and processed around the chapel with the image of the Blessed Virgin before them. 

The great firestorm raged all around them. It burned the outside of the fence surrounding the shrine buildings—but proceeded no further. 

Early the next morning, a soaking downpour doused the fire.

When the smoke finally cleared, the area around the shrine was a scene of apocalyptic destruction. An eyewitness who very nearly lost his life in the fire, Father Peter Pernin, described the what he saw in Peshtigo when he returned three days after the fire:

About one o'clock in the afternoon, a car was leaving for Peshtigo, conveying thither men who went daily there for the purpose of seeking out and burying the dead. I took my place with them. The locomotives belonging to the Company, having been burned, were now replaced by horses, and we progressed thus till we came up with the track of the fire. We walked the rest of the way, a distance of half a league, and this gave me ample opportunity for examining thoroughly the devastation and ruin wrought, both by fire and by wind. Alas, as much as I had heard on the sad subject, I was still unprepared for the melancholy spectacle that met my gaze.

lt is a painful thing to have to speak of scenes which we feel convinced no pen could fully describe nor words do justice to. It was on the eleventh of October, Wednesday afternoon, that I revisited for the first time the site of what had once been the town of Peshtigo.

Of the houses, trees, fences that I had looked on three days ago nothing whatever remained save a few blackened posts still standing, as if to attest the impetuous fury of the fiery element that had thus destroyed all before it. Wherever the foot chanced to fall it rested on ashes. The iron tracks of the railroad had been twisted and curved into all sorts of shapes, whilst the wood which had supported them no longer existed. The trunks of mighty trees had been reduced to mere cinders, the blackened hearts alone remaining. All around these trunks, I perceived a number of holes running downwards deep in the earth. They were the sockets where the roots had lately been. I plunged my cane into one of them, thinking what must the violence of that fire have been, which ravaged not only the surface of the earth, but penetrated so deeply into its bosom. 

Then I turned my wondering gaze in the direction where the town had lately stood, but nothing remained to point out its site except the boilers of the two locomotives, the iron of the wagon wheels, and the brick and stonework of the factory. All the rest was a desert the desolation of which was sufficient to draw tears from the eyes of the spectator—a desert recalling a field of battle after a sanguinary conflict. Charred carcasses of horses, cows, oxen, and other animals lay scattered here and there. The bodies of the human victims—men, women, and children—had been already collected and decently interred, their number being easily ascertained by counting the rows of freshly-made graves. ("The Great Peshtigo Fire: An Eyewitness Account," Wisconsin Magazine of History, 1971)

Given the totality of the destruction, the fact that the shrine of Our Lady of Good Help survived intact has been considered by many to be a miraculous sign of God's mercy. 

The entirety of Fr. Pernin's account may be found at the link above and is well worth a read.

Also well worth reading is The Woman in the Trees. I highly recommend the novel for young readers of age 11 or 12 and older. It makes for a quick, easy, and satisfying read for adults as well—an ideal book to read aloud with your kids.

Click here to find out more about the Shrine of Our Lady of Champion.

Click here to learn about Adele Brice's cause for canonization.

Book Review: Father Michael McGivney and the Knights of Columbus by Emily Tennant

Fr. McGivney hurries through inclement weather on a sick call.

For many years I have appreciated and enjoyed the Vision series – a sequence of biographical novels about the lives of the saints and Catholic heroes written especially for younger readers. The series commenced in the hoary antiquity of the 1940s and has continued over the decades, featuring a variety of authors—some of whom, like Louis de Wohl for example, were writers of supreme talent.

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Several of the books in the series have been reviewed by your humble blogger over the years, among them books on Saint Helena, Blessed Miriam Teresa Demjanovich, and Saints Louis and Zelie Martin. The last two mentioned were recent additions to the series written by GinaMarie Tennant, an author, organist and music teacher who grew up in a large homeschooling family. Perhaps not surprisingly, this same family has produced another writing talent, Emily Tennant, who is the author of the brand new title in the Vision series, Father Michael McGivney and the Knights of Columbus.

What a tremendous idea it was to write this novel. As a Fourth Degree Knight myself, of course I had heard of Fr. McGivney. But I would be lying if I said I knew much about him before reading Miss Tennant’s historical novel about his life. Father McGivney comes across in the work as a man of shining parts who emerged from a humble yet virtuous family to become a humble yet virtuous priest.

As portrayed by Miss Tennant, Fr. McGivney’s life reminded me of that of his rough contemporary, Saint Therese of Lisieux. He lived his own “little way”, performing the menial tasks of a Catholic priest with great fervor and wearing himself out physically in the process. Much like St. Therese, Fr. McGivney died young, entering eternal life at the age of 38.

But also similar to St. Therese, Fr. McGivney’s small acts would be transformed by God in His own good time into tremendous works that impacted millions of people. I doubt that Fr. McGivney realized in 1890 when he died, that the Catholic mutual aid society he created known as the Knights of Columbus, would eventually grow into the charitable leviathan that it has become today, with over 2 million members worldwide.

Father Michael McGivney and the Knights of Columbus is an eminently readable little novel, and is ideal for the young Catholic audience for whom it is intended. The prose is mostly light-hearted and fun. Of course, there are scenes of tragedy that play out throughout the story, but these all coalesce as the rationale for Fr. McGivney’s vision of the Knights of Columbus. In those days, when the father of a young Catholic family passed away, his wife and children often became wards of the state, to be separated among orphanages and other charitable organizations. Fr. McGivney founded the Knights to provide life insurance and other aid to such Catholic families in their moment of need.

The aspect of this novel that I appreciated the most, however, was the author’s attention to historical detail. The book includes a wealth of minor personal anecdotes from Father McGivney's life that lend a distinct flavor of authenticity to the work. As I read, I found myself wondering, “What is the significance of this passage?” As Miss Tennant explains in the Author's Note at the end, nearly all of these seemingly insignificant events were drawn directly from Father's correspondence or church archives—even the many humorous prizes that Father McGivney wins at the various Church fairs came from the old records. 

Steeped as it is in the Catholic history of the United States in the mid-19th century, Father Michael McGivney and the Knights of Columbus is an ideal book to read aloud with your kids. If you are a Knight of Columbus or have one or several in the family, this book should definitely be on your bookshelf.

My Top 10 Historical Novels for Young Catholics

Seven of my top 10. The others are in the house somewhere...

Having homeschooled our six children for going on twenty years now, I'm starting to feel like a veteran history teacher. While my older kids had to suffer a bit through dad's patchwork curriculum, my middles and youngers have had the benefit of Phillip Campbell's outstanding Story of Civilization series, which is the perfect baseline, big-picture history curriculum for Catholic kids. 

But as homeschoolers, we don't just follow a curriculum without enhancing it. There are some aspects of history that I like to cover on a much more granular level, and for that, we use a method that combines history and literature — a technique that others including Maureen Wittmann of Homeschool Connections have called "reading your way through history."

There are many advantages to this technique, not the least of which is that it really brings history to life for the student. History becomes less about places and dates, and more about real people, their thoughts, hopes, conflicts and reconciliations. To paraphrase G. K. Chesterton, it also makes history into the highest and noblest thing it can be: a good story. This exact principle is what led me to write my Belisarius books in the first place because there were practically no good historical novels about the fascinating Justinianic period suitable for younger readers.

Following is a list of the ten books that I have used most frequently with my own kids to get them interested in particular historical eras. I have also recommended them to many parents over the years, particularly those with children who are particularly voracious readers. Since I have reviewed many of these books in the past, I am including snippets from those reviews and links in case you want to read more.

Number 10: The Red Keep by Allen French

Reading age: 10+

Historical Period: 12th century Burgundy

I have recommended this novel dozens of times, and many parents have come back to me saying that it immediately became their child's favorite book. The Red Keep is a story of the petty nobility of 12th century Burgundy that effortlessly places young readers in Medieval Europe. The stronghold of a barony, the Red Keep is raided by the neighboring Sauval family. The Baron is put to the sword. Only his daughter, Anne, is rescued by the noble Baron Roger and his men. In the aftermath of the attack, the damaged keep is left abandoned—the bone of contention around which the story revolves. More.

Number 9: The Cottage at Bantry Bay by Hilda Van Stockum

Reading age: 7+

Historical Setting: mid-20th century Ireland

This is a story about a simple family just scraping by in 1930s Ireland. The events that happen to them are not the stuff of epic adventure. Instead, they are charming little anecdotes that tie together and lead to a satisfying ending. The story focuses on the O'Sullivan children: Michael (about 11), Brigid (about 10) and the twins Liam and Francie (6). The characters themselves drive the story and the reader can't help but get attached to them. Van Stockum does a wonderful job bringing them to life and is so successful that the reader is left a little bit disappointed that they are not real people. This is a great one for reading aloud. More.

Number 8: Wounds of Love by Phillip Campbell

Reading level: 9+

Historical Period: 20th century Italy

This is the newest book on the list and it also deals with more recent history, Padre Pio having won his victory over death in 1968. Wounds of Love is a fantastic book and I heartily recommend it to readers of all ages. For additional proof of how the story draws you in, I gave the novel to my 17-year old son to read, and he polished it off in about a week. What's more, he immediately moved on to a more in-depth biography of Padre Pio that we have on our bookshelves. I'd say that counts as a "mission accomplished!" More.

Number 7: The Joyful Beggar by Louis de Wohl

Reading level: 12+

Historical Period: 12th century Italy

Louis de Wohl is a wonderful, if underappreciated, Catholic novelist of the mid-20th century. Of all his works (many of which have been beautifully republished by Ignatius Press), this one is my favorite. The Joyful Beggar is much more than simply a novel about St. Francis of Assisi. It is a history lesson on the religious and political turmoil into which the great saint was born and which he, in a very significant and unexpected way, influenced and turned to the good. With great flair, de Wohl brings the historical figures to life: the put-upon yet good-hearted Pope Innocent III, the tyrannical excommunicant Otto IV, the intelligent but worldly Frederick II and his Islamic reflection, Sultan Al-Kamil. More.

Number 6: Masaru by Michael T. Cibenko

Reading level: 12+

Historical Period: 17th century Japan

If there's one thing I love, it's historical novels set in obscure time periods. Masaru fits perfectly into that category. Written by New Jersey author Michael T. Cibenko, Masaru tells the story of young Shiro Nakagawa, a convert to Catholicism fighting a desperate battle to maintain the Faith during the aggressively anti-Catholic Tokugawa Shogunate. If you have a teen who's into anime or Japanese language and culture more generally, this fast-moving novel will be a hit. More. 

Number 5: Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc by Mark Twain

Reading level: 12+

Historical Period: 14th century France

Published in 1896, Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc is a beautifully written homage to a uniquely Catholic heroine written in the irreproducible style of Mark Twain. Though an implacable foe of Catholicism earlier in his life, Twain handles his subject in this novel with a delicacy bordering on reverence. The work is an eloquent retelling of Joan's history, from her humble upbringing in Domrémy, to her glorious exploits on the field of battle, to the grotesque and awful mockery of a trial which condemned her as a heretic. More.

Number 4: Angels in Iron by Nichlas C. Prata

Reading level: 14+

Historical Period: 16th century Malta

Of course, Angels in Iron had to be included on this list. This is another book that I have recommended hundreds of times over the years, and so many times, parents have come back saying, "My son loved it. Do you have anything else like this book?" Granted, this is very much a boy book—not to say that girls haven't appreciated it as well, but the vast majority of readers who have appreciated this book have been of the young male variety. I often tell parents, "If this book had been out when I was a teen, it would have been my favorite book." It really is just that good. When the novel was first presented to me in manuscript form, I read the whole thing in one night. I tend to put this one at a 14+ reading level simply because the battle scenes are rather graphic. More.

Number 3: Citadel of God by Louis de Wohl 

Reading level: 14+

Historical Period: 6th century Italy

Here is another wonderful old novel by Louis de Wohl. Originally published in 1959, the work is a gripping journey through the history of the early 6th century AD, bringing alive many of the celebrated names of that epoch. The book is sub-titled A Novel of Saint Benedict, so it is not surprising that passages in the novel are based directly on the ancient biography of Saint Benedict as contained in the Dialogues of Saint Gregory the Great. Given that my own Belisarius books are set in the same era, I have always appreciated this novel as one of the few that cover the period with such historical detail and story-telling skill. More.  

Number 2: Crusader King by Susan Peek

Reading level: 12+

Historical Period: 12th century Kingdom of Jerusalem

Crusader King tells one of the great tales of history—the immediate prequel to the fall of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. Peek's rendition of Baldwin IV is both a tragic and uplifting tale. Stricken with leprosy as a boy, young Baldwin must somehow defend his tottering kingdom. Susan Peek's excellent novel tells how the sickly Baldwin managed to safeguard the kingdom for 11 years, despite scheming nobles angling for his crown, and the omnipresent threat of Saladin and his Islamic hordes. More. 

Number 1: Centurion's Daughter by Justin Swanton

Reading level: 12+

Historical Period: late 5th century France

France used to be known as "the eldest daughter of the Church," so it is perhaps appropriate that this novel about the earliest years of the Frankish kingdom was the favorite of my own eldest daughter for some time. Thanks to her endorsement, I have recommended the novel dozens of times. Centurion's Daughter is one of those rare pieces of historical fiction that successfully shines a light on a very obscure corner, allowing the extant (though scanty) history to speak for itself while providing a completely plausible literary framework. The book is an excellent story told in wonderful flowing prose, and includes about a dozen well-executed illustrations that ornament the text nicely. More.

Of course, a list of 10 barely scratches the surface of the books we've used to "read our way through history." There are so many other excellent novels for young Catholics out there. You won't find them in secular bookstores however. 

All these books and many others besides may be found here, at the Young Catholic's Bookshelf sponsored by Arx Publishing.