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After much anticipation, my seven year old son and I saw the Two Towers on the Saturday before Christmas. My nine year old daughter watched it with my husband the night before in order to switch off with the little ones at home. A year ago I wouldn't have expected to be taking any of my children to see the movie (because of their age), but a lot has changed since then for us. John read the entire Lord of the Rings aloud to the children over the past year. Jacinta read it, again, on her own. She and Matthew have also listened to the 13 disc BBC audio drama numerous times. They also very much enjoyed the Fellowship of the Ring movie on the "small screen". The point is that they have really attained a decent grasp of the story. In addition, my son, who doesn't like loud noises much, wore earplugs (which diminishes the intensity quite a bit) and my husband and I both did a bit of editing by simply covering their eyes with our hands. This was necessary during the previews and commercials before the movie more than for the movie itself.

Two of the toughest characters to portray - Gollum and Treebeard - were absolutely amazing. Gollum is a complex character - tortured by his desire for the ring, whom you don't know whether to hate or pity. A computer graphics generated character, he was entirely believable and pathetic in the way, I think, Tolkien intended him to be imagined. Treebeard could so easily have been a silly cartoonish character. While not without humor, he's also magnificent and ...respectable in the way that one would appreciate and admire an older gentleman who's a bit eccentric.

There are several general things that I think remarkable about this phenomenal task of creating movies from Tolkien's beloved stories. (For those who really like movies, as my husband and I do, the Fellowship of the Ring DVD is interesting partly because of the extensive commentaries, interviews, photo galleries, etc. which provide details on both how the movies were made and what the movie-makers were trying to do.) Many of the people most intimately involved in the movie production have read the story countless times. Faithfulness to Tolkien was a major priority for them. They have referred to the books over and over again, not just in writing the screenplay, but in how the actors portray their parts. A great deal of attention and thought has gone into many, many details of the story. For example, recordings exist of Tolkien himself reading parts of his stories. Ian McKellan, who plays Gandalf, based his portrayal of Gandalf, in voice tone and expression, on these recordings. Christopher Lee, who plays Saruman, has read the books every year for decades. In addition to his excellent portrayal of the villain, he discussed parts of the book with the other actors to be sure that certain details weren't left out. The two artists most famous for illustrating editions of the Lord of the Rings, Alan Lee and John Howe, worked as art consultants on the sets and miniatures. Peter Jackson, the director, collaborated with hundreds of cast members, production members and Tolkien fans to fine tune the script and the ideas. We had a local news story here in Wisconsin about a man who was, as a hobby, an expert in Tolkien's fictional languages. He offered his services to Peter Jackson and was invited to play a part in the production. I've never heard of any project done in this kind of fashion and the final result is truly reflective of the incredible effort and labor of love that went into making these movies.

Jackson and crew did a great job of balancing this rather dark, middle part of the story with some enjoyable comic relief (especially found in the character of Gimli the dwarf) which flowed quite well. I thought there were a few more unnecessary plot-deviations than in the first movie (particularly a significant thread involving Aragorn), but this annoyance was rather minor. We enjoyed the movie very much and look forward to its conclusion, The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, coming out in December 2003.

Based on the 1st and 2nd book of Maccabees of the Douay-Rhiems version of the Bible, The Maccabees, Forgotten Heroes of Israel is an epic tale of faithfulness to God and heroism in the face of unbelievable odds.

With the exception of a few passages of dialogue, this tale is a narrative retelling. A typical passage reads as follows. "As soon as Judas had made an end of speaking, he rushed suddenly upon them. Seron and his host were overthrown before him. He pursued Seron by the descent of the Bethoron to the plain, and there fell eight hundred men of Seron's army; the rest fled into the land of the Philistines" (34).

Once Judas forms his army, a pattern seems to set in. A king, governor, or a commander of a huge force threatens to attack Judas and his men. Judas' men become fearful. He offers them encouragement, calling upon the Lord to protect them. This revives their spirits. Then they go out and slay several thousand. Throughout the story, there are enough twists and turns to keep the reader's interest.

Why so much bloodshed? They wanted to practice their faith freely without the threat of persecution, or even death. They also wanted to restore and rededicate the Temple.

The book also includes an Introduction by Warren H. Carroll, which offers historical background to the story, summarizing the plot and a Publishers Preface, which expresses his motive for bringing this story of manly heroism to print. The Maccabees, Forgotten Heroes of Israel makes this important story from the Old Testament come alive and accessible.

Recommended for ages 14 and up.

The Magician's Nephew, although chronologically first in the series, should probably be read after The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.. (Even as children should probably be introduced to the story of Christ and his life before going back to the important stories of the Old Testament).

At first glance, this is a story of magic, drama and journeying to other worlds. Digory and his friend Polly, who live in London in the early part of the 20th century, accidentally discover some weird experiments being performed by Digory's Uncle. Too cowardly to test out his own experiments, he sends them off unwillingly to an adventure in an unknown world.

They find themselves in an enchanted place - a "wood between the worlds" - a quiet, peaceful place filled with trees and pools of water. They soon discover that each pool will take them into a different "world." When they decide to explore one of these worlds, their real adventure begins - and they're in for a wild ride.

The story is, primarily, about the founding of a new world - Narnia. The two children witness its creation and its initial struggles with evil - not unlike those of our own world. Naturally, it presents some of the history that leads up to the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe as well.

Like the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, children need not be fully aware of the story's allegorical significance in order to enjoy and benefit from the story. On a simpler level, the story highlights truths about character and consequences that will remain with them for a lifetime.

This little booklet is a colorfully illustrated and simply written explanation of what happens during the Mass and why. It is broken up into seven main sections: "The Mass Begins!", "The Introductory Rite", "The Penitential Rite", "The Liturgy of the Word", "The Profession of Faith", "The Liturgy of the Eucharist", and "The Concluding Rite". Rather than a missal for children, this is intended to be used outside of Church in preparation to understand the Mass better. (It would be particularly effective when used with the Miniature Mass Kit. Each page of text is highlighted with an appropriate quote from the Bible.

Here is a little sample:

Everyone, get on your knees!

The consecration is about to happen!

This is the most solemn part of the Mass, so we pay close attention.

Father prays over the bread and wine and asks all the angels and saints to join us in our prayer to God.

Father asks the Holy Spirit to come and change this bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus!

Watch carefully. Father takes the bread in his hands and, lifting it up to God, he uses Jesus' own words:

Take this, all of you, and eat it: this is my body which will be given up for you."

Father holds the bread become Jesus up very high, showing it to all of us.

At that moment, all the angels in heaven are rejoicing! We bow our heads and offer a prayer to our great God.

(pg. 30, emphasis in original)

This is a very child-friendly, orthodox introduction to the Holy Mass for young children - especially preschool through second grade.