Birds, Beasts, and Relatives

by Phyllis McGinley

Book Overview

In this amusing, delectable book, Phyllis McGinley succeeds in rescuing the saints from their pious niches to show to people of all faiths, or none, the personalities and deeds of these wondrous... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0670167754
• ISBN13: 9780670167753
• Release Date: August 1969
• Publisher: Viking Books
• Length: 243 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Joe in Florida

A wonderful new insight into the lives and accomplishments of many of the important (and not so important) saints.

Great Little Book

Although this book is out of print, I would highly recommend checking library shelves for it. The author shares delightful stories of the saints, as she knocks off the plaster casts and tells of their humanity.

a humor-filled, insightful and earthy book

I absolutely love Phyllis McGinley's "Saint-Watching." It is a book filled with humor, wit, and honesty. It is a treasure that should have a much larger reading audience. Even if this is not an area you have ever had an interest in, I recommend it most highly to you. The saints used to be a big deal. Time has changed all that. Still, what is the meaning of the word "saint" in the present day? While the saints surely still serve as guides to a few, they have taken on an air of incomprehensibility for many others. Even most Christians have a hard time with what the term "saint" means. All too often when we speak of saints in modern times, images of the self-hating joyless ascetic spring to mind. The only problem is that most of the people we call saints were the furthest thing from these images.What Phyllis McGinley restores to the image of the saints is their basic humanity. These women and men were no different from you or I. Some were shockingly earthy. Some did indeed live among the clouds. All loved their Savior with great fervor. The stories contained in "Saint-Watching" are insightful and very entertaining. I recommend them wholeheartedly to you. Find a copy of this book and see for yourself.