Inspired by the enthusiasm and innate wisdom of his 12-year-old son, Antony Barone Kolenc is filling a critical void in the reading material for middle grade students that is exciting, compelling, faith-based and life-changing.

In “Refugee on the Threshold,” Timothy Leacock tells of the long and harrowing journey of a Somalian man whose life was threatened by the terrorist group Al-Shabaab after he applied for a government job.

A group of cardinals asked Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio in-depth questions about liberation theology and its political consequences before deciding to elect him pope in 2013, Pope Francis said.

Mary Ann Glendon — who served under St. John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis — recounts her Vatican experiences in her new book, “In the Court of Three Popes,” providing particular insight into how laypeople can more fully embrace their vocation and life in the Catholic Church.

Kenneth Craycraft, associate professor of moral theology at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary and School of Theology in Cincinnati, Ohio, has a new book, “Citizens Yet Strangers: Living Authentically Catholic in a Divided America,” which looks at how faithful Catholics can engage in today’s polarized political climate. He recently spoke with OSV News’ Charlie Camosy about the book and the current political landscape.

Over the years, Syndey McLaughlin grew up, learned to prioritize her goals, and leaned into her faith, she reveals in her new memoir, “Far Beyond Gold: Running From Fear to Faith.”

A pope’s ministry is meant to last his lifetime, Pope Francis said, and, at least until now, he has not considered resigning.

Titled “Flannery O’Connor’s Why Do the Heathen Rage? A Behind-the-Scenes Look at a Work in Progress,” the 192-page book pairs O’Connor’s fragments with Wilson’s commentary on the events and writings that influence them.

Pope Francis’s concern for migrants and refugees, his focus on ecology, his calls to “go out” to share the good news of salvation, even his support for the controversial possibility of informally blessing LGBTQ+ couples flow from his conviction that people need to know they belong to God, to one another and to creation.

The season of Lent is an ideal time to grow in the spiritual life. Here are five great reads to help you on your way.