From The Catalyst, Summer 2016
The Illegal
By Lawrence Hill
HarperCollins, 2015
Reviewed by Trixie Ling
In The Illegal, Lawrence Hill brings to light the plight, struggles, and resilience of undocumented refugees. The author of The Book of Negroes uncovers the prejudice, racism, discrimination, and corruption in the immigration and political systems.
From The Catalyst, Summer 2016
The Reason You Walk: A Memoir
By Wab Kinew
Viking Canada, 2015
Reviewed by Danielle Rowaan
“It is hard to hate someone after you take them as a brother or sister,” writes Wab Kinew in one of the most moving scenes in The Reason You Walk. Kinew’s father, a residential school survivor, is adopting a Catholic archbishop as a brother.
From The Catalyst, Summer 2016
Atmosphere of Hope: The Search for Solutions to the Climate Crisis
By Tim Flannery
HarperCollins, 2015
Reviewed by Miriam Mahaffy
Atmosphere of Hope gives us a clear and concise overview of the current climate crisis. Tim Flannery, the Chief Councillor of the Australian Climate Council, wrote this book before the Paris climate negotiations in December 2015. In it, he explains the technological solutions needed to meet our energy needs and reduce carbon emissions.
From The Catalyst, Summer 2016
The Ultimate Guide to Green Parenting
By Zion Lights
Between the Lines, 2016
Reviewed by Karri Munn-Venn
Full disclosure: I am through the birthing and baby-wearing stages of parenthood. With kids aged 12, ten, and four, I’m looking for a different kind of guidance than what I found in The Ultimate Guide to Green Parenting. Though full of potential—and a few gems of information—this guide is quirky to say the least.
From The Catalyst, Summer 2016
The Right to Be Cold: One Woman’s Story of Protecting Her Culture, the Arctic and the Whole Planet
By Sheila Watt- Cloutier
Penguin Random House, 2015
Reviewed by Christine Boyle
For decades, environmentalists have worked to rouse people into compassionate action with images of suffering animals and denigrated ecosystems. The images were real, and important, but they only told a portion of the story.
From The Catalyst, Summer 2016
Faith and Politics Matters
Edited by John Milloy
Novalis, 2015
Reviewed by Joe Gunn
Some Christians grew up believing (with Abraham Kuyper) that “not a square inch of human existence stands apart from the sovereign claims of Christ.” But in John Milloy’s Catholic upbringing, “almost everyone’s parents told them that religion and politics were topics (along with sex) that never made for polite conversation.”
From The Catalyst, Summer 2016
Out of the Cold: A History of Caring
By Michael Swan
Catholic Register Books, 2015
Reviewed by Zachary Grant
Community service in Canada is changing. A new model for assisting the disenfranchised has been built on a foundation of tough, performance-based funding requirements. Organizations look to make the biggest measurable change with the smallest amount of resources possible. And they compete against each other in a race for relevancy.
From The Catalyst, Summer 2016
The Invisible: What the Church Can Do to Find and Serve the Least of These
By Arloa Sutter
Wesleyan Publishing House, 2016
Reviewed by Darlene O’Leary
The Invisible is an exploration of Arloa Sutter’s experiences working in street ministry in Chicago.
From the Catalyst, Summer 2015
This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate
By Naomi Klein
Alfred A. Knopf Canada, 2014
Reviewed by Karri Munn-Venn
Author and activist Naomi Klein has done it again. This Changes Everything, is at once thick with academic research and deeply grounded in human narrative. It is a profoundly personal account of coming to understand that climate change is the issue of our time.
From The Catalyst, Summer 2015
Our Only World: Ten Essays
By Wendell Berry
Counterpoint, 2015
Reviewed by Janelle Vandergrift
Before reading it, I assumed Our Only World would focus solely on climate and environment issues. Instead, Wendell Berry weaves an analysis of today’s social and environmental issues as one in the same.