Nicolena Reads

Read August 2024

I was scouring the NetGalley shelves to see what I might want to request and I’m so glad Ave Maria Press let me preview this book before the October 4, 2024 release; now I can tell you about it! If learning about religious customs is your jam or you’re Catholic, you’re gonna want to keep reading. I’m Catholic and went to Catholic school and I feel like there’s such a large gap in my knowledge that was filled in by Aquila.

What is it about? 

The title kind of gives you an idea but it isn’t just some handbook on how to be festive throughout the year. The book really dives into what the liturgical calendar is and how to bring celebrations into your home even if you don’t have a big family or children to celebrate with. We get to read about Advent, Christmas, Winter Ordinary Time, Lent, The Paschal Triduum, Eastertide, and Summer Ordinary Time… some of the seasons or celebrations during the Church’s year.

The really cool thing is Aquila lays out how different cultures traditionally celebrate. In the section on Advent, I was excited to see my family’s Christmas Eve tradition explained. I come from an Italian background, with a name like Nicolena – are you surprised?, and on December 24th we celebrate The Feast of Seven Fishes. Aquila details where this tradition originated and how it has evolved. She even gives details on how you can carry on this – and all of the other cool cultural traditions – yourself if you want to! 

What does it have?

• Catholic Celebrations
• Cultural Traditions
• How To: Celebrate
• Faith-Based Knowledge

One of the important points that was brought up in this book revolved around being open to engaging in some of the activities as a way of worship to deepen your relationship with God and mark significant events in Jesus’s life. Do you have to do them all? Nope. But if something resonates with you, do it. I feel like the physical copy is going to be a great resource and I’d lean toward that over an electronic copy once it’s published.

Is it worth reading?

I’d say you’ll to want to give this a go if you’re interested in traditions surrounding Catholic celebrations, even if you aren’t interested in participating in the traditions yourself.