What to Read

Martyred and Blessed Together: The Extraordinary Story of the Ulma Family
Fr. Pawel Rytel-Andrianik and Manuela Tulli
Our Sunday Visitor, 176 pages

The Ulma family is the subject of the main feature story in Legatus magazine this issue, but readers seeking to learn still more will benefit from this new book by Fr. Pawel Rytel-Andrianik, professor at Rome’s Pontifical University of Holy Cross and editor-in-chief of the Polish section of the Vatican Radio and Vatican News website, and Italian journalist Manuela Tulli. Here is to be found expanded background on the Ulma family, the frightful situation that existed in wartime Poland, the events leading to their massacre, the eight Jews who were killed alongside the Ulmas, and the aftermath of the massacre. The honors subsequently accorded the Ulmas and a helpful timeline round out this informative volume.

The Habsburg Way: Seven Rules for Turbulent Times
Eduard Habsburg
Sophia Institute Press, 159 pages

The Habsburg dynasty in Europe went on for some seven centuries, and its impact on the continent’s history is profound. The Habsburgs were a Catholic but imperfect family with their share of both saints and scoundrels, and author Eduard Habsburg — himself an archduke of Austria — surveys the historic figures in his family and the times in the Church and in civil society in which they lived. These accounts are wrapped in the “seven principles” that guided the family through the centuries, maxims that provide insights on the secret of happiness, marriage, faith, governance, and a good death. It makes for entertaining and absorbing reading.

What Is Christianity? 
The Last Writings
Pope Benedict XVI
Ignatius Press, 232 pages

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger had aspired to retire and concentrate on his theological writings before he was called to assume the papacy. Upon his resignation in 2013, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI continued to write and publish. What is Christianity? might be considered his spiritual “last testament,” purposefully compiled for publication after his death. The themes of the essays within range widely from interfaith relations to the liturgy to the abuse crisis to his personal Catholic heroes, always expressed in his warm and accessible style. Those familiar with his other works as well as those who want to get to know the late pope will find this an excellent reading choice.