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"Adolescents may have a harder time identifying with saintly types than little children do.
They need a different, perhaps less pious or earnest, approach. Here's a book that you can
recommend wholeheartedly to your young people. Father Thomas has a keen sense of humor and a
refreshingly irreverent yet completely orthodox way of presenting each saint here. His references
are contemporary and upbeat, and young people will readily see themselves reflected in these saints,
especially thanks to Thomas' linking of the saint's life to everyday occurrences. Among the saints
presented here are Ignatius of Loyola, Duns Scotus, Pulcheria, Francis de Sales, Katherine Drexel,
Catherine of Siena, Faustina, Philip Neri, Peter Claver, and many, many more. Thomas' lighthearted
approach is sure to make even the most skeptical young person smile. Each biography is short and
fun to read. Catechists and all who are interested in lives of the saints will find this an
entertaining as well as educational volume." --Deborah McCann in
Religion Teacher's Journal, October 2000
"Father Charles Thomas has written an enlightening book of collected stories of men and women,
both those officially recognized by the Church as saints and others who have lived holy lives.
Thomas' anecdotal style, both from the perspective of the lives of those of whom he writes and
his own experiences of ministry make this volume a joy to read, both to gain knowledge of the
people documented and as spiritual reading. The engaging style of the author, especially his use
of personal stories from his own ministry and his ability to provide local color and commentary
on the geographic regions where these saintly people lived, is a special attraction of this book.
Father Thomas also engages the reader through surprising and comical incidents in the lives
documented. For example he relates how Hildegunde lived for eight years in a Cistercian monastery
disguised as a man. Bent Halos chronicles the lives of many well-known saints, such as Francis
de Sales, Ignatius of Loyola, Catherine of Siena, and Philip Neri, several lesser known canonized
saints such as Paula, Zeno, and Margaret Bourgeoys, and a variety of others, such as Daniel Rudd
and Rutilio Grande, who have not been officially raised to the altars by the Church. Charles
Thomas' volume is a pleasure to read and makes a significant contribution to the genre of
hagiographic literature. The popular appeal of this book's subject matter and its engaging prose
make it an attractive volume for all readers. --Richard Gribble, CSC
in Pastoral Life, March 2000
"Bent Halos and Other Saintly Stories by C.T. Thomas takes the lives of one hundred
saintly men and women and gives us strong doses of history and beatitude. The Benedict of Nursia
section begins: "Fifteen popes and folks claiming to be the pope have taken the name Benedict,
including the Sixth who was strangled by the brother of his predecessor, the Eleventh, who was
poisoned by a French nobleman, and the Fourteenth who was 'elected' by the vote of just one
cardinal present." Benedict's contribution to saintliness was, of course, his Rule, a small,
consequential book of instructions on how life should be lived in monasteries. Francis de Sales
("The kid should have poked the monkey anyway"), Brigid ("Sell the daughter before she empties
the larder"), Cyril and Methodius ("The pope's bones and the Slavs' alphabet"), Katherine Drexel
("Did you not know I must be about my mother's work?"), John Climachus ("Fall off the wagon and
you might fall off the ladder"), and quite a few others, including some North Americans. Each
subject receives a brief, truthful 2-3 pages. Maximilian Kolbe, martyred at Auschwitz. Albert
the Great who brought the great philosophers to the attention of the West. Gregory Nazianzen
whose sermons and letters were so influential he has been called both a Father and a Doctor of
the Church. Tales simply told by C.T. Thomas, an Ohio priest who charms with truth and creates a
rich, simmering brew of sanctity." --The Book Reader, Spring/Summer
2000
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Father Charles T. (Ted) Thomas was ordained for the Diocese of
Columbus in 1973. Following his ordination, he spent some eight years teaching high school and
two years teaching history at Ohio Northern University. A weekly columnist for The Catholic
Times, he is presently chaplain at Kenyon College and Pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Church
in Mt. Vernon, Ohio. The tenth of eleven children, an uncle to twenty-six and a great-uncle to
twelve, his hobbies include travel, cooking, home restorations and softball. He is an accomplished
speaker who is much in demand because of the entertaining way he approaches his subjects.