This book deals strictly with the Early Church, citing the Apostles, Early Church Fathers and Early Ecumenical Councils to prove that the Catholic Church of today is, through Apostolic Succession, the descendent of the Early Church. This book contains five chapters, jammed with citations from the works of the Early Church. In addition, Kenneth Whitehead mixes in an intriguing storyline to build-up the reader's anticipation for "future events", making this a very easy and enjoyable read.

This book is a compendium of sorts, drawing from the combined knowledge of over 25 well-known Catholic authors/apologists. The book is 29 chapters of Catholic doctrine, devotionals, evangelization guides and stories. It is extremely well-written and easy to read. The apologetics work is easy to understand and is spread out so the reader does not get bombarded all at once. If one wants to buy a book to help them in their apologetics work that revolves around explaining Marian doctrine, this is the book I would point them to first.

Father Mateo was the pen name of a Catholic Priest who hosted the "Ask Father" forum on the Catholic Information Network until his death in 1996. This book was written as a direct rebuttal to a two-part article entitled "The Mary of Roman Catholicism" printed up in the Christian Research Institute Journal in 1990. Father Mateo hits many of the theological points of Marian doctrine in this book, though it would be nice to have a copy of the two CRI articles mentioned in this book. If you are not familiar with Marian doctrine, this book does not give you time to catch the basics, and it can get quite heady at time. If you have been "down this road before" though, this book will be fast paced. Though it is a direct rebuttal to a duo of CRI articles, this book can be used by Catholic apologists when discussing Marian doctrine, as the book is quite comprehensive.

These three books by Fathers Rumble and Carty were instrumental in my first forays into the world of Apologetics. In these books they cover 4,374 questions asked of them during the span of a few years on a radio show they hosted during the 1930's. Though they were written more than half a century ago, the answers can still be applied to many of the questions Catholics are asked of from their Protestant counterparts. The questions are real, the answers are succinct and informative. For a look at some of the questions asked and the replies, check out my page that covers Purgatory.

This was one of the first Catholic Apologetic booklets I ever owned. It was cheap (under three dollars) and was an easy read. It answered a lot of the questions I was asked personally, and that I saw on the web. It quotes Scripture and the Catechism to backup its comments. As a general guide, this book holds up very well. If you're in a rush and need to give "the party line" this book states it succinctly and accurately.

This was one of my first C.S. Lewis books (I have never read the complete Narnia series). And I must admit, I was blown away by this masterpiece. In this book, C.S. Lewis gives us a glimpse of heaven and hell, and how it must appear to those who have passed on from this life to the next (if they even notice). It is an insightful commentary on our human nature and often our obsession with being self-centered. Like most of the other books I recommend, it is an easy read (I finished it in one sitting I was so engrossed) and is not as "heady" or theological as many of his other books. This book, along with The Screwtape Letters can serve as a good intoduction to the writings of C.S. Lewis and would make an ideal gift.