"A Catholic author who wrote stories which contained everything that I was looking for."

Since I was little I have loved to read. My mother made it a habit to read books to my younger siblings and I. I grew up on C. S. Lewis, Louisa May Alcott, and many other wholesome authors. As I grew older, I became a more independent reader. However, I noticed a distinct change in the type of stories I was reading. As I moved to Young Adult novels, many of them dealt with topics such as underage drinking, teenage sex and many other controversial issues that I did not wish to read about. Frustrated with what secular authors where throwing at young teenagers such as myself, I began searching for a Catholic, or even Christian author, who wrote stories where wholesome values and morals where upheld and practiced. It was by pure chance that in my search I stumbled upon a Catholic author who wrote stories which contained everything that I was looking for. If you have not already heard of her, allow me to introduce you to Regina Doman.

Regina Doman writes a very unique form of the genre Young Adult Fiction. Her stories are based on fairytales. All of us are familiar with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Sleeping Beauty, and Snow White and Rose Red. Some of us may even have grown up on them. Regina takes these classic stories and gives them a modern twist. Her first three books, Shadow of the Bear (Snow White and Rose Red), Black as Night (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs) and Waking Rose (Sleeping Beauty), deal with four young men and women who live in New York City and do their best to live out their Catholic faith among the immoral lives their peers lead. Arthur and Benedict Denniston (affectionately known as Bear and Fish) and Blanche and Rose Brier are the four young people these three stories focus on. The first story introduces the characters and the next two deal with Blanch and Arthur’s relationship and Rose and Fish’s relationship.

These modern day fairytales deal with topics that teenagers encounter in their daily lives. How to handle peer pressure, what it is liked to be asked to the prom and what it is like to fall in love for the first time Regina also throws in some issues that are not every day issues. What I love most is how she deals with the issue of life. In the last two books, Black as Night and Waking Rose, two of the main characters are in a coma (one for a brief time and the other for a more extended period). During the time period, the guardians of those who are in a coma remain firm in their decision to preserve the life of their loved one. This commitment on the part of those who still have a voice struck me very much especially in light of what happened with Terri Schiavo several years ago.

I would like to issue one word of warning. In her first two novels, Regina mentions some minor characters who smoke and use drugs. She makes it clear however that both of these habits are dangerous to both your health and your soul. The characters involve in these activities display some of the long term effects that smoking and drug usage has on the human body and soul. While some people might be hesitant to read about such material, I would point at that Regina does not encourage this behavior among people at any age and that reading about the effects of such behavior may discourage others to become involved in such activities.

So, in conclusion, if any of you are looking for some good, Catholic fiction to read over the summer, I would highly recommend Regina Doman’s fairytale novels. I speak from experience when I say that she is an author who knows how to keep her audience enthralled until the very last page; I would even say the very last sentence. I own all three of her books and have recommended them to friends and family who have all told me how much they enjoyed reading them. If you would like to find out more about Regina or read the first chapters of her novels for yourselves, you can visit her website at www.fairytalenovels.com.

Enjoy!!