Mary, Queen of History – History’s Queen {Review}

History's Queen by Mike Aquilina
Publisher: Ave Maria Press (2020)
eARC (192 pages)
Via: NetGalley
Rating:
Also by this author: Seven Revolutions
Reading Challenges: Read 2021

Synopsis

The Virgin Mary’s part in history doesn’t begin and end with her yes to God. Popular Catholic author Mike Aquilina points out that Mary is at the center of history from creation to the end of time and everywhere in between. In History’s Queen, you’ll learn about the many ways the mother of humanity has left her mark on the great events of time, not only as we see them in the Bible, but also in pivotal events such as Fatima, the battle of Lepanto, and the plague.

In this journey through two thousand years of Mary’s active participation in world events, each chapter of History’s Queen highlights a Marian intervention that is emblematic of a particular era, and opens our eyes to the ways in which Mary provides a vital key for understanding both our past and our future.

Mike Aquilina—author of The History of the Church in 100 Objects and editor of the Reclaiming Catholic History series—provides a fresh, fascinating, and classical view of history to today’s readers, exploring:

• Mary’s centrality in the Church Fathers’ view of history;
• Mary’s role in preserving Byzantium during the explosive rise of Islam;
• Marian devotion in medieval Ireland that inspired generations of great missionaries;
• Mary’s role in military victories at Lepanto and Vienna; and
• the message of peace received by three shepherd children in Fatima that sustained the world through a century of unprecedented violence and apostasy.

Find the book: Goodreads, Amazon

My Review

This book was so good! I really loved it a lot. I have read a lot of Marian books and this one ranks right up there with the best. Mike Aquilina takes the monumental task of going through Christian history with Mary at the center. It was beautifully written.

This book does what Mike Aquilina is great at: taking history and making it interesting by focusing in on specifics. Even if you don’t read a lot of history books, I would recommend reading this one for a great look at the role of Our Lady, the Mother of God, in the whole of history.

I don’t know that I can pick a favorite part of this book but I can say that I especially loved the parts on Lepanto and Fatima. Lepanto was the naval battle against the Moors where Our Lady was called Our Lady of Victory and from where we get the title Our Lady of the Rosary. It is a wonderful story. And I just love hearing the story of Fatima, the apparition of Our Lady to the shepherd children.

I received this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley for
review consideration. This in no way affects my opinion of the title
nor the content of this review.

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