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Looking for Mary: Or, the Blessed Mother and Me by Beverly Donofrio, Jorge Alberto Asato Espana
lectorliber04's review against another edition
4.0
I am a fan of Our Lady. In many ways I feel about the Virgin Mary as Ms Donofrio does. She is Mama Mary to me, the one that cuddles, encourages and admonishes me in the most sweet yet stern manner possible. Beverly Donofrio wrote without censoring herself which made me, at times, dislike her a lot and at others empathise with her struggles. She was a horrible mother and like most human beings she knew it but couldn't rectify it. A teenager mother, married to the father of her child and within two years had divorced him. For the longest time she put her needs ahead of her son, putting Jason through all sorts of hell and this is where Mama Mary comes in. Quietly, without forcing herself into Beverly's life Mary comes into Beverly's house on throw with the picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe, later there'll be pictures, statues, pictures all over Beverly's home. We first meet Beverly on her way to Medjugorje. She is going to report what's been happening there, however, there was more to that trip than she expected: she found herself falling in love with Mary.
What I really appreciated was the honesty. Her faith journey was (is) like my own. She still wants women to be priests, she finds the institutional Church to be male dominated leaving women to do the menial jobs and yet she goes to mass as often as possible, she prays her rosary often, she fasts on Wednesdays and Fridays and she finally forgave herself, her ex-husband and her son and as the book finished her relationship with Jason was on the mend. God and Mary 'hang out' with the weak, the selfish, the poor, not just for lack of money but lack of meaning in their lives. They love us, the good and bad, in spite of the bad, because of the bad. Beverly Donofrio, a regular, broken human being opened her heart and found inner peace. There's hope and Mary, Our Mother is there to show us the way.
What I really appreciated was the honesty. Her faith journey was (is) like my own. She still wants women to be priests, she finds the institutional Church to be male dominated leaving women to do the menial jobs and yet she goes to mass as often as possible, she prays her rosary often, she fasts on Wednesdays and Fridays and she finally forgave herself, her ex-husband and her son and as the book finished her relationship with Jason was on the mend. God and Mary 'hang out' with the weak, the selfish, the poor, not just for lack of money but lack of meaning in their lives. They love us, the good and bad, in spite of the bad, because of the bad. Beverly Donofrio, a regular, broken human being opened her heart and found inner peace. There's hope and Mary, Our Mother is there to show us the way.
lizaroo71's review against another edition
3.0
This is all about Donofrio's search for faith. She lost it somewhere along the way of her life of being a single mother.
She intersperses her chapters about her pilgrimage to Medjugorje with the mistakes she has made in raising her son. As she searches for something to believe in, this pilgrimage helps her to forgive herself and seek forgiveness from her adult son.
At the end of each chapter is a story about the Virgin Mary. I found it all to be quite informative.
This is a quick read and one that offers some interesting accounts of seeking solace in religion. I have always had images of the Virgin Mary around my house growing up; To pray to her never seemed unusual to me. So Donofrio's story interested me because her search for faith is germane to finding peace in her relationship with her son and herself.
She intersperses her chapters about her pilgrimage to Medjugorje with the mistakes she has made in raising her son. As she searches for something to believe in, this pilgrimage helps her to forgive herself and seek forgiveness from her adult son.
At the end of each chapter is a story about the Virgin Mary. I found it all to be quite informative.
This is a quick read and one that offers some interesting accounts of seeking solace in religion. I have always had images of the Virgin Mary around my house growing up; To pray to her never seemed unusual to me. So Donofrio's story interested me because her search for faith is germane to finding peace in her relationship with her son and herself.
_mallc_'s review against another edition
5.0
I love this book. It's beautiful and honest and sweet. I couldn't get enough of it and finished it way too soon.
satyridae's review
3.0
One of the things I like about Donofrio is that she makes me look like a good mother by comparison. In this memoir about her obsession with Mary, mother of Jesus, she's no less self-absorbed or narcissistic than she was in [b:Riding in Cars with Boys|139668|Riding in Cars with Boys|Beverly Donofrio|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172112153s/139668.jpg|134633]. She still doesn't have a lot of clues, but to her credit she went looking for some.
Lots of interesting Marian detail here. Donofrio is a believer in the miraculous and has enough money to go on pilgrimages all over the world. Reading about it is as close as I think I ever want to get, but I'm glad I read this book. Religious fervor wherein one voluntarily allows one's self to be caressed with a glove covered in a dead priest's blood strikes me as best observed from a safe distance.
There are lots of little details that were left out of her first book. Not particularly linear, it's disjointed, all over the place, and I don't think I'm nearly as fascinated by Donofrio as she is. The writing is good.
Lots of interesting Marian detail here. Donofrio is a believer in the miraculous and has enough money to go on pilgrimages all over the world. Reading about it is as close as I think I ever want to get, but I'm glad I read this book. Religious fervor wherein one voluntarily allows one's self to be caressed with a glove covered in a dead priest's blood strikes me as best observed from a safe distance.
There are lots of little details that were left out of her first book. Not particularly linear, it's disjointed, all over the place, and I don't think I'm nearly as fascinated by Donofrio as she is. The writing is good.
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