When I was in High School I remember that we were assigned each summer a book or two to read. It was always interesting what the school would choose for us to read (what sticks out in my mind are the dystopias they had us read like Brave New World). When I got to seminary the summer reading assignments ended of course, but a whole world of Catholic literature opened up to me. It was always interesting to go into the room of a seminarian or a priest to see what kinds of books he had (really to see which ones were missing from your own book shelf). There were of course the classics: a Bible, a scripture commentary, the Code of Canon Law, and of course several books that you put on the shelf and tell yourself that you will get to them eventually.
The question here today is: what are some of the essential Catholic works? There are many options out there, but I would like to suggest just a few of the classics. I have split them up into two categories: spiritual works and works of literature. Spiritual works are more direct in their exposition of the faith, whereas literature elaborates on the mysteries through a narrative.
Classic/Spiritual Works Introduction to the Devout Life, Saint Francis de Sales The Imitation of Christ, Thomas a Kempis The Spiritual Exercises, Saint Ignatius of Loyola Treatise on Virtues, Saint Thomas Aquinas True Devotion to Mary, Saint Louis Marie de Montfort The Ascent of Mount Carmel, Saint John of the Cross The Art of Praying, Romano Guardini Jesus of Nazareth (Vols. 1-3), Joseph Ratzinger/Pope-Emeritus Benedict XVI The Priest is not His Own, Fulton Sheen The Fire Within, Thomas Dubay
Literature The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis Brideshead Revisited, Evelyn Waugh The Brothers Karamazov, Fyodor Dostoevsky Orthodoxy, G.K. Chesterton Come Rack! Come Rope!, Robert H. Benson Diary of a Country Priest, Georges Bernanos A Canticle for Leibowitz, Walter M. Miller Jr. Leisure: the Basis of Culture, Josef Pieper
These are just a few of the many good works out there. I highly recommend these books which can be read by anyone. Happy reading!