Declared “Patron of the 20th Century” by Pope St. John Paul II, St. Maximilian Kolbe has long been honored not only for his choice to die in place of fellow Auschwitz prisoner Franciszek Gajowniczek, but also for his devotion to Mary and his broadcasting and publishing apostolates.
In the spirit of Kolbe’s evangelical approach to print media, Sophia Institute Press is releasing an English edition of the graphic novel “Maximilian Kolbe: The Saint of Auschwitz,” written by Jean-François Vivier and illustrated by Denoël. The novel was first published last year in French by Éditions Artège.Written for young adults, the story begins inside Auschwitz’s starvation bunker where St. Max is locked in conversation with a fellow prisoner relating the stories of his life. We come to learn of the saints who inspired him and his lifelong devotion to Mary. Through these and other inspiring anecdotes, readers discover that, far from being an isolated and impulsive act, Kolbe’s sacrifice at Auschwitz served as the crowning achievement of a life of heroic love and devotion.
In the spirit of Kolbe’s evangelical approach to print media, Sophia Institute Press is releasing an English edition of the graphic novel “Maximilian Kolbe: The Saint of Auschwitz,” written by Jean-François Vivier and illustrated by Denoël. The novel was first published last year in French by Éditions Artège.Written for young adults, the story begins inside Auschwitz’s starvation bunker where St. Max is locked in conversation with a fellow prisoner relating the stories of his life. We come to learn of the saints who inspired him and his lifelong devotion to Mary. Through these and other inspiring anecdotes, readers discover that, far from being an isolated and impulsive act, Kolbe’s sacrifice at Auschwitz served as the crowning achievement of a life of heroic love and devotion.
The final pages of “Maximilian Kolbe” include photographs of Kolbe and his family from the archives at the Polish monastery of Niepokalanów, which Kolbe founded in 1927.
Especially appealing to readers 12 and up, “Maximilian Kolbe” offers a visually engaging story that will embolden and inspire adolescent Catholics to become witnesses for their faith in the face of difficulty and hardship.
