Katie Broussard, the illustrator of Sorin Starts a School: The Foundation of Notre Dame, will host a book signing and read-aloud at the Notre Dame Bookstore this Saturday (November 12th, 2022) at 3:00pm ET.
Here is the pdf for the event!
Author Paul Mitchell and Illustrator Katie Broussard appeared this week on the Catholic Faith Network. They talked about the release of their recent book, The Examen Book: Exploring Everyday With God. The book helps parents teach children the Examen prayer, a centerpiece of the spirituality of St. Ignatius Loyola.
Click on the picture below to watch the interview.
Paul and Katie’s conversation on the Catholic Faith Network also touched on the creation of their first two books, Audacious Ignatius and Sorin Starts a School: The Foundation of Notre Dame.
Thank you to the Catholic Faith Network for your hospitality!
If you enter the Notre Dame bookstore this Christmas, what book will you find there? None other than Sorin Starts a School: The Foundation of Notre Dame! This favorite children’s book about Notre Dame is delighted to be in the same company as Ted Hesburgh, Monk Malloy and other fine authors from Our Lady’s University.
Even before Sorin Starts a School arrived in bookstores, the Notre Dame bookstore expressed exuberant interest in the book. Now, for Christmas, students and families can find the beautiful hardcover at the entrance of the bookstore.
In 2021, the Notre Dame family reacted with excitement. The book was shared through Notre Dame alumni clubs all over the country. They reported that both adults and kids love the book!
The NDAA welcomed the book’s author, Paul Mitchell, and illustrator, Katie Broussard, on their Everyday Holiness podcast in November 2021. On the episode, Katie and Paul describe the creation of the beloved children’s book, as well as their previous book, Audacious Ignatius. (Check out the episode here!).
Also in November, FaithND invited Paul to write a Gospel reflection at FaithND to discuss the book. In the reflection, he addresses the question that many have asked: Why a children’s book about Fr. Edward Sorin and the foundation of Notre Dame? (Check out the reflection here!).
Earlier in the year, the NDAA profiled Katie’s work of weaving faith and art in the creation of this and other books for children. (Check out the story here.).
We are honored and humbled to have such reception from the Notre Dame family!
Want to purchase Sorin Starts a School or Audacious Ignatius for your school or parish? Click here to inquire about bulk discount rates.
Interested in the author and illustrator of Sorin Starts a School to visit your school or parish? Drop us a line!
The Notre Dame Alumni Association recently welcomed the author, Paul Mitchell, and illustrator, Katie Broussard, of Sorin Starts a School: The Foundation of Notre Dame on their podcast to talk about the favorite children’s book. Check out the episode on the FaithND site or on Soundcloud!
Dan Allen, the Associate Director for Spirituality and Service at the Notre Dame Alumni Association, interviewed Katie and Paul about their early lives of faith and how this shaped the children’s books that they now create together. (Katie and Paul are siblings, a first for the podcast!) Both Katie and Paul recalled fondly their education in Catholic schools as well as at Notre Dame. It was, in fact, in these schools that Katie (two years older) was Paul’s first writing tutor and that the they first encountered the charism of different religious orders that are now the central themes of the children’s books they create together.
Katie and Paul’s first children’s book, Audacious Ignatius, won a Moonbeam award in 2019, and foregrounds the charism of the Society of Jesus just as Sorin Starts a School does for the Congregation of Holy Cross.
Katie Broussard and Paul Mitchell also discuss how the touchstones of the spirituality of the Congregation of Holy Cross have guided and enlivened their faith. The Congregation’s motto is “Ave Crux, Spes Unica” (“The Cross, Our Only Hope) which is beautifully articulated in the final section of their Constitutions. Katie and Paul spent a good deal of time on the page in the book that resonates these themes, seen below.
We are deeply grateful and honored to have Sorin Starts a School on the Notre Dame Alumni Podcast.
The Alumni Association of Notre Dame profiled Sorin Starts a School: The Foundation of Notre Dame last week, focusing on the work of Katie Broussard, the book’s illustrator. This children’s book about the founding of the University of Notre Dame is forthcoming later this summer.
Broussard, the illustrator of other children’s books including Audacious Ignatius, is a two-time graduate of Notre Dame, as a member of the class of 2004 and a graduate from the Alliance of Catholic Education in 2006.
The article notes that Notre Dame played a crucial part in Katie’s spiritual formation.
“Notre Dame was where I really took ownership of my faith. I found my own spirituality there, and that really informs my desire to illustrate stories that can create conversations between parents and kids about their faith,” she says. “Kids have a ton of questions about God and religion, and I think it is fun to have a book with interesting illustrations as a jumping off point to get the conversation started.”
Article from NDAA on Katie Broussard, children’s book illustrator
At Notre Dame, Katie got to know the Congregation of Holy Cross, the founding religious order of Notre Dame, whose history and spirituality foreground the telling of the foundation of the university. Her art illuminates the pillars of this spirituality, rooted in the motto of the Congregation: “Ave Crux, Spes Unica,” The Cross, Our Only Hope.
Additionally, the art as well as the text bring out the devotion to Our Lady of Sorrows, the special patroness of the order. The narrative and art of Sorin Starts a School weave the accompaniment of Our Lady with the many set backs Edward Sorin and companions faced as they build the University of Notre Dame.
We at Corde Press are overjoyed that the Alumni Association at Notre Dame profiled Sorin Starts a School on their blog this week.