Book Review: Holding the Stirrup by Elisabeth von Guttenberg

 

    Holding the Stirrup was another book on my reading list that I was originally hesitant about but ended up loving. It is the memoirs of a German baroness who lived through the World Wars, and that was a part of history I was not excited about studying. Since 2020, I had had strong fears about the world again heading in that scary direction. Therefore, I was thankful to be homeschooled, with Mom picking the books on my reading list. She understood my fears, and knew that some literature about this time period would not help my peace of soul. Mom had never read Holding the Stirrup, but she said I should try that one to read about the persecution from a Catholic perspective. And it was just what I needed.

    The book begins with Elisabeth’s fairytale romance with her husband-to-be. After that, you love them both so much that you can't put the book down. Elisabeth and her husband shared a very beautiful, saintly love, which carried them through the hard times they were to endure. And when the hard stories had to be told (sometimes in detail!), Elisabeth would quickly return to a beautiful family reunion or something, so it was not as hard to read as it could have been. Also, she spoke a lot about Therese Neumann, who I had heard of but knew nothing about before reading Holding the Stirrup.

    Overall, Elisabeth’s faith and courage were astounding, and Holding the Stirrup helped me to face my fears with the light of our Catholic faith. At my graduation party, I asked each guest for a book recommendation, and one lady from my parish said, "READ HOLDING THE STIRRUP!" I said, "I just did! I'm glad to know that you loved it as much as I did!" It is truly a gem!