PRESS RELEASE: Rave Reviews From Readers Keep Rolling In For StoryTel’s New Catechism!

OMAHA, Neb., June 27, 2018 – StoryTel Press is thrilled to announce that people across the land are buying and applauding its new LEGO®️-illustrated “Catechism of the Seven Sacraments” by Kevin and Mary O'Neill!

"We've had little time to get out there and promote our new catechism up till now because we've been overwhelmed with fulfilling orders for the book from individuals, online resellers and nearly 100 brick and mortar store owners," said Don Carney, president of StoryTel Foundation and publisher of StoryTel Press. "Sales thus far have all come from a few emails sent through Catholic Marketing Network, reviews from mom bloggers, a Catholic priest’s blog and a few Catholic radio interviews with the authors."

"With nearly 6,000 books sold in three months, families across the country are letting us and others know what they think of our colorful, new hardback book, and so far it's all good!" said Phil Halpin, managing editor of the book and vice president of operations at StoryTel Foundation. A sampling of what people are saying on Amazon and other sites about “Catechism of the Seven Sacraments” illustrates this point:

"I wish I could give this book 10 stars! The attention to detail, the solid Catholic teaching, the sacraments are all beautifully presented using Legos. Legos. If someone had told me two weeks ago that I would be raving about a book about the sacraments that used Legos as a teaching tool, I would have thought they were crazy. But what a great idea!! And even better, it works!!" —Maureen Martin, Amazon reviewer

"This book has captured the ageless beauty of God's action in human history and paired it with amazing modern visuals. I can't wait to share it with the pre-teens I teach in my parish!"  —Shannon Hejkal, homeschool mother and catechist

"A visual feast, theologically sound, and very thorough! I love how it captures and brings to life the truths of our Faith through a child’s imagination via the use of LEGO. I shared this with my third grade students and they loved it! They were engaged and it held their attention. I am already using this book as a supplemental resource in the classroom. God bless you and your efforts!" —Aimee Gabel, 3rd grade Catholic school teacher

“Catechism of the Seven Sacraments” is indeed a visual feast; 750 bright, colorful photographs laid out in vivid, modern, comic-book style fill to overflowing the 292 pages of this well-constructed, hardbound, built-to-last book with dynamic scenes from the Old and New Testaments and current day, as well.

All scenes are populated and portrayed by a multitude of three-dimensional "LEGO" and other toy figures, surrounded and supported by a plethora of "LEGO" bricks, other plastic set pieces, traditional religious statues, handmade costumes and props. Every scene was conceived, sculpted, arranged into place and photographed for the book by Kevin and Mary O'Neill and their seven children.

And the really great news about this unique new catechism is that the inspired and highly entertaining visual look of the book is just the beginning of the "GOOD NEWS." Once pulled inside by the pictures, readers of the work discover that the teachings are there, the truth is proclaimed and the content is solidly Catholic in every way:

"We are thoroughly loving this giant, comic-strip, LEGO-illustrated, sacrament-themed, scripture-rich, brand-new book from StoryTel Press. Almost 300 pages tell the story of the sacraments through the eyes of two kids, Fulton and Cynthia. Exploring the connecting typology of the sacraments as found in the Old Testament and the Church today, the book also weaves in saints, morality, prayer, and more. My students are fascinated by the details in the LEGO scenes that tell the story and enjoy finding bricks that they have at home to recreate the pictures. I love the richness of the faith that is shared in such a multifaceted manner throughout the book, and how they use the sacraments to weave together the story of salvation history. The graphic novel style compels you to keep picking it up, flipping to a new section, and reading more. There is also a handy glossary in the back, color-coded sections by sacrament, and frequent Scripture and Catechism references in the margins. We look forward to more books from the O'Neill Family!" —Katie Bogneron, Amazon reviewer

StoryTel, a non-profit media foundation on a mission to restore the sacred, was developing and filming a short TV documentary on the O'Neill family and their catechism project when the two entities agreed StoryTel would publish this outside-the-box catechism.

StoryTel Foundation then spent a year translating its high-end filmmaking skills into high-end book production and created StoryTel Press. They expanded their team to include layout artists, editors and printing experts. They learned the imprimatur and large-scale printing processes. The imprimatur was granted by Archbishop George J. Lucas of Omaha, Nebraska, on February 3, 2018, and printing was completed on April 9.

"It’s been a whirlwind year," said Carney, "and we look forward to an even busier Christmas season."

The book can be ordered here: RESELLERS - INDIVIDUALS - CANADA - INTERNATIONAL

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Disclaimer: LEGO®, the brick configuration, and the minifigure are trademarks of The LEGO Group, which does not sponsor,  authorize, or endorse this book.