In this latest collection of portraits and reflections on the monastic life, Brother Benet Tvedten has gathered together a motley crew indeed. Inside this book you 'll encounter the stories, both legend and history, of ancestors and contemporary monastics, the saints and the laypeople who contributed to this movement over the centuries. They struggle with obedience: Maurus jumps into the lake. They perform miracles: Scholastica prays up a storm to keep her brother by her side. They venture forth to serve as missionaries in the American wilderness of the Dakota territories, always with St. Benedict as their guide.

The Motley Crew is a lively history in which you 'll follow the rise and fall of monastic life in Europe and the United States, with its ongoing conflicts between obedience to the Rule and the human desires for a life of comfort and ease. This collection of saints, so far from living in the state of perfection attributed to the monastic life by the church, reflects the truly human and holy nature to which we all aspire.

Brother Benet Tvedten, O.S.B., is a member of Blue Cloud Abbey in Marvin, South Dakota, where he serves as the Director of Oblates. He is also the author of The View from a Monastery and How to Be a Monastic and Not Leave your Day Job: An Invitation to Oblate Life published by Paraclete Press.