By Deidre Wengen
PhillyBurbs
May 11, 2011
http://www.phillyburbs.com/blogs/book_checked/book-buzz-faith-by-jennifer-haigh/article_6dbebf18-7b0d-11e0-9a46-0019bb30f31a.html
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Accusations about sexual abuse have plagued the Catholic Church for the past decade. Scandals involving priests and young children are now a part of the religious dialogue and debate in our country. And the topic is one that hits close to home-- 21 priests from the Philadelphia Archdiocese were suspended in March after abuse allegations rocked the area.
Jennifer Haigh's new novel "Faith," which hits shelves today, tackles the difficult subject of abuse in the Catholic Church.
Haigh's story revolves around the McGanns, a devout Irish Catholic family from Boston. The family's oldest son, Arthur, decides to become a priest at a young age and goes through all the training and study necessary to live a life of purity and chastity. But in 2002, the well-liked suburban priest is accused of sexually abusing a young boy in his parish and the McGann family struggles with the aftermath.
The novel is told from the perspective of Arthur's younger sister Sheila, who returns to her family in Boston with the hopes of proving her brother's innocence. But Sheila discovers that doing so is more difficult than she originally thought, as Arthur dodges questions and refuses to defend himself.
The novel looks back at the city of Boston in 2002 when scandals rocked the Irish Catholic communities. And although the book focuses on the evolution of the Church in the lives of these families and how the events changed their religious ideals, it is also a story about familial relationships and the desire to understand one another.
Publishers Weekly calls "Faith" a "superb fourth novel" and the Wall Street Journal says that the book contains a "compelling array of characters and top-flight writing."
Will you be grabbing a copy of this new book?
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