Catholic Review of: Fatherless

No book on the shelves today is more profoundly relevant to Catholics in America today than Fatherless by Brian J. Gail. In his absorbing, realistic novel about Catholic life in America, Gail tackles some of the toughest issues of our age using hard, sometimes alarming facts that challenge the reader to seriously rethink society's conventional wisdom.

Fatherless takes a hard, honest look at a typical Catholic parish in America over the course of about a decade, beginning in the 1980s. The story begins with Fr. John Sweeney, a young priest about a year out of the seminary, assigned to his hometown parish and giving spiritual direction to three families regarding some very contemporary, very difficult issues. Fr. Sweeney offers them all the kind of guidence and advice that he thinks is correct for each of these families according to the world in which they all live. As all of their lives unfold in jarring reality over the next decade, Fr. Sweeney comes face-to-face with his timorous advice, discovering a new understanding of the Eternal Truth and his priestly vocation.

A former Madison Avenue advertising executive, Gail brings to this novel business insight and real world experience that adds to the believability to his story. It's a real page turner in spite of its being a little unpolished, specifically in dictated exposition rather than described, and a few instances of kitchy, sometimes corny dialogue. Also, the first few chapters left me a bit disoriented regarding the timeframe. These issues, however, are absolutely no reason to pass on this novel. What Gail lacks in style he makes up for tenfold in an impeccably researched plot that absolutely grips the soul. Gail echoes some of the late 20th & early 21st Centuries' greatest and most evocative Catholic writers whom he credits in his Bibliography: Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver, Christopher West, George Weigel, David Carlin, and several others.  

Fatherless leave you with a better understanding of Catholicism and will ignite your desire for Eternal Truth no matter where you might be in your walk with the Lord.  In this relativistic world, it's more important than ever that we Catholics seek out Eternal Truth and cling to it with our very lives. I recommend that every adult Catholic read this novel, and pick up a few copies to pass along to friends and family.

 

You can purchase this book here.