Nonbelievers won’t budge—and intrigued readers are better off requesting a transcript of the 20/20 feature that inspired...
A maudlin exploration of the paranormal events that surround Audrey Santo, a comatose 16-year-old from Worcester, Massachusetts, whom many consider to be a saint.
Promoting the notion that Audrey is Christ’s liaison, Felix (What Makes the Grand Canyon?, 1998, etc.) draws on press reports, television features, and interviews to chronicle her subject’s life. After Audrey’s close brush with death (from drowning) in 1987 left her dependent on life-support, her devout Catholic mother, Linda, took her on a pilgrimage to a Croatian village (in what was then still called Yugoslavia) where a group of children were reputed to be receiving apparitions of the Virgin Mary. Linda claims that during their pilgrimage the still-unconscious Audrey communicated with the Virgin Mary and volunteered to become a “victim soul”—a pious Christian who willingly takes on the pain of others in imitation of Christ. After their homecoming, Linda’s testimony was supported by a series of seemingly supernatural occurrences that took place in Audrey’s bedroom: for example, religious artifacts began to move, bleed, and leak oil. Audrey also developed stigmata—mysterious sores that resembled the crucifixion wounds of Christ. Convinced that Audrey was engaged in a silent conversation with Jesus, the family transformed their garage into a chapel and invited pilgrims to use the site as a place to pray for miracles. Although the Catholic Church has yet to conclude its investigation (and despite the fact that the Croatian visionaries have been condemned as frauds by their local bishop), Felix maintains that Linda’s assertions are truthful. She subtly discredits interviewees who question Audrey’s authenticity and portrays the Santos as living martyrs. Her overblown enthusiasm for her subject strips her reportage of credibility, however, and she fails to deliver concrete evidence, leaving us to wonder if Audrey is an ill-fated child who is being exploited. And although the material lends itself to high drama, intrigue, and intelligent speculation, the author’s vapid narration renders even the phenomena of bleeding paintings dull.
Nonbelievers won’t budge—and intrigued readers are better off requesting a transcript of the 20/20 feature that inspired Felix to write this bland and credulous account.Pub Date: April 20, 2001
ISBN: 0-312-27216-2
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Dunne/St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2001
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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