John: A Novel [Hardcover]

Niall Williams (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 5, 2008

In the tradition of Jim Crace’s Quarantine and Anita Diamant’s The Red Tent, John is a stunning, lyrical reimagining of John the Apostle in the final years of his life, by the critically acclaimed and bestselling author of Four Letters of Love.

At a time when Americans remain skeptical about religion but still thirst for spiritual fulfillment, Niall Williams’s extraordinary and masterful new novel reveals a universally appealing message of hope and love.

In the years following the death of Jesus Christ, John the Apostle, now a frail, blind old man, lives in forced exile on the desolate island of Patmos with a small group of his disciples. Together, the group has endured their banishment, but after years awaiting Christ’s return, fissures form within their faith, and, inevitably, one of John’s followers disavows Christ’s divinity and breaks away from the community, threatening to change the course of Christianity. When the Roman emperor lifts the banishment of Christians, John and his followers are permitted to return to Ephesus, a chaotic world of competing religious sects where Christianity is in danger of vanishing. It is against this turbulent background—and inspired by Jesus’s radical message of love and forgiveness—that John comes to dictate his Gospel.

Immensely impressive—and based on actual historical events—John is at once an ambitious and provocative reimagining of the last surviving apostle and a powerful look at faith and how it lives and dies in the hearts of men.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

With plenty of imagination and occasionally grandiloquent prose, Williams (Four Letters of Love) pens the last days of the Apostle John, the beloved disciple of Jesus who, tradition says, wrote the wild, apocalyptic book of Revelation as well as the Gospel and Epistles of John. The story begins as John, blind and nearly 100 years old, lives banished on the Island of Patmos where he once received his portentous vision. Surrounded by doubting disciples of his own who pepper him with questions about Christ's return and speak heresy, John remembers his time with Jesus. Williams's present tense narration lends urgency as he interweaves dark and sometimes grotesquely violent threads throughout his story. He beautifully portrays the Christ-followers' loneliness as they yearn for the return of their Messiah and despair at the reception of the Christian message. Some of Williams's prose is fresh and elegant (a bright wind hammers silver out of the sea); at other times it is confusing (the trader unsnaps dogs of curses). The second half of the book loses momentum, but offers interesting conjectures about the explosion of dissenting beliefs after Jesus' death and how people of the time might have responded. This novel will appeal to readers who like imaginative and gritty sagas of the lives of key Christians in the early church as well as those who value lyricism. (Feb.)
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Review

In "John" ($25, Bloomsbury). Irish author Niall Williams spent four years researching the last days of John the Apostle. He used that information as the structure for a novel about what a frail, blind John and his followers might have done during their exile to an island and return to a world of religious sects. What if this John was the one to have written the gospel of John? What would be the invariable clashes between faith and doubt under stress? Williams' lyrical writing and sense of place is a plus although there are a few times when a reader might just want to move on a little more quickly.—The Olympian

“ Readership is guaranteed where biblical sagas like The Red Tent (1997) and Pilate’s Wife (2006) enjoyed popular success.”—Booklist

"Irish novelist Williams takes spiritual issues seriously—and continues to write compellingly about them."—Kirkus Reviews

"Plenty of imagination and occasionally grandiloquent prose….beautifully portrays the Christ-followers’ loneliness as they yearn for the return of their Messiah….fresh and elegant….This novel will appeal to readers who like imaginative and gritty sagas of the lives of key Christians in the early church as well as those who value lyricism." —Publishers Weekly

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA; First Edition edition (February 5, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 159691467X
• ISBN-13: 978-1596914674
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,374,551 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing read...like being there, March 15, 2008

By 

Steven W. Slesinger "steve sles" (Melbourne,, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: John: A Novel (Hardcover)

This is the first book I've read by Niall Williams. He is an amazing writer. He plays with vocabulary and sentence structure and somehow (without being gimmicky) transports you back 2,000 years ago, on the island of Patmos, living day by day, in faith, beside the apostle John. You live humbly and expectantly awaiting the return of Christ. Heresies arise. John gets old. I don't want to give anything away, but it is an amazing, literary book that goes to your heart. I finished it a week ago and am still thinking about it. It's a bit of a slow read, but it builds wonderfully. I think non-Christians won't "get" it...but any person of faith, who understands the power of the word of God will love this book.

--Steve Slesinger, Melbourne, FL

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A memorable read, September 17, 2010

By 

Jigsaw (Florida) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: John: A Novel (Hardcover)

Mr. William's writing is beautiful. I was swept into the minds of John and his followers. His writing flows from word to word, sentance to sentance. Syntax and context work together flawlessly. No need to re-read sentances or paragraphs to understand. A joy to read.
The story moves along between the characters and touches the heart deeply. John's faith, his humanity, his struggles and triumphs. The questions of faith we all struggle with. The book left me with images that I recall in my everyday life to transport me to a life of faith; longing to serve and also to be home, truly home.
A satisfied smile as I closed the book.

1.0 out of 5 stars Hard to finish...., January 23, 2012

By 

Valerie Christensen "Maha" (Conway, AR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: John: A Novel (Hardcover)

It was a depressing read. I kept thinking there would be relief. But none came. The conclusion was unsatisfactory, and there were unfinished or poorly developed characters (Kester and Papias, even John). I expected so much more.