Matters of Faith [Paperback]

Kristy Kiernan (Author)

Book Description

Release date: August 5, 2008

From the author of Catching Genius, a novel of a young man?s search for faith?and its unintended consequences.

At age twelve, Marshall Tobias saw his best friend killed by a train. It was then that he began his search for faith?delving into one tradition, then discarding it for another. His parents, however, have little time for spiritual contemplation. Their focus has been on his little sister Megan, who suffers from severe food allergies. Now Marshall is home from college with his first real girlfriend, but there is more to Ada than meets the eye?including her beliefs about the evils of medical intervention. What follows is a crisis that tests not only faith, but the limits of family, forgiveness, and our need to believe.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this tense, well-paced novel about belief, Kiernan explores what happens when faith and love test the limits of family fealty. In southwest Florida, college student Marshall Tobias is in search of something to believe in. He thinks he's found God and the woman he's always dreamed of when he falls in love with fundamentalist believer Ada Sparks. But Ada's against medical intervention for illness, and tragedy results when she sets out to help Marshall's 12-year-old sister, Meghan, overcome her life-threatening allergies. Switching points-of-view between Marshall and his mother, Chloe, Kiernan (Catching Genius) movingly portrays a 20-year-old marriage gone flat and torn apart by crisis, a troubled son, a daughter hovering between life and death, and the hard-to-discern boundaries between true faith and unhealthy fanaticism. She handles her difficult material respectfully. Most interesting is her portrayal of the well-meaning traps parents fall into when encouraging open-ended exploration of faith without context, or choosing to remain silent. The thoughtful themes, interesting characters and page-turning drama of this novel will likely make it a book club favorite. (Aug.) ""
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From Booklist

Kiernan’s stunning second novel explores how one family reacts to a devastating tragedy. Cal and Chloe Tobias have two children: 18-year-old Marshall, who witnessed the death of his best friend in childhood and has been exploring religion ever since, and his younger sister, Meghan, who suffers from severe food allergies. Marshall comes home from college for spring break with his girlfriend, Ada, a religious zealot who doesn’t believe in medical treatment, in tow. Ada immediately expresses doubts about Meghan’s allergies, and when she and Marshall try to “cure” Meghan by exposing her to the very thing she’s most allergic to, the results are disastrous. As Meghan lies in a coma in the hospital, Cal’s rage at his son boils over, and the district attorney decides to charge both Marshall and Ada with child abuse. Marshall and Ada choose to flee to Cal’s estranged mother, leaving Cal and Chloe to face the rift growing between them over Marshall’s actions. Unforgettable and moving, Kiernan’s novel is an achingly real portrait of a family in crisis, one readers will react to passionately. --Kristine Huntley

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Product Details

• Paperback: 321 pages
• Publisher: Berkley Trade (August 5, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425221792
• ISBN-13: 978-0425221792
• Product Dimensions: 0.9 x 5.5 x 7.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,374,516 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Kristy Kiernan was born in Tennessee and raised on the beaches of southwest Florida.

She is the author of CATCHING GENIUS, published in 2007 and an Ingram Book Club selection.

MATTERS OF FAITH was published in 2008 and was chosen as an IndieNext Notable Title and won the Florida Book Award bronze medal.

BETWEEN FRIENDS was published in 2010 and was a featured selection for the Literary Guild, Doubleday, and Rhapsody book clubs, and was also chosen a Best Summer Beach Read by Women's World.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Kiernan Will Rise to the Top August 12, 2008

By Notawriter

Format:Paperback

This is the best book I have read since The Kite Runner. Someone who looks entirely normal and healthy may have food alergies that could result in life-threatening, even fatal results. And while this seems to be the main theme of Matter of Faith, Kiernan has woven other more common themes through the tale of the drastic situation created when a young girl is (intentionally?) fed a peanut butter cookie by her brother and his new girlfriend to test the girlfriend's adamant belief that only prayer, not medicine, is needed for healing.

The story is told by both the mother (Chloe) and the brother (Marshall). Through them we view all sorts of human conditions, beliefs and feelings: children of the same family who each need very special considerations; married partners who have never seen eye-to-eye on raising those children; the physchological results of an abusive childhood; searching for faith and what can happen when one "finds" it, possibly in all the wrong places.

This book MOVES. It reads swiftly. It read so TRUE that you cannot but feel you are living with Chloe and her family as she prepares to meet her college son's first real girlfriend,Ada, as she watches daughter Megan become entirely enchanted with Ada and fears husband Cal's cavalier association with his son on his return from school. What happens happens swiftly and the movement never stops, not even when we spend hours, days with Chloe and Cal in the hospital.

This book is intense without being the least bit "preach-y." There are no slow spots. The characters are so well drawn that you KNOW them, even the minor ones. And it has no platitudes, no actual reassurances except to leave you knowing that life is not about absolutele answers....

I have not encounted a book in a long time that I did not want to put down from the moment I read the first sentence of Matter of Faith. I dog-eared so many pages that the book looks "fat" lying on my nightstand. This is a book I will read AGAIN and SOON. I feel it would make a dynamite movie. Read more ›

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars She's right in our shoes! November 29, 2008

By Gina Clowes

Format:Paperback

I whizzed through this book in every spare moment of free time that I had over three days.

I read very little fiction these days, and I found it very refreshing to see food allergies play such an important part of a mainstream book.

I had myself convinced that Kristy Keirnan, the author, had to have a food allergic niece or nephrew or good friend who had a child with food allergies. I was amazed when I found out that that was not the case.

Kristy did such an incredible job of describing what it's like to live with someone who has life threatening food allergies.

I also really loved the tale of the marriage and the dynamics of how their son related to both of them.

I found myself actually peeking at the end, so concerned with the outcome. But as I got there, I found it very real and satisfying. It could have gone many different ways but I'm glad she chose the ending that she did.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars This Book Blew Me Away August 9, 2008

By book_junkie35

Format:Paperback

I adored Kiernan's first book, Catching Genius, but she's managed to top her stellar debut performance. Matters of Faith is a deeply moving story full of rich emotional detail, suspense, heartbreak, and redemption; I couldn't find a flaw in it. This is a book you'll want to read and think about and discuss and read again--perfect choice for book clubs! I'd give it six stars if I could!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Read for Anyone Who Knows Someone with a Food Allergy March 4, 2009

By Food Allergy Assistant

Format:Paperback

Matters of Faith is so genuine, I was certain Kristy Kiernan either had food allergies herself or was close to someone who does. Turns out neither is the case. Kiernan simply has a gift for empathy that shines through her writing.

I hope every parent, grandparent, teacher, neighbor, anyone who knows someone with a food allergy has the opportunity to read this book. The story is engaging and the reader becomes a part of the Tobias family as they deal with not only a medical crisis, but with family flaws that have been forced to the surface.

Grab a few tissues and be prepared for the ups and downs of a family who could just as easily live in your neighborhood.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A realistic and challenging look at food allergies, faith, marriage and more August 28, 2009

By Redlady

Format:Paperback

This book is about a family that has a child with life-threatening food allergies but it is also about so much more. You see, it is especially meaningful to me as , I too, have a child with life-threatening food allergies and know from first hand experience what it is like to raise a child with severe food allergies. Most parents who have children with food allergies like this are always on alert and cautious and our worst fear is that our child will be exposed to something that could literally take their life.

It was challenging to read parts of the book as they hit so close to home and were so realistic. This did not take away from the book for me at all. I loved the book and had trouble putting it down! I found the strength of the writing and characters extremely well done. The author alternates the narrative between the mother Chloe and the son Marshall which was very effective to delve into their deepest thoughts. After I finished the book, I felt like I knew the family. The author was able to describe their thoughts and emotions in a way that the reader felt connected to them in a personal way. It was painful at times to read about Meghan and her anaphylactic reaction and the situation that caused this. I could relate to Chloe on so many levels as a mom, as a mother of a food allergic child. The overprotectiveness I have in wanting to protect my own child but wanting to allow him the freedom to explore the world without fear. To me, Chloe's character was extremely realistic to a mother's feeling towards her children and keeping that in balance when you have to protect both children. With that said, it could also be difficult for some to read as it deals with what can happen when a child has an anaphalyactic reaction....

This book is not just a book about food allergies it is about so much more. It addresses the issues of Faith...forcing the reader to examine what the meaning of faith is to the characters in the book as well as challenge their own definition of faith as faith has many meanings and interpretations. It brought to light the theme of faith related to religion as well as medical science and healing.

It also addresses the issues of marriage and how it can change over the years for better and for worse. It also looks at how a husband and wife can handle a tragedy and what that can do to a marriage and a family.

I found that the author was very accurate in her descriptions and details of food allergies and reactions and medical issues overall. I am also a health professional so these issues were important to me to be accurate when you are dealing with a story even in a fictional way related to a very serious topic such as food allergies. Read more ›