Saints and Sinners: The American Catholic Experience Through Stories, Memoirs, Essays and Commentary [Hardcover]

Greg Tobin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2, 1999

"Saints and Sinners contains a rich variety of material whose diverse approaches capture the essence and texture of Catholicism since World War II. There are essays of social commentary and theological discourse; dramatic fiction about characters in deep spiritual conflict or immersed in the joy of life; memoirs of ethnic heritage and of comic clashes of cultures and ideas."--BOOK JACKET.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Saints and Sinners, edited by Greg Tobin, gathers some of the best published stories, memoirs, and essays about Catholicism and American politics, intellectual life, arts, and immigration experiences since World War II. This anthology considers "American Catholicism" to be "a state of mind that recognizes a hierarchy within the universe--whether accepting that hierarchy or rebelling against it. It is a state of mind that draws on common images and language to describe life. It is a place of belief in purpose and history (even more than religion)." And it is embodied here by authors including Dorothy Day, Helen Prejean, William F. Buckley, Jack Kerouac, Mary McCarthy, Flannery O'Connor, and Alice McDermott, among others. It's hard to imagine a more powerful and insightful group of writers. Even if the organization of this volume, and the criteria by which the book was patched together, seem a bit rag-tag, it is at least a good chance for great reading pleasures such as Doris Kearns Goodwin on "The Brooklyn Dodgers and the Catholic Church" or Maria Augusta Trapp (think The Sound of Music) on the wonder of arriving at Ellis Island. --Michael Joseph Gross

From Publishers Weekly

Operating from his conviction that American Catholic writers share a niche in American literature similar to Southern or New England writers, Tobin, former editor-in-chief of the Book-of-the-Month Club (now editor-in-chief of Ballantine), has compiled a "tasting menu" of 33 excerpts from books published since World War II. The book is divided into four sections: Politics and Protest, Witness and Dissent, Catholic Memories, Catholic Imagination. Because Tobin heavily emphasizes memoir and fiction, with smatterings of biography and sociology, the collection is a broad sample of American Catholic culture of the recent past. In and around the antilabor war of Cardinal Francis Spellman, the political trials of former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo and the tortured youthful conscience of writer Doris Kearns Goodwin, readers will encounter a range of perceptions, personalities and paradoxes. The "Catholic Memories" section includes notable reminiscences by luminaries such as Mary McCarthy, William F. Buckley and Garry Wills. Yet Tobin's anthology misses much of the turmoil of late 20th-century Catholicism. There is little more than a whiff here of Vatican II's reforms in liturgy and theology or of contemporary intra-Church battles over women's ordination, married priests and sexual ethics. Some may regret, too, the absence of poetry and the dominance of male views. Nevertheless, in addition to providing a good read, Tobin makes a significant contribution to a small but growing body of work on Catholicism as a category of American culture. (Oct.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday; 1 edition (November 2, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385493312
• ISBN-13: 978-0385493314
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,845,512 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)