Catholic fiction is an elusive thing. It evades all easy attempts at definition. It’s not fiction about Catholicism. It’s not fiction that promotes Catholicism. And, to make matters worse, Flannery O’Connor, perhaps the foremost American Catholic fiction writer, said that “the Catholic novelist doesn’t have to be a saint; he Read more…
A good story is like Belgian chocolate. Everybody likes it. And, further, most everyone can agree it’s worthwhile. True, there are nay-sayers out there whose dads never read The Lord of the Rings to them, but enjoyment (and endorsement) of stories is a fairly universal thing. Many different people have Read more…
What’s the point of reading fiction? Wouldn’t it just be better to read works of theology and the spiritual life? Well, I wouldn’t replace spiritual reading with fiction. Novels and shorts stories, however, do make a contribution to Catholic life and culture by engaging our imagination in a vicarious engagement Read more…