The Miracle: A Novel

Rating:
Summary: A NOVEL BOTH FAMILIAR AND UNFAMILIAR
Review: Any writer who attempts to create a work of fiction with a priest as a protagonist is facing a great challenge. Writers such as George Bernanos and Graham Greene masterfully set the standard to which all other works in this genre are compared. Though THE MIRACLE will probably never be in the same category as DIARY OF A COUNTRY PRIEST or THE POWER AND THE GLORY, John L'Heuroux's Fr. Paul Le Blanc is a multi-dimensional character in a relatively good piece of fiction.

THE MIRACLE tells the story of Fr. Paul Le Blanc, a maverick priest in Boston. He is handsome and ready to change the world. The novel takes place in the early 1970's, and Le Blanc is faced with the issues of the day: the aftermath of Vatican II, the debate raging around artificial birth control, Vietnam, and since the novel takes place in Boston, involuntary busing to end desegregation in Boston's Public Schools. Le Blanc, like many young priests, is liberal on these matters, and as a result is sent to a new parish here he has to face his own inadequacies and spiritual trials. His life changes when he is transferred to a new parish and witnesses a miracle, not of his own doing, and he is forced to reexamine his life. He does this through his encounters with a wide range of interesting characters: Fr. Moriarty, a priest with ALS; Rose, the housekeeper and her troubled daughter Mandy; Msgr. Glynn, a loyal churchman; and Annaka Malley, a young parishioner questioning her own life.

The book's chief strength is that it does not fall victim to stereotypes. Le Blanc is not a raging alcoholic, a womanizer,.... an atheist, or if it were written today,..... He is a priest who has the ability to minister wonderfully to others, but has difficulty integrating the message in his own life. This is probably a more accurate depiction of what truly ails many priests today, especially as many try to rebuild a church destroyed by the actions of some of their brother priests and the bishops who covered up the matter. We see a man tormented by inner struggles, but these struggles do not seem to interfere with his ministry, though they do interfere with his relationship with God.

If the main character of the book is so strong, why does it only rate three stars?

Though the book is filled with many colorful characters and the plot moves quickly due to L'Heureux's fluid style, the work is not without its problems. There are some clichés. For example, the young, radical priest being sent to an out of the way parish to care for a sick pastor and learn humility reminds the reader of the film THE CARDINAL. His encounter with an Annaka Malley, one of the female characters, has been told again and again in other writings. People familiar with Boston's history will know that the leader of the Archdiocese at the time, Cardinal Humberto Medeiros was an outspoken critic of those opposed to busing, and his position made him reviled in Boston, unlike the bishop of the book who does not want to cause a stir. A bishop who was socially liberal but theologically conservative, as Medeiros was, conflicting with Le Blanc, would probably strengthen the book. Keep in mind, I write this as a native Bostonian. I also did not have a feeling that I was reading a book about a priest in the 1970's, as much as a book about a priest of the 1990's put in a 1970's setting.

Even though it is not a perfect book, readers familiar with Catholicism who enjoy exploring the faith through fiction will undoubtedly enjoy the book as I did.

Rating:
Summary: An Emotionally Satisfying Read
Review: Father Paul LeBlanc is a troubled priest--good-looking and witty--too witty--gets in trouble with the local hierarchy--is "exiled" from his South Boston parish to the New Hampshire coast. There he is supposed to be assisting the pastor, Father Tom Moriarty, who is dying of Lou Gehrig's disease. As he struggles with his vocation, spirituality, sexuality, trying to be a good priest, he is peripherally involved in a miracle. A girl who seemed to be dead, but then is alive.

If this is a turning point for the troubled priest, it is hard to say where it takes him. Confusion, irritability, conflicts about intimacy, a night of wild lovemaking with his housekeeper, terrible guilt, questions about his vocation, and finally his decision to renounce the priesthood.

It could have been a great story, but it left me disappointed. The characters seem to have been sent over from central casting, and--in spite of much introspection about their inner conflicts--they remain poorly developed. The troubled priest, the alcoholic priest, the alcoholic town doctor, the woman who fears commitment, the dying priest who is reputed to be a "saint" or at least to have great wisdom--all remain sketchy and hard to connect with. The story meanders to an inconclusive ending.

L'heureux writes well, and the book is an easy read. I found it entertaining. It could have been so much better.

Rating:
Summary: Another staggering effort from Mr. L'Heureux!
Review: Having read and loved A Woman Run Mad, I couldn't wait to read another one of John L'Heureux's novels. The Miracle is the dark, thought-provoking tale of a charismatic, albeit somewhat arrogant priest and his trials and struggles as his chastity and faith take a turn toward disaster.

Paul LeBlanc's life isn't the same after he is transferred from his South Boston parish to a small church in New Hampshire. When a teenage girl awakens after she had been pronounced dead from a drug overdose, Paul is convinced that the occurrence is a miracle. However, his life falls apart after he embarks on an affair with a woman and the teenage girl dies in an accident not long after the drug scare. There are some staggering, ironic twists throughout the novel.

The Miracle has the sort of disarming and dark language that I loved in A Woman Run Mad. John L'Heureux is a great author. I love his ironic language and disturbing stories. I look forward to reading more of his books. In the meantime, I highly recommend this gem...

Rating:
Summary: A Quick and Interesting Read
Review: I impulsed bought this book, which usually means I am not going to like it. However, I found the story very interesting. While the plot line was predictable, it was still one of those books I could not put down. While it was a good read, I believe that many of the issues that were raised- the supernatural, faith, doubt- were not dealt with in a serious manner.

Rating:
Summary: A Well Done, Witty Novel
Review: John L'Heureux's The Miracle is a very well written novel that it witty and contemplative at the same time. Father Paul LeBlanc is a priest in Boston in the early seventies when his ideas on the Vietnam War and birth control, among others, gets him sent to a small beach community in New Hampshire to care for a dying priest. This setting gets him in much more trouble. He witnesses the death of a young woman who "miraculously" comes back to life. This miracle plunges him into, for the lack of a better word, soul searching, where he deeply questions his vocation. L'Heureux writes well and this is a quick, engrossing read. I found a couple of the characters a little unconvincing, but other than that, an excellent novel.

Rating:
Summary: A Well Done, Witty Novel
Review: John L'Heureux's The Miracle is a very well written novel that it witty and contemplative at the same time. Father Paul LeBlanc is a priest in Boston in the early seventies when his ideas on the Vietnam War and birth control, among others, gets him sent to a small beach community in New Hampshire to care for a dying priest. This setting gets him in much more trouble. He witnesses the death of a young woman who "miraculously" comes back to life. This miracle plunges him into, for the lack of a better word, soul searching, where he deeply questions his vocation. L'Heureux writes well and this is a quick, engrossing read. I found a couple of the characters a little unconvincing, but other than that, an excellent novel.

Rating:
Summary: Humbling and Arousing
Review: There is something about this book that kept me awake,made me a bit nervous and then made me want to lay down in a quiet meadow and read the whole thing again. Heureux's work reads like poetry. Its spare lyricism possesses surprises at every turn...sudden whimsy, sudden anger, sudden eroticism, sudden sin, and sudden wit, the kind that is rooted in bright hope. This book is more than a story although the elements of story are powerfully present. Something makes me think it might be life-changing. If there IS a God, that is.

Rating:
Summary: Humbling and Arousing
Review: There is something about this book that kept me awake,made me a bit nervous and then made me want to lay down in a quiet meadow and read the whole thing again. Heureux's work reads like poetry. Its spare lyricism possesses surprises at every turn...sudden whimsy, sudden anger, sudden eroticism, sudden sin, and sudden wit, the kind that is rooted in bright hope. This book is more than a story although the elements of story are powerfully present. Something makes me think it might be life-changing. If there IS a God, that is.

Rating:
Summary: Thought-provoking with beautifully-developed characters
Review: Though this book is highly entertaining and certainly not void of humorous moments, it also offers an intellectually stimulating journey into the territories of spirituality, faith, charity, and vanity. What distinguishes John L'Heureux's work from so many other novels I've read that deal with these topics is the delicate way in which these subjects are broached - and did I mention it's entertaining?

Above all, it's L'Heureux's characters that make this work a truly great novel. L'Heureux seems to paint a vivid outline of his characters, thereby leaving ample room for the reader to interpret and embellish as the story evolves. Thus, the reader is left to truly ponder the meaning of the characters' action, motivations, and their true nature - actually, L'Heureux's style compels the reader to ponder and participate.

While I certainly respect every reviewer's opinion, I feel that a previous reviewer may have been a bit harsh on John, or may not have quite absorbed work in the same way that I did. For me, the major events that take place in a story are not as significant as the way in which the story and characters were developed. Thus, I certainly can't fault L'Heureux for who the protagonist winds up sleeping with, as long as I feel he's done a good job in making me understand why the character made his choice. As I gave up reading fairy tales a while ago, I'm now accustomed to reading works with less-than-ideal endings and flawed protagonists.

Did I mention that is was an enjoyable read?