The late Father Andrew Greeley was an extraordinary man. Outspoken, he was never assigned to run his own parish. He earned a PhD and was a professor at several colleges. He wrote a regular newspaper column. He had more than 70 scholarly works published, including a critique of the Iraq war and President Bush. He supported Obama, although he believed America was too racist to elect a black president. And if all that isn’t enough, he also wrote more than 50 novels. I just finished his fourth, Thy Brother’s Wife (1982), the story of an Irish-American family, the father's plans for his two sons and adopted daughter. In a disclaimer before the first chapter, the author states that the characters are entirely fictional, not based on real life figures. I suppose he thought readers would assume he was doing a roman a clef of a famous family, although the Kennedys, as well as other historical figures, are minor characters in the book. I'd bet the portrait of one of the brothers was inspired by the real life inhabitants of the American Camelot, but it makes no difference, as it is clearly a unique individual. At just over 300 pages, it is a fast entertaining read. The prose and dialogue are solid. It is surprisingly frank in its portrayal of human behavior, especially sexuality, although far from explicit. In an Afterword, Greeley states: “Why would a priest write a novel about adultery, incest (I'd argue it isn't incest), and sacrilege?” He cites the tales told in the Bible as his defense, which makes perfect sense. He calls Thy Brother’s Wife “…a tale of commitments that are imperfectly made and imperfectly kept --but that are still kept…” On a scale of five, I rate it 3.75.
The headline writers of the NY Post have again struck gold. Jewish wives have been giving a rabbi $50,000 to intimidate, often physically, husbands into divorce. The story is under the heading: Kosher Assault.
Another living-proof-argument against abortion: Jeff Bezos, the brains behind amazon.com, was born to a 17-year-old still in high school.
0-6! The Giants free fall continues. Last night’s game against the Bears was theirs for the taking, but they weren‘t up to it. Eli’s fourth quarter magic has evaporated.
Due to mist, I had to cover up the wares three times during today's session of the floating book shop. My thanks to the three kind folks who made purchases.
There are two huge trucks parked on Avenue Z between E. 12th & 13th. Tonight there will be filming of scenes for the cable series The Americans, which is about a married couple, KGB operatives, who have infiltrated the country. Too bad the shooting isn't being done during the day. I'd have liked to have seen if Keri Russell is as beautiful in person as she is on TV. I wonder if any of my Russian neighbors will be asked to appear as extras.
Vic's 4th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/bszwlxh
Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
Vic’s Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx
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