Our Lady of the Lost and Found: A Novel of Mary, Faith, and Friendship by Diane SchoemperlenMy review
This book caught my eye when I was looking for another book to mooch from someone from whom I was already mooching one. It is about a middle-aged writer of no particularly strong faith who finds the Blessed Virgin Mary in her living room one day. Mary wants someplace to chill for a week and has chosen her house. She allows Mary to stay, and while there, they talk about their lives. We find out what Mary has been doing for the last 2000 years. This is one of the few novels I've read that contains an extensive bibilography. The author has obviously researched Marian apparitions and devotions and her presentation of them in the book is matter-of-fact. This isn't a devotional book that leads to faith in the apparitions, nor some "scientfic" book that tries to explain them away as mass-hysteria, cultural artifacts or self-hypnoisis. It describes Mary's appearances at famous spots like Lourdes and Fatima as well as less-known or even recanted ones. For all the history in the book however, it is a novel, as much about the nameless narrator as it is about Mary. Having Mary in her home causes her to take another look at her life, where it has been and where it is going. If you like literary fiction and refereces to philosophers and poets, you should like this book. It is one of the books that makes you think more than it entertains you.
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So I read it almost exactly a year after you did, huh? That's pretty weird. Wonder too why it didn't come up when I googled for reviews. Ah, well, I think maybe I said "Catholic reviews" or something and probably closed out quite a few of the ones I could have found.
ReplyDeleteIn any event, I agree with everything you said and I'll update the link in my post. Thanks for telling me about your review. :)