Helpful Score: 2
Title: Confessions of a Pagan Nun
Author: Kate Horsley
ISBN: 1570627193/Shambhala Publications
Historical Fiction
Protagonist: Gwynneve, a nun and scribe
Setting: 500 AD, the convent of St. Brigit, County Kildare, Ireland
Rating: A+
First Line: I, Gwynneve, a sinner quite uncultivated and the least of all the faithful and utterly despicable to many, appeal to Saint Brigit or the goddess Brigit, whatever it is her wish to be called.
This little gem of a novel is quite rare because it succeeds on so many levels: story, characterization, historical detail, insight, wisdom, poetry, and elegantly crafted prose. Can you tell I liked it?
It begins with a translator's note telling us that this is a codex discovered in an archaeological dig in County Kildare, Ireland. We are then immediately transported into the world of Gwynneve, a woman who was born and raised a pagan, who studied to become a Druid, who--after the disappearance of her teacher--converted to Christianity and became a nun at the Convent of Saint Brigit. There she did what she loved best: transcribing ancient texts. Gwynneve sees the world through her unique perspective of being both pagan and Christian. She tells of the strengths and weaknesses of both philosophies. In turns blunt and poetic, she is such a vivid, fully fleshed character that I saw the waves of green hills, I felt the cold and the damp and the hunger. I was in the Dark Ages when Christianity was trying to gain supremacy over all other faiths.
This was the first book by Kate Horsley that I've read. It won't be my last.
Author: Kate Horsley
ISBN: 1570627193/Shambhala Publications
Historical Fiction
Protagonist: Gwynneve, a nun and scribe
Setting: 500 AD, the convent of St. Brigit, County Kildare, Ireland
Rating: A+
First Line: I, Gwynneve, a sinner quite uncultivated and the least of all the faithful and utterly despicable to many, appeal to Saint Brigit or the goddess Brigit, whatever it is her wish to be called.
This little gem of a novel is quite rare because it succeeds on so many levels: story, characterization, historical detail, insight, wisdom, poetry, and elegantly crafted prose. Can you tell I liked it?
It begins with a translator's note telling us that this is a codex discovered in an archaeological dig in County Kildare, Ireland. We are then immediately transported into the world of Gwynneve, a woman who was born and raised a pagan, who studied to become a Druid, who--after the disappearance of her teacher--converted to Christianity and became a nun at the Convent of Saint Brigit. There she did what she loved best: transcribing ancient texts. Gwynneve sees the world through her unique perspective of being both pagan and Christian. She tells of the strengths and weaknesses of both philosophies. In turns blunt and poetic, she is such a vivid, fully fleshed character that I saw the waves of green hills, I felt the cold and the damp and the hunger. I was in the Dark Ages when Christianity was trying to gain supremacy over all other faiths.
This was the first book by Kate Horsley that I've read. It won't be my last.
