Something has changed for the novelist John Banville in the last 15 years. In a twist worthy of his own byzantine fiction, Banville has adopted a new persona and writing style, and even—perhaps—a changed attitude toward “the Irish thing” he once derided.
Tom Deignan
Tom Deignan, a columnist for the Irish Voice newspaper, writes regularly for America.
Posted inArts & Culture, Books
Review: ‘The Pull of the Stars’ brings a Gatsbyesque approach to finding humor in a pandemic
Emma Donoghue’s new novel unfolds over the course of All Hallows’ Eve, All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day—with a chatty cast of priests, nuns and philosophizing orderlies running about—adding to the sanctified air.
Posted inArts & Culture, Books
Review: What would Jesus say about white privilege?
Khyati Y. Joshi’s new book shines “a light on Christian privilege and its entwinement with White privilege.”
Posted inArts & Culture, Books
Review: Are unions making a comeback? It’s complicated.
In short, Greenhouse argues, “Something is fundamentally broken in the way many American employers treat their workers.”
Posted inArts & Culture, Ideas
Why do Catholic priests keep popping up in sci-fi?
Science fiction writers continue to turn to religious characters, imagery and ideas to sort things out.
Posted inArts & Culture, Ideas
A history of Catholic School Sports, From Babe Ruth to LeBron James
There is no way to explain the success of Catholic school athletes without taking into account a wide range of factors—historical, sociological and, yes, spiritual.
Posted inArts & Culture, Books
Review: Babe Ruth’s mighty hits and misses
Jane Leavy chronicles Babe Ruth’s life and times, with a heavy emphasis not only on the culture Ruth played in, but the ways he radically altered that culture, with the help of his visionary agent Christy Walsh.
Posted inArts & Culture, Books
Review: A posthumous gift from William Trevor
Writer William Trevor never shied away from something like the Gothic, the nearly horrific side of everything from romantic passion to parenthood.
Posted inArts & Culture, Ideas
Hunger strikes and the desperate desire for justice
Hunger strikes raise thorny political, philosophical and even spiritual questions.
Posted inArts & Culture, Books
A new path for unions in America
In ‘Beyond 15,’ Jonathan Rosenblum scolds Barack Obama for being “more invested in bailing out the financial sector than in expending political capital for workers’ rights.”