Originally the title of a Flannery O’Connor short story, Paul Elie reclaimed it for his book about the lives of said writer, as well as Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, and Walker Percy. The book, as far as I can tell right now, is one part biography, one part social history, and another part an examination of faith and art in the lives of these four people. Elie writes in a braided essay fashion of sorts, weaving in a story about one only to bring in a thread of the next one’s life. I can’t wait to see how they converge.
So far, it’s fascinating. I try to read books like this (i.e., history, door-stopper nonfiction works, and the like) occasionally, but never really get into them. I enjoy learning, and want to finish the books, but lack the momentum to carry me through the often hundreds or thousands of pages.
This one is different, though. It’s enthralling. It’s gripping. I couldn’t put it down this morning. Elie’s got me thinking about the early 1900s and remembering my love of history.
Dorothy Day’s life is fascinating. I feel a sort of affinity with her and these writers when Elie mentions Day devouring Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, and other Russian authors. I can’t imagine what it would have been like to have lived during the time of the Russian Revolution. The way these writers soaked up books, in a religious sort of devotion, inspires me. It seems as though books had a higher authority then than they do now. I’m excited to read about the next turns in their lives.
The Life You Save May Be Your Own
Originally the title of a Flannery O’Connor short story, Paul Elie reclaimed it for his book about the lives of said writer, as well as Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, and Walker Percy. The book, as far as I can tell right now, is one part biography, one part social history, and another part an examination of faith and art in the lives of these four people. Elie writes in a braided essay fashion of sorts, weaving in a story about one only to bring in a thread of the next one’s life. I can’t wait to see how they converge.
So far, it’s fascinating. I try to read books like this (i.e., history, door-stopper nonfiction works, and the like) occasionally, but never really get into them. I enjoy learning, and want to finish the books, but lack the momentum to carry me through the often hundreds or thousands of pages.
This one is different, though. It’s enthralling. It’s gripping. I couldn’t put it down this morning. Elie’s got me thinking about the early 1900s and remembering my love of history.
Dorothy Day’s life is fascinating. I feel a sort of affinity with her and these writers when Elie mentions Day devouring Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, and other Russian authors. I can’t imagine what it would have been like to have lived during the time of the Russian Revolution. The way these writers soaked up books, in a religious sort of devotion, inspires me. It seems as though books had a higher authority then than they do now. I’m excited to read about the next turns in their lives.