Book Review: UNDER THE MERCY, by Sheldon Vanauken

In the beginning of the book, Vanauken assures the reader that there's something in UNDER THE MERCY to offend everybody. Having read UNDER's predecessor, A Severe Mercy, I found this hard to believe, but even with my guard up, Vanauken did manage to offend me, but in the best sort of way. He made me think, very hard, about lots of important things.

I was definately skeptical of the merit of "A sequel to A Severe Mercy", but Vanauken did well--aside from having plenty of interesting and challenging things to say, he provided a fascinating glimpse of himself post-Mercy, and of the (most wonderful) writing of A Severe Mercy.

A Severe Mercy tells of Vanauken's singular marriage--UNDER THE MERCY tells of the thirty or so years following his wife's death, years that are touched on, however briefly, toward the end of A Severe Mercy, but which are fleshed out here as Vanauken ruminates on his involvement in the Civil Rights, Antiwar and Women's Lib Movements, his departure and return to the faith, and his conversion to Catholicism. He includes several essays and poems and articles written at different periods throughout his life, and is fond of quoting himself (sometimes to the extent of striking me as a bit pompous), but he provides a rather unique perspective, given his experiences, on the state of the Church and Christianity. Some of his writings on feminisim and the Spirit of the Age were particularly good (and offensive), and gave me plenty to ponder.

Despite my skepticism, I was impressed, and while I enjoyed the extra little glimpses he offered of himself and of Davy, after another ten years of reflection (from writing A Severe Mercy), I also found myself enjoying his theological articles much more than I'd anticipated. I somehow didn't pick up on how fiercely opinionated Vanauken is, while reading A Severe Mercy, but perhaps the subject in that book didn't allow for quite so much of his stubbornness to show through. All in all, it was a wonderful follow-up, and I'll be reading it again--probably on alternate years with A Severe Mercy.

RATING: 5

Book Review: A SEVERE MERCY, by Sheldon Vanauken

A SEVERE MERCY is the sort of book that tends to be given as a gift. Example: one of Mitch's best friends gave him a copy less than a month before Mitch and I "met", feel in love, etc. We read the book aloud together during our engagement, and the influence Van and Davy's Shining Barrier has had in our relationship is incalculable--I recently reread A SEVERE MERCY and was struck anew by how many aspects of our marriage have been influenced by Vanauken's book. I was also quite grateful that A SEVERE MERCY found us when it did.

A second example: This led me to give a copy to a Mitch's cousin's fiancee (whew!) at her bridal shower. A few months later, I received the most heartfelt thank-you letter I've ever read--it's just that sort of book.

What's the big deal? Well, it's a memoir of sorts. In it, Vanauken chronicles his romance and marriage to the marvellous Davy, and while it is a love story, it is the most honest and thorough love story you will ever read--complete with journal entries, poems they wrote separately and together, and the many little vows that they made to one another, Vanauken tells how he and Davy eventually wove "one thousand sharings" to bind them together in a way you rarely (if ever) see in common love stories.

Also, it's a story of conversion. The one big breach in Van and Davy's protected love comes in the form of Christ ("invading", as Vanauken says). Probably the only reason this book, with it's small but fiercely devoted following, is still in print is because it includes a handful of otherwise unpublished letters to Van from C.S. Lewis--in fact, if you're having trouble finding a copy at the bookstore, check under "C.S. Lewis," where it's most likely been shelved. (And if you're in Bellingham, I can tell you right now that Henderson Books has a whopping three copies in stock! Amazing!)

I have to warn you, though--while it's beautiful, inspiring, honest and humbling, A SEVERE MERCY is also probably the saddest book you'll ever read. You'll cry. I guarantee it. No matter how tough you think you are, you'll get good and choked up. But don't let that stop you--please finish the whole thing. When Mitch and I read it together, we were so bitterly broken-hearted at a certain point that we found it difficult to keep going--so we didn't. It wasn't until two years later, when I reread the whole book, that I realized that the rest of the book was absolutely worth a few tears shed over lunch (in an embarrassingly public place--I did, in fact, have to leave the co-op to go sit in my car and weep).

Another small warning: I've given copies of this book to single friends who shrugged and weren't moved to finish the book, so I'd venture to say that this is possibly a two-person book--read it with your beloved, and it'll be that much more meaningful.

RATING: 5

Book Review: CROSSING TO SAFETY, by Wallace Stegner

It hadn't occurred to me how many desolate, depressing books I'd been reading lately until I got into CROSSING TO SAFETY and discovered, near the end of the first chapter, that the book is about friendship. Even though bad things might happen in a book about friendship, people still retain some semblance of hope that, somehow, stuff will be okay. I found this immediately heartening. Books about friendship don't generally contain words like "abyss" or phrases like "soul of man." They don't end on a note that leaves you shaken to the core of your very "dark soul" and uncertain how you'll be able to go on in such a merciless, empty world.

In this way, CROSSING TO SAFETY met a need that I didn't even know I had. It is also really, really, REALLY damn good. After The Big Rock Candy Mountain, I was effectively won over by Stegner, but after this? He has been vaulted to the land of Favorite Authors: installed, with much praise and adoration, among the ranks of Salinger, McEwan and Tolkien, and CROSSING TO SAFETY added to the List of Books I Command You To Read (though you may disobey my command, it really is your loss).

One of the big appeals, to me, of CROSSING TO SAFETY is that it addresses one of those tragically underrepresented groups in literature: the happily married couple. Of course, this is just my humble, early-wed, hugely biased opinion, but really, how many books are there dedicated to rocky marriages, books whose strongest conflict lies between the two main characters? (The Big Rock Candy Mountain is one of these.) And how many books end with a wedding, as though getting to the altar was the most exciting part of the characters' whole dumb lives? (I am particularly bitter toward that last category, and that is why I can't stand romantic comedies.)

Now, I say "happily" mainly to signify that our married characters are not throwing lamps and trashcans at each other throughout the story--of course there will be conflict, and they will occasionally (if the story is at all believable) be on opposite sides of the conflict, but mostly our married heroes will support each other, standing stubbornly side by side. They will suffer hardship together, say encouraging things to each other, and will also say brutally honest things when times call for it; in this sort of marriage, there is an awful lot of conversation, and I suppose this is the boring aspect of the tale that leaves them underwritten--either these couples tend to stand blandly by as more interesting, single characters steal the show, or they resort to throwing things for the sake of creating narrative tension.

Pah. Stegner creates plenty of tension without resorting to that. CROSSING TO SAFETY is the sort of book that sounds boring in summary--something like "chronicles the enduring friendship of the Langs and Morgans, through such hardships as blah blah blah"--but it is beautiful, refreshing and sad. I, an incurable speedreader, found myself not wanting to read this book so that I would not finish it so soon. I drew it out, page by page, and that is the most sparkling praise I can offer: I did not want to finish this book. I really didn't.

RATING: 5