Review by emmy12 -- A Good Boy by Anthony Andre
Posted: 18 Sep 2018, 09:49
[Following is a volunteer review of "A Good Boy" by Anthony Andre.]
4 out of 4 stars
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A Good Boy by Anthony Andre tells of a new minister – Reverend Wesley Aames – who has been inexpensively hired at Acheville, North Carolina to pastor the New Methodist Covenant Church. The church is essentially characterized by a declining population, a detached faction of young attendees, a retrogressive majority of older parishioners and a meager treasury.
Aames is inexperienced in pastoring a church. He is nursing the hurt from the loss of his wife and in search of some sort of closure, he forgoes a higher paying job as a youth pastor in Charlotte in favor of Acheville. But then on the night of his very first day in town, he gets news of a teenage member of his church who had taken her own life. Aames figures the job would prove a bit more daunting than he anticipated – and it sure did.
It is alleged that Rosa Lee – the mother of the deceased teenager – had driven her child Jamie Lee to her death with the derogatory comments she had put up against the girl on Facebook. The locals are further infuriated by Rosa Lee’s apparent impenitence for her horrific lash out at her daughter. Aames’ attempt at consoling the seemingly remorseless mother causes a stir among his congregation.They perceive an association with such a woman unbefitting of a preacher.
Reverend Wesley Aames is by certain religious standards an unconventional preacher. He drinks, he swears and has got Toni Braxton on his music playlist! Aames – the preacher – may not have reached the pass mark as far as most of his congregation is concerned. But Aames – the man – is an embodiment of refreshing geniality. He is kind to Susie, the church secretary and to Matthew; her autistic son. He dines with Gary Meade, Acheville’s police officer and he coaches Thad; an NBA aspirant. He volunteers as an attendant on a suicide hotline after Jamie Lee’s death and as a chaplain for the terminally ill. He triumphs in winning the heart of Mamie Black, an eccentric old woman and Lucky his dog could not have asked for a kinder owner.
With every page of this book, I recognized the author’s sincerity in portraying the challenges that beset a typical preacher. He does this skillfully without presenting the spurious impression of an ideal man of the cloth being supernaturally impervious to the feelings of grief, loneliness, guilt and inadequacy that assail the natural mind. Aames is presented first as a man with a yearning for acceptability as depicted in his anxiety before and on the day of his very first sermon. So most times, he courteously breaks the ice at the sermons and church meetings by making humorous remarks in a bid to put his audience at ease – and calm his agitation.
The character of Wesley Aames is empathetic. He is moved to adopt Lucky – a three-legged, one-eyed dog – because he believes they both are survivors of a painful past. This quality of empathy is also seen in his defiance in the face of a protest staged by some of the religious to deter him from performing the funeral service for a gay fireman who died saving a puppy.
The author’s portrayal of Wesley Aames’ life makes his character realistic and easy to relate to. The simplicity of the story line is probably the most endearing feature about the book. It narrates plain, real life situations and yet is powerful in its apt illustration of the way religion is subtly eroding society’s sense of empathy. The book reveals the strip of religion which cordons the church off from the rest of the people in Acheville. Wesley Aames is a preacher in this church but is apparently cordoned off too because his association with the people on the ‘other side’ of the barricade has made him unfit to lead the fold. The fear of rejection besieges Aames as he is faced with the imminent termination of his employment. This fear – coupled with the guilt from abandoning his teenage daughter with his in – laws – causes him to give in to self – doubt. Doubt in his competence to head the flock entrusted to his leadership.
I appreciate that the writer’s line of thought is smoothly laid out, making the story line easy to follow and pick up from where one leaves off. Also, the author’s refreshing sense of humor is expertly sandwiched between the heaviness, hurt and anxiety expressed through the pages.
However, there are too many names to keep up with. At certain times, I got caught up with remembering where a recurring name had earlier been mentioned and momentarily lost track of the story line. There is also this sameness of first names among some of the characters; Song Lee, Kim Lee, Rosa Lee and Jamie Lee. Initially, I assumed that these characters were all from the same family, only to read on much further and realize they were in fact unrelated – save for Rosa Lee and Jamie Lee. The spelling mistakes are minimal and do not significantly distort the intended meaning of the few sentences in which they appear.
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. I would give a 3.5 considering the plethora of names to get used to. But that, and the few spelling errors do not substantially alter the flow of the story line enough to give a 3. I recommend this book to everyone – religious or not – who wishes to relax with an inspiring novel that confines human differences in beliefs and ideals to the backseat, and focuses the spotlight on the basic need of love and acceptance that besets every human being – and animal.
******
A Good Boy
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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4 out of 4 stars
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A Good Boy by Anthony Andre tells of a new minister – Reverend Wesley Aames – who has been inexpensively hired at Acheville, North Carolina to pastor the New Methodist Covenant Church. The church is essentially characterized by a declining population, a detached faction of young attendees, a retrogressive majority of older parishioners and a meager treasury.
Aames is inexperienced in pastoring a church. He is nursing the hurt from the loss of his wife and in search of some sort of closure, he forgoes a higher paying job as a youth pastor in Charlotte in favor of Acheville. But then on the night of his very first day in town, he gets news of a teenage member of his church who had taken her own life. Aames figures the job would prove a bit more daunting than he anticipated – and it sure did.
It is alleged that Rosa Lee – the mother of the deceased teenager – had driven her child Jamie Lee to her death with the derogatory comments she had put up against the girl on Facebook. The locals are further infuriated by Rosa Lee’s apparent impenitence for her horrific lash out at her daughter. Aames’ attempt at consoling the seemingly remorseless mother causes a stir among his congregation.They perceive an association with such a woman unbefitting of a preacher.
Reverend Wesley Aames is by certain religious standards an unconventional preacher. He drinks, he swears and has got Toni Braxton on his music playlist! Aames – the preacher – may not have reached the pass mark as far as most of his congregation is concerned. But Aames – the man – is an embodiment of refreshing geniality. He is kind to Susie, the church secretary and to Matthew; her autistic son. He dines with Gary Meade, Acheville’s police officer and he coaches Thad; an NBA aspirant. He volunteers as an attendant on a suicide hotline after Jamie Lee’s death and as a chaplain for the terminally ill. He triumphs in winning the heart of Mamie Black, an eccentric old woman and Lucky his dog could not have asked for a kinder owner.
With every page of this book, I recognized the author’s sincerity in portraying the challenges that beset a typical preacher. He does this skillfully without presenting the spurious impression of an ideal man of the cloth being supernaturally impervious to the feelings of grief, loneliness, guilt and inadequacy that assail the natural mind. Aames is presented first as a man with a yearning for acceptability as depicted in his anxiety before and on the day of his very first sermon. So most times, he courteously breaks the ice at the sermons and church meetings by making humorous remarks in a bid to put his audience at ease – and calm his agitation.
The character of Wesley Aames is empathetic. He is moved to adopt Lucky – a three-legged, one-eyed dog – because he believes they both are survivors of a painful past. This quality of empathy is also seen in his defiance in the face of a protest staged by some of the religious to deter him from performing the funeral service for a gay fireman who died saving a puppy.
The author’s portrayal of Wesley Aames’ life makes his character realistic and easy to relate to. The simplicity of the story line is probably the most endearing feature about the book. It narrates plain, real life situations and yet is powerful in its apt illustration of the way religion is subtly eroding society’s sense of empathy. The book reveals the strip of religion which cordons the church off from the rest of the people in Acheville. Wesley Aames is a preacher in this church but is apparently cordoned off too because his association with the people on the ‘other side’ of the barricade has made him unfit to lead the fold. The fear of rejection besieges Aames as he is faced with the imminent termination of his employment. This fear – coupled with the guilt from abandoning his teenage daughter with his in – laws – causes him to give in to self – doubt. Doubt in his competence to head the flock entrusted to his leadership.
I appreciate that the writer’s line of thought is smoothly laid out, making the story line easy to follow and pick up from where one leaves off. Also, the author’s refreshing sense of humor is expertly sandwiched between the heaviness, hurt and anxiety expressed through the pages.
However, there are too many names to keep up with. At certain times, I got caught up with remembering where a recurring name had earlier been mentioned and momentarily lost track of the story line. There is also this sameness of first names among some of the characters; Song Lee, Kim Lee, Rosa Lee and Jamie Lee. Initially, I assumed that these characters were all from the same family, only to read on much further and realize they were in fact unrelated – save for Rosa Lee and Jamie Lee. The spelling mistakes are minimal and do not significantly distort the intended meaning of the few sentences in which they appear.
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. I would give a 3.5 considering the plethora of names to get used to. But that, and the few spelling errors do not substantially alter the flow of the story line enough to give a 3. I recommend this book to everyone – religious or not – who wishes to relax with an inspiring novel that confines human differences in beliefs and ideals to the backseat, and focuses the spotlight on the basic need of love and acceptance that besets every human being – and animal.
******
A Good Boy
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like emmy12's review? Post a comment saying so!