Saints and Sinners: The American Catholic Experience Through Stories, Memoirs, Essays and Commentary

"Saints and Sinners" contains a rich variety of material whose diverse approaches capture the essence and texture of Catholicism since World War II. There are essays of social commentary and theological discourse, dramatic fiction about characters in deep spiritual conflict or immersed in the joy of life, and memoirs of ethnic heritage and of comic clashes of cultures and ideas.This wide-ranging collection comes at a time when public interest in religious affairs, particularly relating to the Catholic Church, its teachings, its leadership, and the views of the laity, has never been more intense.<br /><br />"Saints and Sinners" presents many classic pieces, featuring some of the most renowned writers in the United States. A list of the names reads like a roll call of twentieth-century American letters; among them, Jimmy Breslin, William F. Buckley, Jr., James Carroll, Dorothy Day, John Gregory Dunne, Mary Gordon, Mary McCarthy, Alice McDermott, Thomas Merton, Flannery O'Connor, Mario Puzo, and Gary Wills. This is a collection to which readers will return time and time again.