J
JimG
Guest
After taking my time reading the real life adventures of Kurt von Schuschnigg in “When Hitler Took Austria,” I needed some lighter reading. So I turned to teenage fiction. I find interesting book recommendations everywhere, on CAF, and in magazine articles. This one was barely mentioned in an article, and I knew I would have to read it because the book’s premise reminded me of my older brother.
The book is “Godless” by Pete Hautman. The protagonist is a 16 year old nominally Catholic boy who has lost his faith. He is, perhaps atheist, maybe agnostic, which worries his dad and mom. But why live without religion when you can start one of your own? So he starts his own religion, premised on the worship of the local water tower—“the Ten Legged One.” He gets a few converts. They spend time with their god even as the police sometimes chase them off.
It’s a quirky group of water tower worshipers, having dangerous fun with their newly founded religion. But things can get out of hand when one disciple turns into a true believer and another thinks himself immune to risk. And the question is briefly raised, but not answered, as to why do girls go for the bad boys.
(When I got to the end of the book, I discovered that the last 12 pages or so consisted of an “Educator’s Guide” with discussion questions. I’m glad I didn’t know that was there beforehand; I hate such things. It’s okay to discuss books in class, but please don’t ruin it by putting discussion questions right in the back of the book, thereby turning a good read into a textbook. I’m no longer 16 years old, but if I’d come across that when I was in school, it might have ruined the enjoyment of reading for me.)
Why the book reminded me of my brother: When we were both teenagers, the two of us and a friend all worked the night shift at the KC Star mailroom on Saturday nights. Then we went to 5:30 am Sunday Mass on the way home. But if there was time, we had to stop at the water tower for them to make the climb. I didn’t like climbing towers, so I stayed in the car. They would come down saying “Whoa, Jim, you really ought to come with us. It’s really amazing up there!” “Sounds like a religious experience,” I would say. “Well, yeah, really it is,” they agreed. So, maybe water towers can be a religious experience. But we still went to Mass.
The book is “Godless” by Pete Hautman. The protagonist is a 16 year old nominally Catholic boy who has lost his faith. He is, perhaps atheist, maybe agnostic, which worries his dad and mom. But why live without religion when you can start one of your own? So he starts his own religion, premised on the worship of the local water tower—“the Ten Legged One.” He gets a few converts. They spend time with their god even as the police sometimes chase them off.
It’s a quirky group of water tower worshipers, having dangerous fun with their newly founded religion. But things can get out of hand when one disciple turns into a true believer and another thinks himself immune to risk. And the question is briefly raised, but not answered, as to why do girls go for the bad boys.
(When I got to the end of the book, I discovered that the last 12 pages or so consisted of an “Educator’s Guide” with discussion questions. I’m glad I didn’t know that was there beforehand; I hate such things. It’s okay to discuss books in class, but please don’t ruin it by putting discussion questions right in the back of the book, thereby turning a good read into a textbook. I’m no longer 16 years old, but if I’d come across that when I was in school, it might have ruined the enjoyment of reading for me.)
Why the book reminded me of my brother: When we were both teenagers, the two of us and a friend all worked the night shift at the KC Star mailroom on Saturday nights. Then we went to 5:30 am Sunday Mass on the way home. But if there was time, we had to stop at the water tower for them to make the climb. I didn’t like climbing towers, so I stayed in the car. They would come down saying “Whoa, Jim, you really ought to come with us. It’s really amazing up there!” “Sounds like a religious experience,” I would say. “Well, yeah, really it is,” they agreed. So, maybe water towers can be a religious experience. But we still went to Mass.
