Andrew Greeley

I am not quite sure why I like the books by Andrew Greeley. Perhaps it is the vague memories of being raised Catholic, of knowing (with a third-grade child’s awareness) a parish where the priest would actually visit people’s homes, would teach catechism in the church basement, where First Communion was a big deal.

My awareness of that whole world is pretty marginal now. But as I have told my wife, there’s something indelible about being raised in the whole Catholic mythology, the rich ritual, the politics, the seemingly neverending history of it. It ends up informing you for the rest of your life. By comparison, the history and accoutrements of Protestantism seem kind of dry to me, lacking… flavor, I suppose. I say this as someone who doesn’t go to church of any sort anymore.

The thing about Greeley’s books is that they are basically homilies; he’s preaching via story, in a way that isn’t preachy most of the time. I got into him first via the wonderful book God Game, which I think every developer of virtual worlds should read. It’s the story of a priest named Andrew Greeley, who both is and isn’t the author, who is playing a god game on his PC when his house gets struck by lightning and he gets a sudden major graphics upgrade and the game turns real. The characters in the game then begin to pray to him as God. They invade his dreams. He gets to cause disasters and miracles in the world within/through his computer. And just when you think you understand what is going on, the book is interrupted by commentary by the ostensible author of the book, one Andrew Greeley, who has much to say about the relationship of he character Andrew Greeley to his worshippers. Implicit, of course, is the idea that this isn’t Andrew Greeley either.

Probably the most accessible way to dive into Greeley’s world is via his Blackie Ryan series, a set of detective novels with one very perceptive priest who acts as “cleaner” to his cardinal. Fun and accessible, with just a hint of mysticism and some pretty fun mysteries. If you dig deeper into his books, you’ll find some pretty poor SF and fantasy novels, and some pretty good historical novels , and some surprisingly steamy sex scenes.

The one I just finished reading is Golden Years, the latest in a generational saga about one Chicago family. If you want a little more magic with your mystery, you can also try the Nuala McGrail mysteries, which feature a fey Irish psychic and her determinedly normal husband as they unravel two mysteries at once — one historical and one contemporary.