A review by lezreadalot
Pastoral by André Alexis

4.0

Of course, it’s wonderful to contemplate Nature, but without the miraculous the earth is only a coffin.

  
I do think I need to revise my list of things I don't like in fiction/writing. I always go on about how much I dislike omniscient POV, and I really truly do, but something about the way it's employed in literary fiction and classics just always works for me. I would be tempted to say it's because there's no abrupt head-hopping (the thing I hate most) but that's not always true! This was such a well-crafted piece of fiction. Went into it completely blind, as is my wont, and even though it ticked almost none of my usual boxes, I really enjoyed it. We're following a pastor who has just moved to a small town, the relationships he builds with some of his parishioners (including the caretaker at the parish and a young woman in an unwilling love triangle) and the strange events that take place around him. Or are they miracles? I loved the descriptions of the land, the beauty of the landscape, the pastoral. Very interesting writing, the way we'd flow from character to character. It has a magical realism sorta vibe without ever really going there? I love when books get weird, and this does, in a really particular way. It's very thoughtful and slow, but I felt engaged the entire time. I don't particularly like reading about religious characters, but this was sublime. And I loved Lowther so much; I want to travel back to uni days and write an essay about him.

Listened to the audiobook as read by the author; enjoyed it a lot. I'll definitely be reading more from Alexis. Even though I wanted a little more from the ending of this, wanted it to go a bit longer, I just adored the craft and the writing and the style. Super interesting.

Comfort came from the continuity of submission. Kneeling, praying, he was himself at his most open and at his most genuinely human: ignorant, hopeful, humble in the face of the unknown.