A Book of Uncommon Prayer: 100 Celebrations of the Miracle & Muddle of the Ordinary

by Brian Doyle

Overview

Acclaimed, award-winning essayist and novelist Brian Doyle—whose writing, in the words of Mary Oliver, is "a gift to us all"—presents one hundred new prayers that evoke his deep Catholic belief in the mystery and miracle of the ordinary (and the whimsical) in human life.

In Brian Doyle's newest work, his readers will find a series of prayers unlike any of the beautiful, formal, orthodox prayers of the Catholic tradition or the warm, extemporized prayers heard from pulpits and dinner tables. Doyle's often-dazzling, always-poignant prayers include eye-opening hymns to shoes and faith and family. In Doyle's words, "the world is crammed with miracles, so crammed and tumultuous that if we stop, see, savor, we are agog," and the pages of his newest book give voice and body to this credo. By focusing on experiences that may seem the most unprayerful (one prayer is titled "Prayer of Abject Love for the Dishwasher, To Whom I Wish to Leave My Estate"), he gives permission to discover the joys and treasures in what he often calls the muddle of everyday life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781933495620
Publisher:	Ave Maria Press
Publication date:	11/24/2014
Pages:	192
Sales rank:	58,092
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 6.70(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Brian Doyle is the editor of Portland Magazine at the University of Portland in Oregon and the author of fourteen books. His work has appeared in periodicals around the world and has been reprinted in the annual Best American Essays and Best American Spiritual Writing anthologies.

Editorial Reviews

11/10/2014
Doyle is an underappreciated writer with a slew of books (Mink River, The Plover, Grace Notes) and distinctions to his name, and this literary prayer book will enhance his reputation as a writer more people should read. He offers one hundred prayers in a totally idiosyncratic voice, and they’re not about much at all: proofreaders, possums, women named Ethel, and so on. Doyle carefully observes quotidian details, and sings them, fashioning a litany of description: “the Soxness of the Sox, their awful seasons, their cheerful motley fans.” Any prayer—they’re all short—is a truffle of writing, which some readers may find a little too rich and over the top, but others will savor. Seen from a spiritual perspective, these prayers are plainspoken, witty fun; those who like Anne Lamott’s engaged and everyday religious stance should make Doyle’s acquaintance, though he is more of an observer of scenes than is Lamott. The book will be especially useful for novice writers interested in reading a playful and accomplished veteran author and those legions that say they don’t know how to pray. Read it on your knees in prayer or over a glass of something that hits the spot. (Dec.)

Publishers Weekly