This wonderful old read reminded me of the religious twin of Maugham's OF HUMAN BONDAGE: a historical soap opera which keeps you hooked chapter after chapter. Not only does the reader stay engaged by the Peyton Place roster of characters and situations, one also gets an insight into world Catholicism in the first half of the 20th Century. As interesting as it is entertaining! Makes me want to go back and take a look at the campy Otto Preminger movie version starring Tom Tryon and Carol Lynley!

In THE CARDINAL, Robinson tells the story of a young Irish-American priest on his journey from a naïve and slightly arrogant curate to his eventual promotion to cardinal in the Roman Catholic Church. While often filled with the melodramatic elements that are common in these types of novels; THE CARDINAL makes an honest attempt to show what life was like for a Catholic priest in the 1st half of the 20th century. By examining aspects of a priest's spiritual and temporal life, Robinson creates a moving portrait of the difficult choices that are made by a man who chooses this life. Abortion, miracles, and the financial realities of poor and wealthy parishes are all dealt with in an evenhanded manner, but with a continued focus on the belief system of the Catholic faith. The book shows particular strength when it deals directly with the Catholic Church and its hierarchy; with an emphasis on how the church felt about its American brethren. The novel does slow down considerably when dealing with the protagonist's (Stephen Fermoyle) stereotypical Irish family and Fermoyle's crisis of faith when confronted with feelings for various women in his life. But the novel does provide an intriguing view of what a priest's life might be like in America between World War I and II.

I read this book year ago on the recommendation of a friend,
and just bought a used copy at a booksale. Although slightly dated(Bear in mind that the copywrite is the early 50's),it is a well crafted story of faith. Its the type of book that you would like to see a sequel to(I know how much time it covers!) One word of advise.... If you have never seen the movie,don't! Just read the book. I understand that it periodically comes back into print. If you can latch on to a copy as I did,go for it!