Humble Powers -- Three Novelettes: The Devil in the Desert; One Red Rose for Christmas; To the Castle

by Paul Horgan

The best description of Humble Powers is that given by its own author. It is “a triptych whose panels illustrate in settings of the recent past certain humble powers as old as mankind.” In these three novellettes, these powers are qualified by the virtue of humility, and thus do they find their place within the context of an uninterrupted and universal Christianity, through which they speak in these stories. Illustrating the power of faith is “The Devil in the Desert”: old Father Louis confronts the Adversary in the desert of the Rio Grande country; the power of love, “One Red Rose for Christmas”: a nun and an orphan contend with the torment of loneliness at Yuletide; and the power of sacrifice, “To the Castle”: an Army platoon and its chaplain must capture a medieval castle from the Nazis so the Allied forces can advance on Rome. Flannery O’Connor, reviewing Humble Powers , marks the rarity of “fiction about people with affirmative values who triumph by the exercise of virtue.” “Such fiction,” she concludes, “is indeed rare because it is the most difficult to write, but Humble Powers by Mr. Horgan should prove at least that it can be found.”

Genres: Fiction

Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 1955

About the author

Paul Horgan was an American author of fiction and nonfiction, most of which was set in the Southwest. He received two Pulitzer Prizes for history.

The New York Times Review of Books said in 1989: "With the exception of Wallace Stegner, no living American has so distinguished himself in both fiction and history."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Ho...

Reviews

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite of the three short stories that I've read by Paul Horgan of late. This story is based around an un-named fictional Catholic priest serving as a Chaplin in World War II. He meets up with an exhausted and discouraged platoon assigned an impossible task and is able to help them rally. He even goes so far as to join them in their mission.
I had never heard of Paul Horgan until I found his book on my dad's bookshelf where it had been kept since the 1950s. I wish he had brought it to my attention years ago so that we could have discussed it and enjoyed it together. Although Paul Horgan received the Bancroft and two Pulitzer prizes he is relatively unknown today and most of his nearly 40 books are out of print. Perhaps his lack of enduring fame is due to the fact that he was considered a regional and a Catholic writer. Even though Horgan himself didn't want to be categorized as such that was nonetheless how he was seen. His books were best sellers for a time, but perhaps the labels limited his audience. Pope Pius XII made him a Knight of Saint Gregory in honor of his contributions to Catholic literature and in 1960 Horgan served as President of the American Catholic Historical Association. Horgan wrote history as well as fiction and there is an effort afoot to dust of his name and have reader's give his stories another look.

[C. Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

My introduction to this writer's fiction. Delightful use of euphemism to speak of 'delicate' matters, something that often irritates rather than pleases me. More importantly, he deals with the big issues of life and death in these three quite different stories in a way that is affirming even if the stories contain incidents that induce regret. Openly faithful, openly Catholic, and positively so.

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely a 5 star book, recently republished by Cluny Media.

[Benjamin Barre · Rating 5 out of 5]

This guy knows how to write characters