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Revelations
When pastor Tom Buckford arrives Naughton, he has lost his "believing hope". He prays to love again, and then falls passionately in love with a married woman; crisis. Once he surrenders to love, he is smitten by a mystical Revelation of God, leading inexorably to his heresy trial. Set in the South in the late 1950's, this is a complex book with multiples subplots, brilliant characters and the first stirrings of the Civil Rights Movement.
498 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1992
12 people want to read
About the author
Sophy Burnham
38 books56 followersSophy Burnham is an award-winning playwright, novelist, and non-fiction writer. Three of her books have appeared on THE NEW YORK TIMES and other best seller lists. Her works have been translated into twenty-four languages. Her articles and essays have been published in ESQUIRE, NEW YORK, THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE, TOWN & COUNTRY, READER'S DIGEST and many other magazines. In addition to her theater interests, she is a psychic or intuitive, a healer, and a spiritual director. She lives in Washington D.C. New novel, 'Love, Alba' coming summer 2015!
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 1, 2019
Jan 31 2019 ~~ Review coming tomorrow. Lots to ponder here.
Feb 1 ~~ Still working on my Encore list of titles that need to be re-read before I can decide whether or not to keep them. This 1992 book will definitely be sticking around!
I first read Sophy Burnham's Book Of Angels many years ago and snapped this one up when it came out. I was surprised that so few people on GR have read it, and as of Feb 1 2019 there were no other reviews at all. I wonder why? I know the author has a reputation for spiritual books, and this one is that to a great deal, but it is also earthy and dramatic, sometimes even coarse and ugly. So where are all the readers?
Well, I guess it should only matter to me that i read it and loved it, right?
Revelations tells the story of Tom Buckford and how his life changed after he came to Naughton Virginia as rector of the local Episcopal church. His life and everyone else's as well. The story takes place in late 1950's Virginia, in small town that is very very Southern in outlook. Tom never fits in, he seems to make powerful enemies every time he turns around, and worse yet (in the eyes of the town) he does not have that very very Southern outlook on life that keeps certain people in 'their place'.
Besides all that, he is on a spiritual quest of his own, which I would assume any rector or priest or preacher or whatever title you use should be. But Tom's path begins to diverge from the accepted and scripted way his church's doctrines teach. What triggers his enhanced vision? What will happen to the town and the people around him as he begins to share it?
The story is told by John Woods, who identifies himself towards the end of chapter one. He is eighty years old and writing the story both from memory (he was a major player in those events 30 years before) and journals given to him by another major player. John was a good narrator, but also had issues of his own, which came to light as the book went along. How did Tom's time in Naughton affect John and his own life?
I could hardly put this book down. It can be brutal at times, though. There is more than one scene of domestic violence that will disturb any reader. And although I was interested in the religious/spiritual debates carried on between Tom and other characters, some people might not care for them. This is not a preachy book, but it does show a difference, or rather a clashing between what a church is and what it could be. Organized religion meeting individual discovery was one of the main themes here. I know what I believe, but if you believe differently this book may offend you the way Tom offended many of the 1950's era mindsets in Naughton.
In one way this is a story of a man who was ahead of his time. How would he be received today? Would he scare people as much now as he did then? Have we matured at all since the 50's? I wonder.
Feb 1 ~~ Still working on my Encore list of titles that need to be re-read before I can decide whether or not to keep them. This 1992 book will definitely be sticking around!
I first read Sophy Burnham's Book Of Angels many years ago and snapped this one up when it came out. I was surprised that so few people on GR have read it, and as of Feb 1 2019 there were no other reviews at all. I wonder why? I know the author has a reputation for spiritual books, and this one is that to a great deal, but it is also earthy and dramatic, sometimes even coarse and ugly. So where are all the readers?
Well, I guess it should only matter to me that i read it and loved it, right?
Revelations tells the story of Tom Buckford and how his life changed after he came to Naughton Virginia as rector of the local Episcopal church. His life and everyone else's as well. The story takes place in late 1950's Virginia, in small town that is very very Southern in outlook. Tom never fits in, he seems to make powerful enemies every time he turns around, and worse yet (in the eyes of the town) he does not have that very very Southern outlook on life that keeps certain people in 'their place'.
Besides all that, he is on a spiritual quest of his own, which I would assume any rector or priest or preacher or whatever title you use should be. But Tom's path begins to diverge from the accepted and scripted way his church's doctrines teach. What triggers his enhanced vision? What will happen to the town and the people around him as he begins to share it?
The story is told by John Woods, who identifies himself towards the end of chapter one. He is eighty years old and writing the story both from memory (he was a major player in those events 30 years before) and journals given to him by another major player. John was a good narrator, but also had issues of his own, which came to light as the book went along. How did Tom's time in Naughton affect John and his own life?
I could hardly put this book down. It can be brutal at times, though. There is more than one scene of domestic violence that will disturb any reader. And although I was interested in the religious/spiritual debates carried on between Tom and other characters, some people might not care for them. This is not a preachy book, but it does show a difference, or rather a clashing between what a church is and what it could be. Organized religion meeting individual discovery was one of the main themes here. I know what I believe, but if you believe differently this book may offend you the way Tom offended many of the 1950's era mindsets in Naughton.
In one way this is a story of a man who was ahead of his time. How would he be received today? Would he scare people as much now as he did then? Have we matured at all since the 50's? I wonder.
January 12, 2026
Beautiful writing, good character development. Insight into the workings of organized churches and into the prejudices and actions of flawed human beings. A young, dedicated minister falls in love with one of his parishioners, which leads to many changes in people's lives, some for the better. The anguish was real in the telling. I don't quite buy into the vision thing. And the really bad person in the book, who beat his wife and stole his friend's money never gets caught and punished.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews