Toward That Which Is Beautiful

by Marian O'Shea Wernicke

On an ordinary day in June of 1964 in a small town in the Altiplano of Peru, Sister Mary Katherine (formerly known as Kate), a young American nun recently arrived in this very foreign place, walks away from her convent with no money and no destination. Desperate and afraid of her feelings for an Irish priest with whom she has been working, she spends eight days on the run, encountering a variety of characters along the way: a cynical Englishman who helps her out; a suspicious Peruvian police officer who takes her in for questioning; and two American Peace Corps workers who befriend her. As Kate traverses this dangerous physical journey through Peru, she also embarks upon an interior journey of self-discovery―one that leads her somewhere she never could have expected.

Genres: Fiction, Novels, Historical Fiction

272 pages, Paperback

First published September 28, 2020

About the author

The oldest of seven children in an Irish Catholic family, Marian entered the convent of the Sisters of the Most Precious Blood when she was sixteen. She graduated from Fontbonne College with a degree in English, and taught in several schools in St. Louis before volunteering to go to Lima, Peru, to work with the Sisters and Maryknoll priests in Lima. After eleven years in the convent, she left the community and became a bilingual teacher in Massachusetts. She met and married Michael Wernicke from Pensacola, Florida, and they spent over a year in Madrid where Michael was working as a design review electrical engineer. Marian taught students from St. Louis University who were spending a study year abroad in Madrid. . They spent the next 39 years in Pensacola raising three children, Kristin, Tim, and John. Marian was a professor at Pensacola Junior College for 25 years, teaching writing and literature, and serving six years as English department head. Since her retirement from the college, Marian has written three books: a memoir about her father called Tom O'Shea: A Twentieth Century Man; a novel called Toward that Which Is Beautiful, published by She Writes Press in 2020; and her latest novel, Out of Ireland will be published in April 2023. It is inspired by the life of her great-grandmother from Ireland. She and her husband are living now in Austin, near their daughter Kristin, who is married to Max Benitez, and they have a son, August Michael. Son Tim is married to Sarah Jasinski and they live and work in San Diego. Son John lives in Silver Spring, Maryland.

Reviews

[Zoe L.]

This is such a lovely story about journeys and finding one’s place in the world. I don’t think anyone walks through life without facing many difficult decisions, restless nights, and moments contemplating whether you made the right decision or not. But the wonderful thing about life is that you can always change what path you are on. And this is what Toward That Which is Beautiful is about.

You know, I don’t read a lot of books about nuns but there was something about this story that just called to me. I think it’s my inherent “flight” instinct that is always screaming at me to drop everything and go on an adventure. But this was a beautiful story that gave us to much culture and history.

The writing in this book is just so lush and vibrant, which helps to elevate the story that much more. Our MC is thrust into an unfamiliar world and we discover just as much as she does as the story progresses. All around this is a wonder and uplifting story that takes you on numerous trials and through a vibrant culture.

You can view my full review on my blog! I also post about a lot of different types of books!

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[Mary Sheriff · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel is beautiful on so many levels. First, I mean look at the cover--not that I judge a book by its cover (oh, yes I do). Second, Wernicke's evocative descriptions of Peru and Bolivia capture such varying landscapes and do so by capturing all the senses and explaining the impact of the landscape on culture. Whew! Third, the main character is a beautiful young nun who very humanly struggles to be her best self and do the right thing. I have never read a book with a nun as the main character and had never realized how stuck in archetypes my impressions of nuns were. This book made the nuns and the priests very relatable people. I felt as though I was learning about a whole new culture in learning about life in a nunnery. Wernicke did a lovely job of writing a story centered around religion that is neither pious nor damning. This is a lovely novel.

[Debra Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Set in the highlands of Peru, Toward That Which Is Beautiful is a lovely coming-of-age novel that follows young Sister Mary Katherine (Kate) on a quest to find the woman she is meant to be. I did not see hers as a crisis of faith but rather that of identity. Her faith itself is unwavering. Whether she chooses to follow her love for a handsome young priest, or to remain a Dominican Sister in the Altiplano, or to leave the order and start her life over again back home, her faith remains the one constant. In fact, it carries her through her journey as she flees the highlands and embarks on a trek that will ultimately lead her to the answers she seeks. Along the way, we get to experience the rich culture of Peru. A deeply enjoyable read.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a moving story of a woman who is searching for her true self with all her complexities.

The story begins in 1964 with Sister Mary Katherine (Kate) as a 25 year old, American nun walking away from her Peruvian convent with nothing, telling no one, and with no preparation or idea of where she is going.

This exodus spurs an internal struggle of worth, value, purpose and place as she navigates a less than safe external journey. It is not a secret that the main struggle is the feelings she develops for a priest, but it goes deeper.
The issues of western "missions" in places where it is eyed suspiciously as culturally insensitive, or even brutally colonizing was a topic that is still relevant and personally applicable. I've been having conversations about this specifically with friends and family a lot over recent years.
As a person of faith, I also related a little (I'm not Catholic, but still) to the questions of what a faith community seems to expect of me as a woman, and what I genuinely believe God made me to be. I think most of us don't think we fit inside the box, and trying to just diminishes all the unique beauty God has put in each of us. We are made to be who we are. I loved that message.

Well, I really liked this story. It was written well, with just enough detail of the Peruvian surroundings to imagine it without being drowned in minutiae. I felt the pace was steady and and the narration was superb. This is a true character driven, awakening, narrative. It is not fast paced, a thriller, or a steamy romance, though there are some moments! I needed a deeper, meaningful read just now, and this filled my cup.

Thank you, @BookSparks for the chance to listen to this gorgeous book. I am so sorry it took so long, but in a selfish way, I am glad as it was just what I needed right now! This is available now for everyone to read!

[Jude (HeyJudeReads) Fricano · Rating 4 out of 5]

An unexpectedly beautiful story of Sister Mary Katherine (Kate) and her world both before and during her time as a nun in a Catholic world of missionary work. The descriptions of Peru and Bolivia are breathtaking and paint a picture of both scarcity and abundance. I connected to her spiritual growth and her wonder and questioning about what is to believe. The people she meets along the way are part of her physical and spiritual journey, from which she matures and grows in her own confidence. Beautifully told, and delicately unraveled, this story is a must for those with ties to South American and to the faith they call home.

"On an ordinary day in June of 1964 in a small town in the Altiplano of Peru, Sister Mary Katherine (formerly known as Kate), a young American nun recently arrived in this very foreign place, walks away from her convent with no money and no destination. Desperate and afraid of her feelings for an Irish priest with whom she has been working, she spends eight days on the run, encountering a variety of characters along the way: a cynical Englishman who helps her out; a suspicious Peruvian police officer who takes her in for questioning; and two American Peace Corps workers who befriend her. As Kate traverses this dangerous physical journey through Peru, she also embarks upon an interior journey of self-discovery―one that leads her somewhere she never could have expected."

[Story Circle Book Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marian O’Shea Wernicke’s debut novel, "Toward That Which Is Beautiful," is a stunning journey of trust, suspense, and agape love.

The story is set in the highlands of Peru in the summer of 1964. Kate leaves her Catholic education, middle-class suburbia life, joins the Dominican Order, and finds herself in an unfamiliar culture with a shaky hold on the language she tries to teach in their mission school. As Sister Mary Katherine, she's a young American novice nun who still feels like Kate beneath the long white habit and black veil of the Dominicans.

Kate is conflicted and doubts her decision to become a nun. Her situation becomes even more complicated when she falls in love with a charismatic rebel Irish priest, Father Tom, who also works in their mission area. It leads Kate to make a reckless decision.

After only a few months at the mission, Kate flees the convent. She naively walks out the door with no money, no food, no jacket for the cool nights and no destination, trusting God to protect her. She walks until she can walk no more. Yet, her simple faith proves to be all she needs, though not without travails.

Her first night alone, a light in the darkness leads her to a British journalist who befriends her, gives her lodging and food. The next morning, he provides food and a jacket with money in the pocket to help her find what she is looking for. Later she meets two female American Peace Corps volunteers who are about her age; they are on vacation and Kate spends a few days with them. In Lima, Peru, Magdalena, a young novice who served with her at the mission convent, appears after Kate’s been stabbed, robbed and beaten. Magdalena and her family nurse Kate back to health.

Sister Mary Katherine’s wit and sense of humor make her good company, as it threads throughout this novel. I love surprise endings when reading good books. The plot abruptly changes course several times and I did not expect the surprise though very satisfactory ending. Kate feels deep guilt, which reminds me of the return of a prodigal daughter who receives nothing but understanding, kindness and joy from the other nuns.

"Toward That Which Is Beautiful" will appeal to anyone of faith or curious about the community of Novitiate Nuns. It is a coming of age story following Kate’s life from 18 through 24. The characters throughout the novel are well developed. Plot twists will keep readers turning pages. This novel brings more humanity to Catholicism than the headlining exposés we have all been privy to during the last few years.

This book was reviewed for Story Circle Book Reviews by Ann McCauley.

[Mark O'brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful story on a couple levels.
We see what life was like for nuns in the 1950s and '60s, when most girls could imagine careers only as nuns, teachers or secretaries. And as Wernicke, a former nun herself, notes, there was was plenty of sexism inside the Church, too. Nuns did all the grunt work and spent time with the needy while many priests got to do guy stuff like take vacations and cuss and drink. No wonder you hardly ever see a nun these days.
It's also a story about the aspects of love. A naive young woman drifts into the convent before she has explored the world outside her home town. Now, thrust into Peru, she must acknowledge the fact that not everyone welcomes missionaries. For many Third World people, missionaries represent foreign interests, brutality and colonization.
Wernicke keeps the story moving briskly, drawing on her own experience as a nun in Peru and explaining what life was like for women studying to be nuns in the United States.

[Jill Robbertze · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful little well written story, a refreshingly easy read. I particularly enjoyed all the descriptions, which really took me on this journey, both physically and emotionally. Although a romance is central to the story it is much more than that. My only criticism is that I found a couple of the decisions made by the protagonist, (Sister Mary Kate) seemed inconsiderate, irresponsible and out of character. I found this a little hard to overlook in spite of her emotional state.

[Linda Ulleseit · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this novel's setting in Peru. It taught me a lot about the culture while still delivering an incredible story. A young nun does the unmentionable and falls in love with a priest. She knows their love is ill fated, but she can't stay around to watch. She runs away. Her journey leads her (and the reader) through a discovery of the land, the culture, and herself. Beautifully written.

[Garymculver · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredibly well-written, deeply detailed glimpse into another world; that of Dominican nuns working in Peru and the emotional struggles they sometimes face. This fluent narrative engaged and carried me through an ice-stormy weekend.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this beautifully written story of a nun suffering a crisis of faith in a remote part of Peru, not only for its believably earnest heroine but its depiction of a vanished world -- the colonies of American nuns seeking to do good even as the world around them, and the role of women in it, changes forever. Author Wernicke is a former nun, and so it's no surprise that not only Kate O'Neill but the sisters around her feel both sympathetic and utterly real.

I love the novels of Graham Greene, but reading this book made me think for the first time about the perspectives they don't include -- the women who fall for his tortured Catholic heroes and the sisters quietly doing the work alongside wayward priests. What a welcome addition.

[Sally Cole-Misch · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'd never know this is the author's first novel -- the writing is superb, and the story rich in its setting and plot. We feel Kate's highs and lows as she explores her new world in Peru, questions her life as a nun, and feels the rush of first love. Toward That Which is Beautiful is just that, a lovely and loving story that embraces the reader from beginning to end.

[Barb · Rating 4 out of 5]

This could very easily have been a stereotypical "runaway nun" story, but that was not at all the case. Sr. Mary Katherine is anything but frivolous; she is clearly way over her head in terms of language, culture, and calling.

A very young missionary sister in Peru in the mid-1960s, Sr. Mary Katherine is ill-formed spiritually and ill-prepared by a crash course in Spanish to minister to a community where an indigenous language, not Spanish, is spoken and Americans are not entirely trusted. Hardship and isolation provide the perfect environment for her to develop an infatuation with an Irish priest who also ministers in the area -- and she is not willing to live without him. Reaching a breaking point, she runs away from the convent into the surrounding mountains without money, a coat, or a plan. 

Wernicke's beautiful prose carries the story along to a surprising conclusion.

[Rebecca D’Harlingue · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this wonderful novel, O’Shea Wernicke gives us a sensitive, realistic look at the inner life of a missionary nun in Peru in the 1960s. We are privy to the thoughts of Kate, the main character, as she begins to wonder whether she is spending her life in the place and manner that she is meant to. We come to know her and the other nuns intimately as real women. Like any group of people, they are not a homogenous group, but are individuals who have come to the religious life through faith. Each fulfills her vocation in a way that is particular to her.

O’Shea Wernicke does not shy away from looking at the problems of Peru at the time, but we also see the intrinsic worth of the culture of the people of the highlands. The descriptions help us to believe we can see the landscape and hear the haunting music of the people of the Altiplano, they who live at the place “which is beautiful.”

[Veena Rao · Rating 5 out of 5]

Toward That Which is Beautiful takes the reader on a journey through the beautiful, rugged Andean highlands of Peru and Bolivia. But it is so much more than just travel fiction. Through her protagonist Sister Mary Katherine (Kate), a young nun on the run from her convent in the Altiplano of Peru in the 1960s, Author Marian O'Shea Wernicke explores questions of identity, belonging, our place in the world, gender, and forbidden love. And it's the emotional and intellectual examination of the heroine's journey that makes this beautiful novel stand apart. I enjoyed visiting Peru and Bolivia and learned so much about life in a convent through the author's keen eyes. But I was equally invested in the heroine's internal journey! Plus, I'm a huge fan of good old-fashioned love stories, and this one tugged at my heartstrings. I look forward to Marian's next book!

[Evelyn LaTorre · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a beautiful read. In gorgeous prose interspersed with poetry and prayers, Kate introduces us to the world of the indigenous people of the Puno/Juliaca/Lake Titicaca area in the Andes of Peru. “Puffy white clouds bloomed in a sky so blue it was blinding,” and “faces lined with age and sun,” help us fall in love with the land, sky, and people, much as did this Catholic nun.
Kate is running away from her convent life and takes us with her on a tumultuous ride through cities and countryside, past desserts and along ocean fronts. As we go from Arequipa to Lima, we meet police patrols, Peace Corps volunteers, and tourists. Each bus ride introduces us to yet another group of passengers and animals, that represent the country's residents. Sister Kate must get away from the love she feels for a priest. With her, we panic and puzzle over her rash decisions. The alternating use of the first and third person orients us so we know where we are in time and we gradually come to understand what led up to Sister Kate’s dilemma. The story and the country remained with me long after reading the last page.

[Jill Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this thought-provoking novel Sister Mary Katherine, a young American nun journeys to South America in 1964 to serve the poor. Instead, she finds forbidden alluring love with a priest and runs away from the convent. The question is should she renounce her chosen vocation or return to a cloistered life forever? The lovely descriptive language and sensory details transport readers to another time and place of lush landscape settings, interesting characters, and far off cultures that prompted me to keep turning the pages. The fact that the author spent eleven years as a nun in that era and place didn’t surprise me at all.

[Courtney Halverson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was initially intrigued by this book because it is the story of a nun who goes on the run. I can say I have never read anything with that premise before. Not being Catholic it was really interesting to me to understand more about why people decide to becomes nuns and their journey to get there. Even if you aren't religious this book is about self discovery and listening to your heart to lead you on the path you are supposed to be on. I also loved the setting of this story...Peru. The author describes it in such a way that you feel like you are there.

[Annette · Rating 3 out of 5]

A well-written book that gives us a sensitive, realistic view of a nun's life working in Peru in the 1960s. Kate has highs and lows and questions her life as a nun and her discovery of first love with a priest makes life awkward.

Wenick's evocative description of Peru & Bolivia captures varying landscapes and beautiful people.
If you are a religious person, your appreciation of scripture and description of daily religious routines would be appreciated. This was needed to create the story, but I felt less would be better.

[Patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked that this author captured the feelings of other nationalities in countries where Americans rush in, sure we can solve the problems, while the local population is working on solving the same problems in ways congruent with their own culture. I also liked the transformation of a deeply religious woman who comes to realize that the vows she has taken are incongruent with her own nature and character, and seeks to set things right, without losing her religion. Her journey, mental and physical, brings her to a better understanding of herself and her journey through life.

[Dianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully written book of life and longing set in the other-worldly highlands of the Peruvian Altiplano in the 1960s. Not only does Ms. Wernicke give us the absorbing tale of one young novice nun's struggle to discover her place in the world, but she also provides a riveting glimpse of the vibrant culture of Peru.

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listen to this book and found the audiobook narrator, Elizabeth Klett, to be a very easy to listen to. I enjoyed the book and since I live in St. Charles County- which is near St. Louis - I especially enjoyed all of the references to landmarks I am familiar with. This book was selected for book club and I am looking forward to the discussion.

[Kalliste · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was an interesting read to begin with, but at one point I thought "surely this is the end, we can wrap it up now" and I was only 50% through.

The description of the landscape and the people is lovely, but the book could be half as long.

[Than Short · Rating 3 out of 5]

The voice was a bit mechanical, it was hard to relate to the main character with that. The storyline jumped back and forth between two time periods in the past and the present. It was done in a bit of a jagged way which was disruptive to the reading. Overall the story though is good.

[CR · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are you ready to go to Peru? This was a beautifully written story about the people, culture and their way of life. This was wonderfully and I can not wait for more.

[Lewestover · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another "self-discovery" book, albeit quite different in circumstance and setting than others I've read.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful!

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

My TikTok review: https://www.tiktok.com/@kellyhitchcoc...

[Jo Star]

Jo kindle

[Joni · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded to 4.