Hank Heals: A Novel of Miracles

by David Guy

A lighthearted comedy about the way a spiritual teacher tries to empower his followers, but they invest him with all the power. “… brilliant, wise, moving, and funny. Like,  really  funny. … Spiritual writing like this is rare. “ Shozen Jack Haubner, author of  Zen Confidential   Henry “Hank” Wilder, a divorced loner, is unsuccessfully trying to establish a new Zen center when he accidentally cures an ex-girlfriend’s recurring cancer with his touch and discovers—at least this is what people keep telling him—that he has healing powers. Suddenly the empty zendo is overcrowded with Zen students who also want to be touched and healed by Hank. At first he resists, but when he cures a local Mexican boy of a bad limp, his reputation takes off. A TV story on Hank’s healings goes viral. The Latino community shows up, bearing food and icons of the Virgin of Guadalupe. Hank befriends a Catholic priest and falls in love again. When his life gets totally out of hand, he escapes to Mexico on a spiritual odyssey and finds out who he really is.

240 pages, Paperback

Published November 22, 2022

Reviews

[Kaylee DeBussey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five stars because it is my patient's book 😝 but also an easy read by a great author - a story of a zen healer that shows the power of energy.

[Les · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as the first one (“Jake Fades”). Much less about Buddhist practice and philosophy.

[Ken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hank Heals is a novel about a Zen teacher who seems to acquire the ability to heal by touch. The author has been steeped in Zen practice for decades and he depicts the main character in a realistic way. Hank is not born of some notion of Zen mystique and may not appeal to people who would put Zen on a pedestal. Like most teachers Hank is a real and interesting person with limitations and foibles. The novel has an engaging and realistic cast of characters such as one might run into near a major university. It addresses substantial questions. What is healing? What is curing? How clear is the line between the two? What of value do Zen, Catholicism and indeed probably all religions share? Given that for humans healing began in a religious context (shamanism), what does healing now have to do with religion? The story also illustrates how for most people maturation is a life-long process that occurs in bursts. These themes are embedded in an engaging and entertaining tale with a large dose of humor. The book left me feeling that its subject matter would make a good genre.