The Gospel of Winter
*Starred Review* Kiely’s gutsy debut addresses abuse in the Catholic Church. The year is 2001, the events of 9/11 are only two months old, and 16-year-old Aidan’s family is falling apart. His father, Old Donovan, is holed up in Europe with his mistress, while his mother is mainly concerned with throwing the perfect party in their affluent Connecticut town. Aidan finds comfort in snorting lines of Adderall, swiping drinks from his father’s wet bar, and forming a friendship with Father Greg of Most Precious Blood, the town’s Catholic church. Father Greg uses words like love and faith and virtue like they mean something, and for a long time, Aidan trusts him completely. But when he realizes that Father Greg’s affections are sickening, and damaging other boys, he is left reeling. A crew of three friends—Josie, whom Aidan is attracted to; fun-loving Sophie; and Mark, whose secrets dovetail with Aidan’s—are the only people he can count on. The scandal among the Boston archdiocese in early 2002 gets Aidan’s town’s attention, and when it does, Aidan’s feelings of rage and denial and fear come to a head. This is challenging, thought-provoking material, presented in beautiful prose that explores the ways in which acts rendered in the name of love can both destroy and heal. Grades 9-12. --Ann Kelley