The Patron Saint of Ugly
Garnet Ferrari of Sweetwater, West Virginia, is known for three things: her flaming red hair, a body covered in port-wine birthmarks resembling a world map, and her occasional ability to perform miracles.  Garnet’s sharp tongue and ability to defend herself from the taunts of both strangers and family members have always worked well.  But now she is unable to fend off the hordes of pilgrims who have descended upon her hilltop home begging for her miraculous cures.  Her reputation has also brought Father Archibald Gormley, a representative of the Vatican sent to determine whether “Saint Garnet,” as she is known locally, is truly deserving of her name.  The Patron Saint of Ugly is a narrative of Garnet’s life as told to Father Gormley so that he may judge her worthiness. Manilla, whose first novel, Shrapnel (2011), won the Fred Bonnie Award for Best First Novel, has created a complex, endearing character, whose story will absorb readers from beginning to end.  Beautifully written, filled with detailed prose meant to be savored, Manilla’s latest is a captivating reminder of the blurred line between myth and reality. --Carol Gladstein