tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-49958057902919859262024-03-19T01:28:44.735-07:00The Mainstream Novels of Robert Hugh BensonIn 1909, Robert Hugh Benson — already renowned as a writer of historical novels and science fiction — entered the lists of mainstream authors, beginning an effort that resulted in some of his finest work.Michael D. Greaneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04845375895430004242noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4995805790291985926.post-36153472198711883442013-11-22T05:33:00.000-08:002013-11-22T05:33:08.903-08:00So Much Generosity<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">An Appreciation of the Fiction of Nicholas Cardinal Wiseman, John Henry Cardinal Newman, and Monsignor Robert Hugh Benson</span></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Michael D. Greaney</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>ISBN 978-1602100022 268 pp. $20.00 (U.S.) £18.00 (U.K.) $24.00 (AU)</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQFJ9ybGRIHgwNrbFomTkS-UvTVuGa5EMxKFUiMUrBDbxf4tbv3B-G_hxMo6VHOwcbBk_FBEISefPo9ZzVzO5u5jyVz3qweQhyphenhyphenpmgJAhPY_WeqV0Yki6tvPADXR1DD02kQT_fywfrcrG53/s1600/Screen+Shot+2013-11-15+at+3.08.41+PM.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQFJ9ybGRIHgwNrbFomTkS-UvTVuGa5EMxKFUiMUrBDbxf4tbv3B-G_hxMo6VHOwcbBk_FBEISefPo9ZzVzO5u5jyVz3qweQhyphenhyphenpmgJAhPY_WeqV0Yki6tvPADXR1DD02kQT_fywfrcrG53/s320/Screen+Shot+2013-11-15+at+3.08.41+PM.png" width="203" /></a></div>
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The late Dr. Ralph McInerny, Professor of Philosophy at the
University of Notre Dame du Lac, once commented that some Catholic novels are
so good, they’re bad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He meant that the
heroes are so virtuous that you simply can’t believe them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Worse, the novels try so hard to be
“Catholic” that they fail to be catholic, that is, universal, or even any sort
of realistic commentary on the human condition.</div>
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Worst of all are probably the novels that try to imitate the
authors profiled in this appreciation of the fiction of Nicholas Cardinal
Wiseman (1802-1865), John Henry Cardinal Newman (1801-1890), and Monsignor
Robert Hugh Benson (1871-1914).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Part of
this is due to the fact that many people misunderstand not only why these
writers wrote, but what they wrote.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Benson’s wonderfully barbed satire, for example, endeared him to Evelyn
Waugh, yet it is often characterized as “prophecy”!</div>
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This collection of biographical sketches and essays by Mr.
Michael D. Greaney, Director of Research at the interfaith, all-volunteer think
tank, the Center for Economic and Social Justice (CESJ) in Arlington, Virginia,
U.S.A., does much to dispel the misimpressions and misunderstandings many
people might have of the novels of Wiseman, Newman, and Benson.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>More than that, this compendium introduces
these works to a new generation of readers, and makes it clear that the authors
wrote for everyone, not just for Catholics, or even Christians.</div>
<br />Michael D. Greaneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04845375895430004242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4995805790291985926.post-55420639777031427692012-12-20T09:27:00.003-08:002018-01-17T11:28:15.262-08:00A Winnowing<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilNRcEy3lzs2WhNArCDR8u9USqU4RhmnWGhk0ZLog-_pudLWHEhwLrLpJ8i0ItH0mU8m7FPfCtUOiWgMG3ABzta3dA6hGftLMIYua4-NUT5H2uAVjnqTv2bZ2qu0dMgcriVIx-w8tMqke2/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-08-22+at+3.59.59+PM.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilNRcEy3lzs2WhNArCDR8u9USqU4RhmnWGhk0ZLog-_pudLWHEhwLrLpJ8i0ItH0mU8m7FPfCtUOiWgMG3ABzta3dA6hGftLMIYua4-NUT5H2uAVjnqTv2bZ2qu0dMgcriVIx-w8tMqke2/s200/Screen+shot+2012-08-22+at+3.59.59+PM.png" width="129" /></a></div>
<span class="fullpost">Mixing such seemingly incongruous elements as social satire, near-slapstick, and obsession with death, <i>A Winnowing</i>,
first published in 1910, is the first of Robert Hugh Benson's
"mainstream" novels. An undeservedly overlooked work today, the novel
flays Edwardian society in terms that bring to mind the comedy of P. G.
Wodehouse and the black humor of Evelyn Waugh. Benson's novel contrasts
the secular dogma that only the material world is of value with the
belief that death has meaning. (ISBN 978-1-60210-005-3, 224 pp.,
$20.00.)</span><br />
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<span class="fullpost"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Winnowing-Robert-Hugh-Benson/dp/1602100055/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1323962862&sr=1-1">Amazon</a> <a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Winnowing-Robert-Hugh-Benson/dp/1602100055/ref=sr_1_27?ie=UTF8&qid=1516217192&sr=8-27&keywords=Michael+D.+Greaney">Amazon UK</a> <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/winnowing-robert-hugh-benson/1103304701?ean=9781602100053&itm=10&usri=michael+d.+greaney">Barnes and Noble</a></span></span></div>
Michael D. Greaneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04845375895430004242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4995805790291985926.post-25488727076785246582012-12-20T09:26:00.002-08:002012-12-20T09:26:58.778-08:00None Other Gods<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwH3DJIjdn4kTiXFwObJ97WbG5h4L_wi3tE9L7iYCCYeYqt85HkxbjNAAh9sBJQIrO4j53veGbVIML2N_xUx05WWua0kxPiWeOW7zsq3eVA6Pt0yo0kua0Jznx1n4ulNdYTv4Xjr89YW-z/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-12-20+at+12.18.41+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwH3DJIjdn4kTiXFwObJ97WbG5h4L_wi3tE9L7iYCCYeYqt85HkxbjNAAh9sBJQIrO4j53veGbVIML2N_xUx05WWua0kxPiWeOW7zsq3eVA6Pt0yo0kua0Jznx1n4ulNdYTv4Xjr89YW-z/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-12-20+at+12.18.41+PM.png" /></a></div>
<span class="fullpost"><i>None Other Gods</i> from 1911 may be the author's least appreciated effort. Compared to Benson's more sensational works such as <i>Lord of the World</i> and <i>Come Rack! Come Rope!</i>, this novel reflects gentler, if more profound satire. <i>None Other Gods</i>
relates the story of Frank Guiseley, a young man who drops out of
college and tries to force God to instruct him personally on what God
wants him to do. People of all faiths can appreciate the growing
frustration and bafflement Frank experiences until he finally stops
trying to make God listen to him, and starts listening to God. <i>None Other Gods</i>
takes a look at our tendency to absolve ourselves of responsibility
and expectation that some higher authority, be it God or the State, to
take over and run our lives for us. (ISBN 978-1-60210-006-0, 312 pp.,
$20.00.)</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><span class="fullpost"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/None-Other-Gods-Robert-Benson/dp/1602100063/ref=sr_1_25?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1323963065&sr=1-25">Amazon</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/None-Other-Gods-Michael-Greaney/dp/1602100063/ref=sr_1_10?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324412899&sr=1-10">Amazon UK</a> <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/none-other-gods-robert-hugh-benson/1100591406?ean=9781602100060&itm=6&usri=michael+d.+greaney">Barnes and Noble</a></span></span></b></div>
Michael D. Greaneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04845375895430004242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4995805790291985926.post-65809492174959361702012-12-20T09:25:00.001-08:002012-12-20T09:25:44.575-08:00The Coward<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4Y_oK2eEVXObhdoMO1ll0enbgozzepoWzkbPJn0c-_O5umXEjwi50iGsMElPP_WMYeQe6gvoMQLy7GVT4dbPp5tTnY53hiNcGcsA2qF6o4WcSfA0WWFHx2pers2CbvPiy4k6FmK-n0dl_/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-12-20+at+12.18.09+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4Y_oK2eEVXObhdoMO1ll0enbgozzepoWzkbPJn0c-_O5umXEjwi50iGsMElPP_WMYeQe6gvoMQLy7GVT4dbPp5tTnY53hiNcGcsA2qF6o4WcSfA0WWFHx2pers2CbvPiy4k6FmK-n0dl_/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-12-20+at+12.18.09+PM.png" /></a></div>
<span class="fullpost">This third of Robert Hugh Benson's "mainstream" novels, <i>The Coward</i>,
first published in 1912, may have been the most shocking to the upper
class sensibilities of Benson's day. A young man is faced with
challenges and manages to fail at every step. He becomes convinced he is
an irredeemable coward — and only then begins to find courage. In a
damning indictment of close-minded Edwardian society, a supreme act of
courage on the young man's part is mistaken for yet one more craven act.
<i>The Coward</i> takes on the soul-destroying tendency to adhere unthinkingly to social conventions. (ISBN 978-1-60210-007-7, 312 pp., $20.00.)</span><br />
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<span class="fullpost"> <b><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Coward-Robert-Hugh-Benson/dp/1602100071/ref=sr_1_10?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1323963284&sr=1-10">Amazon</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Coward-Michael-D-Greaney/dp/1602100071/ref=sr_1_11?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324412899&sr=1-11">Amazon UK</a> <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/coward-robert-hugh-benson/1103331103?ean=9781602100077&itm=8&usri=michael+d.+greaney">Barnes and Noble</a></span></b></span></div>
Michael D. Greaneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04845375895430004242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4995805790291985926.post-71358989229360908032012-12-20T09:24:00.002-08:002012-12-20T09:24:37.852-08:00An Average Man<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgchao4cHmG0VDSy7RrHNVkoosZKn2e84T0dg3SX-L11YpOfRIiCjrFF2SKOAoVY1ozThlPhSxw-XBms9ccet5vVsWOY1HO_NlElgE2ebXCjPc4KkXtCiRMPTmcrHgoVgYNIRANpgrNQIrc/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-08-22+at+3.54.20+PM.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgchao4cHmG0VDSy7RrHNVkoosZKn2e84T0dg3SX-L11YpOfRIiCjrFF2SKOAoVY1ozThlPhSxw-XBms9ccet5vVsWOY1HO_NlElgE2ebXCjPc4KkXtCiRMPTmcrHgoVgYNIRANpgrNQIrc/s200/Screen+shot+2012-08-22+at+3.54.20+PM.png" width="131" /></a></div>
<span class="fullpost">The fourth of Robert Hugh Benson's "mainstream" novels, <i>An Average Man</i> is a far from average production. First published in 1913 and only appearing since in a limited edition in 1945, <i>An Average Man</i>
may well be Benson's finest achievement, as well as his most subtle
and mature work. It rips to shreds the assumptions on which Edwardian
upper class society believed civilization itself was built. Worldly
success destroys one "average man," while it presents another, afflicted
with seemingly endless and crushing defeats, with the opportunity of
practicing virtue of a heroic stature. <i>An Average Man</i> dissects
the idea that full participation in the common good is only for an
elite, promoting the revolutionary concept that life is for everyone.
(ISBN 978-1-60210-008-4, 340 pp., $20.00)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="fullpost"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Average-Man-Robert-Hugh-Benson/dp/160210008X/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1323963433&sr=1-2">Amazon</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Average-Man-Robert-Hugh-Benson/dp/160210008X/ref=sr_1_12?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324412980&sr=1-12">Amazon UK</a> <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/an-average-man-robert-hugh-robert-hugh-benson/1104638900?ean=9781602100084&itm=3&usri=michael+d.+greaney">Barnes and Noble</a></span></b></span></div>
Michael D. Greaneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04845375895430004242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4995805790291985926.post-64094461598476951172012-12-20T09:23:00.001-08:002012-12-20T09:23:30.132-08:00Initiation<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsIJNb-QBxO9F7hOjaHGFoMEc9Ci6LtdiwOW_SltokbGhnt62RlnDjVYpU-v_cm7Su87Fwa6O_9yfdeEeUrhiAqhijwpUiYuKC_jA_GkoqIuqydThTLJ9Gpujb3loG6F5esfbgQp5kots7/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-12-20+at+12.17.06+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsIJNb-QBxO9F7hOjaHGFoMEc9Ci6LtdiwOW_SltokbGhnt62RlnDjVYpU-v_cm7Su87Fwa6O_9yfdeEeUrhiAqhijwpUiYuKC_jA_GkoqIuqydThTLJ9Gpujb3loG6F5esfbgQp5kots7/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-12-20+at+12.17.06+PM.png" /></a></div>
<span class="fullpost">The fifth of Robert Hugh Benson's "mainstream" novels, <i>Initiation</i>
from 1914 is a complex work. It is a study of a man's redemption, or
initiation into his full humanity, through pain. The novel explores the
different types of pain with which people are afflicted — spiritual,
psychological, and physical — none of it deserved, yet all of it leading
to greater self-awareness and understanding of what it means to be
human. Despite the grimness of the theme, the novel is both entertaining
and profound. (ISBN 978-1-60210-009-1, 360 pp, $22.00)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><span class="fullpost"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Initiation-Robert-Hugh-Benson/dp/1602100098/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1323962862&sr=1-4">Amazon</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Initiation-Michael-D-Greaney/dp/1602100098/ref=sr_1_13?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324412944&sr=1-13">Amazon UK</a> <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/initiation-robert-hugh-benson/1103344845?ean=9781602100091&itm=9&usri=michael+d.+greaney">Barnes and Noble</a></span></b></span><span class="fullpost"><br />
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Michael D. Greaneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04845375895430004242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4995805790291985926.post-41193332071585903922012-12-20T09:21:00.000-08:002012-12-20T09:21:10.030-08:00Loneliness?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3QG28PoN_AoOvL0TwjAgDT1QJejXSV4ZKlXulziI3j9jUg0_hj03kb0ebllJqYtwqkSxPiVYYhhakU85Ze-xnkRkBZcl1cbKBCTX1oxVYhzIUAO7IT4L9dm7MSKkZGtc4-u2QcqMTDfzH/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-12-20+at+12.17.40+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3QG28PoN_AoOvL0TwjAgDT1QJejXSV4ZKlXulziI3j9jUg0_hj03kb0ebllJqYtwqkSxPiVYYhhakU85Ze-xnkRkBZcl1cbKBCTX1oxVYhzIUAO7IT4L9dm7MSKkZGtc4-u2QcqMTDfzH/s1600/Screen+shot+2012-12-20+at+12.17.40+PM.png" /></a></div>
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<span class="fullpost">The sixth and final of Robert Hugh Benson's "mainstream" novels, <i>Loneliness?</i>,
published posthumously in 1915, examines the life of a woman who
sacrifices everything to be accepted by people who can see her only in
terms of her singing ability and the roles she plays on the stage. They
abandon her when she can no longer fit into their preconceived ideas. <i>Loneliness?</i>
may be Benson's least known, yet one of his most insightful — and
entertaining — novels. It highlights the tendency to judge people for
what they can do for us, rather than their value as human beings. (ISBN
978-1-60210-010-7, 298 pp., $20.00)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Loneliness-Robert-Hugh-Benson/dp/1602100101/ref=sr_1_11?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1323962862&sr=1-11">Amazon</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Loneliness-Michael-D-Greaney/dp/1602100101/ref=sr_1_14?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324412914&sr=1-14">Amazon UK</a> <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/loneliness-robert-hugh-benson/1100102259?ean=9781602100107&itm=7&usri=michael+d.+greaney">Barnes and Noble</a></b></span></div>
Michael D. Greaneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04845375895430004242noreply@blogger.com