BACKING DOWN THE PROTESTANT TRAIL

Taylor’s debut novel examines the workings of a Christian congregation in a small Arkansas town.

Living in Quapaw County, Arkansas, in the late 1950s, Leon Martin is a World War II veteran who likes spending time with his teenage nephew Josh and making occasional trips to the horse track. Leon is a free thinker of sorts; while he attends church regularly and is even keen on attending a fishing trip with the local pastor, he finds some religious concepts, like the idea of Jesus being born to a virgin, to be unimportant. He is also against segregation in an area that is home to active members of the Ku Klux Klan. The narrative centers around the life of the Pine Chapel church, particularly as it regards Leon. The church is in desperate need of a new piano; when Leon wins a large amount betting on horses, he reckons that the best use of the money may be to purchase an instrument for the congregation. But would they even accept something that was bought with money won from gambling? Such are the concerns of the local people, who fret over the lewdness of Elvis Presley and consider certain portions of the Bible too lascivious for Sunday school teachings. While the story does incorporate some stock folksiness (like the local boys’ love of baseball and hunting for frogs), it shines in its nuanced approach to Christianity, questioning troubling Biblical stories such as Lot’s relationship with his daughters. (As one girl says, innocently enough, of Lot: “Can you imagine? Doing it with your own daddy?”) At the same time, Taylor evenhandedly depicts the Pine Chapel pastor as a force of good in his community who reminds his flock of the importance of “the living God.” Such contrasts make for a memorable exploration of the morality of this small congregation and the varied people who belong to it.

A thoughtful, heartfelt look at an American community that goes beyond stereotypical portrayals.