Posts Tagged ‘Vatican’
Well, we’ve made it through the full anthology. Virtues and traits demonstrated in the first 11 stories include:
Compassion & Conscientiousness
Loyalty & Courage
Respect for others
Truth
Right vs. Wrong
Honor
Contrition
Patience
Good vs. Evil
Equality
Responsibility
Take a gander at how these compare to our character education criteria too at the Litland.com website .
It’s been quite an adventure, on and off earth, in and out of space, deep into the minds of people, aliens, and hybrids. Often too much like life today, such as the surrogate raising of droids in Cathedral which mirrors today’s legal battles to permit renting a womb. Characters who seem to be losing their mind; hearing voices. Profound emptiness. Real friendship. Virtual delusions in Otherworld. A fast paced, well written collection, I recommend Infinite Space, Infinite God II for family and youth group book clubs as well as classroom reading…each story provides much to think about and discuss! A good teaching tool, but also just good ol’ fiction for all to enjoy!
12 days of sci-fi: The end!
Our final story is a bit of a mind-bender from the view of physical existence as well as spiritual beliefs…
Dyads by Ken Pick and Alan Loewen
Editor’s note: “The Church has not yet spoken definitively on whether or not the Christian faith applies to aliens… The current thinking is that God will manifest Himself to intelligent species in a specific manner that makes sense to them. In the case of the Thalendri–fox-like sentients who mate for life–God has revealed his sacred Trinity as Husband, Wife, and Eternal Dance. They also make it very clear that what is holy and right for Thalendri is not necessarily holy and right for humans…”
It is a time of post Vatican VI; post Islamic wars which desecrated all physical signs of the original Christian church including the Vatican. A post-apocalyptic religion story that portrays those of a sincere faith contrasted to self-possessed fanatics. Bucky Bible refers to himself as Christian but clearly acts contrary to the foundations of his faith; extreme Muslims who cause the Islamic wars, exterminating even their Muslim brethren; and fuzzy aliens who take revenge in the name of their fuzzy religion. Each chapter begins with an excerpt from Fr. Heidler’s travelogue, the insights of which set the tone. Read the various litanies of saints closely too, to see which are real and which are of a time not yet seen!
As indicated in the editor’s notes, this story purports that God manifests himself to aliens in a way that they understand. However, the attempt to demonstrate the alien religion is unacceptable for humans is based upon physical differences of the two species, and not theological error of the alien religion. This leaves the reader open to considering God’s relationship with his creation in a manner that differs from God’s revelation to us through scripture and tradition. As such, some readers may be offended. Given the general belief today that people do not develop solid judgment and decision making abilities until after age 20, this story might have been better placed in an adult anthology rather than one aimed towards teens. Therefore, parents are advised to consider this within their own family values.
(Alan Loewen lives near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, with his wife, three children, a Sheltie, a homicidal parrot and way too many cats. A pastor for two small country churches and a writer, he is working with fellow author Ken Pick on a trilogy that will further expand the adventures of Father Eric Heidler and Jill Noir, a character that appeared in Mask of the Ferret in Infinite Space, Infinite God I. His blog documenting his writing adventures can be found at http://literary-equine.livejournal.com/ .
Ken Pick (“Dyads”): Ken Pick is a computer programmer and moderately-practicing Catholic layman from Southern California. Cursed with a hyperactive imagination, he writes (among many-many other things) in an attempt to stay sane. He is currently working with co-author Alan Loewen expanding “Mask of the Ferret” (Infinite Space, Infinite God I) and “Dyads” into a braided novel, the first book in a projected trilogy. An additional story in the same arc, “Down to Cathuria”, appeared in the small-press anthology Different Worlds, Different Skins (AnthroDreams, 2009). The universe of “Mask of the Ferret” and “Dyads” has been gradually accreting in all its richness inside his head since the late 1980s; the first story published in that universe (the real story behind the “Choking the Chicken” viral video mentioned in “Dyads”) was re-podcast in December 2009 by AnthroDreams at http://anthrodreams.libsyn.com/ad-016-kill-23. He has been published in the print fanzine Yarf! in the distant past, and is a regular contributor to the webzine Freelance Traveller. )
Born and raised in Waterford, Michigan, Ann Margaret Lewis attended Michigan State University, where she received her Bachelor’s degree in English Literature. She began her writing career writing tie-in children’s books and short stories for DC Comics. Before Murder in the Vatican: The Church Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes, she published a second edition of her book, Star Wars: The New Essential Guide to Alien Species, for Random House.
Ann is a classically trained soprano, and has performed around the New York City area. She has many interests from music to art history, to theology and all forms of literature. She is the President of the Catholic Writers Guild, an international organization for Catholic Writers and the coordinator of the Catholic Writers Conference LIVE. After living in New York City for fifteen years, Ann moved to Indianapolis, Indiana with her husband Joseph Lewis and their son, Raymond. Together they enjoy their life in the heartland.
Now for some questions for this author!
Interview with the Ann Lewis
First, tell us a bit about Murder in the Vatican!
Ann: I have a tagline I like to use that also appears in the trailer: “A sudden death in the Vatican. An international incident over stolen artifacts. A priest’s wrongful imprisonment for murder.” But really, Murder in the Vatican is a collection of three stories (novellas) that tell “untold tales” from the Sherlock Holmes canon. “Untold tales” are stories that Watson mentions, but never gives us the details. With this book, Watson alluded to three Church-related cases, two of which deal directly with the Pope of his time, Pope Leo XIII. “The Vatican Cameos” is mentioned in The Hound of the Baskervilles, “The Case of Cardinal Tosca” is mentioned in “The Adventure of Black Peter,” and “The Second Coptic Patriarch” is mentioned in “The Retired Colourman.” So fans of the original stories can go back and find those references if they are so inclined.
Has anyone ever tried this sort of story before?
A: “Pastiche” writing, or writing Holmes stories in imitation of Conan Doyle’s style, has been done by many authors. Nicholas Meyer, Isaac Asimov and even Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s own son Adrian have given it a try. There are literally thousands of these kinds of stories published. (Curious folks and find an exhaustive database of Holmes-related fiction here: http://www.michael-procter.com/holmes/_index.html .) Many of these are takes on “untold tales” and all three of these very church mysteries have been tackled by other authors independently. But no one has written all three of the church mysteries mentioned in the original stories and collected them together in one volume.
It’s obvious that you imitate Doyle’s voice in this book (it wouldn’t be a Holmes story otherwise), but you also write in the voice of the Pope. What did you do to create a “voice” for someone who really existed?
A: You mean Holmes isn’t real? {Big cheesy grin} Seriously, though, Pope Leo was a writer himself, in fact one of the most prolific popes in history. So I read his writing—encyclicals mainly. He wrote about 85 of them. And I discovered that in the topics he covered, and how he addressed those topics, he was a man who was regal (he was nobility), extremely devoted to his faith (one would hope), and definitely loving and fatherly. This was confirmed when I discovered primary source material about him. I came across a great article by a contemporary journalist named James Creelman who personally met and interviewed Pope Leo—the first journalist to interview a pope. Creelman was an Agnostic/Protestant, but he was impressed by Leo’s brilliance as well his as soft-spoken, kindly nature. I also read a period biography that covered him quite well. Using works from that time helped me get a good picture of the type of man he was, and gave me good insight into his voice.
What is most difficult in writing a period piece like this?
A: Avoiding anachronism is definitely a biggie, but I think the hardest part for this project was imitating Conan Doyle’s voice. While I am familiar Doyle’s language, so is everyone else who has ever read Sherlock Holmes. I knew I’d have fans scrutinizing the text for mistakes. With Leo, I was imitating his voice as translated into English, so there was bound to be some leeway. In the Doyle’s case, you have his music or you don’t, and the pastiche will sink or swim depending on how well you sell it. It was an intimidating prospect.
And this book has illustrations!
It sure does! That was one of the neat thing we managed to do to give it the flavor of the original stories. When the Holmes tales were first published, they were all illustrated by wonderful artists, Sydney Paget in particular. And it is one thing I think most pastiches are missing. Rikki Niehaus did a fabulous job with her drawings. She even used the right pen and ink technique. Her version of Holmes is just as I imagine him and her Pope Leo is spot on. She’s very talented and I can’t wait to see more work from her.
How did you feel about fictionalizing Pope Leo XIII?
A: Popes are tricky guys to cover. Some people love them; some hate them simply because of who they are. I just wanted do him justice. He was a controversial figure in his own way, but a decent man who reigned at a transitional time for the Church. He was an important figure historically, and yet he is nearly forgotten. It mattered so much to me to get him right. And being Catholic I even asked him to pray for me. I made him, perhaps, a little more active than he really was. He was, after all, pretty old at the time the stories take place. But we’re not talking a Kung Fu action sequence or anything, so it’s all good.
A bit of spookiness in the book—you write that Leo XIII had a reported “vision” of St. Michael battling Satan. Is that a true story?
A: It is something that was documented by those who knew him and who were present when it happened. It is, apparently, the origin for the Prayer of St. Michael that was, prior to Vatican II, said after every daily (low) Mass. This prayer is still said quite a bit, and I remember being told this very story when I was a child. I looked up references to it to make sure it wasn’t urban legend, but something documented. I was amazed to find that it was.
So you’d say being Catholic helped you with writing this book?
A: Absolutely. It gave me a starting point—a perspective and a body of knowledge other people may not have. I still had to do research on the church of the time, of course. I began attending a diocesan-approved Mass in the Extraordinary Form (i.e. the Traditional Latin Mass) so I could learn about the Mass as Leo said it. I was eager to share the church as it truly was and is, as opposed to Dan Brown’s version of it.
What other books do you have in the works?
A: I have written one more Holmes piece called The Watson Chronicles that is more about Watson’s life near the end of his partnership with Holmes. I’m editing that now. Then I hope to jump into a historical novel that tells the true story of a priest in 1840s southern Indiana who was falsely accused of assaulting a woman in a confessional. Hopefully I can tell you more about that another time. J
I understand you’ve worked with other well-known characters—Star Wars and DC Comics?
A: I wrote The Star Wars Essential Guide to Alien Species in 2001 for Del Rey Books (part of Random House) as well as its second edition, The New Essential Guide to Alien Species (2007). The Star Wars gig was a lucky break for me. I was given the opportunity because I was familiar with the universe, but also because I had experience working with licensed properties. My second job out of college was working at DC Comics in their Licensed Publishing Department, so I had learned how to treat characters that belong to someone else. That was a must for Star Wars. The DC Comics stuff that I wrote is out of print, but I believe both editions of the Star Wars books are still available on Amazon.
Where can readers find you if they have more questions?
A: You can reach me by emailing me through my web site: http://www.holmeschurchmysteries.com/. Thanks for having me on your blog! It’s been great meeting you.
Welcome to Ann Lewis! I just reviewed Ann’s latest book against our character education criteria: Murder in the Vatican: The Church Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes. Three entertaining novelettes make for a quick yet entertaining read. It also provides opportunity for creative homeschooling, some ideas for which Ann gives us in her guest post below:
Presenting…
Ann Lewis!
Holmes-schooling
When Conan Doyle sat down to write the first Sherlock Holmes stories, his intended audience was teenage boys. Despite what he intended, girls jumped on them as well. Holmes had so many fans, and Doyle wrote him so convincingly, that many readers wrote the detective letters asking for help in solving problems as well as proposing marriage. I, like those the teens of yore, read him first at the age of 16 and have been hooked ever since.
The Sherlock Holmes books can still be read by teenagers, and they fit well into a reading curriculum. The character is a master of observation and deduction, and he solves crimes using the scientific method. Before there ever could have been a CSI, there was Sherlock Holmes. He is a great literary lead-in for learning about logic, clear-thinking, how science now helps solve crime, as well as part of a reading unit on authors from the Victorian period.
Now—most of the short stories are indeed fine for teens (especially as they were, for the most part, the intended audience), though there are a few caveats. With “A Scandal in Bohemia” one may need to explain to their teens what an “adventuress” was. And both “The Adventure of Black Peter” and “The Cardboard Box” deal with marital infidelity. Holmes is also a smoker and a drug user, this latter characteristic being one his friend Watson criticizes repeatedly. The good doctor eventually manages to get his friend off the stuff in later stories. Perhaps parents can use these character flaws as a point of discussion when focusing on developing virtue rather than vice.
Where should one start with reading Holmes? While the first one I read as a teen was the great classic everyone knows, The Hound of the Baskervilles, I recommend starting with the short stories, that way a young person can get a taste before diving into the deep end. You can print the stories out one at a time as they are available online here with the original illustrations: http://www.ignisart.com/camdenhouse/canon/index.html . Some kids might need a little help with vocabulary, especially since it is British literature, but most of it is pretty accessible.
For first-time readers, the stories I recommend the most are: “The Red Headed League,” followed by “The Blue Carbuncle” (especially around Christmas time), “The Speckled Band,” “Silver Blaze,” “The Greek Interpreter,” and “The Dancing Men.” After these, “The Final Problem,” and “The Empty House” can be read as a set. One could then progress to other stories and the novels, of which The Hound of the Baskervilles is the best.
Holmes is most known for the observations he makes of the people around him. He can look at someone and determine much about their life and what they do. For example, after examining a man’s hat in “The Blue Carbuncle,” he deduces that the owner had no gas jets in his house, that he had fallen on hard times, and that his wife had ceased to love him. In “Red Head League,” he can tell, at first meeting his client Mr. Wilson, that he is a Mason, that he was once a laborer, that he had traveled to China, and that he had done a lot of writing in recent days. In each case, after making these declarations, he explains how he knew these things, and his friend Watson is astonished at how simple it all was.
Homeschooling families can use this simple game of observation and learn how important it is in science and in life. Take time to go “people watching” in the park and ask your kids to play Holmes. Pick out a person and see how many things they can observe about that person. Then have them explain why they believe they are right. If they are bold (and very polite) perhaps they can go ask the person if they are correct. However, you do need to pick the right person otherwise you might get some strange responses. Or—perhaps introduce them to someone you know that they have never met and have them try to figure out this person’s occupation, marriage status, etc. However, they must not “guess”—they must observe, say what they think, then explain why they think that way. Holmes never guesses. J
In short, Holmes can teach kids how to reason in a logical, orderly fashion based on what they observe. Then, after reading Holmes, you can pick up the Father Brown mysteries—a character who solves crimes in a way completely different from that of Sherlock Holmes. But perhaps he will be the subject of a later post. For now, say to your kids, “The game is afoot!” and introduce them to Holmes and his Science of Deduction. You and they will never regret it.
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Thanks for the great ideas Ann! And Father Brown is a good suggestion to follow-up Holmes with too. Spring break leads into summer vacation, time to stock-up on these stories now!
MURDER IN THE VATICAN Lewis, Anne Margaret. (2010) Murder in the Vatican: The Church Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes. Indianapolis, IN: Gasogene Books. ISBN 978-0-938501-52-7. Author recommended age: Teen. Litland.com recommends 13+; appropriate for younger gifted readers
Publisher’s description: Follow the great detective as he investigates three baffling cases at the “express desire of his Holiness, the Pope.” Stories include “The Death of Cardinal Tosca,” “The Vatican Cameos,” and “The Second Coptic Patriarch.” You’ll encounter baffling crimes, rich, historical settings, and a fateful encounter with Father Brown! These thrilling tales of murder and intrigue vividly bring to life three of Watson’s “untold tales!”
Our thoughts:
Rich in detail but not bogging down the action, Murder in the Vatican has its reader on their toes from the get-go. In our first story, The Death of Cardinal Tosca, we know straight away the murderer’s identity, but how to prove it? And did he act alone? In contrast, the second story of The Vatican Cameos seems to have no answer until Holmes starts on the trail: “When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbably, must be the truth.” Finally the third short story, The Second Coptic Patriarch, gives us a brotherhood of suspects. So we set off on an adventure of three mysteries, all in the style of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle but from the hand of Ann Lewis.
Lewis’ dialogue, behaviour and self-talk of the key characters (Holmes, Watson, and Pope Leo XIII) is consistently believable. Throughout the three stories we see respect shown for his Holiness Pope Leo XIII, and personal explanations within character of Holmes and Watson which give us peeks into their past too. Holmes is classically impetuous while Watson is predictably polite; both as if Doyle himself had written the story. However, readers have the advantage of Lewis’ Catholic knowledge to explain details that aid understanding the context of the story. Of course, occasional references to past Holmes adventures brings the reader into the working friendship between these two protagonists as well.
Authentically-styled illustrations also take the reader back to the times of Victorian England, the setting for Sherlockian literature. Battles of intellectual wit between two masterminds, Sherlock Holmes and Pope Leo XIII, entertain the reader while adding depth to the characters. Each is respectful of the other: Pope Leo having clear advantage of moral insight, and Holmes having strength in logic. And yet when possibly pushing too far, the frailty of human behaviour and its consequences is dealt with lovingly.
And in a present day society where factions with opposing views are polarized, it is a refreshing reminder to see story characters in which divergent views can find common ground, even if only in their respect of one another. This is an excellent book for teens, while appropriate for younger gifted readers and certainly very fun for adults too!
Be sure to see our criteria review against character education guidelines at