I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how many Lutheran pastors, pastors’ wives, and church workers write fiction. And today’s post is a review of just such a one, Rev. Alan Kornacki, Jr., author of the Thy Strong Word series of novels. Book one is titled Love Divine.
Rev. Kornacki has actually written four books, one being non-fiction: Lutheran Purgatory: Pastors Without Calls, which may be of interest to some of my readers as well.
Love Divine Review
I’ll go out on a limb here and say we’ve all met pastors. 🙂 They come in various personalities, senses of humor, etc., but they all tend to make a strong impression in both their practices and influence. At the same time, not everyone has been friends with a pastor or close with one. This series seems to me to be an attempt to remind people that pastors are human, too. They can date, embarrass themselves, and fall under disapproving eyes, even from potential fathers-in-law!
This was a fairly episodic book tracing a pastor and his new female friend through various experiences and adventures. Apologetics and teaching are sprinkled throughout as Pastor Corwin leads youth group, for example, or comforts the mourning.
One very significant perk to befriending a pastor is that he really can know just what to say sometimes! On the other hand, the book demonstrates that pastors are tempted by things, too. I would not read this out loud to a family just because it’s largely about a right-minded clergyman.
I’d say Love Divine is best read when you’re hoping to get to know a few characters you’ll want to root for. There is some minor language, derivatives of dumba**, but by and large this book explores love given & received and Lutheran pastoral life.
I’ve already started the next in the series, A Great and Mighty Wonder, and expect I’ll enjoy all three.
Happy reading, folks!