Starred review from April 12, 2021
West’s explosive debut charts the spiritual reckoning of a Baptist faith healer’s daughter. Fifteen-year-old Miriam Horton accompanies her family on an annual summer revival tour centered on evangelical conversion and healing throughout the present-day Midwest and South. As in years past, her father, Rev. Samuel Horton yearns to break the “two-thousand soul mark,” his ever-elusive goal for a successful revival season. Her father’s tour of perfunctory healing ends in Bethel, N.C., where a drunken man confronts the reverend, accusing him of fraud. Horton rebukes the man, then beats him in an uncontrollable fit of rage. Miriam surreptitiously watches the confrontation and its aftermath, and as a result her relationship with her father and her own views about spiritual healing are irrevocably altered. After returning home to East Mansfield, Tex., Miriam makes her first attempt at healing prayer with her best friend, Micah, who has become seriously ill with diabetes. More secret healings ensue, as Miriam’s personal spiritual awakening runs counter to the biblical injunctions stressed by her father and the Church. West does a fantastic job illuminating the struggles faced by women and girls in the Southern Baptist evangelical movement, and the change in Miriam is palpable and moving. West’s deep understanding of her characters and community makes for essential reading. Agent: Duvall Osteen, Aragi Inc.
April 15, 2021
Fifteen-year-old Miriam Horton is the daughter of a southern pastor. During a summer revival, Miriam learns of a secret about her father that changes her perspective on the supposed healing capabilities he's well known for. While Miriam questions her father's ministry, an accident occurs that causes her to learn of her own powers. She struggles with whether to live in her truth and bring her gift to light, or cower in the dull shadows behind her father. As Miriam leans into her feminist values, she starts to understand her parents more as people than as idols. In the end she learns that every gift comes with a price and not every ailment is meant to be eased. West's debut is a bold insight into traditional southern Christianity and its contradictions to contemporary perspectives on gender equality. She writes with a melodic cadence that is honest and often heartbreaking. Her characters are three-dimensional people who tug at readers' emotions. West's refreshing literary voice and thought-provoking perspective hint at a wealth of stories to come.
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May 1, 2021
A debut novel about patriarchal religion and faith healing. Every summer, Miriam Horton's family travels to midsized cities throughout the South so that her father can preach and heal. The summer of her 15th year is different, though. During the previous revival season, the Rev. Samuel Horton had assaulted a pregnant teen, and it seems that the Black evangelical community has not forgotten. Frustrated that he is no longer drawing large crowds, Samuel lashes out at those who seek his help and at his family. Miriam is navigating the spiraling violence within her home when she discovers that she has the power to heal--an ability she must keep secret from her father, who believes that a healing ministry is for men only. West delineates several sources of tension here, but she doesn't explore any of them in depth. For example, Samuel's fall from being one of the most sought-after preachers on the Southern Baptist circuit makes him angry and abusive, but Miriam doesn't tell us much about what life was like when her father was ascendent. Did she, her mother, and her siblings enjoy a status that they have now lost? Do they feel shame or resentment? Another issue is that, while momentous things happen, they seldom have serious or lasting consequences. Miriam heals her best friend of Type 1 diabetes, but then the illness returns. Miriam keeps on healing people who find out about her gift, but it's not clear what the results of her efforts are. Does she have the power to heal or doesn't she? The author can certainly choose not to answer this question, but it's weird that Miriam herself isn't much troubled by it. But, then again, Miriam doesn't have much depth, and the characters who surround her are barely developed at all. The people in this novel exist to serve the plot. West gives us a glimpse of an insular world, but it's not much more than a glimpse.
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Starred review from August 1, 2021
Miriam Horton's Papa is Rev. Samuel Horton, the Faith Healer of East Mansfield, TX. Every summer, the Hortons, a Black family, load up their van and bring the word of God to the spiritually starving in Southern cities. People pack into revival tents by the hundreds to witness the Reverend perform miracles on the sick and suffering. At 15 years old, Miriam idolizes and reveres her Papa for the healing work he has been gifted with. At the root of this idolatry is the striking juxtaposition that Papa is abusive to his family behind closed doors, and caused a scandal last summer when he assaulted a pregnant teen. This summer the Horton family is on pins and needles as they begin, hoping that people will have forgotten. The peace in their family depends on it. As the season gets underway, Miriam's faith and adoration of her dad is tested as she discovers more about her own healing abilities. Ultimately, this is a coming-of-age story, and a meditation on how the core values of Southern Baptist Christianity are in stark contrast to present-day views on gender equality. West's writing technique is precise and calculated-each word and sentence engaging and marvelous, every character masterfully fleshed out. VERDICT An impressive, special, haunting novel. Teens interested in literary fiction will be engrossed.-Gretchen Schulz, Schaumburg Township District Library, IL
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