BOOKS
Stigma, Philip Hawley Jr. ’74 (HarperTorch). This fast-paced debut thriller moves between Southern California and the rain forests of Central America as Luke McKenna, a doctor with an enigmatic past, searches for the cause of a Mayan boy’s death. What he uncovers instead are signs of a global conspiracy with overtones of medical mayhem and murderous enemies he must evade. The author is a pediatrician in Los Angeles who has done volunteer work among remote Indian tribes in Central America.
Valentine: A Love Story, Chet Raymo ’58, ’64Ph.D. (Cowley Publications). In this imagining of the life of Saint Valentine, the author tells the love story of Valentine, a physician, and Julia, the blind daughter of a Roman jailer. The contentious world of the Roman Empire during the reign of Claudius II, when members of the early Christian church were publicly tortured and killed for what was viewed as a treasonous belief, provides a dramatic backdrop, as Valentine struggles philosophically with the ideas of reason and superstition, suffering, and life and death.
Relentless Pursuit: A True Story of Family, Murder, and the Prosecutor Who Wouldn’t Quit, Kevin Flynn ’79 (G.P. Putnam’s Sons). This memoir by U.S. Attorney Flynn covers more than the legal story of his prosecution of a man suspected of the murder and evisceration of Diane Hawkins and her teenage daughter, Katrina Harris. During the trial, as the author contends with the cancer diagnosis of his father and his own role as a father, he also considers issues of family and community, the procedures of justice and domestic violence.
For Notre Dame Fans Only: The New Saturday Bible, Rich Wolfe ’64 (Lone Wolfe Press). This collection lets Notre Dame friends and fans do the talking, as they relate tales from the amusing to the absurd. Among those offering sports-related ND memories are Senator Ted Kennedy; actor George Wendt, who says he flunked out of Notre Dame in 1968; Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger ’76; former North Carolina basketball coach Dean Smith; Officer Tim McCarthy of pun fame; Cappy Gagnon ’66; and Tom Brady Sr. Several Sports Illustrated covers illustrate the book.
Journey to the East: The Jesuit Mission to China, 1579–1724, Liam Matthew Brockey ’94 (Harvard University Press). The Jesuit missionaries who sailed from Portugal to China faced more than language difficulties in their attempts to convert the Chinese to Christianity. They also had to translate concepts of Catholicism to fit the traditional Chinese culture of the time. This narrative history of that mission is followed by a look at the Jesuits’ training, their program for learning Mandarin and Confucian thought, their evangelizing strategies, how they organzied their nascent church and the forms of group piety they fostered.
MUSIC
Even If I Fall, Reina G. Collins, Rob Barteletti ’71 (Old Sombrero Music). Songwriter Barteletti collaborates here with vocalist Collins for an acoustic roots-inspired CD. “Good stories and vivid images are important, but my art is about not taking life too seriously,” Barteletti says of his songs, which here include “Cain’s Lament” and “Youth Is Wasted On the Young.” More information and audio clips are available at www.rbarteletti.com.