The Gospel Of Winter

The Gospel Of Winter by Brendan Kiely 296 Pages

Aidan’s dad has always been distant, traveling for work a lot, but now he seems to have moved out for good.  With just his mom and nanny around, Aidan feels somewhat lost, especially since Father Greg doesn’t have time for him anymore.  Aidan has been volunteering at the church and Father Greg has always been a mentor, father figure, and a comforter to Aidan.  Now, Father Greg, has other boys who he is helping.  Aidan’s new group of friends would like to help, but Aidan isn’t sure how to let them in, and some of them have serious problems of their own. This is a serious book about a serious issue.  It’s a good story and handles the situation delicately, but almost too delicately.  Everyone kind of dances around the issue of abuse until the very end and even then, nothing is ever actually said, only implied.  I think that the author may have been trying to focus more on the emotional aspect that the teens are dealing with, but it doesn’t quite work, at least for me.  I wasn’t drawn in enough.  I’m not sure that I would recommend this book unless someone wanted a book for teens specifically on this topic.