Written as a personal memoir on answering to God’s call to dedicate her life to Him, Maria Giura is struggling with understandable feelings for a handsome Catholic priest, father James Infanzi, and his libido and double life. Promiscuity instead of celibacy is the leitmotiv throughout this book in which ten years are needed to alternate between attracting and distracting, unraveling relational complexities, while going through the initiation stages of becoming a nun.
The reader is taken along a very personal, honest and touching coming of age. Both partners make their choices, where right or wrong can be black and white, but sometimes shades of grey too. Convictions and church culture often are at odds with human desires, tempted souls, and a weak flesh. Celibate: A Memoir is ultimately a story about surrender, forgiveness, and facing one’s deepest needs.
About the author
Maria Giura, PhD, is also the author of What My Father Taught Me, a collection of memory poems, which was a finalist for the Paterson Book Prize. Her writing has appeared in several journals including Prime Number, Presence, VIA, Italian Americana, Ovunque Siamo, and Lips. She has won awards from the Academy of American Poets and the Center for Women Writers and is a judge for the Lauria/Frasca Poetry Prize. Giura has taught Literature and Writing at St. John’s University, Montclair State University, and Binghamton University where she earned her doctorate in English. She lives in NYC
I received a free review copy from the author in exchange for my personal, unbiased opinion upon reading.
