The Shoes of the Fisherman is a grown-up novel. Approach it that way and you’ll find it one of the more rewarding fictional reads you’ll ever enjoy.
High Point: Between each chapter, West provides excerpts from the key character’s diary. It’s an effective way to provide in-depth insight to the book’s events.
Low Point: None
Author: Morris L. West
Publication Date: 1963
Genre: Fiction
Forget the movie.
If you’ve seen the epic movie adapted from Morris L. West’s The Shoes of the Fisherman, you’ll still find the novel fresh and absorbing. Although some of the character names are the same, the main plot and sub-stories possess exciting differences.
West gives the reader an intimate look at the primary character, Pope Kiril I. Inserted between chapters are excerpts from the pontiff’s diary. These entries explain his thoughts about the previous chapter’s events or provide in-depth insight about action to come. It’s a unique but effective method that generates a more complete understanding of personalities and events.
The characters engage in numerous deep discussions and speeches dealing with theology, philosophy, human relationships, political power and, occasionally, even science. These talks and conversations do not diminish the flow of the narrative. Instead, they provide fascinating deep dives into the characters’ personalities, enhancing one’s understanding of the plot and its participants.
West leaves some loose ends at the novel’s conclusion. While he provides final scenes for all the subplots, he only hints at resolutions for some. It doesn’t detract from the novel, and in fact, instills additional realism. You think you know how those characters’ stories might end, but you can’t be certain.
The Shoes of the Fisherman is a grown-up novel. Approach it that way and you’ll find it one of the more rewarding fictional reads you’ll ever enjoy.
Quotes
| No man remains unchanged by the experience of power. Some are perverted to tyranny. Some are corrupted by flattery and self-indulgence. Some very few are tempered to wisdom by the understanding of the consequences of executive action. |
| But I am committed to all sciences, to biology, to physics, to the chemistry of inorganic matter, to philosophy, and to theology, because all are ranches of the same tree and the tree grows upwards toward the same sun. Never, therefore, can we risk too much or dare too boldly in the search for knowledge, since every step forward is a step toward unity—of man with man, of men with the universe, of the universe with God. |
Movie/TV Adaptation
The Shoes of the Fisherman (1968)
Sources For This Book
This book was purchased at the Ardmore Emporium in Ardmore, Oklahoma.
Free eBook (Project Gutenberg): Not available
Free Audiobook (LibriVox): Not available
Available to Purchase: AbeBooks, Biblio, Thriftbooks
