You can use your St. Louis County Library card to borrow titles from these partner libraries:
1 of 1 copy available
"Spellbinding...Revival Season should be read alongside Alice Walker's The Color Purple and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Purple Hibiscus." —The Washington Post
A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice
Every summer, fifteen-year-old Miriam Horton and her family pack themselves tight in their old minivan and travel through small southern towns for revival season: the time when Miriam's father—one of the South's most famous preachers—holds massive healing services for people desperate to be cured of ailments and disease. But, this summer, the revival season doesn't go as planned, and after one service in which Reverend Horton's healing powers are tested like never before, Miriam witnesses a shocking act of violence that shakes her belief in her father—and her faith.
When the Hortons return home, Miriam's confusion only grows as she discovers she might have the power to heal—even though her father and the church have always made it clear that such power is denied to women. Over the course of the following year, Miriam must decide between her faith, her family, and her newfound power that might be able to save others, but if discovered by her father, could destroy Miriam.
Celebrating both feminism and faith, Revival Season is a "tender and wise" (Ann Patchett) story of spiritual awakening and disillusionment in a Southern, Black, Evangelical community.
-
Creators
-
Publisher
-
Release date
May 25, 2021 -
Formats
-
OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781797124636
- File size: 242458 KB
- Duration: 08:25:07
-
-
Languages
- English
-
Reviews
-
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. -
Joniece Abbott-Pratt's performance captures the fear and exhilaration of 15-year-old Miriam Horton as she travels the revival circuit with her family. Abbott-Pratt narrates in a fast-paced style that suits the high emotions of revival meetings, which are the focus of the plot. She expertly emulates Miriam's troubled voice when things go wrong. Miriam's famous father, a boxer turned preacher, travels the Deep South to save souls and heal the sick. But when the autocratic preacher/healer loses his gift, a brutal side of him emerges. Ironically, the spiritual gift remains in the family--Miriam herself becomes a faith healer. As the plot etches a story of patriarchy at its worst, the listener feels Miriam's pain and sees the harsh Preacher Horton for who he is. A.D.M. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
-