cover image Bth-Wolf

Bth-Wolf

Martin Bell. Ballantine Books, $12.95 (182pp) ISBN 978-0-345-33773-3

Spiritual and emotional epiphanies are the subject of five simply told tales by the author of the well-received The Way of the Wolf . In the lives of ordinary people who become special by reason of their approach to others, the redemptive power of suffering and sorrow is explored. Reba, who works for leftover doughnuts, mothers a brood of retarded adults; young Conrad experiences a secret Christmas despite violence done to his family; Helen bridges a gap of 23 years of estrangement in finding her homeless mother; truant student Brady stumbles into a funeral where he makes a difference. Bell, an Episcopal priest, writes about characters who evoke the presence of grace in troubled environments. His inspirational stories bear the trademark of a great silver wolf's silent presence. (Jan.)