Called Out Of Darkness: A Spiritual Confession by Anne Rice, New York, Knopf, 2008, 256pp. Finished 3/10/9; rated 9
Say the name Anne Rice and people automatically think of Vampires. Very sexually driven Vampires. Darkness. Anne Rice, the author of The Vampire Chronicles and a host of other bestselling books, was raised in a devout Roman Catholic family in New Orleans. In her college days she had a crisis of faith and became an atheist (her recollection of this moment is one of the most powerful in the book, and full of beauty and pathos). This book is her testimony of coming back to the Church and coming back to Jesus Christ. It is a passionate and achingly beautiful telling of her re-entry into the Christian life.
There are passages in the book that are breathtaking, and Anne’s deep devotion to Jesus is inspiring. One of the intriguing things she talks about is how her faith was pre-literate. She grew into the Christian faith, not based on words or texts, but based on routines and sights and sounds and smells – her early Christian life was very sensual, if you will. I find it interesting that someone that “in touch” with their five senses, and who had such a rich pre-literate life, became a bestselling author whose primary tool is words. Perhaps that is why her writing is so visual and aural.
Toward the close, Anne makes it clear that she now has a vocation – from now on, she tells us, she will write of nothing, save Jesus Christ. I am currently (3/09) reading her Out of Egypt, a novel of Jesus’ early years.
Books I've Read 