The clowns of God - Morris West (First edition)

THE CLOWNS OF GOD begins with an act of high theatre. The reigning Pope, Gregory XVII, is a charismatic figure who has done much to give the Vatican a voice that is listened to both among the peoples of the world and by leading Governments. But suddenly he abdicates his office. The world press is informed that he is in ill health, but the facts are very different. The cardinals at the Vatican have closed ranks and given the Pontiff an ultimatum. "Go, or we will have you certified insane". 

The reason? Gregory XVII claims to have received a private revelation of the end of the world and the Second Coming of Christ. He believes that he must proclaim this revelation in an encyclical letter to the Church. The dangers of such a proclamation are immediately obvious: panic in a world already close to nuclear war, confusion among the faithful and a kind of millenial madness, of which there have been many examples through history. 

Is Gregory a mystic, a lunatic or a fanatic gambling for power? It is an audacious theme for any novelist, and Morris West handles it with the skill of a master craftsman. The sweep of the story, the rich variety of characters, the dramatic power, the quality of ideas, the passionate affirmation of dignity and hope, make this a rare reading  experience.

Morris West is already well-known as the author of such modern classics as The Devil's Advocate and The Shoes of the Fisherman. his latest work, THE CLOWNS OF GOD, is a rare thing: a daring and profound novel of love, faith and hope, a text for modern men and women who are - whether they like it or not - involved in the last dramatic decades of this century.