Life Goes On

Well, so, okay. It still doesn't make 100% sense when Sam narrates some of the Harmony books (including this one) in first person, slipping into omniscient narration about other people's lives at times. Even so, this is one of my favorite novels in the series so far.

Why? Because of the way Sam seriously has to face himself in this one, to consider what the heck he's been doing as a pastor since his early days in the ministry. While I'd say the aftermath of his reckoning eventually comes to an open-ended fizzle-out in a way, that particular door is indeed open now. So it'll be all the more interesting if it leads to a difference in the following novels.

Like every other Harmony book, this one had me laughing out loud plenty of times. And show more the ending is a heartbreakingly beautiful one. show less

This book was funny! Not as funny as The Christmas Scrapbook, perhaps, but vastly amusing nonetheless. This book is a series of amusing anecdotes set throughout the year, detailing the experiences of Sam, minister of a Quaker church in Harmony, Indiana. I enjoy books that make me laugh out loud, and this one did.

I think its biggest flaw, maybe its only flaw, was taking itself too seriously. Most novels have some central conflict that builds up until the climax, but this book, a series of funny vignettes, didn't necessarily need one. I didn't mind the central conflict that was introduced, but I felt that it was done in a very careless, hurried manner, as though it were only added in a later draft. About 80% of the way through, a schism show more threatens to divide the church, and many people want Sam fired. By this point in the story, however, it is too late for the book to be anything but a comedy, and the hasty resolution to the conflict seems far-fetched. The people pushing for him to lost his job suddenly, inexplicably, stop. The temporary lull is long enough for one character to draw everyone's attention elsewhere, and suddenly people are making up and inviting each other over for luncheon.

Still, improbabilities aside, this book is quite funny, a feel-good comedy about churchgoers. What makes them wonderful? What makes them terrible? What makes them so dreadfully annoying? And on top of it all, Gulley raises some profound questions about the role of theology in religious practice and the validity (and danger) of fundamentalism. Overall, a compelling book. show less

Equal parts hilarious and touching. Philip Gulley brings us more crazy antics and small-town heartwarming stories from the Quaker Harmony Friends Meeting House. I'd love to think he conjures the looney goings on of the parishioners from thin air but something tells me they are much closer to truth than they are to fiction! You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll want to read the next in the series right away.

Philip Gulley's Harmony series follows the daily lives of Quaker pastor Sam Gardner and his small town Indiana flock. Much of the humor in these novels comes through recognizing others -- or perhaps ourselves -- in the idiosyncrasies of the church and/or community members. In this fourth novel in the series, Sam, during a time of self-reflection, realizes that he has spent his career trying to please people by saying what they want to hear instead of speaking from his convictions. The contents of the novel suggest that Gulley has gone through a similar process. In the previous novels, Gulley illustrated church politics through controversies over church facilities or special events. In this book, Gulley addresses controversial political show more and theological issues in a way that might alienate some of his faithful readers. Although there were some very funny passages in the book, I sensed undercurrents of frustration and anger that detracted from my reading pleasure. show less

This is the 5th book in Gulley's [[[Harmony]]] series which follows the career of Sam Gardner, a Quaker minister serving back in his hometown in rural Indiana. It is full of the gentle humor that is the hallmark of these books, but also deals with Sam's dilemma of how to minister effectively to those whose views are narrow-minded without compromising his own principles for sake of keeping the peace (peace being a cardinal virtue for the Friends.) It's charming and thoughtful and a lovely story.

The fourth full novel in Philip Gulley's Harmony series details Sam Gardner's fourth year as pastor of the Quaker church in his hometown of Harmony, Indiana. The same quirky characters fill the local church, leading to laughter and no small amount of consternation for Sam and his wife.

Unfortunately, this novel seems less lively than the first three books in the series. There is a particularly humorous episode relating how miscommunication leads to someone driving through town during his own funeral service, but otherwise the laughs and the tears seem a little more contrived and a little more ho-hum.

Gulley himself is a fantastic writer, and the writing itself is strong, with an easy to enjoy pace and style (though interestingly, Gulley show more decides to have Sam narrate this novel himself, unlike others in the series). But the stories have a little less zing, on the whole. In some ways, this can be characteristic of life in the church -- things can even out after the pastor has been around for a while; it also can be characteristic of a novel series that is losing steam.

Not that there aren't pleasures in Life Goes On. Sam again faces some personal challenges, which are interestingly dealt with, with some unexpected participation from some others in the church. And the lovely single Deena Morrison, who seems somewhat out of place in the town, finds a suitor in a visiting (and handsome) medical doctor.

If you've spent time with the people in Harmony, you'll want to visit with them again. But the slightly empty space in your heart will be the recognition that this visit was not as special or as memorable as the previous ones. show less

Quaker pastor Sam Gardner is back, and the fundamentalist members of his congregation are testing his patience. He must hide his Progressive Christianity magazines and his true self for fear of offending the outspoken members of his flock. I really enjoyed this book. I would not think pastors like Sam Gardner existed if I had not met one in my lifetime. (Actually, he was a priest. I attended the Catholic Church until he left. His sermons were so cerebral and reasonable and full of comfort!) The Harmony novels are gentle comedies, and I look forward to reading more in the series.