Sober and engaging ... Thoughtful (and appropriately skeptical) history of the alleged miracles and [Harrigan's] own moving recollections about the terror he felt growing up in the double shadow of nuclear and theological apocalypse.
Provides a colorful account of the 1917 appearance of the biblical Mary to three young shepherds in the village of Fátima, Portugal ... Harrigan uses the events of Fatima to paint a vivid portrait of Catholicism as an all-consuming faith that played on 20th-century anxieties with supernatural visions, apocalyptic imagery, and tales of eternal torment for sinners. Rendered in novelistic detail, this is a fascinating history of a mysterious event and its complicated legacy.
A profound exploration of faith, centered on famous apparitions ... The Fatima aspect of this work is well-researched and interesting, culminating in a visit by the author to various sites in Portugal connected to the visions and to the children. This book will mainly resonate with former Catholics and critics of Catholicism who, like Harrigan, are still actively searching for closure in spiritual terms.
