Issue 155

Book Review: Be Near Me (Andrew O'Hagan)

14th May 2007

Be Near Me is set in a small Scottish parish, and focuses on the life of Father David Anderton, an Oxford-educated priest who has been sent there to try and re-establish the faith amongst it's inhabitants.

However, Father David's friendship with two teenagers, Mark and Lisa, soon causes his life to become the focus of a media frenzy as the people of the town turn against him.

As Father David reflects on his past, on love lost and hopes abandoned, his own faith is put in question as he considers if he has been using the church as a hiding place from his own repressed demons and he realises that at some point our lives will always catch up with us.

Although the first few chapters seem rather slow, and the Priest's relationship with the teenagers seems not wholly convincing, at some point you become aware that this book has unwittingly gripped you like a vice. O'Hagan's talent lies in making you sympathise with characters you may ordinarily condemn.

His own moral stance remains refreshingly absent as he successfully tackles an ambitious and sensitive subject, writing with beautifully poetic prose that radiates humanity and raw emotion.

Kate Fletcher