St Giles is not unfamiliar with literary talent, but it is still delightful to report that one of our congregation, David Jessop, has written a first novel called The Vicar of Abchurch which was published on 30 September.
At the end of his working life, a vicar in the City of London thinks of himself as a failure: no one now seems to treasure the beliefs and religious practices of his youth; the church hierarchy is seemingly obsessed only with modern marketing and business methods which he doesn’t appreciate; and any love between him and his wife has long since vanished. Lacking any personal ambition, he takes on a rundown church and conducts his ministry there in the only way he knows: with understanding, compassion and Christian forgiveness. But in a few short months, the very building and its circumstances change him and his wife forever.
While the book concerns a fictional vicar, it is set in an actual church, St Mary Abchurch in the City of London, which many of you will know as it is one of Sir Christopher Wren's most beautiful and original creations, topped with a glorious dome. We wish David well with this book which is available in hardback and paperback from all the usual bookshops and of course on line from Amazon.